How many of you use old equipment because you enjoy it?

I'm just curious if there is anyone else like me? Everyone around me all have new tractors with cabs and here I am using my old stuff for two reasons. It's what I grew up using so I know how to use it and because I enjoy using it. I think old tractors and machinery have personalities. I remember being a kid and riding the fender of our Ferguson TO-30 and MF 165 and I would watch and study whatever piece of equipment we were using at the time. I would try to figure out how it worked. I just have fond memories of the old equipment. Nothing would make me more excited than to get off the school bus and see that the corn picker was hooked up. I only got to see it and use it a couple of days a year. Now here I am 30 years later choosing to use the same stuff. I often laugh because I will see people driving out the road and they will stop and watch and even take pictures of me out there chugging along. I enjoy my plow time...I love the smell of freshly turned soil. I love the smell of freshly mowed hay. Is it silly to use old stuff? Possibly...it takes longer, may even cost more money, and certainly tractors with cabs are better for your health,but would I trade? Probably not

I have newer stuff for income producing labor, and my older stuff to use when I want to.

If I ran all the old stuff I would never get all of the land farmed.
However, I do keep old stuff around when feasable because I
like it and it is easy to maintain. I always grind feed with my
Farmall M. My straight truck is a 1958 GMC. When you drive
by you might catch me mowing the yard with a 47 Farmall A
and belly mower. No tractor here is newer than the 90's (only
one of those) and the implements are at least 30 years old.
That's kind of antique!? I just baled 2000 square bales with
the 24T behind the 4020. She did a good job. A little hot when
it is 100, but everything else has duals so I do it the way we
did it years ago. We all lived then and it won't kill me now.

I always thought the Super 92 combine we had was old. The JD 9500 combine I use every harvest is older now than the Massey was then. I'll use that sucker until my dying day, too. Newer ones are too complicated.

I use a lot of my old stuff cause I like to but it get"s me quarantined from the other farmer"s cause they think it means you can"t farm good enough to get the new stuff. And land owners believe it too. Lucky for me I got my own farm and I quit caring about what others perceived a long time ago.

I finish graded my back yard with a '54 Simplicity model V walk behind tractor.. It wasn't a Deere 450-C by any standards.. Didn't have a dozer blade , so I made one.. Rolled the sheet of 7 ga. steel with 2 - 2X4's and my military pick-up front tire.. Worked sweet...Plus , I've got a little over a hundred bucks tied up in the whole rig.. Used it at tractor shows with dump cart for transportation around the grounds..

Out of 35+ tractors the only one I bought new is a
2000 MF 241. Guess which one has an open safety
switch that will not let it start? Thats why I like
old iron!

I see one poster had the same thought as I. I have many old and even older tractors and equipment. I keep the old stuff for play but I use the newer tractors and implements for serious farm work. Let's face it, we have to get the hay when the weather is right and we need to plant crops when the season is right. We can do it all if we plan it right

I do, I run old stuff because I enjoy it, and I brings back memories, sure I have to work on it once in awhile, but at least I can work on it, I drive older trucks because that's what I like, they actually rarely break down, and if they do trash an alternator, water pump, or something its usually less than 50 bucks for a new one and 10 to 30 minutes to put it on, there robust and hard working and do what I want them to do and most of all none of the 7 have any payments, nor have they for decades,

You can use old iron when your not pressed for time or livelihood. I like older simpler stuff too but still have newer stuff for the serious income producing activity. Now that does not mean that it has to be the latest and newest. Just new enough to be productive and dependable enough for your operation.

The size of your operation is a critical part of this as well. Also are you retired??? Can you survive if you have a lower income if the crop does not get planted/harvested in a timely manner??? All this plays into the equation.

Even my "newer equipment " is not all that new. They do the job as good as the newer stuff will and are all paid for years ago. I use some of the really old tractors mostly out of habit I think.

I like to use them every chance I get. For all sorts of tasks. Bigger tractors are usually tied up on something and the old ones are usually free. That's a JD G with 480 IH disk with wings removed. LOTS of gas burned disking that 21 acre field. But I loved every minute of it!

I use older equipment because it is cheaper, proven, and I can repair it myself. I am not one of the BTO's and I am also not on 10 acres. Somewhere in between and older equipment means higher bottom line for me. No spare time to speak of...but I have a high gross margin.

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I have all older equipment, my newest tractor is
a 1968 model 756d Farmall. That tractor is
currently tore down due to a spun rod bearing and
will be out for my final crop of hay this year
again. Last year it missed 2nd crop due to the
PTO being out. I was out with a my early 60's 460
Farmall the other day and snapped a spindle on
the front axle. 3 hours lost and $125. It just
never seems to end. 2 weeks ago a rear rim
rusted out on the 460 and took out the tube.
$450 for a new rim and tube installed.

I have fought the urge to buy a newer tractor due
to my small size operation, currently about 50
acres of hay but shooting to be 100+ acres in the
next few years, but I am about to give in. I
have looked at several tractors less than 10
years old, they scare me due to the electronics
on them. I have looked at a couple tractor from
the early to mid 90's and I think I may buy one.
There are electronics on these, but still simple
enough to troubleshoot. Tomorrow I'm going to
look at one that looks promising.

I think these older tractors are enjoyable to
operate, but they are certainly past their prime
and getting a bit unreliable. Most of mine have
8000-10,000+ hours and 40+ years on them. The
reliability has just dropped to a point where I
can't count on them getting the job done anymore.

Farming is my hobby, any time I spend farming is
time away from my income producing business, so
time spent repairing equipment really is pretty
expensive for me.

I'm not saying newer is better, I'm just gonna
give it a shot. I very well maybe back here
b!tching about the new machine in short order, we
will see.

My farm is out in the country 8 miles from town
where I live. In town I have 14 acres.it was a
real pain to move equipment back and forth. In 87
I got grandpas steel wheeled drill out of the
pasture and brought it to town.

It worked real good for 14 acres. Did not have to
mess with flat tires, hydraulic hoses etc just
grease it and I was ready.I pulled it with my SC
Case.
At the farm I had a JD 8200 drill. Every fall I
would spend $200 replacing rubber seed tubes,
press wheels and other plastic parts.I rented the
farm in 06 but kept the 14 acres in town. I took
the 8200 drill to town for my 14 acres. That was a
mistake. I was still buying a hundred dollars or
more of parts for it each fall. Had to move the
hydraulic cylinder back and forth from my disk.
With grandpa's old van brunt my 14 acres was
yielding 32-35 an acre. With the 8200 drill it was
the same. My expense went up maintaining the 8200.
I sold the 8200 and went back to the steel wheeled
Van Brunt. Since 87 I have only spend $7.00 on the
Van Brunt for a new spring.

I also sold my 18ft crust buster spring tooth and
bought a 12ft 3pt hitch dearborn spring tooth for
$25. By getting rid of the 8200 drill and the
crust buster I have six less tires to buy and less
hydraulic hoses. That saves me more money.

This spring someone offered me $80 an acre so I
now have my 14 acres rented. But I will kept the
old equipment. it is all paid for and with steel
wheels or 3pt hitches I won't have many
flat/rotten tires.

For smaller acres, the OLDER equipment you can
find the better off you will be.

I had a neighbor across the street that had five
acres. he planted it to oats every year and baled
it for hay. He told me he made enough money off
his oats to pay is property taxes. his equipment
was all most all Ford. 8n tractor,3pt dearborn
mower,rake,plow,spring tooth,and disc. 6ft
McCormick drill, and NH baler. other than the
tractor he only had four tires. two on the baler
and two on the drill.
I'm sure if he had newer equipment he would have
lost money on his 5 acres.

I have two working girls, IH C and Jubilee. Both
are in very good health despite their age. I use
them for mowing, pushing snow, pulling lawn roller,
pulling dump trailer, dressing gravel drives,
leveling dirt, disking, rock rake. You couldn't
trade me a new tractor for my old working girls.
They will last me a life time.

And yes, they remind me when I was a kid growing up
on a dairy farm.

I have 2 1968 Simplicity Landlord 2110 garden tractors. they are so well made that the one has never had engine work done on other than points & plugs. it would be the case for my dads tractor, but was flooded in 1972 agnes flood so a new engine was put in, but the tranny & bevel gear is original. all the assessories mower deck, snowblower, tiller garden plow & snow plow are working after 46yrs-they just dont make um like that anymore.

we are in parallel worlds lol ... 58 chevy grain truk ,my (new )75 ford grain truk is older now than the 58 when I got it ... my 750 mf combine is newer than every thing else ,,.. except for dsic mower ,, but its down this yr and I used a old mf 41 mower..

I use older equipment because.
1. things from the 40's and 50's were in my price range 6 years ago when I started.
2. They are easy to work on and I can still get parts for them
3. A tractor is a tractor to some extend if the horsepower is the same.
4. They are kinda neat and it is sorta' fun to have people slow down and take pictures of me as I move equipment down the road.

I am trying to get newer equipment (70's and 80's) because...
1. I just can't get enough work done with the size of stuff available in the 60's and older.
2. Landlords don't see me as a real option with antiques.
3. The old stuff is just flat wore out.

I don't think I will try to get newer than early 80's until I have enough farm to quit my job. That era seems to be the best match for me between cost of operation and work done per hour. Much bigger than that and I can't get down the driveway/through the gate of the places that are available to me.

My newer stuff is late 80s early 90s, old stuff is 50s and 60s.

I guess by most standards most of my stuff is considered old. For me it's because the size of my operation new equipment isn't feasible. My newest tractor is 20 years old and my hay equipment is 10+ years old except for a 2 yo disc mower. Playing around with 50 yo equipment is OK but when it comes to getting the job done I prefer newer when I can afford it..

(quoted from post at 17:45:46 08/31/14) I'm just curious if there is anyone else like me? Everyone around me all have new tractors with cabs and here I am using my old stuff for two reasons. It's what I grew up using so I know how to use it and because I enjoy using it. I think old tractors and machinery have personalities. I remember being a kid and riding the fender of our Ferguson TO-30 and MF 165 and I would watch and study whatever piece of equipment we were using at the time. I would try to figure out how it worked. I just have fond memories of the old equipment. Nothing would make me more excited than to get off the school bus and see that the corn picker was hooked up. I only got to see it and use it a couple of days a year. Now here I am 30 years later choosing to use the same stuff. I often laugh because I will see people driving out the road and they will stop and watch and even take pictures of me out there chugging along. I enjoy my plow time...I love the smell of freshly turned soil. I love the smell of freshly mowed hay. Is it silly to use old stuff? Possibly...it takes longer, may even cost more money, and certainly tractors with cabs are better for your health,but would I trade? Probably not

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My newest tractor is my MF 175. I was looking around when I bought it and could have gotten a newer tractor but I love the 100 series Masseys. Always have...I bought it from my local Massey dealer who I have known a long time and he told me that none of the new tractors can get the fuel economy that the older ones did. So I consider that a plus. If your like me you start off with one thing and work your way up to something a little better. I first mowed hay with a sickle mower. Now I use a NH 488 haybine which is fine by me. My first baler was a Vermeer 504G and now I have a 605J. But I have other stuff that I wouldn't replace. Believe it or not I do 90% of my work with a Ferguson TO-20. That tractor always cranks and it never gives me any problems. It's not the fastest but it always comes thru. I even picked my corn with it last year. I take it and do work for other people too. Most people don't mind if I use my old stuff I guess for one reason is I don't have to charge as much as some people who are having to make payments on their equipment. Maybe I'm wrong. I know a boy I went to school with and he rented 40 acres for hay. He bought a brand new NH four wheel drive,V rake,etc...and I can't figure out why. It just doesn't make good sense to me.

I forgot...my main truck is a 1978 F150!

I have a small field. I use a 1951 Case DC.

Mow lawn with a 1972 Case 220 or 1974 Case 444.
Easy to repair.

All of the small puttering jobs around the farm are done with little old tractors. The field work is done with the newer big ones. I have no desire to re-live the old days doing field work with old tractors and equipment. Jim

I use my 8n for everything. I just about only start my big tractor, when I roll hay, or need the FEL for something.

I prefer newer. As I get older creature comforts are nice. Unfortunately I can't justify pretty new although I may start looking for a mid 70's 125 HP tractor with a nice cab with AC and heat. Right now I have a 1206 and M Farmall and 2 8N's. When ever possible I use the 1206. PS and a better seat! The M is just uncomfortable to operate and I don't need practice being uncomfortable.

Rick

"And I don't need practice being uncomfortable". You hit the nail square on the head Rick.

I Use the old stuff because it is paid for and still runs good and it serves my needs.
I new tractor would be nice but i just can't justify the money out lay.
A couple earplugs are a lot cheaper than a sound proof cab

100 acres of hay is not a hobby, you need good equipment or the weather will never let you get done.

(quoted from post at 09:45:46 08/31/14) I'm just curious if there is anyone else like me? Everyone around me all have new tractors with cabs and here I am using my old stuff for two reasons. It's what I grew up using so I know how to use it and because I enjoy using it. I think old tractors and machinery have personalities. I remember being a kid and riding the fender of our Ferguson TO-30 and MF 165 and I would watch and study whatever piece of equipment we were using at the time. I would try to figure out how it worked. I just have fond memories of the old equipment. Nothing would make me more excited than to get off the school bus and see that the corn picker was hooked up. I only got to see it and use it a couple of days a year. Now here I am 30 years later choosing to use the same stuff. I often laugh because I will see people driving out the road and they will stop and watch and even take pictures of me out there chugging along. I enjoy my plow time...I love the smell of freshly turned soil. I love the smell of freshly mowed hay. Is it silly to use old stuff? Possibly...it takes longer, may even cost more money, and certainly tractors with cabs are better for your health,but would I trade? Probably not

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I run old tractors and newer implements...I do custom work and this old tractor (40 years old) has features that a newer tractor can't match. If I have a problem I hook up another...I have 5 of this model. All 5 cost less than one new "modern" tractor of this size. Low overhead, ease of maintenance and repairs, and modern features make it hard for the competition to outbid me on a job.....

(quoted from post at 20:10:54 09/02/14) 100 acres of hay is not a hobby, you need good equipment or the weather will never let you get done.

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00 acre hay is peanuts.
Good equipment will never pay for itself on that itty bitty plot