Cant Decide on tractor

Howdy, we recently bought some property 14 ac and I am looking to get a tractor to do some mowing, driveway grading, and fence building. I thought for a while I'd just go buy an 8n due to how cheap and plentiful they are, but then I stumbled upon a couple of JD 1020's for sale in the $4500 range. Im very partial to the green n yellow, we have a 4020 and 4440 down at our family's ranch that I grew up driving and still use frequently. I realize these two are very different animals. Size wise they're about the same with the JD slightly larger and more hp and basically better everything. But I could buy two 8n's for the price and get a shredder probably included with them. Anybody got experience with the 1020's that could tell me a little about them/vouch for them? I don't know much about them, meanwhile I just finished up rebuilding an 8n for my dad so am very familiar with them.

The 1020's I been looking at are gas. Also, what is with some of them having a vertical exhaust through the hood and some having it run down underneath the running board? Any preference here?

If you are going to be making hay get the one with the stack going up. You wouldn't want to start a fire with the under belly exhaust.

The 1020 is twice the tractor and your resale or trade value is much better. And the vertical exhaust is preferable too. The under the tractor exhaust is for driving under low hanging branches or into low buildings. But it?s a hazard if haying , cutting dry grass or getting stuck in the mud.

1020 is way more than 2X the tractor. No issue. Jim

If your tractor is running rich, vertical exhaust or you will smell like gas.

First thing I did was put vertical exhaust on my Jubilee.

One problem with the N's, no 2 stage clutch.

Using for mowing, for safety sake it will need an over running clutch.

Odds of finding a ready to use N are slim, even the 1020's are pretty old.

Shop carefully, easy to think it's a bargain until the problems start popping up.

Be careful buying a 1020 as there are some without live pto. It was an option and some places many were sold without it. The 1020 is a very good small tractor and I would say three times the tractor the 8n is. Tom

8n tractors has gotten real cheap for a reason. get a tractor that has power steering and live pto. you will be happy later with it and resale is better. don't get in a hurry.

Forget about a Ford N. The NAAs and "hundred series" Ford tractors that followed are a totally different story. They are some of the best tractors ever made and, with proper care, will be running one hundred years from now. And, they don't cost very much more than an N. The John Deere 1010/1020s are not in the same class as the 4020/4440s you're familiar with.

I had a 1020 diesel. It was a great tractor. I got a 1630 later. It is 10 more HP and a much superior tractor. The JD hydraulic system and steering is much better than most. There was one for sale with a loader for $7500.Can. I was tempted but don t really need another work tractor.
Dave

You should not say 1010 and 1020 in the same sentence. The 1020 has nothing in common with the 1010 other than the paint and maybe the fuel cap. A 1020 is the same quality as his 4020. You are thinking of the 2010 which had plenty of problems. Tom

I have a 1967 gas 1020. No loader but still one of my favorite tractors. I mow, and often rake with this tractor. Great power steering and brakes. Mine has the under footboard exhaust which I like. No exhaust in your face. Not so great though when you are hooking up an implement. You smell it then. The only issue has been the fuel gauge. I?ve just had a terrible time keeping it working.

I've got two tractors at my rural place. One is a 1955 Ford 600 and the other is a John Deere 301A gas industrial which is very similar to the 1020 agricultural model. The Deere is two decades newer, has a more comfortable seat, live PTO, power steering, a dual range transmissions so it can operate at slower speeds, and is just larger and more powerful. Most of my tractor use is mowing.

I use the Ford with a 5' finish mower. I'm sure that it could handle a wider mower, but my "finish mowing" area is more pasture like than a city lawn. A wider mower would cut faster, but the quality of cut diminishes because the wider mower is more likely to scalp the high spots and leave taller grass in the low spots.

I use a 7' flail mower with the Deere--mostly for areas which I mow infrequently and for mowing trails through the back of my property. (My property is "reclaimed" mining ground with quite a few rocks on the surface. The flail mower came with the tractor and does not throw rocks as bad as a bush hog.)

I've found that the two major disadvantages of the Deere is that it uses considerably more fuel and parts are much more expensive and more difficult to find. The additional cost of more fuel for the Deere is relatively minor in the grand scheme of life, but is a more major aggravation when you have to haul fuel in five gallon cans from a nearby town and store it in your barn. The old Fords were made in very large numbers a lot of parts were interchangeable between several model tractors made over a long period of time. Aftermarket parts seem to be readily available at many places at low prices. Parts for the three cylinder gas engine Deere tractors aren't stocked at most farm stores and are much more expensive. For example, both of my tractors have horizontal exhausts. Replacing the Ford exhaust from the manifold back was less than $100 total in parts. Replacing the Deere exhaust from the manifold back is more than $600 in parts.

If you've rebuilt an 8N, then you already know the limitations of these tractors: low power, non-live hydraulics. It's 1940s technology; a good enough tractor in its day but now very long in the tooth. I'm not familiar with the 1020, but at least it's 1960s technology. Much more power than the 8N, live hydraulics. IT may have live or independent PTO.

If you're going to be working around trees, it's real nice to have the exhaust running under the tractor so you don't have to worry about tearing it off on a low branch. Most folks prefer the high exhaust for open fields.

get a 3020

If you are retired with have all the time in the world a Ford N tractor will let you use all day to get something done. If you are working and and burning up precious home-time/vacation time, get something newer and much handier.

A 1020 would be a big step up from an N, but they are all approaching or already past 50 years old now too. If you did get an N, you will probably need a different type of second tractor.

Don't overlook the Massey Ferguson 135 with the Perkins diesel, they are easy on fuel, usually have live pto, parts are cheap/plentiful, and easy to work on.

I would agree if you want a Ford look for NAA or newer. You already know what an 8n is, if you move up you can have live hydraulics, add remote Hyde valves if needed and with 1955 and up get live pto via 2 stage clutch if wanted on some models. A 1020 is also a lot more tractor than an 8n. I am not trying to bash the 8n it is a good tractor but a little newer one gains a lot of good features.

Thanks for the replies everyone. I know the two tractors are in a different class. If I went with a ford I would probably opt for an NAA. I just didn't know much about the 1020's which is why I asked about them. If I can find a 1020 I will probably go with one of them. They don't come up for sale very often, and when they do it's typically an 8-10 hour drive to get to it. I am pretty handy with working on things so maintenance won't be too big an issue if/when it comes up. A lot of people like to bash on the N's/Naa, but the one thing I really like about them is the simplicity to them. You can fix damn near anything on them extremely easily.
On the 1020's how would I know if they have live pto or not by looking at it, where's the lever? And do they all come with power steering?