First check yo see what the farmers in the area are using in newer tractors. That's a good indication of how good a brand is as far as support. Then you need a slight education as to who support what. AGCO is Allis Chalmers, Oliver, White and a few others. CaseIH supports Farmall/IH, Case and Ford. Newholland supports Newholland and Ford plus anything CaseIH sells.
2nd thing is to know that with what you stated you are going to have to have a 3 point hitch system. A tractor that cost 1K can add up to more than 3K by the time you add an aftermarket 3 point, live hydraulics and power steering. So if you add a 1K 3 point to say a 3500-5K AC D17 now you have 4500-6K into it just to use it.
ROPS is important especially for new folks like you. There are companies that make and sell them as aftermarket items. Be aware that they are not a whole lot of good if you wind up pined under the ROPs because you failed to install a seat belt or to use one.
Area will make a difference as far as value. Here 10-12K will buy a nice, just about bullet proof Ford 3000 or 4000. It will buy a larger tractor with cab, hit and miss if the AC works though. Now don't get me wrong because there are other tractors out there that are good too.
Just a quick look at CL ads shows a 4630 Ford with a very nice loader with joystick control and quick-tach bucker, what appears to be very good rubber, shuttle shift too at the very top of your price range. Couple of 3/4000's in the 4-6K range. 5900 Ford with loader (bigger still)
http://www.tractordata.com/farm-tractors/000/2/6/268-ford-5900.html for under 10K. Now these are just examples of what's out there and cost. Now I happen to like Fords but there are other tractors out there that are as good and if dealer support is needed sometimes better, again depending on the area.
Now one guy said look at the 300 to 400 series IH tractors (Farmall). While I own 2 Farmall tractors I would not recommend those. At best they have the 2 point Fast Hitch. Just not as good a system as the 3 point IMO. 3 point lets you make much finer adjustments when needed. And finding 2 point implements can be a pain. Be one of the last ones I would recommend. Same with any Allis Chalmers with the Snap Coupler. IMO both tractors should be run away from for what you want to use them for. Nothing wrong with either tractor, just not what you describe needing and lacking a 3 point makes both less desirable.
Now in a full sized tractor finding something with a cab shouldn't be too hard in the 5-10K range but it's hit and miss if it has AC and it works. Just gotta check the area. May well be worth your money to pay a mechanic to go out and look something over for you.
We sell tractor parts! We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today. [ About Us ]
Today's Featured Article - Ford Part Number Trivia - by Forum Participants. "Replaced by" means the part was superseded. All of my part books date back to 1964 and New Holland have changed some part numbers. They usually put the old Ford part number on the package. I was suppressed when I looked up the part number of the auxiliary drive shaft because for some reason the part number went through a radical change and it lost its "Basic Part Number". Ford part numbers follow the following rules. Most part numbers are in three parts. The middle part is called the
... [Read Article]
Latest Ad:
Sell 1958 Hi-Altitude Massey Fergerson tractor, original condition. three point hitch pto engine, Runs well, photos available upon request
[More Ads]
All Rights Reserved. Reproduction of any part of this website, including design and content, without written permission is strictly prohibited. Trade Marks and Trade Names contained and used in this Website are those of others, and are used in this Website in a descriptive sense to refer to the products of others. Use of this Web site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy
TRADEMARK DISCLAIMER: Tradenames and Trademarks referred to within Yesterday's Tractor Co. products and within the Yesterday's Tractor Co. websites are the property of their respective trademark holders. None of these trademark holders are affiliated with Yesterday's Tractor Co., our products, or our website nor are we sponsored by them. John Deere and its logos are the registered trademarks of the John Deere Corporation. Agco, Agco Allis, White, Massey Ferguson and their logos are the registered trademarks of AGCO Corporation. Case, Case-IH, Farmall, International Harvester, New Holland and their logos are registered trademarks of CNH Global N.V.
