New Tractor Northern Tool

[prjones]

Iam looking at purchasing a new tractor this Spring. Looking for 4wd, 35hp with loader. Looked at MF and New Holland, picked up Notrthern Tool Catalog and they have Chinese trators delivered to your door for about 7000 less. Anyone have opinions or recomendations. I am a make beleive farmer I do not know much.

[Lurker Carl]

My concern is no dealer network for parts.

[Bill Hudson]

My concern is no dealer network for parts.

And you are probably going to need parts, maybe lots of them.

Bill

[Barnyard]

I don't know anything about that model but if it's red it might be that old Jeep truck I sent there last summer.

[Bigdog]

I've heard lots of horror stories about the quality of them. Particularly the castings and engine components. I think I'd rather invest in a late model used Kubota or (Gasp!) JD compact utility. Or perhaps a New Holland.

[Steve Butram]

I have found this Web Site very informative on the Compact utility tractors

http://www.mytractorforum.com/forumdisplay.php?f=188

[ricky racer]

There is a reason that they can deliver it to your door for $7000. I don't have any experience with Chinese tractors but as a builder of special machines I do have experience with Chinese components and that experience has not been good. We were building a machine and needed some large bearings for the headstock. Our American supplier didn't have the bearings in stock because they were so large no one else stocked them. Lead time for the bearings was going to be close to a year. A supplier of Chinese bearings said they could offer us the bearings we needed in just a couple of months. We gave them a try.

Upon inspection, the Chinese bearings looked kind of cobby but good enough so they were installed. The machine was fired up and seemed to work just fine. The machine was proved out and shipped and installed at the customers facility. Shortly after production started the hydraulic lube system filters kept clogging. To make a long expensive story short, the bearings were never properly heat treated or the wrong material was used. This called for a very long expensive tear down and replacement with good, non-Chinese bearings and this is only one example.

Metallurgy is nonexistence in China. India is just as bad. We had some machines that were being built in India but had to be brought over here when the Indians were falling behind in production. What we found was unbelievable!! On weldments that your would normally machine on a boring mill, holes were laid out by hand (you could see the scribe marks) and drilled by hand, most crooked and tapped crooked as well. Even dowel holes, which need to be within .0005" - .001" were laid out by had and hand drilled!!!!

Myself, if I was going to spend $7000 on a compact tractor, I buy a used JD or Kubota because I know how they are built and I'll be able to get parts for decades.

[Cub-Bud]

If I were considering a new tractor purchase, I would give this one a good look. Everyone around here has one...it might be the only one I would look at:

http://mahindrausa.com/

[Rudi]

Actually, I agree with CB on this one.

Check out Mahindra. Y'all know that Mahindra is IH's Indian subsidiary and became a wholly owned Indian company just before or maybe a bit after IH sold to Tenneco. They are still producing the way IH set it up to be built.. based on the B-285 series tractors if I remember correctly. (daughter is good friends with an Indian engineer who is into tractors -- especially IH tractors )

If you are not wanting to spend what a Mahindra will cost you, then I would be looking at M/F's, NH or CaseIH tractors .. even the new McCormick's would be a better choice I think than any Chinese model.

There is a local guy who is selling Chinese 4 wheel bikes -- looks like he is probably going to go under. Warranty work is killing him as the units are falling apart. Castings and assembly leave a lot to be desired. Only good thing is the price and that is short lived

[Virginia Mike]

Parts and service should rule your choice. I run JD just because I can get parts.

[Eugene]

Looking for 4wd, 35hp with loader.

Depending on major usage - have you considered a skid steer? Next question - Do you really need 4 wheeled drive?

[prjones]

Thanks for the all the insight and feedback. I will think twice before doing this. The Northern tractors were not 7000 but about 7000 less. A 35hp was 14300 and 40 hp was 18000 which was what I was leaning towards. I hate haggling at dealers and like the set price. I have 108 acres in VA half pasture and half logged over and this is a mess. Rolling hills brush and stumps that is why i wanted 4 wheel drive. Local farmer who uses my pasture recomended at least 35hp for general farmwork. There are McCormick, Kubota and JD dealers in area will check them out. Will not be down there until March though.Bookmarked the Mytractor site that looks real interesting. Was thinking of Farm trac but they were bought out by Montana any thoughts on them?

[gitractorman]

If you're just getting started, as it sounds like you are, I would look around for a good used IH, Case, JD, New Holland, or Kubota. There are literally thousands of them around, in all shapes, sizes, prices, etc., and there is an excellent parts and service network established.

I watched a IH/Farmall 404 on Craigslist here in central NY, for several months, rebuilt engine, good hydraulics, 3-point hitch and a front end loader, they were asking $3000 for it. That price is pennies for a tractor that size, and I'm sure that the total cost is less than the front end loader attachment alone would cost for a new 40-hp tractor.

You could do a LOT of work with that tractor, and also find out what you really want or need in a machine. Trust me, you'll find out that once you buy something and start using it, that there are other options that you would like to have. Something like this won't set you back much, and would always have a good trade value and/or be a good backup machine if you find something else.

The other thing you will find out, is regardless of what you buy, you are going to break things. That's one of the biggest concerns about the Chinese made machines, the metal work and castings are HORRIBLE!!!!! The guy in the office next to me bought a brand new 35-hp Kubota when he was building his house a few years ago. The very first thing he did was break the right-front drive casting, because he was moving gravel and the wheel dropped off of the cement about 6-inches when he had a bucket full of gravel. Sure, Kubota fixed it for him and they did find a faulty weld or bolt, but still, it was a brand new $20,000 machine. He was absolutely SICK!!! I can tell you from experience, it is much easier on your soul when you tear up a $3000 machine instead of a $20,000 machine. And YES, IT WILL HAPPEN! This is yet another reason for going with an older machine. If you stick with the big boys, IH, JD, Case, you will find that they were typically a bit over engineered and heavier than any of their modern counterparts. That is why you still see people farming with 40 year old equipment.

Good luck.
Bill

[Roger G.]

I think there is already too much Chinese being sold in the US.
I am a firm believer in buying American when ever possible. People in this country need jobs.

Roger

[prjones]

I think there is already too much Chinese being sold in the US.
I am a firm believer in buying American when ever possible. People in this country need jobs.

Roger

But what is American anymore? When I looked at New Holand and MF both had Japanese and or Chinese motors.
I have a MF 165 with loader but Power Stering has gone out twice, Fuel Injector pump leaks and a back rim needs to be replaced and do not want to put anymore money into it.