Guideline to Buying a Used Homestead Tractor

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The J. I. Case Model S. Note wide or
The J. I. Case Model S. Note wide or "row crop" arrangement of front wheels. The Model SC is the same tractor but with it's two front wheels close together, giving it a triangle ground print like the other tractors illustrated here.
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The Allis Chalmers WD. The tricycle version shown here is quite popular in some areas of the Midwest but since the AC and Case are both considered
The Allis Chalmers WD. The tricycle version shown here is quite popular in some areas of the Midwest but since the AC and Case are both considered "off brands" by John Deere and International diehards, you can sometimes pick up exceptional bargains on both makes.
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The International 350. This, the only diesel mentioned in the above article, is also available with wide stance front wheels. You won't find nearly as many diesel as ordinary spark ignition tractors on the used market and, if you can't locate a 350 but you have your heart set on an International, try an F-20, M or Super M.
The International 350. This, the only diesel mentioned in the above article, is also available with wide stance front wheels. You won't find nearly as many diesel as ordinary spark ignition tractors on the used market and, if you can't locate a 350 but you have your heart set on an International, try an F-20, M or Super M.
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 J.V. Dorner shares some tips on buying a recycled workhorse.
 J.V. Dorner shares some tips on buying a recycled workhorse.
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The John Deere A. Once you hear this two cylinder (most tractors have four) machine chugging across a field you'll know why many farmers fondly refer to it as
The John Deere A. Once you hear this two cylinder (most tractors have four) machine chugging across a field you'll know why many farmers fondly refer to it as "Poppin' John." A popular tractor in it's day and readily available on the used equipment market.

Choosing a farm tractor can be about as personal as picking a wife and–for the novice–the decision can be just as fraught with danger. It’s mighty easy, in other words, for a beginner to hitch himself to an over-equipped and over-priced model that he really doesn’t need, can’t afford and can’t handle. So easy, in fact, that I’m going to stick my neck out with some fatherly advice on the manly art of homestead tractor buying.

Invest in a Used Homestead Tractor

In my opinion, today’s new homesteader with forty acres or less is wise to forget all the shiny new toys down at the local tractor emporium. Just like modern automobiles, most new-fashioned tractors tend to be oversized, over-priced and laden with so many conveniences that they’re no longer easy to repair. A first-time farmer would be better advised to put his extra dollars into land instead of into such fancy cast iron.

By going back a few years and buying a good, used, medium-sized (20 to 50 horsepower) tractor, the amateur agriculturist can easily cut his iron horse investment from several thousand dollars to several hundred without any terrific decrease in productivity. Such a tractor will pull at least one sixteen-inch plow and up to three fourteen bottoms. That’s plenty power for anyone interested in raising food for his family and a few livestock.

Incidentally, that 20 to 50 horsepower may not sound like much compared to the 300 horsepower in your uncle’s GTX/SS409 unless you know that the quoted ratings for automobiles are a fanciful “developed” figure that has little to do with reality. Rest assured that a 20 HP tractor will plow rings around any “300 HP” sportscar. And–if you have a reasonably good local source of spare parts and access to a better-than-average mechanic (every farming community seems to have one of those)–you can’t go too far wrong starting your agricultural adventure with a medium-size tractor that’s 15 to 25 years old.

  • Published on Sep 1, 1971
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