Is the 504 a good tractor?

I know where there is a diesel 504, don't know much else other than it's at a non-IH dealership.
I use an 8N Ford now for pushing snow and fetching wagons, but would like a slightly larger, newer tractor for this work and running a pto augar.
What are the owners of these tractors saying? Should I pursue it or drop the notion? Thanks

Let me put it this way:

Bad tractors aren't still running after 45 years.

You've got an 8N, so you're familiar with a tractor that has shortcomings, but you wouldn't say the 8N is a bad tractor, right?

Same thing with the 504. However it's going to be space-age compared to the 8N. Live hydraulics, live PTO, power steering, TA (two speed powershift).

The 504 is a bit heavier and AFAIK, much more powerful than the 8N, so if you use it for the same chores, it will be like night and day.

Just don't pull the TA lever while going downhill, unless you have a plow sunk in the ground.

Thanks for your input.

Well, I do have an MTA and it is the biggest egg sucker that I've ever seen! It will be for sale soon.
Fools and their money will part at that time. I don't want anything similar to an MTA! So if the 504 is close, it's not for me.

There is good reason to ask what you find terrible about an SMTA. They have been considered by most owners as desirable. No fast hitch or three point unless added, but work horses they have been.
There are no reasons not to like a 504.
If it is operating well, and has rubber on it it should be fine. Jim

The only issue i have with my 504 is how slow it backs up. Kind of a pain but i just have to learn to work slower i guess.

504 shares the shift pattern and the fact that it has a TA available. Some had a shuttle type reverse instead--make sure you find out in low gear and not the hard way at speed! some didn't have anything but a clutch and the gear shift.

The hydraulics are most like those on current production tractors vs. the MTA.

as for operating platform, it is "light years" ahead of an MTA. You mount from the side and sit in an office chair.
I would say its operator station is closer to the 8N you are accustomed to, with a more comfortable seat.

Diesel will meet or beat the economy of the 8n while doing bigger jobs.

You know what you like. mount the platform, see if you like the way the controls are laid out. Then take a test drive. Take it or leave it. If you still like the 8n more, look for a 2000 3000 or 4000 or even 5000 ford (late 60s-'75 production). The ford hundred series might also make you happy, they were made much earlier, and the 4 cylinder thousand series was made in between.

karl f
ps While I might agree that the MTA is over-rated in popularity, I would disagree about the over-rated-ness in mechanical and functional discussions.

Well, I do have an MTA and it is the biggest egg sucker that I've ever seen! It will be for sale soon.
Fools and their money will part at that time. I don't want anything similar to an MTA! So if the 504 is close, it's not for me.

Click to expand...

Well then, a 504 is not for you. It is basically an MTA in miniature, with a much more complicated hydraulic system.

Whatever's wrong with your MTA, is probably due to age, wear and tear. If you want to avoid that, buy a NEW tractor. Otherwise, ANY tractor you buy will be a potential egg-sucker.

My dad has a 504 Farmall. We use it for a little bit of everything. I don't have anything bad to say about it at all.

I liked the one I had but it was a gas engine. It would suck alot of gas, at least I thought it did. Other than that it was a real nice tractor. I would have kept it if it would have been a diesil like your looking at.