Need help on TO30 Ferguson rear loader/did we get taken?

Hi, I'm hoping someone can help point us in a direction. We just bought what my hubby thinks is a TO30 (but could be a T020), factory rear loader, $1900 made in (or around) 1954. The thing will NOT pick up more then about 100lbs of sand in its 7 ft bucket. The tires are about 50% tread but they just spin. We live on a hillside of decompossed granite, he was trying to just fill the bucket by digging into the soft exposed sand on the hill, while the tractor is on the flat yet semi soft sand. Tractor is not 4whd. Any ideas? The guy we bought it from sold us a real song and dance, knew we were clueless. Found TONS of stuff wrong, but hubby got it working enough to try it out and then it ended up a failure. When trying to push it to pick up the sand, the engine keeps wanting to stall. Could it be too little tractor, something wrong with the tractor, too little traction from the tires or? Did we overpay real bad? Gads, nothing like learning the hard way, and being someones "dupes".

Thanks,
Lee

welcome to the world of old iron, you can't say youve been" taken" when you have bought a unusual[ i just hate the term rare] machine that is probably 50 to 60 years old and actually still runs, for 1900, could be a simple fix or a couple hundred dollar fix either way you need to have someone who knows about old tractors, fergusons in general and hydraulic systems in general take a look at it, as see what it needs its worth fixing the only way you could be "taken" is if the thing was brand new and had that problem

Thank you for the reply, any ideas if the problems would be with the tractor or could it be lack of traction? We don't know if this tractor is/or should be big enough to scoop up a full bucket load of sand from a hill? When it gets stressed the engine trys to stall, and the tires just spin. All it will scoop is about 100lbs. Any thoughts or ideas to try?

Thanks!
Lee

ok now hold the boat here lee, from you description, im picturing a to30 that has had the operatore controls reversed,[ looking foward over what would normaly be the rear tires on a tractor], it is equipped with a loader bucket where the 3 point lift would normally be, and your saying it will not pick up a full bucket, of sand, and then the tires spin and the engine stalls when you crowd it a little, is this what you have or is it something different? first a 7 foot bucket is huge for a to 30,chassis, lets make sure we are thinking of the same machine first also when the machine will not lift is the engine at idle or reved up?

Oh boy, this may take a wee bit of time. The guy that sold it told us (=clueless) it is a 7 ft bucket?. I just measured it, L=67.5, W=28, D=18 IF I did that right, about 1/2 yard. The seller said it is a T020 with somewhere around 40hp...again us=clueless. So hubby has been poking around and says it looks more like a T030. We can NOT find how to tell form the two tags on the tractor. Yes, it is a reverse loader, factory made, everything turned around, I think the loader is a Davis. As to when it gets cranky about lifting, it is the actual pushing it to get the scoop. I KNOW this is going to be frustrating, since the questions are coming from someone(s) that just totally in the dark. Please forgive me, I will do my best. This means alot.

Thank you!

Can you send some pictures?
Frank

I will see what I can do. Are there any specific shots that would help?

Lee

There are 3 pics of the old critter, the hood is off, but we do have it.

I put 3 pics in the tractor photo gallery. Cute old thing! We have the hood, it is off in the pics.

Here's your pics. Hal

The rear tires should have an arrow on the sidewall of the tire that points in the direction of travel for the best traction. In this case the point of the arrow should point towards the loader bucket. Now as you push into the pile you need to raise the loader as you go to keep weight on the drive tires for the best traction. If you don't do it this way the loader will tend to raise the traction tires just enough to lose traction and they will spin. On a setup like this the loader bucket needs to be as wide as the traction tires or the material will spill into the path of the tires. However unless you are picking up snow, cobs, mulch or other light bulcky material if you fill thes wide bucket with something heavy you will not be able to lift it. Please post some pictures if possible as I am gussing about your setup. Armand

First question. When you say tires spin are both tires spinning? From those tires if both are spinning then the tractor has power.

A 40hp machine should be able to pick up 1/2 yard of sand in a pile with the correct technique. A 40hp machine will most likely not fill the bucket if you are trying to ram into mother earth with it.

I am not sure what exactly you are describing as sand in your hillside. If you cannot walk without considerable effort (as the sand is sliding out under your feet), then it is not a bank of sand on your hillside. Likewise if you can grab a handful, squeeze it and any (and I mean any) of it compresses into a ball it is not sand.

I am starting to think it is a combination of something other then sand and a lack of technique. Are you curling the bucket at all or just stabbing it into mother earth straight forward and expecting a full bucket? Have you tried back bladeing the hill to loosen it up then try to bucket it up?

As far as being had, the only one fooling anyone is you. You went and purchased a 50 year old machine without even testing it out before purchase? Granted it sound like you have no clue in regards to the operation of the machine and that is fine, but you could of at least asked the previous owner to demonstrate.

You have there about $600 in scrape iron. $1900 for a machine that runs and drives and quite possibly works with a 1/2 yard bucket is a bargain in my eyes given your application.

Here is an easy test. Put the bucket all the way down and see if it will lift the machine at all. If it does then go find someone to show you how to use it properly.

I just saw your pictures and it is setup the way I thoght it would be. This setup is sometimes called a "skip loader". Armand

I had an older ferg with loader on the back like yours. Except mine was a bigger unit. Might check the casting number on right side of block since your are sitting facing the rear. A TO 20 will have a Z120 on it. A TO 30 will have a Z129. At this time it sounds like you pump is weak or you have a bypass valve leaking. If your bucket cylinders are strong but your lift is weak then one of or both lift cylinders need to be re packed.

My internet keeps cr*pping out...argh! Toro got my pics all nice and lined up. I don't know how he did it, but they are with his post. You all have helped already! Hubby is thinking that since we are trying to dig/lift heavy sand, when the bucket goes down to scoop, it takes the load off the drive tires (which are now the fronts/big tires). So, unless it is LIGHT stuff the tractor literally lifts itself up. Apparently it used to be used as a sawdust loader. Gads...I'm begining to think we are snookered?? I don't know that we could reverse the whole loader, since it came out from the factory *backwards*. ( ???

Lee

Okay, it IS sand, it is decomposed granite sand, our whole area is nothing but foothills of this stuff. P The idea was to use the tractor to keep removing this added real-estate as it slides into our backyard. So YES, we are digging into mother earth, not a nice manacured sand pile. Sounds like the wrong "style" of tractor for our needs then. ?? For now he will move the little he can. Well, hubby has done some nice repairs on it, it is running fine, so maybe some landscaper will want to buy it. <wink> Sigh...

Thank you!
Lee

How do you do that? Post some one elses photo's? I have yet to understand the process of posting photos .I've posted from documents to photobucket but it ends there.Can't finish the process for some reason.I operate successfuly the process which is below the [add a reply] option called [advanced posting tools] for posting but the Photos are small.Thanks JH

Looks like a Tractomotive.Is it AC based?

From looking at the pictures it doesnt sound like your little ferguson is doing too bad for what it is. From what I've seen and operated, a bucket like the one on your machine is used to dig into preloosened material only. When a loader is being used to both break out and remove material they usually have a spade nose bucket, on which the cutting edge is curved out and aggessive teeth are mounted. As others have said, if you lift as you go in, so that you are putting down pressure on your tires it should help.

I'm afraid I wouldn't have a remote idea what you are asking. ( Tractors are something I know more then nothing about. Hubby has some experience, but pretty limited. We are now in the first stages of learning about this machine. He is spending endless hours working on it, so it will be curious to see where this ends up.

Lee

If the photos you post are too small you may need to use the "resize" option at the Photobucket web site.