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Just realized something obvious and overlooked

A

Anonymous-0

Well-known Member
With several people on here convinced that N series Fords are about the worst tractors ever made, how come they (and Ferguson) are the only models of all tractors that have their own category on here? Hmmmm??? Somebody must be hoarding them or something. Dave
 
Indeed, they were by far head & shoulders the _best_ tractor ever made in the 1930's-40's.

The trouble is when an inexperienced person comes from a town or 5 acre background and wants to use the new implements of the last 20 years behind the Ford N, and expects the same safety & working features as a new tractor, with only fond memories as a 5 year old of granpa running his whole farm with an N.....

Then there are some real wrong assumptions being made, and nothing good will come of it.

The best tractor made in 1940's can still be a terrible choice for someone almost 70 years later. Even if it was the best tractor.

--->Paul
 
They seem to not know how many horses were put out to pasture when a 8N was [purchased or how one with a loader saved the backbreaking chore of loading manure or simply how we got here.
 
The 8N was a far cry from looking a horse in the a&&. But they had their day. Will not go into details of what I think of 8N. But when I bought a 1715 NH. I sold 8N, kind of wish I had kept it just for old times but can't keep everthing. On the 1715 has about same HP as the 52-8N I had but has better brakes and hyd. I like a small tractor because I can trailer it with PU. Can't leave on farm wouldn't be there when I went back.
 
My Dad got an 8n about 1948 if I am remembering right,any way it served above and beyond the call. Mounted 7' Dearborn Mower,AC Hay Rake. Pulling Wagons when needed, Dragging the Stone boat every spring,Loading Manure when he got a Dearborn hand trip loader,Digging Post holes with a Dearborn 8" Auger ,Belted up some times to the McCormick Burr Mill or the Hammer Mill,not fast but got the job done.In its day was a prime asset to our 240 acre,42 Head Gurnsey Dairy Farm. I learned how to operate a Tractor on it.I was too little to run the old AC UC or the 15/30 International.
 
"N" is a series, not a particular model. So is Fordson, and that also has it's own heading. So, are you saying that the best tractors of all are N series and Fordsons? I'll add that the Fordson platform has much better options.

Also note that at the incipient stage of the long post involving "buying a tractor" the guy was looking for 30 horse and a live PTO. Show me an N series tractor that has that.
 
Those tractors were ahead of their time. 70 years later, they are over rated and their short-commings make them a little more dangerous than other tractors of the same era. People fail to realize that just because it looks like a modern tractor, it is not. And just like any other brand they have a very loyal following.

But that is just my opinion...
 
I think it is more fair to say Harry Ferguson's tractor was ahead of it's time, and his buddy Henry Ford copied it. In fact, Henry Ford tried to market his own three-wheel tractor design and it never worked.
 
It's all about stroking ego. If they would have thought of it sooner they would have had JD 2 cylinder and Farmall letter series by themselves, also. Having worked a farm supply store I have noticed most of these people want to look at a romanticized version of farming. Most of these new to the country types really do not like the image of modern agriculture. They would have everybody here in overalls and straw hats and driving a Model A flat bed (think The Waltons) if it were up to them. They want to go straight to their topic and not have to look at what they perceive as the ugliness of modern farming.
The regional farm magazine Country Folks here in NY does the same thing with a once a month insert for the horse people. A lot of the advertisers will have a listing in the horse part even though they may have paid for an expensive ad in another part because they know most of the horse people will not look past the horse section. At least they tailor the ad to fit the customer. Not bad marketing.
 
I have a set of Craftsman wrenches their not Snap On, but they work for my budget and need's, I also have a 9n tractor and it serves for the same reasons, my bills are up to date and I have yet to buy a new LCD TV. Does anyone know why Grapes Of Wrath was banned in Russia?
 
cars made in the 50s are very dangerous.. no seat belts, no air bags, no energy asorbing frames and bodys, no crash and safety tests, no energy asorbing dash and knee panels, no head rests, no disc brakes, no antilock brakes, no dual brake system, no radial tires, no anti crush gas tanks, no side impact protection, badly engineered steering geometry, especially with a flat tire, no clutch safety switch, no positive park ingaugement, no collapsing steering wheel, no turn signals, no automatic choke, no electronic ignition, no emergency flashers, and on and on and on..

You can hear on the news today that somewhere in a brand new car, some kids rode on the hood and the driver drove down the street and quess what happens.. so we blame the car??

tree stump pulling from the axle.. since there were more fords out there, and more people were hurt trying to pull from the axle instead of the swinging drawbar.... and since there were many more people hurt with the 10 times more fords,, therefore fords are more dangerous. however a brand new tractor sold today will do the exact same thing if you pull a stump with a chain around the axle. they still have not fixed the stupid human mind.

Everyone who dies was breathing airjust before they died, therefore breathing air will kill you!!!!! true statement.


as to the n series, the 2n(1932) and 9n(1939) were a bit dangerous with no running boards, just food pegs to put your feet on. And clutch and left brake on same side..meaning you could slam on the right brake and turn to the right if you were not careful while stopping... but no more than other equipment of the day. there were lever clutched and one wheel brakes every where.

The 8n(1948-1953) is not much differnent than a low end tractor sold today. add a pto shield and a rops and your pretty much there.

ford sold over 500,0000 of these tractors so they clearly out sold all the other makes hands down. they also dropped the price so that most every farmer could buy one for not much more than a good team of mules cost. Doesnt matter who did what or who invented what or who shoulda done what. History clearly shows the winner hands down. Furqeson was too much into the details, even the very small details, Henry was too much into the bigger picture. so guess who won.

Henry did not invent the automobile, but he massed produced it and made it what it is today. Automobiles went from being in the hundreds of cars, to being in the hundred of thousands of cars in a couple of years..

Same story with the tractor.

safety was not an issue at that time.

An 8n tractor is no more dangerous than most tractors on the farm today. Again, if you add an rops and a pto shield, your there.
 
At first the Grapes of Wrath was allowed in Russia because the commies though they should show that America was poor also. When the Russian people saw that even poor people in America had cars, the Commies banned the movie.
 
ahh the N series ford, its everywhere , lets see its good points, its reliable, its cheap, it not only uses most cat 1 impliments, it invented the catagory,its so popular that now every single part on it is available simply by ordering it, its reasonably stable and not to tipy its light weight and easily trailerable, it can do most jobs for a fraction of the cost of a new overseas tractor if the job isnt too big, now some of the not so good points, it is a 60+ year old machine now, it will require some degree of mechanical skill to keep it running, it is also is not idiot proof if the operator does something stupid like pulling a log from the handy top link holes it will flip over and kill you, thats not the tractors fault its the operators, it does have limited power if your job at hand needs a 4020 john deere a 8n is not a good substitute , the reason row crop farmers dont like them dates from when crops were cultivated, the low slung N while it is stable is a terrible tractor for cultivating , it does not have live pto [ a orc works wonders here] nor live hydraulics, but can be made to work with most situations with a good operator ,at least half of the people who dont like the N's have never owned or operated one lol, there a good light weight chore tractor and handy as a pocket on a shirt
 
In fairness to Ford, the design was not copied. Ford was long gone from the US tractor market by that time.

Harry Ferguson showed his tractor to Henry Ford, they shook hands (literally) and agreed to build it. Harry had the design, Ford had the factory.
 
That is real simple to answer. There are so many of them plus they are such a pain in the back sides at times to use and work on they had to have there over area in the forums so as not to clog up the others. If you watch the N series forum seems to be one of the most active ones and that is probably because they always seem to brake down just when you need them LOL
 
I will disagree with the handy statement- a chore tractor with no live hydraulics, no live pto, no power steering, no weight, crummy brakes, foot pegs??

I have spent many miserable hours in them and laugh when I see them for sale knowing I never have to sit on one again. I think they are great for parades, restorations, memories, tinkering etc. But have really no place on any modern type operation.
 
You are claiming Ford invented the category one attachment? Where do you get that from?

Harry Ferguson invented the three point hitch and the hydraulic lift it used in 1926. Ford copied it much later in 1939.

The concept of different categories for different power tractors did not evolve until much later, and I don't believe Ford had anything to do with it.
 
They were good dependable style of tractors , especially if You had a 35 Ferguson with the Continental motor , My dad LOVED the Dependability of his , and used it to the limits to the point of Abuse , It held up Fine ... more reliable than a tempermental VAC ... The Case always would LOVE put in a hard DAYS work , But You had to do FOREPLAY 1st. LOL
 
Since when did the 2N come out in 1932 as you stated. It's a WWII tractor and the "2" stands for 1942.
 
Geez. If you guys want to talk about positive attributes, how about some reality.

Harry Ferguson patented the three point hitch system in 1926. He is also credited with inventing that hydraulic lift system. Ford came out with the 9N that used the Ferguson system 13 years later.

Ford's own design tractor was a three wheeler and it just plain did not work.

And note - the Ford 2N did NOT come out in 1932 as one poster claims. It is a WWII tractor, i.e. 1942. Better do some research.
 
I liked what you have stated. I remember a lot of older farmers saying they would have been good "situation" tractors if the average farmer could have afforded it for that. A big dislike I've heard locally that they were best suited for the implements offered with them (Dearborn). Very few around here could afford to replace their line of implements at the same time they replaced their tractor. If a guy increased his dairy herd (a few years after acquiring his N) and then correspondingly replaced their spreader most found their N could not handle much past what was offered by Dearborn. Now the farmer in the just mentioned example has to change his tractor and maybe have to trade the N getting nothing close to what he has in it at trade in time. At that time tractor working weight was kind of a new concept to most farmers. Some bad experiences were had by the N being handled by its load (pushed down a hill for example) than the other way around. A row crop tractor was less sensitive to these issues. If a guy wanted to go to a 3 bottom row crop from a 2 bottom, he could at least use the existing implements till he could afford or desired to change them.
The people I know that dislike the N series personally have the reason the N was overstated (unintentionally most times) for what it could do for most farmers. Nothing irritates a farmer more than to buy something that does not meet reasonable expectations. Had the N's been introduced a couple decades later I think the farmers general increased mechanical knowledge would have headed off a lot of misunderstanding.
 
The trouble with the Ns is that they were so darned successful. And as has been often stated success breeds enemies.
A lot of the folks who badmouth the Ns have never owned one. Perhaps their operation is large enough that nothing under 80 hp will do. Some folks grew up with Cases, Minnie Mos, Olivers or Allises and still have the brand loyalty that their father had.
Another problem with the Ns that they get so much harping and whining is folks will go buy an N thinking it has all the modern options like live power or decent hydraulics or even God Forbid, decent brakes. They are not modern tractors. They are no more modern than any other tractor of that size and era. Except for one thing. They have a well designed and good working 3 point hitch - something every modern tractor has today.
Lets say a guy is looking for an old, cheap, entry level tractor to do a little mowing, back blading the driveway or snow plowing, maybe set a small block engine into the back of a pickup with a boom pole or operate a post hole digger or move a couple dump truck loads of black dirt or gravel with a rear scoop, plow up a garden or deer plot. Which old, cheap, entry level tractor would you suggest he pick to do those entry level tasks?
A Farmall C or H? A Case DC? JD H or B? An Allis B or WC? A 40s era Oliver or Moline?
I'm talking old stuff here guys. Before 1955. Cheap stuff. Under $2000. Tractors under 30 horse.
I think trying to compare an N Ford to a modern tractor is rediculous. Like apples and oranges.
And guys who bad mouth them are a lot like the guys who argue over Dodge or Ford or Chevy. My truck is better and yours aint snot. They're ignorant really. Narrow minded too. All of them.
Of course there are a few here that just like to bad mouth things because they're proud or just like to be mean. That's fine. We all know those types. Always mocking, heckling, needling and back biting.
They're the ones who go to their graves with the nicest tractors. And have the fewest friends show up at their funeral.
 
But wasn't the 9N the first to actually use the system? Don't recall any Fergusons from the '30's- but that brings up the question, when did the first Fergusons with 3 point hitch come out?
 
There were a bunch of N's sold back in the day because there were a bunch of small farms that were primed and ready for CHEAP mechanical power. Had they not been the cheapest thing available in large scale, they wouldn't have sold well at all. It had NOTHING to do with which tractor was "the best". During the same era, you could buy M or H Farmalls, which would either work circles around an N Ford. No comparison. The N was marginally adaquate by 1939 standards, it's most redeming feature was the new 3-point hitch. Take that hitch off the N and Henry wouldn't have sold a dozen N's, cheap or not. It was a CHEAP tractor that had one distinct advantage over all the rest of the CHEAP tractors of the day. It sure wasn't anything spectacular. I grew up on N's and early Fergusons. I'd consider owning one as a collectors item, but give me one as my primary work tractor and I'm looking for a sinkhole to drive it into. Better than absolutely NOTHING, but only by the slightest of margins.
 
Well said Ultradog,

Everyone likes their own brand and model of tractor for different reasons. The notion that you might not care for a particular make or model certainly should not suggest that everything else is useless junk. There is a reason that prices of the little N's remain fairly high and are still in demand 60 years later (just like many other makes and models of tractors). Each like them for their own reasons. I have an 8N as one of my tractors and love it. Does it do everything a new live PTO, live hydraulics tractor does? Of course not, nor do I expect it to. It still does many thing that I want it to though - plow, disc, brush mow, haul around a hay wagon, run a rear dirt scoop, backblade, and today plow snow. I have not used it go get the mail as some suggest is the only thing it is good for :) Maybe I should try that too though! We all like our different tractors for very different reasons! Enjoy the snow - play time!
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Don't compare an N to a Farmall M. M has 50% more ponies and cost twice as much.
You are correct in stating that an N with out the 3 point wouldn't have sold well. But how are you going to seperate an N from the Ferguson system? The two are one - intertwined like pistons and rings. The 3 point wasn't just some gimmick. It is still the standard 70 years after it was introduced.
 
And if all you do with one is use it to fetch the mail there weren't many tractors that would go get the mail faster than an N with a Sherman OD.
 
As I said below, the farmers that were in business back in the forties and fifties said they were extremely limited outside of their 3 point capabilities. From a financial standpoint farmers could not afford to buy something that could not fill all the expected needs. They were told that a N could keep up with a Farmall M in all respects as opposed to just plowing. All was fine till the need came to go up in size on a particular implement and the N could not handle it. I could go a lot of places with a 150 bushel manure spreader with our M Farmall I would not dream with an 8N even though both could spin the PTO shaft and pull on the level.
Guys either saw through the N's for what they were before or lived with great disappointment after. It irritates a farmer to trade something before he expected when he may have wanted to use that money elsewhere in his operation.
 
It is just a slow day in Mayberry & people have nothing to do.........I say it's your money, your choice, run what you like........only the lefties that think they know what is better for you than you do want to force you into their mold....don't let 'em! If you want to straddle an N, do it, if a yellow & green or a red...I say do it! :)
 
A) Who says you have any right to say what anyone else compares to what. This ISN'T your website last time I checked.

B) Go back to school and learn to read. I didn't compare an N to an H or M. I said they were available as new tractors in the same era. No way an N is "better" than an H or M.

C) Look at measured HP of Ford N and early H. Now tell me how much difference there is again.

D) No one outside of you ever suggested the 3-point was/is a "gimmick". It IS however the maim reason why the N succeeded.

E) Don't try to overthink everything. You show how much you tend to UNDERthink when you do.
 
MF Poor, I also had my azz planted on a N when I shouldn't even have been driving one and then later a Ferguson. I probably have more hours on them than many people have on their larger ones. We used a 1940 N Ford for almost everything back then and got it done. We had a C and later a CC Case for the belt power and heavier pulling. We did the plowing tilling planting etc, the whole works with that tractor and we had tough going with steep hillsides. We used it to mow, then widened it out to cultivate then narrowed it back with a handy tractor jack. We hauled in bales then unhooked the wagon so that we could use the Ford to pull up the hay fork. We pulled the both grain and corn binders and for going out and getting the loads of bundles the neighbors would get together and it was mostly Fords and Ferguson's out in the field and an Allis on the threshing machine. I don't know what we would have done without that tractor with all of the implements that we could use. Dad used it to fill in ditches with a scoop and blade. If only he could have had a box blade and landscape rake back then, he would have really shined.
Now to the present. I have a small acreage and I use a small Ferguson for 98% of everything I do. I use it for finish mowing, the rougher mowing, and countless landscaping and dirt moving jobs. I also have a MF 165 diesel that I seldom use because It is only needed for the heavier work which I don't have much of. If I tried to do some dirt work around trees and other obstacles it is too large and unhandy even though it has power steering. Every tractor has its place and I am not into large scale farming.
My son has a New Holland compact tractor and for most things I can out perform it. Sure you can reverse quickly and it has ROP and 4 wheel drive which is a plus when backing up and pushing a scoop etc but you have to run it almost wide open and listen to that to get any power.
 
Thank you for making MY point. You have a BIGGER tractor to do the things the N's/Fergies can't. That 165 would do anything the N would do, but the N WON'T do everything the 165 will. The N was a minimal tractor 70 years ago, and a toy nowdays. They're OK as a collectors item or a #2 tractor on a VERY small farm, but no way in he!! would I ever want one as a first choice. BTDT, sold 'em 45 years ago.
 
[i:654c4848f0]A) Who says you have any right to say what anyone else compares to what. This ISN'T your website last time I checked.[/i:654c4848f0]
I wasn't saying that at all.

[i:654c4848f0]Go back to school and learn to read. I didn't compare an N to an H or M. I said they were available as new tractors in the same era. No way an N is "better" than an H or M. [/i:654c4848f0]
I was only trying to keep the comparisons to apples vs apples and oranges vs oranges. You brought up the M and I duly noted that they were not in the same class. And I never said an N is better than an H or M. I'm only saying that Ns don't deserve all the bad mouthing they get - and they get a lot of it.

[i:654c4848f0]It was a CHEAP tractor that had one distinct advantage over all the rest of the CHEAP tractors of the day. It sure wasn't anything spectacular[/i:654c4848f0]
I interpreted this statement as the Ferguson System being gimmicky in your opinion. My Bad
 
Eric, speaking of snow I believe that we have over 15" at our place in Wisconsin. In spite of what some people think, there will be hundreds of old Ford and Ferguson tractors out plowing their driveways in the Tri-State region. You know, some people don't believe in the Holocaust either.
 
Back in the day the M was the benchmark the Ford Dealers extolled the virtues of the N against. The claim was the N could plow and till as much as a M in a given day on a lower investment and operating cost. I want to say I have seen vintage literature on this.
So, I think that it is fair the comparison works both ways. If you want to talk the merit of the N then you should be able to discuss the merit of the Farmall.
As much as I get worked up over the N tractor, I agree beauty is in the eye of the beholder. If you can work safely and enjoy the tractor that is all that matters.
 
I've used 9N and 8N tending Christmas trees. I've been amazed at what the little bugger would do. but were limited on heavy work. Our 9N has weak rear end, 8N has no oil pressure so I'm replacing them with an 800 Case. NO comparison.

I think its because they're common as grass and they've got a bit of an "Americana" look to them.

To start off with they were a good idea for Ford but I've always thought they were short sighted by not updating them by going with more power features and not giving them a big brother to sell along side. Even the NAA replacment for the N's wasn't a large tractor. Even the buck rogers looking 6000 wasn't a "large tractor".
 
pay no attention to MF'er Poor! he is just as big of a pompous a$$, blowhard, know it all on other sights too!
 
I agree on the big brother concept and mentioned it in a post last year. The farm equipment manufacturer landscape might look totally different today if they had a N with the same general chassis and PTO horsepower of a Farmall M or JD A.
I think your observations are very good.
 
The guy also said he wanted to maintain 8 acres of property. 8 ACRES! Show me a guy that can't maintain 8 acres of property with a Ford 8n and I will show you a guy that spends too much time in the house on the computer arguing about tractors. Most of the guys on here have spent more time on this subject this week than it would have taken to finish mow 8 acres. The tractors aren't the problem. Sitting in the house on the computer is the problem. All the armchair mechanics and experts nit picking over nothing. Doesn't matter if you have a $15,000 dollar tractor or a $1500 dollar one if you don't go outside and use it.
 
MF Poor, Of course the MF 165 is a better tractor. It is thirty years newer and tractors had to get larger to use larger equipment to get more done.
I have a 5 acre hayfield on a fairly steep slope that I give to a neighbor just to get it cut. I have to laugh when he uses a MF 180 to rake the hay and I know that I could rake it faster with less noise with my little Ferguson. His tires with the good tread and the weight of the tractor tear it up wherever he turns to fast on the corners. Then a large 4 wheel drive tractor comes along and bales it all up and he packs everything and tears it up some more. About five years ago another neighbor with an Allis WD 45, cut raked and baled it all with that tractor and you would barely see a mark. Is that progress? Probably for the large fields but not for me. I guess that it got done faster though.
 
No. Harry Ferguson put his three point hitch on a David Brown tractor before the Ford 9N came out.
And when he let Ford use it, it was called the "Ferguson System", not Ford.
 
Harry Ferguson and Henry Ford had one of the most famous partnerships in history. It was done with a handskake. Ferguson had built a couple prototype tractors with a 3 pt. He didn't have the manufacturing capabilty at the time to mass produce his tractors. Ford wanted a better tractor and was impressed with the Ferguson system. Henry Ford and Harry Ferguson had great mutual respect for each other. When Henry Ford Jr. took over control of Ford he copied the improved Ferguson system and installed it on the improved N series, the 8N. This resulted in one of the most famous lawsuits in history. The 8N and a similar Ferguson tractor of the same era each sold over 500,000 units. Ferguson was getting older and was looking for another manufacturer to purchase his company. Massey Harris came along and the rest is history. Massey Ferguson have been the best selling tractor line world wide since 1962. Largely in part to the 3 pt. hitch. Imagine if patents were good for life and only Massey had the 3 pt. hitch. I bet a lot of other tractor manufacturers would have gone under. Millions more tractors(of all makes) with a 3 pt. hitch have been sold than any other type. Harry Ferguson's idea is the single greatest innovation ever put on a tractor. Nothing else is even close. That's the facts. Ford didn't copy the 3 pt. hitch on the original 9N and then the 2N. They did copy the 3 pt. hydraulics for the new Ferguson and build the 8N to use them. This wasn't part of the agreement with Ferguson and he sued them. $10,000,000 was a drop in the bucket for Ford considering they sold over 500,000 8N's. Ford tractors after the 8N used a different hydraulic system than the copied one. The hyd's. on the 100 series Massey Ferguson tractors are the best system ever put on a tractor. Dave
 
Once again, thanks for validating my point. There's NEWER, BETTER, MORE CAPABLE tractors available at prices only slightly more than an old N Ford. If I (or the OP) was to have only one tractor, I'd want one that was capable of doing more, doing it safer, and doing it more reliable. N's fit a niche market 70 years ago. They just exist nowdays.
 
We have a whole barn full of farmall H's and M's. The farmalls are outside about 10 days a year and the ford 9n is outside getting used about 310 days a year. In other words over the course of a year the ford probably gets the majortiy of everything done around here. The farmalls even have a 3 point hitch! Try mowing a ditch with a farmall.
 
9n, 2n and fergy hyds are essentially the same.. 8n had the different hyds due to the lawsuit.

soudnguy
 
First time I've seen a UC Allis mentioned. We had a UC along with 2 1020 IH and a W40 IH. No one liked to drive the Allis except me. I thought it was a good old tractor.
 
(quoted from post at 07:54:50 12/09/09) With several people on here convinced that N series Fords are about the worst tractors ever made, how come they (and Ferguson) are the only models of all tractors that have their own category on here? Hmmmm??? Somebody must be hoarding them or something. Dave
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I brought a N and instantly became a GURU,,, I felt so bad about own'n one after all this talk I went out and be the ell out of one of mine

WARNING :shock: all I know I read on the Internet,,, do it enuff and you can become a guru also,,, not responsible for damages,,, I read it and just pass it along,,, proceed with caution
 
Ford N BELONGS in a ditch. I"d rather farm with one Farmall H or M than with a dozen dorF N"s. Useless, underpowered, weak brakes, no live power, ect....
 
If you have a bunch of tools in your tool box you probably have a bunch of screwdrivers.A little ford tractor is like that screwdriver you use all the time.You might have 4 or 5 tractors and some are good for pulling a plow,disc,planter,earth mover,but a little Ford is good for some things like a mowing machine,hay rake,wagon,and other stuff.A Fergusen is better in some ways,NAA and 800 Fords,Massey Fergusens are a lot better.There are lots of different tractors the size of an 800 Ford with live power and power steering but you wont buy any of them for 1500 and use it.For a cheap tractor a little Ford is good if you dont plan on doing a lot of hard work with it.If you went out with a mowing machine to work all day and a Ford 8n or a Farmall H is what you have to choose from I would much rather use an 8n.If I was going to disc 40 acres I would rather use the H and a pull type disc.Little Fords and Fergusens arent the best with a brush hog but they will work if you have an overriding clutch.
 
n-series fords are just one step up from following a mules a$$. Come to think about it probably be better off with the mule , more economicial to operate lol
 
I love my 46 model 2N. It takes care of bush hogging 10 acres with a 5 foot mower. It plows my garden plots. It pulls stuck trucks out of the mud. Stretches fences. Pulls 16 foot trailer. $2000 with mower 3 years ago. One Zane Thang kit is all it had had done. Know and respect it's limits and it's as good as a favorite hound.

Funny thing is it will still turn over on a cold morning when I need unlike my wife. :)
 
(quoted from post at 20:57:33 12/09/09) I love my 46 model 2N. It takes care of bush hogging 10 acres with a 5 foot mower. It plows my garden plots. It pulls stuck trucks out of the mud. Stretches fences. Pulls 16 foot trailer. $2000 with mower 3 years ago. One Zane Thang kit is all it had had done. Know and respect it's limits and it's as good as a favorite hound.

Funny thing is it will still turn over on a cold morning when I need unlike my wife. :)
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hear ya!
 
you didnt understand what i said ford did not invent the 3 point hitch harry ferguson did, BUT the n series was the first full marketing of the cat 1 3 point hitch, then after, that size hitch pin hole was refered to as a catagorey 1 size, its all in the ford tractor book if you want to read it, in 1948 ford came out with the 8n, replacing the war time 2n, but cut ol harry ferguson out of the deal, harry was understandably po'd and after or during depending on what you believe began producing his own tractor with the virtually same hitch still catagory 1 and the ferguson's resembalanced to the ford in looks is not by accident
 
a few words fell out of my reply above, after or during the lawsuite in which ferguson sues fordfor patent violation on his 3 point hitch ferguson began producing his own tractor , the T series, in 3 basic versions, the to, was overseas production which meant american production, you see ol harry was british, the te was the english version, and the tea was the alstrailian version
 
The lawsuit was because of the 8N. The 8N hydraulics were an identical copy of the new hydraulic system Ferguson developed in the UK. After several years Ferguson won the lawsuit. He wasn't awarded enough but one of the other things that happened was that Ford couldn't use the patented new Ferguson system hydraulics on their tractors. Ford tractors after the 8N used a different hydraulic system designed by Ford. The original Ferguson system was one of the first successful uses of hydraulics in any industry. The 8N was quite a bit improved over the earlier N models. The one we had, had really good brakes and larger tires than all the skinny ones you usually see. It was originally owned by the Gov't. though. My 135 is a better tractor but the 8N pulled the rear blade better clearing snow. Maybe because the blade covered the back wheels when angled or the narrower back tires? Dave
 
i know you can swap a 9n/2n pump with a fergy 20 or 30 pump.. what fergy model uses the 8n pump?

soundugy
 
Ferguson built his own tractor, the Ferguson "Black" to demonstrate his new implement attachment system. It was completed in 1933 and is in the science museum in London. David Brown had a gear cutting company that made gears for the new Ferguson and this contract was followed eventually by a production agreement to build the tractors for Ferguson. The tractor was known as the Ferguson Type A but is often called the Ferguson Brown. It had the Ferguson name at the top of the radiator and a small nameplate at the bottom that said "Made by David Brown Tractors LTD. Huddersfield. Production started in 1936. The design was based closely on the "Black" tractor. The tractor outperformed bigger, more powerful competitors at public demonstrations. In 1938 friction developed between Ferguson and David Brown and Ferguson went to the US to meet with Henry Ford. It was Henry Fords Grandson Henry Ford II that stole the new Ferguson system for the 8N. The lawsuit was originally $340 million and was settled for $9.25 million and Ford had to modify their design to avoid further patent infringement. There's some facts in a nut shell. Dave
 
Whoever said they are pulling the stuck truck out with the 8N must have a small truck. We have an 8n and it gets stuck and we pull it out with the truck.8n is ok in fair weather. You going in the mud , you better go a little bigger. Always had issues with the radiator screen getting coated in tall hay fields. Went to a taller tractor to get up and out of the dust. Mowed alot of acres with a TO30 Ferguson , fighting thick hay , chaff and bumble bees. Don't need to do it again. Even with no cab the 4020 got us up and out of the dust with live PTO and responsive lift. You can go get a drink and come back out before that 8n lift goes up (well almost anyway). That's my opinion.
 
(quoted from post at 23:29:20 12/09/09) Whoever said they are pulling the stuck truck out with the 8N must have a small truck. We have an 8n and it gets stuck and we pull it out with the truck.8n is ok in fair weather. You going in the mud , you better go a little bigger. Always had issues with the radiator screen getting coated in tall hay fields. Went to a taller tractor to get up and out of the dust. Mowed alot of acres with a TO30 Ferguson , fighting thick hay , chaff and bumble bees. Don't need to do it again. Even with no cab the 4020 got us up and out of the dust with live PTO and responsive lift. You can go get a drink and come back out before that 8n lift goes up (well almost anyway). That's my opinion.
Click to expand...

It isn't necessarily the size of the tool but how you use it. This is an actual incident. Farmall SMTA stuck in very wet sandy loam, stuck 8N trying to pull it out, stuck truck trying to pull either tractor out, brought in a Jube, got smart and added 100 feet of cable to higher ground, pulled the Farmall, the 8N, the truck out.
 
The pump might have been the same but other patented features were used without authorization. The 8N had full Ferguson system hydraulics. Dave
 
Dearborn motors was set up to sell the 8N and implements for it and Harry Ferguson wasn't getting any royalties for his Ferguson system on it. Can't blame him for being pi$$ed. I agree that the N's wouldn't have sold very well at all without the 3 pt., but they had the 3 pt. and sold in huge numbers just like the Ferguson's did. Dave
 
Ok.. it's like I thought.. no fergies actually had the same physical pump setup as the 8n, as the control mechanism was completely different, and position control was added. the LS was simply about the fergy hyds technology that was still incorporated into the modified belly pump.

Actually.. the lawsuit was a boon IMHO to ford.. getting rid of that non live hyds belly pump going to a smaller engine mounted pump was deffinately a step forward in technology..

soundguy
 
I haven"t lived on a farm since I was five years old and we moved into town. My dad was, and still is, a JD guy at heart. But when my wife and I moved out to the country I needed something simple anD relatively cheap to help maintain 12 acres. (not a farm.) I researched. I learned the limitations of the N tractors but decided it would fill my needs. I found a very good 52 8N.
I"m not a mechanic but I can read a shop manual and, for the very few instances in four years that I"ve actually needed to work on my 8N I"ve been able to find many parts right on the shelF at Tractor Supply or New Holland. Certainly every part down to the smallest screw can be found on-line.
My tractor runs like a champ. It can sit for two months and will fire right up, usually with no need for choke at all.
I used a shredder to mow a seven acre meadow and a finish mower to mow two acres around the house. A boom pole helps move all sorts of heavy items. A dirt scoop helps me maintain the road and has dug many flower beds. I have a 1940"s Ferguson two-bottom plow that I used to plow up the two acres around the house a couple of years ago. I borrowed a neighbors implement to disc the ground smooth and level before planting new grass. I"ll probably be adding a box blade soon when I get new rock delivered for the driveway. And I"ve pulled plenty of logs (safely cut to shorter lengths) out of my woods.
The thing is... it does everything I need it to do. I have no need whatsoever for 50 or 80 HP that can pull Cat 3 implements.
There are still thousands of Ns out there working every day, doing what they were made to do - basically working hard on smaller operations.
Blasting an N tractor for being unable to handle heavy equipment is like criticizing someone for moving Granny"s Chamber"s stove in the back of his F150 instead of using a Peterbuilt 18 wheeler.

Cheers!
 
Old Harry made off with the blue prints for the 8n.You can bolt up the entire differential housing from an 8N to a TO20 tractor. I saw it done at a local garage.I have the TO20 parts in my stash.The TO20 axle was sheared off,the differential cage was cracked.The 8N differential bolted right up.I used a piece of the broken axle to make a reactor core for a dc welder converter.He sued Ford but stole a lot of the Ford design.
 
I wear overalls and wear a straw hat in summer.The hat keeps my ears from being sun burned until they are raw.I wish I did have a model A flat bed to bring the hay in and an A pick up to haul grain home.I buy 2to4 bags so the A would be fine.I call my 96 pick up Old Leaky because it has had 5 brake failures in 4 years,one gas tank leak and one power steering hose leak.The rear gas tank has a leak so I never use it.Modern farming is ugly,Huge lagoons full of liquid crap.Liquid crap spilled on the highway in front of country stores,antique shop and my vegetable stand.Mega farms killed the 30 and 60 cow dairys I grew up with.Free stall barns with cows standing in a foot of manure are common now.The 28 cow dairy I worked was cleaned daily,The alley swept and spread with line and the stalls bedded with straw or sawdust.
 
The 50s cars had at least half the things you claim they didnt.They had auto choke,turn signals.Steering wheels with recessed hubs.57 Ford had seat belts,my 52 Studebaker had clutch pedal starting.Anti lock brakes and dual master cylinders are of questionable value.I have had brake failures in dual master cylinder trucks and am not impressed.If the front and rear brakes were isolated from each other the system would work.So called dual mater cylinders seem to be prone to part time brake failures.brakes work fine and then the pedal sinks to the floor.Your info is full of holes, 50% is BS.I spent much time working on autos in the 50s,did you?
 
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