How much to charge for tractor repair?

Hey guys I have been contaced to replace a clutch on an MM. I have not seen it yet but am told it is a 1964 with a loader and backhoe. So i"m thinking Jet 3 but it may be older.

What would you charge to do this job? By the hour?
Or by the job? Most likely the loader and backhoe will have to be removed.
The gentelman is an acquantance of my friends grandpa. So not to much of a friendly discounot is to be applied.


Thanks for your input

The fairest way for both parties is to do it for your time at an agreed upon rate per hour and parts marked up at 10% if you buy them or supplied by the customer.

If you try and bid it before getting all the way into the machine either you are gonna lose big time or the customer is gonna lose big time,

time and materials

First thing you need is a manual. It's been several years since I put a clutch in my Big Mo 500 but it wasn't a bad job. If I remember right ...
Unbolt the bar across the front end. Let the loader down on the floor. My loader had a set of bars that hooked into the front of the loader frame and then to the arms so it would hold the front up. Place the bar from the front or another suitable bar across the top of the transmission. There are bolt holes in the top of the trans for this. The bar should be long enough to set on top of the loader rails. Grease the rails and unbolt the trans. then slide it apart. I think you can adjust the up and down with the bolts in the top of the trans. After it is slid apart get a short board, place it on the rail, set down and take the clutch out.

My Big Mo set in the shop for a week before I figured out how to do it. It's isn't that bad of a job.

Not to be disrespectful but I just put my 4 star together so its pretty fresh in my mind. I'm just thinking that with the loader and back hoe its going to be quite time consuming.

I do not want to over charge him, but I dont want to short change my self either.

Hay Joe Pro if it"s a mini Mo you ougha Know. Must be the good weather, your handle and subject struck my funny bone. Smile!

Flat rate for four cylinder models is 4.2 hours to replace the clutch disk. A clutch overhaul is 5.5 hours, that includes rebuilding the pressure plate which I am sure you would replace with a rebuilt rather than rebuild it yourself. Flat rate to remove and reinstall the flywheel is 4.5 hours which is what you may have to do depending on whether it needs to be resurfaced. Overcenter clutch adjustment is .3 hours, spring type clutch is .2 hours. Replacing the release bearing is .4 hours with thw the tractor split.

If you take the flywheel time and add to it time to replace the bearings and adjust the clutch you should be very close. Then you need to add extra time for the loader or any other extra equipment.

Flat rates are based on the time it takes an average mechanic to do the job with the tractor clean and on the shop floor. Anything else it takes to get the tractor to that position is extra.

You can take these times and multiply it by the shop rate that is common in you area to give you a gross amount for labor. You can figure that it will take you at least twice as long as an experienced shop with proper tools so you can adjust your rate accordingly or just give a total price for labor.

I thought it was going to be time consuming also. But leaving the backhoe and loader on saved a lot of time. It is still a clutch job which takes time but in a way I though it was easier than a regular tractor. Using the loader to support the back part of the front half of the tractor and sliding it forwards was very easy. I would rather change the clutch in the Big Mo than my M5 with a loader.

I looked at it today. It is ia Big Mo 500.

So you were able to leave the loader and the backhoe on the tractor?

Would you mind describing how you did this?

Thanks