New Massey 255.

[Floopy]

So, I upgraded to a Massey 255 with a 2425QT Bush Hog loader. It only came with hay spears for front and back. I've got no use for these, so I'll be selling them off. I ordered a universal skid steer attachment point that I can weld onto the brackets that hold the hay spear. It was just the tractor they carried hay with and sprayed(it had a tank on the back that was obvious pretty new, so I know it has been being used until recently) The tach says 1400 hours but it doesn't work, whether that was 1980 or last year, who knows. The oil looked good, they replaced the seal on the transmission recently and the hydraulic fluid looks good.(the guy died, so this is just a 2nd hand conversation from the person who is selling the stuff), the coolant looked good. The power steering was a little whiney if not moving at first but it gets better after a short while, I have to check the levels on it but it works.

The engine sounds amazing. Starts up as soon as you turn the key, doesn't smoke, doesn't miss a beat. I think the injector pump might be newer or rebuilt. It looks pretty new and has a CAV metal plate on it. It looks pretty clean to be original.

I have never owned or operated a diesel but it seems very straightforward. I have watched youtube videos for the last 3-4 years about diesels being brought back from the dead so I think I get the basic understanding of what everything does. Diesels almost always sound like they have a rod knock to me but this one seems really quiet by comparison. I could believe it doesn't have too many hours past where the tach stopped to be honest.

I like having a roof and ROPS. It didn't even get the seat wet in the rain and it is so much more comfortable than my MF35 as far as how you sit and steer. Part of that is having power steering of course. This is the 2nd tractor I've owned.

I love the brakes on it. I have the wet brakes(notches on the rear end) and they both feel amazing. I gave it a 5 mile ride on the road before pulling into a tow company and they brought it home the other 20 or so for $150. It drove fine in all the gears, hi and lo. It shifts nice. It does seem like I have to let the clutch way out to the end of the travel to get engagement. I'm not sure if that is just the nature of the beast due to the two stage clutch or if it needs adjusted. It doesn't engage until the top of the travel basically.

Two of the tires look new, 2 are in good enough shape but one of the fronts is a retread. I had to air the tire up when I got it but it wasn't all the way flat. It hasn't leaked any in the last 24 hours.

Anyone know what this plug is next to the alternator? I assume maybe it was a generator or different alternator originally and this is the original?

If a 255 and a 35 have a baby, is it a 135? lol.

There is a definate size difference between the two but not in tires. They both have almost the same size tires. I thought that was weird. I think the MF35 is 14.9-28 and the 255 is 16.9-28. Just a little bit wider but same height.

 

[Bob NY]

14.9 x 28 is oversize for a 35. They usually had 14.9 x 24 or 13.6 x 28.

 

[MF#1]

Congrats on a great tractor! Even though both rims are the same height, the 16.9's are taller. If you haven't got it yet, get an Operators Manual a.s.a.p., it will tell you what you need to know. Massey used a GM 10si?? alternator on most of the 200 series, you are holding the two wire connector, or what's left of it, that fits in the slot on the back of the alternator housing. I would not try to plug it in until I knew it was wired as a "one wire alternator" or factory wired that required the two wires to be plugged in. Diesels will spoil you until you neglect care and feeding then you may be surprised. CLEAN fuel, good fuel filters, clean air filters, etc, don't "putt-putt" around near idle, get it warmed up and work it. A working Tachometer is a necessity until you learn the engine sounds. Good Luck with it, you'll like it.

 

[Floopy]

14.9 x 28 is oversize for a 35. They usually had 14.9 x 24 or 13.6 x 28.

I might be misremembering. They are pretty close to the size of the tires on the 255 but narrower.

 

[Floopy]

Congrats on a great tractor! Even though both rims are the same height, the 16.9's are taller. If you haven't got it yet, get an Operators Manual a.s.a.p., it will tell you what you need to know. Massey used a GM 10si?? alternator on most of the 200 series, you are holding the two wire connector, or what's left of it, that fits in the slot on the back of the alternator housing. I would not try to plug it in until I knew it was wired as a "one wire alternator" or factory wired that required the two wires to be plugged in. Diesels will spoil you until you neglect care and feeding then you may be surprised. CLEAN fuel, good fuel filters, clean air filters, etc, don't "putt-putt" around near idle, get it warmed up and work it. A working Tachometer is a necessity until you learn the engine sounds. Good Luck with it, you'll like it.

I started researching it and I found the tach connects at the front of the engine which is nice. I was worried I was going to have to buy a $2-300 alternator to get it working. I assumed the tach was driven by the alternator like my MF35 was. It has a 1 wire alternator. Knowing that the tach doesn't run on it now, I'm not concerned about the plug anymore. My massey has a similar extra plug. I thought maybe it had a digital tach or something. I don't think my temp gauge works either(it never got past like 160) or it doesn't have a thermostat and I never got it hot enough. It definitely wasn't overheating or anything though. I've got a leak on a bucket hose and a couple hoses that are just looking old but the hoses are like $10-15, so I'll just replace the ones that weren't recently replaced as a general maintenance. I am gonna use it to put a barn up and that'll require forks and a cage on the bucket with someone in it. Nobody wants to go for a ride down.

I am really digging the 255. I think it is good enough to be my forever tractor. I'm not going to put it to work much the next couple weeks til I get a bucket anyway. I have the quick connect coming this week.

My clutch is stuck on the MF35 or the fingers broke or whatever a few days ago. I am gonna sell it off I reckon but I want to take care of the clutch first. I'm gonna spend a few days cleaning it up and fixing small things I've been ignoring because I didn't HAVE to fix them.

 

[Floopy]

The tach and cable were functional. The gear drive is bad. The piece inside is missing and the part the cable attached to just pulls out of the casing. A new one is $20 so I went ahead and ordered one.

The gas gauge doesn't work either and if the temp gauge does I haven't got it hot enough to register more than just a tick above the low temp resting position.

I think there is 12v to these two gauges. I'm gonna pop the hood off and see if the power to them is good and test the gas gauge and sending unit.

I tried to find a sending unit but I don't see any available for the mf255.

Am I stuck using something universal or fixing the old one if it is the sending unit?

 

[miangus]

You can't beat that deal with a stick. MF fuel gauges seem to always be an issue; I thought the parts were available for those later models. I got the gauge fixed for my older 65. Those Perkins use so little fuel you well forget to add some and get to learn how to bleed it.

 

[Floopy]

You can't beat that deal with a stick. MF fuel gauges seem to always be an issue; I thought the parts were available for those later models. I got the gauge fixed for my older 65. Those Perkins use so little fuel you well forget to add some and get to learn how to bleed it.

I think I understand how. I know the proper way isn't hosing it with starting fluid until it run again anyway. lol. I read through the operators manual online and saw that part.

I understand how a sending unit works fairly well. Hopefully it just has a messed up wire or a corroded pad from sitting. I see there are universal marine ones that have adjustable floats. I've never set one of them up but I think I can rig something if I need to. I'd hate to have to justify buying an entire part tractor for a gas gauge to my wife. haha.

I couldn't find a single mf255 sending unit anywhere on Amazon, eBay, here, etc. Google didn't bring one up. AI gave me some part numbers but I'm not sure it was accurate as they didn't appear to be for the tractor. I'll have to research that further, it is possible it caught a mention on a forum somewhere that it could be retrofitted. It does a pretty good job of skimming even if it doesn't completely understand what it is returning.

 

[MF#1]

The tach and cable were functional. The gear drive is bad. The piece inside is missing and the part the cable attached to just pulls out of the casing. A new one is $20 so I went ahead and ordered one.

The gas gauge doesn't work either and if the temp gauge does I haven't got it hot enough to register more than just a tick above the low temp resting position.

I think there is 12v to these two gauges. I'm gonna pop the hood off and see if the power to them is good and test the gas gauge and sending unit.

I tried to find a sending unit but I don't see any available for the mf255.

Am I stuck using something universal or fixing the old one if it is the sending unit?

 

[MF#1]

Don't "pop the hood", you have to remove the shroud over the instrument panel to get to the gauges. Massey uses a slightly different wiring system, there's an oil pressure switch that brings up power to the instruments when you have proper oil pressure, IF a previous owner didn't disconnect it. Your fuel gauge could have a bad ground or pinched wire, test before you replace. BTW, I've used a clean stick for years to check my fuel, always works, no cost. Suggest checking out agcoparts.com to find the 'real' part number then search the net with that part number. Lube that tach cable well before you hook it back up, there are specialty lubes just for that purpose. Sounds like you're doing well so far, keep it up!

 

[Floopy]

Don't "pop the hood", you have to remove the shroud over the instrument panel to get to the gauges. Massey uses a slightly different wiring system, there's an oil pressure switch that brings up power to the instruments when you have proper oil pressure, IF a previous owner didn't disconnect it. Your fuel gauge could have a bad ground or pinched wire, test before you replace. BTW, I've used a clean stick for years to check my fuel, always works, no cost. Suggest checking out agcoparts.com to find the 'real' part number then search the net with that part number. Lube that tach cable well before you hook it back up, there are specialty lubes just for that purpose. Sounds like you're doing well so far, keep it up!

The 2 side cover things on the sides of the instrument panel down lower are missing

I have to take the hood off to get to the sending unit. I can reach in and feel the back of the gauges. There is 2 pieces to the hood and I'd have to take the bigger one off to get the smaller piece off I thought. Of course, I just did a cursory glance. Is the 2nd piece the shroud? The sending unit is in the middle of the hood.

I found the part numbers, new and old ones. It just isn't a piece that is available. Assuming the gauge is 40-240 ohm I found a suitable universal that should bolt up. The level doesn't have to be perfect, I just need to know when it is low. I could put a resistor in line I suppose if I need to adjust the reading.

 

[miangus]

The 255 was in the same family as the 65 which had the 203 Perkins, evidently the 255 could have either the 203 or 236 Perkins. So it's a step up from the 35.

 

[Floopy]

The 255 was in the same family as the 65 which had the 203 Perkins, evidently the 255 could have either the 203 or 236 Perkins. So it's a step up from the 35.

Mine has the 236. My 35 has a 4 cyl gas.

 

[Ron(Ont)]

I could not find a sending unit for my MF165 either, at least at a reasonable price. I bought a marine set that worked well. Mine had been modified in that it was no longer fed from the oil pressure switch. It has a dedicated toggle switch. It has the advantage that I can check the fuel with the engine off.

 

[ford4wd08]

I was able to use this sending unit on my 150, you can swap the float from one side to the other to make it read 30-240 or 240-30 for empty to full depending on your gauge.

I will say the mounting flange bolt holes did not line up exactly with my tank so I had to slot a few to get it to work, but seems to be reading well and is very adjustable depending on tank size.

Pardon Our Interruption

 

[Floopy]

I found similar units for $20 on eBay that after looking at the pictures could be reversed. There is also a Dorman item 55818 that they have in stock locally at the auto parts store which has a reversible one too which should work. It is 240-33 ohm but 2 screws hold it so it can flip. I spent a couple hours digging into them. I figured I'd make a post when I do it but I'm not sure it isn't just a power issue to the gauge yet.

 

[Ron(Ont)]

This is the one I used. I needed a 9" one for my MF 165. Search for ...

240-33 ohms 9"(225mm) Fuel Level Sending Unit for Marine Boat Truck Car Fuel Water Level Gauge Sensor Stainless Steel Fuel Gas Tank Sender 5 Hole​

 

[Floopy]

I could not find a sending unit for my MF165 either, at least at a reasonable price. I bought a marine set that worked well. Mine had been modified in that it was no longer fed from the oil pressure switch. It has a dedicated toggle switch. It has the advantage that I can check the fuel with the engine off.

Does the oil pressure switch only pass power when it has pressure? That explains why it looked so dumb. lol. I took the cowl and hood off and and I was looking at the tube and then all the wires. I just figured it was rigged up. The gas gauge itself worked when I powered it and grounded it. The sending unit long ago gave up the ghost, there wasn't even pieces inside of it touching. I went ahead and ordered a universal one.

I think I'd leave a switch on unfortunately and have a dead battery. I'll either put a 3 position switch or set the oil pressure gauge up right. It looks like I'm gonna have some wiring to do either way. It definitely has 50 years of hillbilly repairs and accessory add ons. The wiring to the gauges is all hacked and disconnected. A lot of the wiring I'll just remove altogether. There is relays and stuff someone added for aftermarket stuff. I've got 6 headlights(2 in front, 2 each on the fenders) and 1 reverse headlight(not sure if there is a name for it).

 

[Floopy]

This is the one I used. I needed a 9" one for my MF 165. Search for ...

240-33 ohms 9"(225mm) Fuel Level Sending Unit for Marine Boat Truck Car Fuel Water Level Gauge Sensor Stainless Steel Fuel Gas Tank Sender 5 Hole​

I ended up going with the dorman 55818 because I got it for $20. It is setup so you can just flip the variable resistor over and make it 240-33. They said no but I went and looked at one and it is just the 2 screws and the whole assembly can be rotated. It means if it breaks I can buy the same exact one against in the future since it is a major name brand part that fits common vehicles. I'm going to make a video or pictures when I install it. I know I'd have liked to watch someone do it and explain the oil pressure power to the gauges and stuff.

 

[Jim.ME]

The oil pressure switch is simple. The oil pressure closes the contacts to complete the electrical circuit. Think the oil pressure is you flipping a toggle switch lever to close switch contacts and complete a circuit. Shut the engine off, oil pressure drops and the switch opens shutting the gauge off.