M-TA vs. Oliver 88...shocked...

[braol]

I was at a local tractor pull two weeks ago and was watching an M-TA with envy (I own an H). The M-TA is kind of the ultimate expression of the letter-series tractors in my view and I've always wanted to pull my old implements with something with a little more power. My wife laughs when I tell her that M stands for Man Tractor...
Well, the M-TA did its thing and then an Oliver 88 went to town. Oliver tractors are big in my area as well as Allis-Chalmers due to local dealer availability back in the old days. (In fact, my favorite local bar owner always pokes fun at my IH hat every time I go into the place...him being a big Oliver guy.) Well, that 88 pulled the drag almost half again as far as the M-TA. Another 88 did the same thing and I started to take notice! Maybe the M was out of tune, but the difference was impressive. I still love my Red tractors but perhaps I might need to expand my palatte into the olive green realm?

 

[DeltaRed]

In some ways Oliver's were light years
ahead of IH(and others).I think an 88
was a bit bigger than an M/SMTA.More
power and a lighter weight tractor made
Oliver's hard to beat.I own an Oliver
60.More power(and more gears)and easier
to operate than my Farmall C.I ran an
88diesel(and a 77) one summer when I was
a kid.Really liked that tractor,would
like to own one someday.

 

[redforlife]

When Oliver went to a 6 cylinder
tractor, they kind of dupped one up on
everybody else in terms of power. The
Oliver guys seem to do well at tractor
pulls. If I was a puller (I have a
straight M) I would look out for the
Oliver guys at a pull. But in the
field, I think I'd rather be sitting
on my M. Just a good all around
tractor.

 

[old]

Years ago I went to a tractor pull only one I had gone to and I entered my Oliver S88. I was 150lbs light and use to low of a gear. I came in 4th place with 1st being 6 inches ahead of me. The guy who won told me after the pull if I had been 150lbs heavier and ran 3rd gear instead of first I would have beaten him big time

 

[fastfarmall]

Brand of tire,Air pressure, height of drawbar,and where is the weight, and other things make a difference!

 

[560Dennis]

This depends on a lot of things . What weight class was it?
What tires ?
Where the weights , Was M wheel weights , did the it lift the front end off the ground half way down the track ,what else did you see ?
The Oliver can be punch out to almost 600 cubes.
Rpm limits. 10 percent over MF.
Compare the Oliver to a 1100+ cuin JD G
So many factors to consider, The M Ta would better in heavy class if weights are set right.
Some pulls are tailored to weight classes that benefit their preferences ,such John Deere or Oliver or ihc.
Tell us more ?

 

[the tractor vet]

Well i have run a super 88 way back , it was ok but i did not like the brake pedals . Yep they had live PTO and Live Hyd. . My one buddy andi had a 88 for awhile , ran real good great ROAD tractor ----------with the 390 Ford GT four bbl engine with a massey 300 Gov. on it with a built in over ride Them New Fast trac have nothing on the 88 . I know for a Fact that 4500 RPM really impressed that state cop while pulling two gravity wagons of ear corn that one Saturday afternoon while holding a V W bug out in the lane tryen to pass . They should not have given me the finger then i would not have opened the four barrel .

 

[DR. EVIL]

The Township road commissioner I worked for 2 summers had an Oliver 770 diesel we used to run a heavy-
duty rototiller to chew up chunks of scarified oiled dirt roads, same job that knocked the live pto out
THREE TIMES in the R John Deere Dad sold the prior road commissioner. The Oliver never had a problem. I
really didn't care for the 14 mph road gear, and that constant gear whine. Pretty sure Dad's '51 M with
4 M&W pistons could have run the rototiller pretty easy.

My Cousin used to pull his Super 88 in antique tractor pulls, never seen him finish higher than next
to last. But, most mornings he did chores with his 88, and ran his mix-mill.

 

[SDE]

We had a tractor pull here about 35 years ago. They had a guy with a 88 pull the sled first as a test run. he had a rope attached to the governor and that tractor could pull. None of the other tractors can close.

 

[AJB-830]

Back in the late 60s, we had a Farmall MD and an Oliver 770 along with a JD 555 3-14 plow. We only plowed with the MD as the 770 Oliver did not have enough traction to pull 3-14s even though it had maybe 15 more HP than the MD. But I think the MD weighted about a 1,000 lbs. more than the Oliver. I still have the MD and Oliver 770. Al

 

[JohnRowehl]

(quoted from post at 17:00:16 10/13/21) I
really didn't care for the 14 mph road gear, and that constant gear whine.

Not sure what you mean. Too fast or too slow? Or the gear whine?

 

[rustred]

as said need more info on these pulling rules. are these stock tractors in an antique pull? or something souped up? the 88's do very well
in antique pulls from what i have seen. and then ALSO are u talking standard 88 or row crop 88 ... big difference again. got to compare
those limes to cherries equally.

 

[Dave H (MI)]

I'm sure you probably know that there are a lot of factors that could cause that 88 lb weakling to out pull a SMTA...don't forget the S. Guys used to yell at you around here if you left off the S. That tractor can hold it's own just fine if it is up to snuff. I use mine a lot...and I have bigger. The sound it makes when you sink a 12' cultivator in heavy soil is like music.

 

[BudKaiser]

Did the SMTA power out ? . I pull a stock SM in 5600#, 6100# and sometimes 6600# classes and have never powered out. I don't always win but I will finish towards the top of the list. My 450 and 560 are also
awesome contenders.

 

[agonair]

I have a 1949 Oliver 88 and have been around IH and Oliver all of my life. A few things to keep in mind, the M was out in 1939 and
the 88 came out in 1948.
The Oliver has 6 cylinders and 6 speeds forward while the M is a four cylinder with 5 speeds forward. Around here in east central
IL, a straight 88 will run circles around a straight M, but a Super M will give it a run for it's money. I think a straight 88 will
out pull a Super 88. A well tuned Super M -TA will be a tough competitor, but there are many factors.

 

[fastfarmall]

I have a SMTA, and i pull against two 880's every years, i beat em both every year, but i am heavier too ! It's a distance pull !!!! I also pull against two Diifferant G. Molines, there a little heavier, the one can beat me by about 10 feet!

 

[braol]

Long term update: The tractor pull in question was just the local friendly pull...no weight classes or anything fancy. Just run-what-ya-brung.