small older john deere

[pheel]

when i was growing up on the farm, our neighbor had a john deere, had that pop, pop, pop sound.
i would like to get a small jd, the la"s are way to expensive. i have a farmall cub low boy, that is a good size, on ebay the old tractors are in the $1,500 range, is a b small, any suggestions pheel

 

[Christopher S.]

I would classify a B as small but others may not. With a B you have the ability to have a three point hitch. With the later models you also have a road gear for cruises. If you are more concerned about the size and less about the practicality you could look at a John Deere H. You would give up your road gear and three point though.

 

[Dennis in NC]

I THINK THE NICEST OF THE SMALL JD'S IS THE -BR +BO-.BUT THATS ME.

 

[Leroy]

The smallest of the B's are 3 tines the power of your cub with the lates at 4 times the power. Sounds like you just want something for a colection and for that with the ability to be hauled whith what you can haul the cub the only thing other than an L or LA would be a H that is a horsiantal engine row crop where the L & LA are vertical engines and wide front. Next smallest for handling would be an M that replaced the LA.

 

[toot]

If your in the $1500 range you are about limited to the B. I classify them as small to medium range tractors. The H, L, LA, M are the small tractors of the JD line, - all very neat, cute desirable in their own way, but like you said, overpriced. The B can be used, and will give you more of the pop pop sound you remember, these little ones pop, but dont pop hard enough for me. Good luck.

 

[mrf1002u]

You will need a full size truck and a good trailer to haul a B if that is your intention. The Unstyled B's are very simple to work on.

 

[primerk5]

An H is smaller than a B but looks like a B.

 

[The Dukester]

The best buy...and lightest tractor is the styled B built in years 1940-1947. Try to find one with the pressed steel wheels (they're lighter) and 6 speeds (more fun to "cruise around" on). Electric start has it's advantages....and you'll have lights too, but they aren't too had to start by hand. You can safely haul one on a 7000 lbs. capacity trailer and pull it with a good 1/2 Ton pickup.

 

[Hotflashjr]

If you are used to a cub, a B is going to be quite large. If you look hard enough, you can find a L series tractor in good shape for $1,500. There have been numerous ones on ebay that have sold for around that range that were in good running condition. I would say look at an M. You can get an aftermarket 3pt. hitch, you have some sort of hydraulics, and they are not too hard to work on. Plenty of parts, used or new, and JD still stocks lots of stuff for these machines.

 

[deere guy]

Chris, the mid B's went faster than the late ones.

 

[Christopher S.]

I didn"t know that, I always assumed the single stick six speed gave the faster road gear. Thanks

 

[buickanddeere]

Any consideration or eventually using a log splitter, bushhog, standby generator or anything with the tractor?

 

[JDemaris]

H is the smallest with the Deere horizontal two-banger engine. It's a fun tractor to work on and a little odd-ball - as compared to the other horizontal-engine Deere's. The old timers in our shop used to curse the Hs more then any other Deere (because of the brakes and flywheel) - until the 1010/2010s came out. Then all I heard about was how bad they were. Nobody cursed the Ls and LAs since they were never regarded as real farm tractors.

About Ls and LAs though, they don't seem to be any more expensive then the rest, at least not here in NY. I come aross them now and then for $800 - $1000 if poor but complete condition. Same with Ms, 40s, etc. Personally, I like a vertical engine, foot clutch and PTO, and that leads me more to the M,40,420, etc. 1010 engine is the same size as the 420, but four little cylinders don't sound near as nice as two big ones.

 

[alabamafrog]

You can get an M or MT in the $1,500 price range that needs a little work. The M is rather small, the MT sits bigger, like in between an H and B. They are nice tractors but they have the foot clutch and you have to be an acrobat to get on and off them. I have an MT with full set of cultivators on it, people at shows sometimes stare at it trying to figure out how to get on it.

My buddy bought a good running/driving M the other day for like $800, it needs some sheet metal work, a new seat and paint/decals. He’ll probably have more than $1,500 in it when he’s done.

 

[Mike M]

I was at an auction a month or so ago in Ohio and an L with electric start and lights and cultivator in really good shape went for $5,000
I would of guessed more like $3,000 to $3,500 should of bought it ?
Same sale a 40W in same shape only brought $3,000

So any complete or less then complete $800 to $1,000 is a DEAL.

 

[Brendon-KS]

My 1950 B tops out at around 10-11 mph in high gear. The six speed does give a nice selection of closely spaced "working" gears, though.

 

[James Howell]

We have the M series tractors and the B series tractors.

We paid $2000 for "Sparky" our 51MT which is used primarily for mowing.

<a href="http://s200.photobucket.com/albums/aa5/jameslloydhowell/John%20Deere%20Equipment/Sparky/?action=view&current=IMG_1683.jpg" target="_blank">

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We paid $1550 for "Sam" our 51MT which is used for <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PlcFC8Di37s">raking</a>, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxkCpMNt_ns">cultipacking</a>, and advertising.

<a href="http://s200.photobucket.com/albums/aa5/jameslloydhowell/Haymaking%202009/The%20Hunt%20Place/?action=view&current=IMG_1593.jpg" target="_blank">

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We paid $1400 for "Rusty" our other 51MT which will be used for mowing in Hutchins, TX.

<a href="http://s200.photobucket.com/albums/aa5/jameslloydhowell/John%20Deere%20Equipment/Rusty/?action=view&current=003.jpg" target="_blank">

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We paid $700 for "Uncle Earl" our 39B which is used for <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LH-QroJV9Y">raking</a> and maybe someday mowing.

<a href="http://s200.photobucket.com/albums/aa5/jameslloydhowell/John%20Deere%20Equipment/Uncle%20Earl/?action=view&current=IMG_1638.jpg" target="_blank">

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<a href="http://s200.photobucket.com/albums/aa5/jameslloydhowell/John%20Deere%20Equipment/Uncle%20Earl/?action=view&current=IMG_1636.jpg" target="_blank">

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We paid $1360 for <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cvc3v5NobCY">"John B"</a> our 43B which is now used for taking up space in the tractor shed.

<a href="http://s200.photobucket.com/albums/aa5/jameslloydhowell/John%20Deere%20Equipment/43B/?action=view&current=IMG_0129.jpg" target="_blank">

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<a href="http://s200.photobucket.com/albums/aa5/jameslloydhowell/John%20Deere%20Equipment/43B/?action=view&current=IMG_0342.jpg" target="_blank">

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Hope this helps and good luck with whatever JD tractor you choose.

 

[pheel]

after reading the answers a H seems like a good substitute if i can't get a LA thanks for all the help pheel