4500,555,655 which to buy

Hello,new to the forum.Been wanting a TLB for working around my property.Fields,landscaping,stump digging,wood road ditching etc.I get around a lot of the time and property with a Ford 800 tractor 2wd.I also own a MF 65 2wd and a Kubota 6800 4wd.Will not need it in the snow and ice. How are the old 4500 parts wise ? I am just getting tired of having to bunch jobs together in order to justify a contractor to come.Plus both of my kids will be building on the property and I could help justify use buy doing leach field power line trenching etc.I am mechanically inclined but have no real diesel experience. If I need a pin/bushing are they easily replaced ? I am definitely leaning towards an open cab for lesser cost and ability to go through the woods easier. what kind of hrs should I be looking at max to buy ? How about what is a engine rebuild cost ? Sorry for all the questions on a first post.Looks like a good forum here.Thanks to all that post. Ed

Hello fellow new member. Great forum with lots of advice on equipment. As with my decision to purchase a New Holland branded 655e, I looked and questioned quite a bit before purchasing it. You have said that you want to stump dig, and make roads a TLB can do some of those things quite well and is suited for it. IMO for stumping, a dozer (with higher stumps for leverage) is way better. Stumping pushes hydros to their max alone with digout forces, etc. I live way upstate and so the unit working in the cold and 4x4 was essential. If its just flat were you are, and you plan on doing most work outside mud season then 2wd is fine. I would like to say that I'm not a super brand loyal guy each manuf. has their options, strengths, etc. I have seen Case (neighbor), John Deere (ran one), and Bobcats, Cats (bro-in-law) all dig well with some that are just freaks of nature (the cat for one). But when my brother-in-law told me what he paid for some service items, etc. I had to rule one out. I am overall happy with the New Holland branded one but its before the 2000's quality issues that some have reported. Anyway if you were close enough you could come check it out. As with anything used just do the homework, and don't be afraid to scrutinize the unit in every way (hours, pins, connections, hard & soft lines, engine cold start-up, tranny, etc.), once its yours its your problems. May sound corny but I made a list of wants, and musts and looked from there, I found my unit with all and some more (4x4 must, 4-1 want, exted hoe-want)... Also, I had to look outside my area, as the units up here were too pricey even for 2wd and beat at that...

A 450 JD dozer is also on my list of to buy things B4 I retire.But right now the backhoe will do alot more for me.I had thought about the backhoe attachment for my Kubota 6800 but the on& off thing would be a pain sometimes and I know that a real hoe would outdig it.I have been looking outside of NY state also.An extendahoe would be nice but for just working on my property would not be a super necessary thing,but nice.4wd would be nice but would like to try a 2wd to see if I really need it.I would not be using it in the winter.A cab is definitely not needed since I need to get into my woods.I just wonder out tippy and bouncy a 2wd one would be without that extra 4wd weight on the front though.I do have some hills.

Sounds like a good older 2wd might work just fine in your case. Every option you do essentially pay for. As for the TLB vs using the Kubota, I think one member on here put it best, using a tractor with attachments vs a backhoe is like using a plastic shovel vs explosives...

Good and older might be hard to find.Have you ever had to put any pins or bushings in your hoe yet ?

My nephew has a JD 310c with 4wd and mechanical thumb that I was looking at.5k hrs and has a turbo.I was a little leery about a backhoe in the 25 yr old era with a turbo though.Would like to have non-turbo engine for reliability,but just assuming that.I have no equipment that is turbo'ed.

I had one pin/bushing in the lower boom, but removed all the grease sludge and spray lubed the pin, then regreased and I was back in good order again. So I have been fortunate that it was mostly taken care of. I would not necessarily worry about a 25yr old turbo'd machine if it was taken care of. Turbos just require more frequent oil changes, but I would not let me stop from getting a turbo'd unit. BTW mine most 555, 655 are non-turbo..

I like the non-turbo though.Where in NY are you ? I am 25 miles NE of Albany near Vermont.Been doing some more reading and hearing that Fords were not good.They say get a deere,case or cat.Well I think cat would be way over priced for me and like I said I am working on my 100 acre property digging stones out of fields,stumpping,reditching my wood roads and my kids will be building here.So I wanted a simple machine that will outdig a compact hoe and something that my kids will beable to use down the road.Hence the no cab,etc for possible more ease of repair.Wish there were some low hr Ford gas hoes around.I would snap that right up.My gramps old 1960 ford 800 is still serving me well and is simple to maintain.Been looking on machinery trader

I wouldn't be afraid of that 310c if I had a good bill of health.

All else being equal, get the biggest one. You're not trailering it from job to job, you don't have some small work site where the small ones work better. 555 are popular for those reasons, so you pay more for them. 655 of 755 can do a lot more work per day and are cheaper to boot. I rented a 555 and it did OK. Bought a 750 sized machine and that works much better for the big and heavy stuff like picking up 3 ton pebbles with the thumb.

I plan on building a coi pond 30-40' dia with a hill and waterfall on the backside.A thumb will come in handy to place the rocks.

I agree with El Hombre - buy as big as you can as you are not looking to move it around. I have a 73 ford 4500 and have had great luck with it. It is old and worn but parts have not been too bad. When I purchased it 5 years ago, the first thing I did was replace one tire and change all the fluids and filters. Since then I have replaced 6 or 7 hydraulic hoses and a seal in the injector pump along with the frame for the front loader. The injector seal was the most daunting, but the pump guy on this forum walked me through it. The older fords are good units, unlike the newer New Hollands which can be problematic. Look around as see what models are most popular in your area, chances are service and parts are more readily available for these units. Also see if there are any heavy equipment junk yards in your area, and see what they have on hand for parts. We have one close by here and that is where I picked up the loader frame for $300. The JD 310 is a good unit as is the 410.

I missed out on an older Ford a few yrs back.Seems like the open cab saves quite a bit since I am not going to be using it on crappy days.Have been kicking tires so when the right deal comes along I will jump on it.

I bought a Ford 4500 tlb pretty much as a wreck and paid $3000. I went through the engine....new pistons, rings, bearings, lifters, cam, flex plate and all accessories. After dealing with the usual burst hoses and odd repairs I ended up with about $7500 in the machine and have been very happy with the result.

Around here anything close to the hp. and weight of this machine starts around $25,000.