Massey Ferguson 20C questions

[mark18mwm]

I'm looking at a Massey 20C loader/hoe. I know it's old but it seems to be in real good condition mechanically. Little 3 cyl. perkins runs like a Swiss watch, pins and bushings seem tight, decent cab with 2 post ROPS and good glass, rear tires aren't the best but might make it a couple years, several of the hyd cyls leak a bit,and a god awful green home made paint job. I have owned, fixed and run old equipment most of my life (hell, my main skidsteer is a Bobcat 600, lol) so I can handle most breakdowns and repairs. My question is are there and concerns particular to a 20C I should pay attention to? I never even sat on a Massey Ferguson until now so I don't know squat about this machine except the obvious stuff I mentioned above. The guy wants $6,500, I seem to think it's a fair price. Reason he's selling is he's moving into town and is getting rid of all his stuff like that, so I don't think he's trying to dump a problem child on someone else. This is not a machine I plan doing any outside work with, just a toy for around home and in our woods. Any advise on buying a 20C? Thank's

 

[Delmer]

Check the engine to bellhousing area, and the engine block to oil pan are, and the front axle pivot housing to engine area for wobble, loose or worked bolts, oil leaks etc. If the front bucket is overloaded, especially if one of the tires goes in a dip, then there is too much twisting strain on the engine and it will leak. This is from 4 cylinder MF, but it might apply here. They added a brace underneath the engine on the 50's to reduce this.

What kind of transmission/clutch/reverser does it have? One test for the bushings is to extend the backhoe all the way out and nudge it sideways to see how far it bounces back and forth. The cylinders are cheap and easy enough to fix if you do it yourself, as long as the chrome is good still. Sounds good otherwise.

 

[mark18mwm]

Thanks for the tips to look for. The trans is a 3 speed with a high and low range, so 6 speed I guess. the reverser is separate lever on the left side, all manual. As for the cyls that don't scare me much, I have rebuilt more that a few over the years. I checked out the hoe and loader bushings and I was surprised to see they were in relativity decent shape, so that was good. I asked the guy and I think he was honest, it there any issues he knew of and that would not be a deal breaker I just want to know what to expect. He said there weren't any he knew of but he didn't seem to be too mechanically inclined so he might not even notice problems. I did notice some movement in the swing motor mounting but looks like it's just some loose bolts, hopefully.
Thanks for the reply Delmer. I see you are also from WI. About where are you? I'm in a small town called Ogema, north of Medford 20 miles and west of Tomahawk 30 miles.

 

[Delmer]

Oh, I was just up to Merrill, Wausau and Marshfield over the weekend. Back home (almost to Iowa) now.

That should work fine for you, sounds like a fair price for the shape it's in.

 

[mark18mwm]

Thats a nice part of the state, I used to go to that area often, driving truck to Prairie du Chien, Lancaster and Plattville.
Thank's for the advise, I appreciate it.

 

[Sportsman762]

The Massey 20C is the industrial version of the 231 and 245. It was the smallest of the industrials that MF offered 20C, 30B, 40B, 50C. The 20C was the economy unit with drum brakes in the back and no instant reverse option. The 30B had the same engine with wet brakes and the option of instant reverse transmission. The loader on the 20C was lighter than the 30B, however had the same front end, so the front is built heavier than necessary. Many of the parts used on the 20C are the same as used on the ag tractors, this makes the machine pretty cheap to repair. The major differences are the front axle, and the sheet metal. There is no major weakness on the 20C, just the normal wear items on a machine built in the late 70's. I have a 20C loader and have had to due some repairs to it due to the prior owner using either to start the tractor. The biggest problem is many parts are not listed to fit a 20C so you have to look in the parts book and search for parts by part number. The loader despite being weaker than the 30B is too large for the tractor and makes the rear end light even when empty. I have to keep an implement or weight on the rear to keep it on the ground. However since yours has a backhoe you should not have this problem. The hoe should be a Massey 52A, loader Massey 32A.
Specs:
Weight 9500lbs

Loader: 32A
124" lift
2800 full lift

Backhoe: 52A
11'6" max
179" reach

Rear Tires:
14.9x24"

 

[mark18mwm]

Thank's guys I appreciate the info. I decided this weekend I'll buy it. Looking forward to getting to know it better. The paint on the thing would scare a buzzard off a gut wagon, so I think one of the first things I'll do is prep it for paint and really get a good look at it in the process. Normally I don't care about paint but that thing is just embarrassing, haha. Unless there is something I haven't seen yet I think it's just what I need, cheap, simple, and in relatively good shape little machine. One question Sportsman 762, you say it's weight is 9500lbs. Is that just the tractor or the complete unit with loader and hoe?
Thank's, Mark

 

[Sportsman762]

The 9500lbs is the complete unit. The loader and hoe weigh around 6.5K, and the tractor about 4k.
The paint if you want the original paint is available from most any tractor dealer, however they will have to special order it. Its a little bit bright so I used new cat yellow instead.

 

[mark18mwm]

Thanks, at 9500lbs I should be able to use my trailer and not need a bigger one. I was actually thinking Cat paint also, we have some in the shop already.