We were looking at getting one, i want to use it for food plots and towing a manure spreader. It seems like it may not have enough HP though, its only 26 hp. I want to use tillers, plows and/or sod busters with it, think it will hold up? Any info would be appreciated!
My dad had an 8n. He and grandpa Used on the farm in Rochester. Then he brought it to Ely when he had a resort. Says selling it was a bad move. He said they were easy to work on and ran like a champ.
Love my 8N to death. They are damn near bullet proof. I also pull a large manure spreader and use it for food plots. The problem with the 8N is doesnt have low gears so it wont pull a tiller properly, it just bounces it around. I use a 2 bottom plow to turn the ground and then a disc to go over it. Its not NEARLY as nice as having a finely tilled plot but it will work. Sometimes I just turn the ground and disc it by myself and then rent or borrow a tractor with low gears and a tiller to go over it to get a good seed bed. Good luck bud!
Love my 8/9N hybrid...26 hp but gears are low enough...it'll do all you need for plots and gardening. I've got to do a carb rebuild soon and they do require a bit of steady maintenance but are good/reliable machines and easy to work on...with lots of parts out there available if anything breaks.
Make sure you have a mechanic go over it before you buy it. There are a lot of them around and some are pretty wore out. Of course you can always rebuild it if you are mechanically inclined. I helped my dad rebuild his a good many years ago.
I think you'd have to expect any machine that is over 50yrs old to leak a little oil...mine's not to bad and I think its engine is from 1949. Will have to double check but it may be older....62+ years and still kickin'
I would never try to pul a tiller behind my 8 n, it pulls a disc and does what I need it to do. I think a tiller would really rattle you to the bones.
