Get rid of your car and get a tractor

You need a Minneapolis-Moline UDLX. They could travel up to 40 MPH on the road, as well as do tractor work. Bring lots of money- they are rare.

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"What one generation tolerates, the next generation embraces." -John Wesley

Mushcreek.....this lass has now added that vehicle to her 'I want' list! It's a beauty to be sure!

Mushcreek,
Do they come in Blue or Red? nice vehicle!

So...if a body were to drive a tractor to town, how much mileage do you get? I have NO clue. Growing up, the tractor never left the farm. Even the repair guy came to us. So, a 34 HP tractor - how many 50gallon gas cans do you need to bring along for a 50 mile trip?

One of my strong points -I am not afraid to ask. I used to drive my dad crazy with all the questions. He would tell me I could come along if I could keep quiet. I usually didn't get to go along. Which is why I had to get so many questions answered in such a short time.

Callie, you sound like my youngest on a trip. I usually give him an apple so I get a few moments silence.

I'd prefer a red one, and am interested in the mileage question too. Wonder if Forerunner could help out there?

Mileage would be fun. My 7510 runs about 7 gallons/hour with a heavy load on it, I'd estimate about 4 gallons/hour empty on the road at 20 mph. Smaller tractor you could probably get 8-10 mpg with diesel, maybe a bit more if you're lucky.
I've taken tractors to the supermarket a few times on the way through town home from fields. Kinda hard to find a parking spot sometimes with a 22' disk on the back, even when it's folded.

The drunks driving tractors was one of the main reasons Ontario started requiring valid licenses for driving tractors on the road. Otherwise they had a lot of guys who had lost their licenses but were still legally driving tractors and they had to go to the trouble to get a court order to keep them off the road.

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The internet - fueling paranoia and misinformation since 1873.

Mileage would possibly be an issue, but wear on the tractor tires would be expensive as well. They were designed for dirt, not asphalt. I have driven my tractor on the highway at relatively high speeds, and I can tell you they don't handle well.

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Only the paranoid survive.

I carry a gun because a cop is too heavy.

Dispatches From The Conservative Underground

About 7 or so years ago the trailer plant we landfilled for went out of business. I had a new portable welder and a friend told me about these Amish men he sold some lathes to. He said that a group he sold to needed a welder to come in and do some welding as they didnt get along with the group that welded. I was hauling my welding unit up there and when i slowed down to look for the addy on the sign a 5000 Ford tractor blew past me.

I clocked him about 35 mph. I noticed he had a little pick up bed on te back of it. He stopped at a store and I stopped in behind it. I spoke to him and he told me about it I guess e never saw anyone as goofy as I was lol. He had a small pickup backend I think it was an old Ford Courier. The frame where the cab was had been turned up and made into a 3pt hitch. He ad a small transfer case turned around to make a speed increaser.

When using the tracto i nthe feild he would lift up the bed with the hitch to turn and manuever in the feilds. On the road he would geththe tractor to rolling good with its wheels and he would engage the pto and set the bed on the ground. He told me it took several hours a week off moving produce to market and oter things.

Back in the 70's I drove a tractor from Arkansas to Washington DC. It was a 806 International and it took a full tank per day about 50 gallons. I bought fuel 5 times on the trip up their but trucked it back. Used it on the farm for 9 years after that. The reason that I used that one was because it was the fasted one that I had. It made about 30 miles per hour.

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God must have loved stupid people because he made so many of them.

Sounds like a very slow trip...I'd best not take my talkative child along.

well if you do it like the Amish here you drive and put everybody else in a trailer.

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Deja Moo; The feeling I've heard this bull before.

Hey, thanks for the post OP. Lots of good ideas.

I "drive" a 3010 diesel.

It handles well at 22 mph...... and also gets nearly 20 mpg.

I didn't want to hijack the thread, as the original post said most of what needs be said, and well..... but I wholly concur that a tractor is FAR more sensible an investment than a car, especially per this ragtag assembly of forum posters.

I am well known in these parts, but not for having my big wheels parked at the local bar.

Jim, these tires do wear a bit more on the highway.
I'm finding that four or five years of service is to be expected when driving pavement 70% of the time.
The upside is, my tires never blow for weather cracks.
They give out for wear.

Dollar for dollar, all uses considered, the tires are not that expensive for what they accomplish. For me, it's the incidentals of getting the bugs ironed out of an older tractor.
Obviously, one of the big benefits of a 61 vintage tractor over most cars and trucks is the ease of maintenance and repair. I enjoy the mechanic work, just don't like a bent rocker arm or a burst hydraulic line 20 miles from home.

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“I would remind you that extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice! And let me remind you also that moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue.” Barry Goldwater.
III

If it weren't for DH having to commute to / from work every day I'd LOVE to be able to just have a tractor. Not sure how many people (other than HT's composting-crazy-man....said with all respect & admiration) actually drive their tractor to / from town on a regular basis.

Our local "law" enforcement has ticketed a son of one of the vol. firefighters here for driving an ATV on road because it wasn't for "farm use". I wonder if the same rules apply for a tractor. And who's to say what farm use is? I need groceries to feed me so I can work the farm so I need to take the tractor to the grocery store....is that considered farm use?

I suppose I should look into the local laws before starting up the Kubota for a trip to get some Spam, Cheetos & Velveta hugh?

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I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them. - Thomas Jefferson

In Arkansas you can drive a tractor for most anything as long as you don't drive it drunk. I have driven to a store many times. The only thing is not to slow traffic too much.

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God must have loved stupid people because he made so many of them.

I'd like having a car and a tractor just fine.

I don't think my tractor has seen more than 10 miles of pavement in 20 years, and most of that was the one time I did decide to drive it to the closest store 3-4 miles away..