Massey Ferguson 390 buying advice.

[tom3690]

I have sold loads of 300's over the years. Simple solid machines with very few vices. Personally I would avoid the 18 speed speedshift box as it can be troublesome. The best machines are the 362, 375, 390T and 398's. As mentioned above the 248 block in the 390 can be a bugger to start but it is a strong engine. The 236 block whether turbo charged or not is a great engine which combines good starting, good economy and longevity. Also do not dismiss a 3 stick synchro tractor. Everyone wants the 12/12 side gear lever machine ( which I worked as a test driver on at MF during development ), but it has the known spring issue, albeit I have never had to touch one. The Synchro 12 gear box is about as tough as a box can get.
In terms of price, yes they are dear to buy but that is only relevant if they lose value fast, which they clearly do not. In fact they are one of the safest places to put your money in that regard.
The only issues are a pretty noisy cab which wasn't the best but it did give excellent visibility and access, especially on the HiLine versions.
The usual checks you would do on any machine apply. But make sure the oil is nice and hot to see if the steering is heavy at low revs. Pumps are easy to change and quite cheap but worth checking. They were predominantly used on mixed or dairy farms so may suffer rot through the crap that tended to sit on them. I tended to buy ex arable machines that were the spare machines and did light duties.
Put simply don't skimp, pay the extra for a low houred clean one that has been loved

 

[MF-ANDY]

Must be bad then as puh/drawbar on 390 MF is only a joke compared to the equivalent Nh off that era cannot understand how health/safety ever allowed the design and yes 390 hard to start (except on a hill) ,sharp edges on paintwork not good but a fairly straightforward tractor but much prefer the blue ones of that time

Iskra starter and extra battery fitted on left hand step, as per Scandinavian spec

 

[multi power]

Its a lot better. That 600/300 hitch is a balls. The blocks of metal that likes falling of, the way it sticks out so far that leaves the tractor struggling to lift loaded trailers, when it wears it moves from side to side which in turn breaks of the spring clip that holds on the hooks and they fall of often gettin lost. We have a 390 and had a 698t and the hitch was the worst bit of them

I used a 4355 for years, I cursed the hitch every time I used it
The 600series type hitch is fantastic, addmittidly it is a little bit more prone to wear

 

[multi power]

Must be bad then as puh/drawbar on 390 MF is only a joke compared to the equivalent Nh off that era cannot understand how health/safety ever allowed the design and yes 390 hard to start (except on a hill) ,sharp edges on paintwork not good but a fairly straightforward tractor but much prefer the blue ones of that time

What is wrong with the hitch exactly? As for new Holland having a better hitch they didn't even make tractors when the MF de Lux hitch was introduced

 

[Dowler78]

Thanks for all the information everyone.
Been to look at a couple already

 

[agri knives]

the most overrated tractor on the market , with a hard started engine , an engine that never lasted too long , if it has side gear sticks , it has springs that go in the gearbox,no splitter gears , a dry clutch, if it’s too wheel drive it will get stuck in a puddle as the front is too heavy. Lift arms with chain stableizers that are always seized . Apart from that they are a great tractor but I wouldn’t take a present of one.

 

[valtra]

Definitely one off the best tractors out there I've driven them for 25+ years now on several different farms easy to operate easy to fix if they ever do go wrong but like all machines, if they are well maintained it will last for ever, never known engine problems with them, but starter motors did play up with them, and at some point would need changing, you won't regret owning one

 

[Bloders]

I dont know why, but contrary to what nearly everyone says about these engines,
our 590 with the 248 engine starts great.
the 565 with the 236, is a bugger.

 

[wdah/him]

Have a geared starter on our 390 starts OK after 20secs of heat. Summer too

 

[Two Tone]

I dont know why, but contrary to what nearly everyone says about these engines,
our 590 with the 248 engine starts great.
the 565 with the 236, is a bugger.

I’d agree with that.
690 with the 248 was a very good starter,
675, 175 and a Manitou MB25P with the 236, all bad starters. On a cold day, it was a Jump lead traffic jam with them all from the 690!

Never have had any starting issues with any 6.354’s though. It being a 6 cylinder version of a 4 cylinder 236.
A 165 with a 4.203 and a 135 with a 3.152 were also good starters.

 

[multi power]

the most overrated tractor on the market , with a hard started engine , an engine that never lasted too long , if it has side gear sticks , it has springs that go in the gearbox,no splitter gears , a dry clutch, if it’s too wheel drive it will get stuck in a puddle as the front is too heavy. Lift arms with chain stableizers that are always seized . Apart from that they are a great tractor but I wouldn’t take a present of one.

Millions of tractors have a dry clutch with absolutely no problems, lubricate the stabilisers and they won't be seized, and there is a splitter gear, even the option of a clutch less one

 

[agri knives]

Millions of tractors have a dry clutch with absolutely no problems, lubricate the stabilisers and they won't be seized, and there is a splitter gear, even the option of a clutch less one

Dry clutches don’t last especially if it has a loader on, wet clutches last far longer . Any chain stabilisers I’ve ever seen are always stiff or seized due to the lack of use and they have no splitter gear on a electric button.

 

[d williams]

Dry clutches don’t last especially if it has a loader on, wet clutches last far longer . Any chain stabilisers I’ve ever seen are always stiff or seized due to the lack of use and they have no splitter gear on a electric button.

They do have a electric button splitter

 

[wdah/him]

Dry clutches don’t last especially if it has a loader on, wet clutches last far longer . Any chain stabilisers I’ve ever seen are always stiff or seized due to the lack of use and they have no splitter gear on a electric button.

have the right driver and the dry clutch will last long enough, have a few 300 series here and had no real clutch issue. one has done wrapping, post driving, loader and buckraking, it is a 390 with a 8spd box. Not sure how many hours. chain stabilisers again not an issue here few sort of stiff but never failed to turn and chep to replace.

the 300 series has weakness but as a general livestock tractor are hard to beat, parts cheap and every mechanic should be fit to keep them going with limited knowledge

 

[valtra]

I found if you oiled the chain stabilisers they never seized...who'd of thought......

 

[multi power]

Dry clutches don’t last especially if it has a loader on, wet clutches last far longer . Any chain stabilisers I’ve ever seen are always stiff or seized due to the lack of use and they have no splitter gear on a electric button.

Actually they were available with an electric splitter gear, very rare addmittidly but it was available, mine has 7000+ hours including some loader work and no clutch problems
If you are too lazy to maintain the stabilisers it's not my fault