Should You Build Your Own Chinese Tractor?

2006 - Volume #30, Issue #2, Page #11

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If you're mechanically resourceful and don't mind working with 1950's technology, you might enjoy the challenge and rewards of putting together your own tractor, says Mark Shelley, Holden, Mass.
  After putting a Jinma 224 together (see story above), he learned a lot and has some advice for anyone thinking about doing the same. "Go into it with your eyes wide open."
  There are three ways to buy a crate tractor. You can import it yourself, work with an import broker, or buy from one of a growing number of dealers.
  "The greatest source of frustration with importing Chinese tractors is dealing with the international community and learning what it takes to bring a product into the country. It's just a matter of how much you're willing to learn."
  Self-importing means that you own the tractor from the moment it leaves the Chinese factory. "It's your job to arrange for it to get on a boat. It's your job to get it unloaded when it arrives in the U.S. And it's your job to usher it through customs." He says the process can take up to 180 days.
  An import broker can handle the paperwork. "They'll deal with the shipping company, they deal with tracking the shipping, and they'll let you know when to come to pick up the crate at the port."
  Small dealers, on the other hand, order shipping containers full of crate tractors and you just buy them like any other tractor. "I bought my crate tractor from a dealer four years ago for $5,400. If I'd self-imported the tractor, it would probably have cost about $5,000. So I spent $400 more but didn't have to deal with the headaches and costs of importing it," he says.
  Once you get the crate tractor, dealing with warranty parts can be another problem. If you've self-imported a tractor and a part doesn't work, the warranty says you'll get it free but you've got to get the part from China and that can again take 180 days. If you're working with a dealer, you might get it a lot sooner.
  "My tractor has only had two parts replaced in 4 years -- a radiator hose and a starter motor. I had no trouble finding a U.S.-equivalent hose and a dealer shipped me a new starter motor that same day," says Shelley.
  Your guide to putting the tractor together will be a manual that was likely put together by someone who is not necessarily an expert in English. For example, instead of "antifreeze," it might say "happy freeze-proof liquid".
  Shelley says it's important to understand how Chinese factories ship crate tractors. He says workers first put the tractors together to ensure that they work. Then, they take them apart for shipping. That presents a lot of opportunity for parts to be misplaced or lost.
  On the CTOA website, you can learn about all kinds of problems people have had with the tractors. Shelley notes, for instance, that because of the way the hydraulics are routed, if you disconnect a hydraulic hose while the motor is running, you can destroy your pump in about a half second because there's no bleed valve on the pump. "And folks have done that so often they put zip ties on the quick connects so the valve can't come undone."
  He notes that importers are buying these tractors, building them here, and selling them as entry-level tractors under brand names like Farm Pro, Nortrac, Agracat, Emerybuilt and others. So if you want to pay a little more to avoid the hassles of importing and assembly, you can buy from them. "There's a whole thread on the CTOA forum tracking whose tractor is what."
  There are also new businesses popping up that put Chinese tractors together for a fee. Graham Slieker, owner of Bolton Power Equipment in Bolton, Mass. was one of the first to do so. (www.boltonpowerequip. com; 978 779-5541) He puts together imported Chinese equipment such as tractors, wood chippers, backhoes and more in a small garage attached to his house.
   To find a Chinese tractor dealer or to find out about other Chinese-built "crated" equipment, your best bet is to go to www.google .com on the internet and search up "Chinese built equipment". If you don't have access to the internet, your local librarian

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Should You Build Your Own Chinese Tractor? TRACTORS Miscellaneous If you re mechanically resourceful and don t mind working with 1950 s technology you might enjoy the challenge and rewards of putting together your own tractor says Mark Shelley Holden Mass After putting a Jinma 224 together see story above he learned a lot and has some advice for anyone thinking about doing the same Go into it with your eyes wide open There are three ways to buy a crate tractor You can import it yourself work with an import broker or buy from one of a growing number of dealers The greatest source of frustration with importing Chinese tractors is dealing with the international community and learning what it takes to bring a product into the country It s just a matter of how much you re willing to learn Self-importing means that you own the tractor from the moment it leaves the Chinese factory It s your job to arrange for it to get on a boat It s your job to get it unloaded when it arrives in the U S And it s your job to usher it through customs He says the process can take up to 180 days An import broker can handle the paperwork They ll deal with the shipping company they deal with tracking the shipping and they ll let you know when to come to pick up the crate at the port Small dealers on the other hand order shipping containers full of crate tractors and you just buy them like any other tractor I bought my crate tractor from a dealer four years ago for $5 400 If I d self-imported the tractor it would probably have cost about $5 000 So I spent $400 more but didn t have to deal with the headaches and costs of importing it he says Once you get the crate tractor dealing with warranty parts can be another problem If you ve self-imported a tractor and a part doesn t work the warranty says you ll get it free but you ve got to get the part from China and that can again take 180 days If you re working with a dealer you might get it a lot sooner My tractor has only had two parts replaced in 4 years -- a radiator hose and a starter motor I had no trouble finding a U S -equivalent hose and a dealer shipped me a new starter motor that same day says Shelley Your guide to putting the tractor together will be a manual that was likely put together by someone who is not necessarily an expert in English For example instead of antifreeze it might say happy freeze-proof liquid Shelley says it s important to understand how Chinese factories ship crate tractors He says workers first put the tractors together to ensure that they work Then they take them apart for shipping That presents a lot of opportunity for parts to be misplaced or lost On the CTOA website you can learn about all kinds of problems people have had with the tractors Shelley notes for instance that because of the way the hydraulics are routed if you disconnect a hydraulic hose while the motor is running you can destroy your pump in about a half second because there s no bleed valve on the pump And folks have done that so often they put zip ties on the quick connects so the valve can t come undone He notes that importers are buying these tractors building them here and selling them as entry-level tractors under brand names like Farm Pro Nortrac Agracat Emerybuilt and others So if you want to pay a little more to avoid the hassles of importing and assembly you can buy from them There s a whole thread on the CTOA forum tracking whose tractor is what There are also new businesses popping up that put Chinese tractors together for a fee Graham Slieker owner of Bolton Power Equipment in Bolton Mass was one of the first to do so www boltonpowerequip com; 978 779-5541 He puts together imported Chinese equipment such as tractors wood chippers backhoes and more in a small garage attached to his house To find a Chinese tractor dealer or to find out about other Chinese-built crated equipment your best bet is to go to www google com on the internet and search up Chinese built equipment If you don t have access to the internet your local librarian

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