Early vs. Later 185

Can't tell you much about the changes over the years, but we just bought one from some friends of ours a couple months ago. We love it so far. It is supposedly one of the last ones built. It has hyd pto clutch, and dual pto. It has a dual 340 loader on it, and it has been our main feeding tractor, as payloader has had more break down time than up time. We have it chained up, and a 3 pt bale fork on it. With a bale on the fork, it gets around all right. Keep it plugged in, and it starts good. Hopefully after this winter, the loader can come off of it and stay off. It's too nice of a tractor to have tied up as a loader tractor. It'll probably be a raking tractor this summer, and possibly do some baling also. Darrel

I just checked serial number on ours, and looked up year. Number is 15,571, which makes it 1980 model. Darrel

Don, the 1972 manual shows delivery receipt made out by James H. Brown on Sept. 7, 1972. Address for dealership shows Brown & Fissler Farm Equip. Co., 3011 Market. Buyer is shown as Julius Schmidt, RR Higbee, MO and includes phone number also.
I believe most everything will apply to my later unit but am on the lookout for manuals closer to my unit manufacture date.
Left a plow for Dave Maddux at JW's sometime back, hopefully it will show up at one of your plow days in-future as I know Dave has some nice iron to pull it with.
Did you ever make the 230/262 engine shipping skids? Have parts in MO to pick up and need to get that D17IVD engine to you at some point, may just drag the old girl up as a complete tractor . . . .

Later models (1977? and up) had a deeper oil pan and engine held more oil. Use the dipstick to verify proper engine oil amount.

I can't imagine a non turbo 185 every out doing an XT unless the XT was sick.

There is the possibility the 185 has a single speed 540 PTO, which has the top speed at 680 RPM's. If the 190XT or a 200 has the dual speed 540/1000 PTO, top speed is only 620 RPM's on the 540 side. So, for some PTO work (grinding feed, silage blower, etc), the 185 will look somewhat better when PTO speed is the issue. There's no way a 185 engine without a turbo will ever out HP or out torque an XT, unless the XT isn't producing what it should be.

Xt versus 185  ? would have to be one sick XT and a 185 with a turbo. Kinda like a ford 8n versus a WD45. LOL, Maybe not quite that bad.

mark-east-tn wrote: Ive got a 1981 185   and it has the hydraulic pto and a lot more power then the first one I had several years back. Never had it on a dyno but It sure seems like it more closer to 90 HP then the 74 hp its rated on pto. I had a 190 xt ser. 3 and the 185 will out power it by a lot , I had to role hay with it this fall the 6060 was grunting a lot on some hills with the new to us baler , so we hooked the 185 up to the Vermeer 554 XL baler to finish before rain came . It pulled baler with no problems , seems it would spin baler faster and eat anything in windrow without even a grunt .One of the best tractors Ive got in shed.

I'll add that I have a Vermeer 604j which is a higher volume baler than a 554xl, but this year I had one of the hydraulic lines rupture on our 7000. I had to unhook the 7000 and finish baling with our late 79 model 185. Night and day pulling with the 7000 versus the 185.   My 7000 would have to be mighty sick for the 185 to outdo it. The 185 is a very gritty tractor, but it sure doesn't have the balls our 7000 does.

Edited by cottonpatch - 16 Jan 2017 at 7:31pm

mark-east-tn wrote: I know I shouldn't of said that In post because nobody would believe me , but Ive run both and the 185 sure seems to out power the XT . The xt has new pump and turbo maybe the new pump needs turned up .....

I hear you and believe me, I am a major 185 fan. IMHO, I think it's the best AC model ever made. We have two of them, and no duplicates of other models.

darrel in ND wrote: I just checked serial number on ours, and looked up year. Number is 15,571, which makes it 1980 model. Darrel

Your 185 and ours probably sat together in the West Allis lot at one time!





Edited by DanD - 16 Jan 2017 at 10:17pm

mark-east-tn wrote: Well I agree with that , but we now have a early 190 Xt with less then 1000 hours on engine , and there is no comparison between the two . The 185 will still out do the 190 Xt on pulling and pto work . Not sure what's been done to motor but it's right, it will peg tach with less then 3/4 throttle .

mark-east-tn wrote: Ive got a 1981 185   and it has the hydraulic pto and a lot more power then the first one I had several years back. Never had it on a dyno but It sure seems like it more closer to 90 HP then the 74 hp its rated on pto. I had a 190 xt ser. 3 and the 185 will out power it by a lot , I had to role hay with it this fall the 6060 was grunting a lot on some hills with the new to us baler , so we hooked the 185 up to the Vermeer 554 XL baler to finish before rain came . It pulled baler with no problems , seems it would spin baler faster and eat anything in windrow without even a grunt .One of the best tractors Ive got in shed.