36 



BULLETIN" 171, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



festly unfair to the modern tractor to consider repairs on outfits 

 placed on the market several years ago, while the repairs required 

 during the first season on tractors of one, two, and three years of 

 age do not vary to any great extent, and Table XXI was prepared 

 to show the repairs on tractors up to three years of age. The repairs 

 required on tractors located in North Dakota and California have 

 been shown separately, while the remaining States west of the 

 Mississippi River are grouped. 



It will be noticed that the repairs for tractors in California are 

 much heavier than for the other States. This is due mainly to the 

 difference in the types of tractors most generally used, a large per- 

 centage being of the track-laying type. These are usually more 

 expensive outfits, as will be seen from the table. 



These figures show that during the first season, when all repairs 

 not caused by the operator are ordinarily furnished free, the average 

 tractor owner spends for repairs an amount varying from 1.7 to 4 

 per cent of the tractor's cost. 



Table XXI. — Tractor repair charges per year, with percentage of first cost, on farms west 



of the Mississippi River. 





Average 

 price of 

 tractor. 



First season. 



Second season. 



Third season. 



Range of Inquiry. 



Average 

 repairs. 



Percent- 

 age of 

 cost. 



Average 

 repairs. 



Percent- 

 age of 

 cost. 



Average 

 repairs. 



Percent- 

 age of 

 cost. 



For 1-year-old engines: 



North Dakota 



$2, 465 

 3,181 

 2,279 



2,542 

 3,620 

 2,361 



2,590 

 3,604 

 2,430 



$44.86 

 127.18 

 38.94 



49.37 

 142.37 

 34.66 



62.17 

 150. 13 

 43. 62 



1.8 



4.0 

 1.7 



1.9 

 3.9 

 1.5 



2.4 

 4.2 

 1.8 











California 











Other States 











For 2-year-old engines: 



S107. 15 



306. 68 



72.89 



108.44 

 186. 50 

 104. 09 



4.2 

 8.5 

 3.1 



4.2 

 5.2 

 4.3 













Other States 







For 3-year-old engines: 



North Dakota 



8138. 39 



220.50 

 98.24 



5.3 





6.1 



Other States 



4.0 







During the second season the repair charges show a variation 

 between 3.1 per cent and 8.5 per cent of the tractor's cost, while for 

 the tractors which have been used three seasons the percentage is 

 more favorable, varying from 4 to 6.1 per cent. 



From this it would appear that a prospective purchaser of a 

 tractor should expect during the three seasons' use repair charges of 

 at least 10 per cent of the first cost. 



The repair charges given throughout this bulletin include only the 

 cost of the new parts. The cost of installing these parts is often 

 considerable, but it is sometimes done by the tractor owner and 

 sometimes by hired machinists. It is therefore difficult to ascertain 

 the value of the labor expended in making the repairs. 



