Looking at old backhoes

[Delmer]

You'll have to get something much newer, or a Deere to be able to easily use two backhoe functions at a time, that's just the way they operate with open center hydraulics. you can hold the first one partially open and feather to get them both to operate, and still need to do that a little on a Deere.

The stalling in first gear is bad, it should slow the engine down and blow black smoke, or spin the tires. Just sitting there is slipping the reverser clutch most likely, not good.

 

[Jshopes81]

Ya thats what i figured. I wasnt anywhere near wide open on the controls, the only way it would do two functions was extremely slow by any standard and they didnt seem strong with one function. They were fast, but not strong. They stalled with only half a bite in semi loose soil.

When i went to scoop with the loader it was an dug up pile of dirt and it just stopped dead. No smoke, no tires spinning, just stopped. The way things are looking im just going to hold off a few months and spend more, but well see how this ford does.

 

[DMiller]

May as well figure you will be nearer to $10-12K. 10-15 years Newer, better tractors.

 

[Tinkerer]

Take your time and keep looking.
A decent one will come up for sale eventually.
They will all have minor faults, unless you buy a newer machine.
When you find it don't dilly dally thinking about it.
Good ones don't stay on the market very long.

 

[Birdseye]

If everybody bought, leased or rented new equipment and the old stuff went to scrap , there would be no HEF. Just sayin...

But many of the people who are using this equipment to make money are using newer stuff. The mfg s make attractive leases and for the owner operator to have new and with new there are few machine issues. There is some optimal point between use/repair-time/cost , sometimes referred to as “what can I afford”. We all somehow eventually figure it out.

 

[DaveA]

Kind of what I was thinking. Buying a 5K backhoe could be the hard way of doing it. The lower the price the more thorough of inspection needs to be done if you want something that works. Take an experienced mechanic and also an experienced operator to run the machine for an hour or so. Might cost you a few hundred bucks but to not might cost you thousands and be an expensive lesson. Also budget for repairs because any machine will need them.

Make sure you can get shuttle parts and transmaision parts. I sold my allis 816 . for $5500 just for that reason. I went through the shuttle and spent $1000 on simple parts that cost me $300 for my case 580. parts supply is the bigh thing

 

[DaveA]

Take your time and keep looking.
A decent one will come up for sale eventually.
They will all have minor faults, unless you buy a newer machine.
When you find it don't dilly dally thinking about it.
Good ones don't stay on the market very long.

very true.

 

[DaveA]

Id like to say thanks in advance for any advice given. So, as the title states, im looking at old backhoes for some work to do on my property. Ive considered the rent vs purchase thing and im trying to just buy something old, cheap, and then sell when im done and get my money back out of it. Ive got an external french drain around the house, my leech field, some stumps, and a driveway/parking area to do. Since ive been looking, ive come across some case 580ck, ford 4500s, and a few 3/400 deeres. The most common seem to be the old 4500/case machines in southwestern pa. The deeres are either out of my budget or beat to death. Out of the 3, which should i be looking at the hardest? The fords seem like a pretty good bang for the buck machine and all 3 seem to have pretty good parts availability. Any reason to pick a case over a ford? Or a deere over a case? Ive had good luck with my fords and deere, but theyre not in this realm.

Ive got a crane license and cdl so ive done some work with equipment, but this is a new experience for me.

sometimes the naighbors will let a guy borrow thiers for a simple case of beer. It pays to be in good standings with your naighbors. we barter back and forth around here

 

[westerner]

My neighbor bought a beat-up 580E almost 20 years ago. I do his maintenance and repairs, and he lets me use it.
Brakes, a torque converter, shuttle rebuild and a few hoses so far.
It will need rear tires very soon.
It starts in the cold with an hour of block heater, or a teeny squirt of nose candy.
It has been a great tool for us both.

 

[Welder Dave]

You better know your neighbors really well. Very bad things can happen when you let others borrow your equipment, very bad things! If it's a hammer or a jack is one thing, a machine is totally different. Always reminds me of the next sentence in the following statement. It started making a funny noise so I drove it back to the garage to figure out what was wrong...

Answers:
A. I never noticed the trail of oil on the ground
B. It was a kind of grinding screeching sound
C. I drove slow so I wouldn't damage it worse
D. I never noticed the gauge at zero
E. All of the above
F. I can't afford to fix it right now, can you wait a couple month's and I'll see what I can do

 

[Willie B]

If everybody bought, leased or rented new equipment and the old stuff went to scrap , there would be no HEF. Just sayin...

But many of the people who are using this equipment to make money are using newer stuff. The mfg s make attractive leases and for the owner operator to have new and with new there are few machine issues. There is some optimal point between use/repair-time/cost , sometimes referred to as “what can I afford”. We all somehow eventually figure it out.

As you are saying, buy much newer, much more expensive if you hope to have trouble free.

My hoes have all been 20 to 30 years old when I bought them. 3 of four were low hour machines. I still spend a significant sum making them functional.

Inevitably, I repack several cylinders, replace several hoses. They don't last forever. Each tractor has had a mystery affliction.
#1 had a bad backhoe valve. The experts I found concluded it was NOT worn out, it was defective new. I should have been leery of a 20 year old tractor with no evidence of wear!

 

[Willie B]

You better know your neighbors really well. Very bad things can happen when you let others borrow your equipment, very bad things! If it's a hammer or a jack is one thing, a machine is totally different. Always reminds me of the next sentence in the following statement. It started making a funny noise so I drove it back to the garage to figure out what was wrong...

Answers:
A. I never noticed the trail of oil on the ground
B. It was a kind of grinding screeching sound
C. I drove slow so I wouldn't damage it worse
D. I never noticed the gauge at zero
E. All of the above
F. I can't afford to fix right now, can you wait a couple month's and I'll pay half

Yeah, I was wondering what neighbor I'd trust with the loan of an old machine.
They think it is old, how much harm could they do.

Before I owned a backhoe, I did have a neighbor borrow an old farm tractor with trip bucket loader. Minutes later I could hear a crashing sound. I investigated. He was backing up, getting a good running start, crashing into 3' diameter boulders in his lawn just peeking up a few inches. I retrieved the tractor before he broke it in half.

 

[DaveA]

Yeah, I was wondering what neighbor I'd trust with the loan of an old machine.
They think it is old, how much harm could they do.

Before I owned a backhoe, I did have a neighbor borrow an old farm tractor with trip bucket loader. Minutes later I could hear a crashing sound. I investigated. He was backing up, getting a good running start, crashing into 3' diameter boulders in his lawn just peeking up a few inches. I retrieved the tractor before he broke it in half.

most people areound here are farmers. they are not strangers to old equipment. You have to be somewhat smart about it

 

[Willie B]

I have a close friend, he loves to operate machinery. We figured out years back borrowing from me meant ending a friendship.
He sold his Vermont property last year, but until then he rented machines for recreation. He rented a mini excavator for a week.
First night he called me, he had broken the "shiny thing in front". It proved to be the bucket cylinder. It had a 30 degree bend in the rod & it indeed was broken.

"How to Hell did you break that?" I asked.

"I was smashing some ledge."

I noticed despite rain & dark, the dipper was broken also.

Next morning he called to say he had chained it up so he wouldn't do more damage.

I didn't understand "more damage".

He was using it as a bulldozer.

An hour later, he wanted to know where to get hydraulic hoses made. He was pushing a pile of rocks, a boulder tumbled over the top of the blade, ripping off a hose.

 

[joe--h]

I had one of these, a 320. Had a hell of a lot of fun with it. Think I paid $1800 for it.
Joe H

 

[Jshopes81]

Well, i ended up looking at another 580b that had what looked like spaghetti for wiring. It started right up, cold, the first time, then wouldnt start again. After that i checked out the 4500, made it there after the dealer closed unfortunately and even though it had the key in it sitting out front, it wouldnt even kick over. Last, i stopped to look at a 580c in wheeling and it looked to have hydraulic oil in the crank case so thats as far as that went. I think im going to take a break for a few weeks. Seems like in the fall when i started thinking about this there was alot more available.

 

[Welder Dave]

I sure wouldn't try to start a machine on a dealers lot when they aren't aware, especially when I wasn't even familiar with it. Have you heard the saying.

Nice to look at
Nice to hold
But if you break it
Consider it sold

 

[Tinkerer]

I have been asked to loan out my own T/L/B.
I just politely tell them "sorry I don't have any insurance on it"

 

[stinky64]

4 years ago I bought a 580c to rescue it from rotting in a cornfield..Paid $2000, right place, right time, correct amount of beer...since then I've invested about $5000 in parts, but that includes rebuilding injection pump, shuttle, transaxle, all three backhoe, loader, and stabilizer control valves, all the cylinders, oem hydraulic pump, injectors, radiator, water pump, all the hoses, brakes, including master and slave cylinders, kingpins, steering cylinders, rewiring entire machine and the real expense, all the hydraulic lines..Damn near new-old machine... If you've got some mechanical aptitude and don't need a perfect machine right out of the gate, don't be afraid of a previously loved or more often abused older Case..parts are readily available and if you get "THE BOOKS" easy to repair...

 

[stinky64]

Tinkerer, it's amazing how many new friends I have now that need hoe work...sure I'll just drive it 5 miles to your house to dig for you..I'm gonna have to borrow that insurance thing...Brilliant...