Be Careful!

Which means, unless it was jump-started for you, you haven't seen it start, which means you don't KNOW if it runs or not.

If you are looking at tractors that belong to a stranger, you should know that "Yeah, it runs but I can't start it right now because it needs a new battery" ranks right up there with "The check is in the mail" and "I tried to call but my cell phone was dead" (remember when it was, "I tried to call but I couldn't get to a phone?").

Even if you are looking at a tractor that belongs to someone you trust, you should be aware that many people ASSUME a tractor will run because it ran when it was parked two or three years ago. This isn't always a valid assumption, especially if the tractor has (a) been parked outside, and (b) has been allowed to sit long enough for the battery to die so dead it won't take a charge anymore.

Remember, you don't KNOW if it will run until you SEE it run.

And, always, always, ALWAYS do a compression check before you buy a vehicle.

I learned this the hard way. The best mechanic I've ever known sold me his beloved tractor, one he had bought when it had only 800 hours on it and had used personally since.

He assured me it was like new. I took his word for it because I knew he was an outstanding mechanic and because I had known him all my life and he had NEVER misled me about anything.

After I took delivery of the tractor, I found it was in only fair shape, needing lots of minor and some major repairs and having much more wear on the engine than I had been told.

Did I get mad? No, because it wasn't his fault. You see, he was already suffering from Alzheimer's, but it hadn't been diagnosed yet. He was remembering the tractor as it had been in 1980, not as it was in 2000.

Tyler, them are cheap. I think some guys get tractors really, really cheap, so 1500 sounds like alot to them. Just your plain old normal run of the mill M in any condition will bring 1000 in my area, and I do mean ANY condition. Trust me, I've seen some rough old farmalls. A good visual inspection would be more than enough in your situation. Walk around them several times looking for welds or cracks. I would check out the casting codes on the '39. If everything checks out and the '39 IS a '39, snatch 'em up. (or tell me where they're at, I want a '39 farmall!)

As for the rest; ok, so I was being a little too over-cautious for some of you guys. It's what Bohemians tend to do. It makes us good investors and lousy gamblers.

No offense taken, Bob. But in the same spirit, I hope you understand that if I am looking at ANY vehicle, at ANY price, and I am not free to examine it to my complete satisfaction, I don't have to be chased off - I will walk.

Mind you, I agree fully that it is inappropriate for tire-kickers to carry around spark-plug wrenches and compression testers!

If I demonstrated a REAL interest in the vehicle and the owner still didn't want me to take a tester to it, alarm bells would go off, but it wouldn't necessarily be a deal breaker.

Instead I would point the vehicle downhill or listen carefully to the starter motor as the engine is cranked to see if different cylinders represent radically different loads.

(I'm not sure if dhermesc is kidding us or not; it's hard to tell over the internet. In any event, I would never try to start an M of unknown condition in fifth, except in extremis.)

I think perhaps the differences of opinion expressed here come from a different buying philosophy. I don't have a lot of machine shop experience and anyway, I don't have time for any new projects.

So, I would only buy a vehicle if I thought any problems it had fell within my realms of experience.

I'm certainly not trying to start an argument with people such as George, Hal, and Hugh who have more experience and knowledge than myself. Nor do I think anyone is giving bad advice here.

I just wanted to explain my viewpoint, and I might even gently suggest that it is perhaps well suited to a first-time or inexperienced buyer who must perforce attach more importance to the condition of the vehicle than the experts we are lucky to have on this board, who can confidantly buy almost anything if the price is right, knowing they can handle almost any situation that might arise.