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Can you spend to much on a tractor

B

Brent Zappe

Member
Hey I live in a big city that use to be a small city. I have this repletion of being a tractor guy ( that guy who has tractors). I get this question all the time How much is my tractor worth? I like to be able to give them a good answer so I look up on this site and the Rust book plus the tractor blue book. Some times I just can not belive the low prices I read. Then I wounder if there right or just alot of HOT air. Here is a good sample this person I know his dad had bought a Farmall cub. Now his dad had all the work done to it. Spent alot of money in getting restored: body work and top paint job, Engine rebuilt, Transmission and ect. You might say it looks 100% new again. His dad spent up to 10,000 dollors on it a real show case tractor. Well his dad past away and the family is planing to sell it. Question is it really worth the 10,000 dollors just because it is restore to show room quality? Can you spend to much money when restoring a farm tractor? I like to say yes you can it is just like an Automoblie.I have seen these cars that have alot of money invested in them about a price of a house but in yet there just a command car.
 
Oh yes! I have nearly $7,000.00 in a 400d case that even in showroom condition will never be worth $4000.00.
 
Its true with most older equipment, especially crawlers. Very easy to invest more than its re-sale worth. It really boils down to what a buyer will pay for one that's been restored like the one you describe.
 
OH BY ALL MEANS! Spending $10,000 on a Farmall CUB is just nuts. For just a plain tractor even with everything rebuilt, new tires, paint, etc etc, top Dollar to sell it will be $3000-$4000. And you better have receipts.
 
I think you have to figure in the value you get from fixing up an old tractor. I think it is easy to put more money into a restoration than you will ever get back out other than your enjoyment in doing it, showing it off etc. The feeling you get when you fire up an engine that has not run in years. Feeling of pride because you did it when others said it wasn't worth while. Our society has become a "throw away" culture with many modern things not amenable to repair. It is neat that we have old tractors and old cars that can be rebuilt, and rebuilt again and still pay their keep.
 
You can spend more than you can resale it for yes.

I doubt you can get 10 grand out of a Cub. Dad and I watch the mecum tractor auction every Saturday on RFD channel. The common tractors like farmall M's and Ford hundred series I know aren't bring what the restorer spend. The hi crops, orchards, and low production tractors You can make a buck on.

If you can find someone who REALLY wants a Cub you might get most of your money back. A tractor is only worth what someone else is willing to pay for it.

As soon as you buy a tractor, You have lost money. If you maintain it correctly and keep everything working, lights, gauges,brakes so you have dependable tractor you will have more money invested than you will ever recover. Half the reason for buying an old tractor has to be just for the fun of owning it and being able to tell others 'I have one of those."
 
If it is a putz around tractor or a regular old plain Jane tractor restoration you always spend too much money restoring it.[/u]
 
Heck yes you can spend way too much money restoring a tractor. Good example. The Farmall Cub you mentioned. Those things are all over the place. Actually worth more than an H or an M here. Popular with collectors because it's easy to store and trailer. If restored by a profession who has an outstanding reputation it might be, at the outside an 8K tractor. Might. If restored by some guy, that bought it to restore and collect, even with outside work being done like an engine rebuild or paint it's a 3-4K tractor. Now take something like a 1206 Farmall or one of IH's Gold demos and you can dump 10-15K in it and get your money back or even turn a profit. A gold demo, 1456 Farmall, restored by a guy with a very good reputation, sold at auction yesterday for 40K. A guy named Smith does Ford N series and gets about 8K for them from what I've been told. Average price for an N, restored is well under 5K. Doing everything except the machine work I rebuilt an N engine. Also put on a new water pump plus did the clutch while it was apart. My cost was right at 1200 before I add EI and a 12 volt conversion. Now if I were to restore the tractor I'd have to look at several hundred dollars in paint (would to the painting myself) new rubber at over 1K all round, rebuild the hydraulic pump and lift cylinder. Plus the 1700 I paid for the tractor when I bought it. So 1700+1200+250(EI and 12 volt)+50(rewire)+1100(tires)+300(paint materials)=4500. For a tractor that might bring 3500-4K if I were lucky and wait for a buyer.

So I doubt that anyone not associated with that tractor will pay anywhere near 10K. A family member who wants to keep it in the family might go that high.

Rick
 
The newest tractor I have is a 1996. I think I'm probably even on it. The big field tractor, and 8430, I have put way more in then it's worth. But I use it for the horsepower so it is worth it for me. It was bought new on this farm so it does have some sentimental value. When the day comes that it needs an engine or transmission, it will just go to the scrap.
 
I believe that a restored tractor is worth a few hundred more than un-restored, no matter what you do.
 
You might well be surprised how much your Case 400 d is worth to us guys that grew up using them. I do not see many nice ones.
 
It's a hobby, not a business. You spend money on restoring them because you want to do it, not as an investment or as a work tractor. What it is worth when you are done is immaterial. That money could just as easily been spent on a lot of other things that might be worth more in dollars but not in enjoyment or satisfaction.
 
I'm afraid the family is going to get their feelings hurt. $2500 to #3500 is my guess. It was worth $10,000 to him so I'm glad it gave him that much pleasure. Unless it is an ultra rare tractor a true restoration is alway's a losing proposition financially.

We spend the money fixing up old tractors because we love playing with them and it's worth it to us.
 
(quoted from post at 10:05:44 09/13/15) Makes me wonder just how you could spend that much money on a Cub someone just did get took real bad.
Click to expand...

Gene I know a guy that has close to 10K in restoring his H Farmall. He paid almost 3500 for the paint job. Thing of it is he drove that tractor home from the dealership at age 12 in 1948 when his dad bought it new. So for him it was worth sending the engine out for a professional rebuild, having all new bearings put in the transmission. He did everything. Even spent the money on Firestone tires. It's so nice (and I don't particularly like the H) that he tarps it in a building. Here, if he were to sell it he might, just might get 2500 for it and he knows it. To him it was worth it. On something like a CUB getting close to 10 in a restoration wouldn't be too hard if you had a lot of the work done like an engine rebuild.

Rick
 
Of the 5 AC tractors I have purchased and fixed up for use in the past few years, I'm probably under water on 3 of them. 2 have been sold, and a third is for sale. The D15II is my favorite, and the best deal. I have about the value of my WD45 in just the new rear rims and tires. I would sell it if I could find a nice D17.

Notice I didn't say "restored", just fixed up. So monetarily, this is a loosing venture. I don't regret what I've done, but I've had enough.
 
I have a cousin who has around 150 old tractors, most of them untouched since he bought them. He told me, and I agree, you can't make money restoring them and reselling them. He told me recently that if he dies before his wife, she'll have a funeral one day and an auction the next.

That being said, when I was in the automotive business, I saw a lot of guys put $10,000 into a $2,000 pickup restoring/customizing and then expect to sell it for $12,000. Ain't gonna happen.
 
A good friend of mine is a professional car painter and restorer.Restored a Jubile Ford tractor for a big car collector,they sold it at the auction in Auburn Indiana last week,and it brought ten thousand.Never thought an old Ford would bring that kind of money,but he told me they had that much in it.
 
Good god yes.

I have a '47 A that worth a couple of grand restored and I'm going to end up with that much in the engine alone.

Of course I ended up on the wrong side of a transaction for $500 of that but still...

It's a family tractor, it will the "worth it" in the end.

K
 
Every tractor I have has cost me more than I can get for them. I enjoy doing it so, to me, it's worth it. I look at it this way. When I'm done with it, I still have it unless I sell it. Maybe won't get all my money out of it but I'm still better off than some of my friends who spend all their money sitting in a tavern and when they are done, they just pee it away.
 
If it is a hobby or sport can you spend to much on golf club equipment? Can you spend to much on radio controlled cars and trucks? It is called discretionary money and a personal thing.
 
Hey thank you for all your comments. You have a way of telling me I told the family right. The auction will be some time next month and we will see what it will sell for . I will let you al know what happens. Brent
 
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