Tractor prices and getting old.

KL in Wi

Member
This is a bit off topic but here goes. I'm gonna lean on you guys for some advice. First, this getting old stuff just ain't got it. Gonna be 66 in a couple months. Not that old but, I'm pretty much worn out. Knees, hips, back and, shoulders are kerput. Constant pain and getting worse. Heart problems and doc sez, don't expect to live a long life. The meds I'm on make me feel like I never go to bed. I have 11 tractors. All but two have new paint. Seven have new engines. By this I mean complete major overhauls. The rest have had the engines torn apart and anything needed replaced. The tractors are 59 Oliver 880 with traction hitch and 5440 plow, 47 Oliver 80 on rubber, 43 Oliver 80 tip toes on back with adjustable narrow front rubber, 43 Oliver 70, will have a model 72 mounted two way plow on it when I get it finished, 48 Oliver 60, 37 Oliver Hart-Parr 18-28, 38 McCormick 10-20 round spoke rubber, 41 Allis RC, 39 Allis B, 52 Ford 8N and, my first tractor, bought it when I was in 5th grade, a 27 D John Deere. Also other plows and equip. My question is, I hear that the prices of these old machines are dropping and the fact that any ambition that I used to have got up and left, do I sell now before the prices get lower or hang on to them. It would darned near kill me to sell but, with no ambition, they just sit in the shed and get taken out for a run a couple times a summer. I used to get them out every weekend. Just don't know which way to go. Looking for suggestions. Thank you
 

Sorry to hear about the health problems. How about keeping just maybe 2-3 that you can still have a meaningful relationship with and turning the rest into cash that you can do something else enjoyable with.
 
My suggestion is recognize the vast knowledge you have, the vast experience. My opinion, you ought to share that knowledge and experience. In my case, I have been advised to start a blog, and I'm trying to figure that out. You write well, and very few younger people know what you know. Keep your interest, just move it around a bit.
 
I like showcrop idea but it seams like if your enthusiasm is gone you might as well get rid of all. You are no more apt to want to play with 2 then you are all 11.
 
I would sell the majority of them. Keep one or two that have special meaning to you, like the JD "D" just because it is your first tractor. Then sell the rest. You did not say where your located as that makes a difference to how you would sell them. Example is that there are places that have annual consignment sales that specialize in Antique tractors. Just taking them to a local auction will not get you anything near what they are worth.

I have sold over 2/3 of my older tractors in the last few years. I still buy and sell some newer ones but quit fooling with the older tractors. We only kept the one with special meaning to the family. Like the tractors my Grand Father bought new. They will never sell when I am alive.
 
If you care about the money, the sooner you sell the more you'll get.

Really well done tractors in the right venue still do well regardless of age or model. If your tractors are nice enough and you could get them to a big Mecum sale, that's where all the top bidders will be.

There will always be interest, but it probably won't be LOCAL interest. Advertising a nicely finished tractor for top dollar on Craigslist, in the local papers, etc. probably won't yield any useful results.
 
I concur with JD and Barnyard's advise, KL.

The antique tractor market has collapsed. It is not going to come back.

My barn has turned orange over the last few years and I'm selling off my Fords that have been both users and hobbies. I will keep the 52 8N with Sherman combination and just over 1,100 original hours because it is extraordinary and serves as my quad. I will also (probably) keep my 64, 4 cylinder 4000 SOS with all of the bells and whistles because I have not yet given up on it as a retirement project. The 1959 961 and 51 8N with Sherman have already gone and the 55 860 will go soon. Would have gotten significantly more for all had I sold a few years ago.

Dean
 
I'm not as old as you or as bad of shape by the sounds of it yet but getting there too fast.
I too have been wondering what to do with mine. I mentioned selling some but then wife thinks the kids might want some ? Maybe they will I don't know , but they never showed any interest in learning anything about them and I doubt they could even start any of them ? Still might be a chance some boy interested in tractors could end up interested in my Daughter too ? Then they might end up with all of them.
I saw a post last week of an auction called purple wave and they seemed to of got some decent money from some tractors ! so some auctions stuff is still selling well if you find the right one to send it to.
 
No comment on the tractors but if I had a doc that told me not to expect a long life (and I was still kicking and breathing), I might consider trying another one (doctor that is, not another life). Now maybe some guys here would like to know that, but my preference would be to hear some advice for maybe extending whatever time I had left.
 
I'm not a doctor, but you sound depressed due to your physical situation to me. My advice is to go to another doctor and not make any decisions regarding your tractors or equipment until you are certain that your physical situation can't be reversed.

You'll know when you are ready to sell without having to ask for advice. The fact that you are asking for advice tells me that you are not ready to sell.
 

As someone just getting into the hobby i can say that i'm surprised but not shocked at just how affordable old tractors are. Its obviously good old capitalism and supply/demand. There are still a lot of them out there and fewer and fewer people with a nostalgic interest or practical skill to keep them running.

That said, having recently dealt with liquidating the estate of 3 (pairs) of grandparents in the last few years, you will have a better chance at finding a good home for your tractors, if not the most money, the sooner you do it. If you wait until your health or mental faculties slip, or leave it to your family to handle after your death you never know where they will end up (maybe you won't care at that point)

if you sell them now, talking to local tractor clubs, forums, even posting on craigslist, you might find someone who will really enjoy these, and probably appreciate the relationship with you. I'd love to have a super 88 and a local old-timer to ask questions about it. At this point in your life that might go a lot farther than the money. You cant take it- or the tractors-with you.
 
I'm 70 and battling cancer, doing reasonably well I guess, considering the state I'm in. Month or two ago I woke up and my desire to acquire, or to retain my current inventory of old cars was completely gone. Sold them and I don't want anymore.
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Got to face some facts, tractors are tools , built to serve a purpose, and when that purpose no longer exists, neither does the value. Fact number two is , you had your fun collecting and restoring these tractors. Hobbies don?t have to make a profit, only provide entertainment. If you don?t want them and more, sell them at a price the market will bear. Or you can leave them in the shed until after your gone, and someone else will likely haul them off to the scrap yard, not what you want to see happen I am sure. I bet you will still have another 15 years, so take your time, and sell these tractors into the hands of someone that will appreciate them as you have.
 
Dean ..... how did you ID it as a 370? That's an engine size I never heard of until Googling it a few minutes ago. Here's some info from my search. Was it based on the 348???

For 1958 the V8's bore was increased again to 4 1⁄16 in (103.2 mm), increasing displacement to 369.4 cu in (6.053 L). The engine was dubbed the TEMPEST V-8, a nickname it retained until the end of 1960.

The fuel-injected engine became an option on any Pontiac model, carrying a staggering price tag of $500 (almost 15% of the car's base price). It was rated at 310 hp (230 kW) @ 4800 rpm and 400 lb⋅ft (540 N⋅m) @ 3,000 rpm on 10.5:1 compression. Only about 400 were produced before the fuel injection system was quietly dropped.
 
Well look at it this way instead of spending your money on tractors if you had spent it on golf,fishing,trips,wild women,drinking, etc you'd have Zero$$$ to be able to recoop now.At least with
your tractors you'll get some of your money back.
 
I'm gonna address the other issue and that's your health and lack of ambition. I'm just three years behind you and three years ago had all the problems you have. Overweight,knees,back and shoulders shot,sleep apnea,blood sugar out of whack,heart skipped so bad that there were times I couldn't get out of my recliner due to lack of oxygen in the blood,I had no desire to do anything.

I bought an elliptical from Wal Mart online for $89 and decided I wasn't gonna go down without at least trying. First time I got on it,I couldn't do a minute. I persisted until I could do it. I worked up to being able to do 15 minutes every day. It's been two years and eight months now. I do ten minutes six mornings a week and ride bike anywhere from 8 to 18 miles every Sunday. Every night before I go to bed,I put my feet under the edge of the bed and do 25 sit ups. My life has totally turned around. I've lost 50 pounds,my blood sugar is straightened out,joint pain's gone,heart is beating steady,sleep apnea is gone. I honestly never thought I could feel this good. All of my ambition is back and then some. I'm buying and restoring even more Olivers now. My wife is seven years younger than me and she can't keep up,if you know what I mean.

Bottom line,don't just roll over and die before you try to bring yourself back to life. It only takes determination for a little while,then it becomes habit and you'll feel so good that you'll be looking for the long way around to walk somewhere because you'll want the exercise. Don't worry about having to change your diet. I eat more than I have since I as a teenager and eat whatever I feel like eating.

What have you got to loose? You have everything to gain,namely your life back.
 
If you enjoy old tractors I would keep going fixing and restoring with the understanding its not a retirement plan in terms of return on investment.
 

KL, I agree with Randy, you can and should fight back. I am pushing 70 and am still pretty active. No health problems except for pretty bad arthritis but a lot of that is helped with replacement joints, and exercise. I have lost 15 lbs since January. I don't have any 50lbs to spare, but I notice the difference. You can still make a difference if you try.
 

KL, I agree with Randy, you can and should fight back. I am pushing 70 and am still pretty active. No health problems except for pretty bad arthritis but a lot of that is helped with replacement joints, and exercise. I have lost 15 lbs since January. I don't have any 50lbs to spare, but I notice the difference. You can still make a difference if you try.
 
Well,, lots of advise here, I feel you have to do what your heart says to do. Personally I'm 64, and have 22, half run and some are original and really are sharp.
I guess no one is going to change my mind, as I bought them to use them, yes, I have aches and pains, and BP might gives me a flutter here and there, but I plan to keep them. I collect a lot of different things, I keep things recorded.

My wife ask me once, what do I do with all this, if you pass away. I told her call ( a friend that is a real good auctioneer) the auction, she will do that, and whatever we get is what it is. My collection was never figured into my retirement needs, other then fun and games!

Don't think you ready to slip on a banana peel, as you might out live many! Just remember don't forget to smell the wildflowers! HeHe


I wish you good fortune, and a long long life!
 
get on a nutrition program YOU are what you eat. Wife was like you and she has lost 140 lbs had both knees replaced last year and is a new person just started it again and going for 20 more. [had T bone steak to night]a very good program is with Brooks chiropractic in Waupaca Wi. also she is the best Chiropractor
 
I have read all the replies and I thank everyone who took the time to give me their opinions. They are all good answers. Don't know yet what I will do with the tractors, nothing before spring. Two replies, RRLund and Showcrop kinda hit a spot that made me think. I am overweight but I am very fussy on what I eat. I don't eat all the "good stuff" or junk that I used to eat and I eat less. That hasn't helped. My heart walls are way too thick. My left knee, hips and shoulders are bone on bone so I don't know how excersize will work but, I am going to get a machine and give it a whirl. Hope it helps. Thanks for the "hint" on working out. I see the Doc tomorrow. Again, THANKS to everyone. You are a great bunch of people.
 
Slim, you hang in there, I like your posts, and dammit you give this forum a breath of fresh air!
 
The 370 was the only engine that Pontiac made in 58. All Pontiac V8 engines were evolutionary derivatives of the original 287.

The 348 was a Chevy but Pontiac did make a 347 in 57.

Dean
 
Ok, forgot this tidbit, I have lost 60 lbs, feel much better, I'm 6' but love how its helped. Kept it off now 4 years.
 
I don't want to understate how bad my joints were. When I'd get in bed at night,I'd have to prop myself up on my right elbow and relax until my shoulder popped. That was the only way I could even sleep for an hour on my side,even then the pain would wake me up after an hour. The left one wasn't so bad that I had to wait for it to pop,but again,I could only sleep on it for an hour or so until the pain woke me up. I couldn't sleep on my back or I'd stop breathing.


When I started on the elliptical,I'd have to turn my right leg just right after I got started to keep the pain in the knee down to a tolerable level. Once you start to strengthen the muscles around the joints and stop carrying so much weight around,you'll be in disbelief at how they'll heal themselves. The first two weeks I used that thing,I was literally sweating grease.


I cut 20 acres of hay yesterday,got off the tractor and on to the loader tractor,made four trips a mile up the road picking up stones out of some fencerows and bringing them home and dumping them in some ruts in front of the feed bunks where nearly 8 inches of rain have taken their toll. Three years ago,I would have hobbled my way down out of the tractor and made my way to the house with my cane then would have fallen asleep in my recliner the rest of the afternoon.


Do a search for "buy exerpeutic air elliptical". They're dirt cheap,they're rugged and they're all mechanical,so you'll be doing the work. There's no motors or anything to do it for you. And of course if it kills you,your widow won't be out too much money on it. LOL
 
So then the W-block 348 and its derivatives (like the 409) never did show up in the Pontiac lineup. Did they call their 347 a 347 or was it called a 348?
 
your body alignment has a real affect your joints mine was a mess hurt all over till she put me back in alignment all is good i'm 66 work like a dog yet can't sit still.only thing wish i could sleep at night go to bed at midnight up at 5 like clock work.i'm 18 miles south east of Waupaca where you?
 
Ahhh, well they did in Canada....you could get a 283, 307, 327, 350 sb, 396, 400 bb, 427 and a 454 in Canadian built Pontiacs....
Ben
 
Correct. W block Chevrolet engines were used only in Chevrolet cars and trucks.

Pontiac called the 347 a 347. Chevrolet called their 348 a 348.

Dean
 
The '56 Special, 2 door HT.........My second car, bought while in the service (at $30 a pay day + R&B, base haircuts were 25 cents). It was a 2 door sedan, "Stick Shift", Smooooooothe running Nailhead V8. Really nice car, road cruiser.....didn't do good trying to outdo little 267 Chevy V8s with their short stroke....course the Buick was a road car, not a dragster. Bought it used for somewhere around $700. I remember checking to see if it'd do 100+ (out on a back road one morning)....it did with room to spare.....glad the tires didn't blow out.....don't remember if I was running any "may-pop" or "will-pops".
 
I was checking out the machines last night. I'm going to buy one and give it a whirl. As far as me croaking and my widow getting anything, I'm very lucky on that subject, I've been divorced for 19 years. Thanks
 

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