# how many hours is too many?



## elite1msmith (Sep 10, 2007)

im in the market for a used skidsteer, having never bought a used one, whats an "average amount of hours that these things become unreliable?

i know small equiptment like mowers has like a 2000 hours, and at that point it starts to become questionable... how many does a skid loader have? i saw a few that had like 5000 hours, they looked nice, but i didnt know how much longer they had in their life cycle


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## JohnnyRoyale (Jun 18, 2006)

I rarely buy used, and when I have, it always needed something. We have a Bobcat with 2200 hours, and havent had any major issues with it, just small PITA crap like hydro hoses bursting from rubbing over the years, nothing major really. One of our 257's caught on fire at 250 hours, and had numerous problems before we returned it for a new one, it was resold by the dealer as new-so you never know based on the hour meter really.


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## LoneCowboy (Jan 2, 2007)

Bigger tractors (of any type) can take a lot more hours than smaller tractors.

So, on a medium SS, I wouldn't buy anything more than 2000 hours. It isn't worn out, but ti's certainly on the downside of it's life. You notice a LOT of SS's for sale with 2000 hours on them. Ever wonder why that is?

Bigger ones may be better, but even a really big SS only has a 100hp engine, I would consider that still pretty small.
I would figure that a 40 to 70hp tractor to be pretty worn out at 4000 hours. Might still run, but it's probably got a ton of money in it.

I'd bet you could get some decent deals on equipment with under 500 hours on them, and that would be good to go.

JMHO


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## elite1msmith (Sep 10, 2007)

iv alway operated new, but thats not in the budget , and i think im about done wasting money on new equiptment, that depreates quickly

like i have said before, i have run amost every peace of equiptment i can think of, including large cranes for the bee's but as an owner, have little experiance with anything bigger than a skid, or meduim tracktor... and never bought those used...


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## JD Dave (Mar 20, 2007)

Stay under 2000 hrs and look for something well maintained. You can tell how well maintained it is by checking the loader pins for wear, if the guy didn't bother to grease it everyday he didn't bother to maintain much else. JMO


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## bike5200 (Sep 4, 2007)

If you find a piece of used equipment you are interested in, take some oil sample and have them analyzed. Call any big heavy equipment dealer, and they can tell who does sampling in your area.


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## erkoehler (Sep 25, 2008)

I have a used skid steer with a plow for sale for $9k. Has about 5300 hours, and run great. We haven't had any issues with it. Also have a dirt bucket for it.

[email protected] if your interested.


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## ServiceOnSite (Nov 23, 2006)

i keep hearing the same thing as far as hours go on a SS. i would say buying from a landscaping company would be the way to go. they only really lift things and dig in the dirt. concrete companys beat the piss outta there stuff. and also have used breakers on them which wreak havoc on every moving joint.


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## cornerstone (Dec 3, 2007)

ServiceOnSite;596205 said:


> i keep hearing the same thing as far as hours go on a SS. i would say buying from a landscaping company would be the way to go. they only really lift things and dig in the dirt. concrete companys beat the piss outta there stuff. and also have used breakers on them which wreak havoc on every moving joint.


I agree with you. We bought a small used one (1200hrs.) from a dealership. A farmer traded it in, the thing was like new. We also purchased a New Holland LX 985 with 4000hrs. A landscape co. traded in a pair of them for new LS190's. The dealer did a complete service before we received it. Ran great no problems. Sold that and now have the JD 280 2-speed purchased with 2000 hrs. and original paint.
One thing my father who's a farmer taught me, if it's been repainted, run! I won't buy anything used with a new paint job, it's a dead give away. I think it's Goodall on ebay, he offers to repaint them but lets you see/purchase them before refurbish. Concrete splash on the bucket and or machine is also a warning along with a new bucket. I wonder, what happened to the old bucket?
When we sold the LX 985 on ebay I appologized to the the guy when he came to pick it up for not washing it. Grease all over the hinge points dust etc... He said I'm glad you didn't, now I know the machine was greased on a regular basis.
OK, I'm done rattling now.


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## purpleranger519 (Jan 1, 2006)

Stay under 2000 hours and look for cracks in the welds and check the pins. You can tell if its been greased or not fairly easily.


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## ahoron (Jan 22, 2007)

purpleranger519;606977 said:


> Stay under 2000 hours and look for cracks in the welds and check the pins. You can tell if its been greased or not fairly easily.


2000 is the magic number at the company I work for. gets a coat of paint and a trip to the auction.


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## Mike S (Feb 11, 2007)

ServiceOnSite;596205 said:


> i keep hearing the same thing as far as hours go on a SS. i would say buying from a landscaping company would be the way to go. they only really lift things and dig in the dirt. concrete companys beat the piss outta there stuff. and also have used breakers on them which wreak havoc on every moving joint.


Not all landscape co's!!!! Companies like brickman that keep there brand new SS's in the sea contianers full of salt get trashed in under a year and they usally dump them that same year because they are ate up!


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## salopez (Apr 11, 2004)

yep around here brickman owns there winter skids for 6 months then takes them back to the dealer....who sells them cheap!

you might want to look into new really. with 0 financing for 50 months it might be cheaper then used if you look at the total cost.


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## got-h2o (Sep 26, 2008)

I used to work for a company that traded in at 1k hours or so. Know another guy that does 2k. I really think it's per machine and how it was treated. 2k hours really isn't that much. But if the machine was beat to crap, or used often in certain terrains or conditions, it is................not even just the engine, but the machine itself. Every brand will have pro's and cons, different stress points, etc. I wouldn't be scared of a well maintained machine with 5-6k hours if it was tight and priced right. You can rack up 2k hours in a year if it ran 8 hours a day.


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## plowtime1 (Nov 1, 2007)

whoa... whoa... whoa... fella's
cash is king !
graet deals to be had out there


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## plowtime1 (Nov 1, 2007)

oops...sorry.."great deals"; $%it happens


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## Superior L & L (Oct 6, 2006)

I would look for something in the 1500 hour range then you can probably run it for another 1500 before you start to have big $$$$ problem break downs. 
But once its payed for who cares if you have to dump a couple thousand in to it, its still cheaper than a new one


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