Machine has rebuilt engine, new head, new axle seals, pro paint job, yada yada. Owner says it is tight, runs great. Wants 7000 bucks. It's a 29 HP engine. Question... Have these small engine machines outlived their value and been upstaged by higher HP machines that have more snot and ability to simply do more? I'm a homeowner, don't need a pro machine, for sure. I've been looking at some other makes, notably Thomas, Ford ( supposedly the same maker), but find this process difficult as far as buying. Anybody have much to say about the 643, or whether the 7k is simply too much for the machine? Thanks, happy new year Mike Connecticut
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Its really hard to say, i have a 743 with about 32hp and works great. I did own a 753 with a 43HP engine and i loved it more, it had heaps of grunt thats for sure. Even with 29hp you will find its pretty well matched for that size unit. You may just need to not push it quite as had as a *newer* machine but it will do the same job, just a little slower. The other good thing is it will use less fuel. The 643's are pretty tough as well, as for the price i really can't comment as I'm from Australia and not sure what they go for over there. It does sound as though someone went through it so it should be a good machine.
A 643 is a great machine for home use. I have had good results with my M610, which has about the same horsepower in an older clutch drive machine. However, 7,000.00 is a LOT of money for a machine over 10 years old. I could buy a fantastic 743 for 4500 with a grapple with about 2000 hours right now. Recently I have moved up to an 843 and a 863 which is a work in progress. There's a nice 843 for 5000 or best offer. Remember, as a homeowner you can get away with owning a higher hour machine as it will not be in constant use amymore.
Good advice and information, for sure. Prices are relative for various locations. Look at various publications like Rock and Dirt, Machinery Trader, and others, and you get a DECENT idea what machines are going for. Lots of these machines are untouched by dealers who sell most with no guarantees/warranties whatsoever. Put nothing in, sell 'em as high as possible to make as much dough as possible. The American way. According to some of my questions on this site, I find everything is priced too high here by about 2 grand. With no warranties, one has to be very careful in purchases and hope you are talking to a straight shooting salesperson or machine owner. And, even when careful, you can still get stung. I'm looking at a 133 Thomas soon, and a 753 Bobcat. Passed on a cheap CAT 226 that turned out to be bigtime whipped. Just not easy to buy these used machines. Anybody had any luck bidding in municipal auctions for machines? Do prices tend to be too high, just right, or too low for the machines involved? The search continues, thanks, all, Mike
Around here, municipal auctions are where the most abused machines end up. There are also abundant idiots willing to bid up prices. Dealers, especially the Bobcat dealer will charge 20-50% more than they paid for a machine, and often use paint to improve curb appeal. You have to stick to your guns, and wait for the machine that "feels" right. I am not in the business so for me it's just a hobby. Therefore I am a "bottom feeder" and the last resort for a machine that might otherwise be scrap metal. I have never paid more than 1,500 for any Bobcat so far.
sterlclan
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an older machine that needs work is your best bet IF you are mechanically inclined my 2c get an older one no electronics and fix it to your liking.....Jeff
I have a 642 that was made in either 1983 or 1984 that I have owned for 10 or so years as a home owner. I purchased it from a dealer in Watertown NY for $4,800. I was impressed with it because during several business trips to the area over one particular winter the machine was always outside with the key in it and it would always start and run well, even though it was colder than h--- outside! It has a 32hp ford gas engine in it. It will dig in the dirt really well. It also has the get up and go to push well. I use it for construction on and around the house. It has dug a couple of addition basements and misc ground moving projects from filling in neighbors pools, pulling bushes, concrete driveway/patio preparation to lifting roofing materials to my roof.
Occasionally, there are two items I wish it had.......1) a high flow aux hydraulic (above 10gpm) and 2) a little higher lifting cap (1000-1200lbs) is all it has. Now I consider myself to be an extreme homeowner because I do everything myself and welcome a good mechanical challenge. I have done some relatively small repairs to it.....a steel hydraulic line cracked, I put new bushings in the steerling linkage and adjusted. I have redone the fuel line between the gas tank to the carb because the previous owner removed the mechanical fuel pump and replaced it with a 12vdc pump. They also removed the fuel shutoff valve (safety) so I have replaced that and put a carb kit in the carb after the float sunk. I also replaced the bushings/studs that the bucket pivots on and repaired one of the bob tach levers. In the future I need to replace the u-joints between the motor and the pump and it is getting to the point where I should propably put a new vane charge pump in it or at least change the rotational group in the pump if the sides of it are not scored. It has a vickers set of pumps in it. Overall, it has been a good machine and does what I need to do. Just my $.02.
Bernie