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Originally Posted by stardaddy
Everyone,
I found a late 70s-early 80s Shibaura SD2443 4x4 tractor with a front loader and pull behind disc for $6000. Does that seem like a decent price? This model is a 29hp diesel. It starts good and smokes a tiny bit when it first starts but that goes away within seconds. It seems to run strong overall with no strange noises. The entire tractor looks nice and clean but I noticed that the radiator is leaking.
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That's a lot of tractor for $6000. The grey market thing isn't such a big deal
if 1) you buy a model that still has decent parts support 2) you can turn your own wrenches
or 3) if you have a good dealer like Buck from EFC close by (many other good dealers, but on Shibaura, Buck comes to mind right away). If you have to take it to a local Big 3 dealer to fix minor issues then you will be disappointed as they will likely not have good parts sources and not be too eager to find good parts sources. Instead, some dealerships would like to teach you a valuable lessen as to why you should have bought from them.
The Shibaura is a good tractor, but obviously not for everyone. Many people, as demonstrated by some of the responses, are better off paying the extra and buying a name brand.