Oops, the family grows......

[fishdrivel]

I am not savvy on rules/regulations in California, particularly the Bay Area, so please excuse any ignorant question. Does California law allow you to purchase used tractors? If you do, is there some sort of environmental regulation governing them even if vintage tractors? Yanmar tractors are good on fuel, so that is a bonus.

California has a rule on everything.

Oh, and Big Sur is burning again.

Wildfire in Big Sur closes part of California's Highway 1, forces evacuations

The California Highway Patrol closed Highway 1 at Rio Road just outside of Carmel-by-the-Sea due to the fire.

news.yahoo.com

 

[ultrarunner]

Simple answer is it depends...

Friends retired rather than upgrade their dumptruck and case backhoe... both purchased new for family excuvating business.

Same for wood chippers.

If you are in business active enforcement exists for emissions.

AG had some exemptions and personal use is not business...

Heck... it is now illegal for me to fire up my Echo gas engine blower and string trimmer anywhere in city limits...

 

[richriddle]

Gosh, in my corner of the world, used tractors are like hen's teeth...

I am not savvy on rules/regulations in California, particularly the Bay Area, so please excuse any ignorant question. Does California law allow you to purchase used tractors? If you do, is there some sort of environmental regulation governing them even if vintage tractors? Yanmar tractors are good on fuel, so that is a bonus.

Here in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, we experience fewer rules/regulations than you Californians encounter, on emissions and a few other things as well. We have fewer rules on things that don't have wheels as well...

 

[Torvy]

California has a rule on everything.

Oh, and Big Sur is burning again.

Wildfire in Big Sur closes part of California's Highway 1, forces evacuations

The California Highway Patrol closed Highway 1 at Rio Road just outside of Carmel-by-the-Sea due to the fire.

news.yahoo.com

I remember going to Big Sur camping when I was a little kid. We lived in San Bernardino and would sometimes go there for a weekend.

Too many people there now.

 

[ponytug]

I am not savvy on rules/regulations in California, particularly the Bay Area, so please excuse any ignorant question. Does California law allow you to purchase used tractors? If you do, is there some sort of environmental regulation governing them even if vintage tractors? Yanmar tractors are good on fuel, so that is a bonus.

Here in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, we experience fewer rules/regulations than you Californians encounter, on emissions and a few other things as well. We have fewer rules on things that don't have wheels as well...

I think that it is there are so many folks working in landscaping and construction that the few tractors that do come up for sale are snapped up by folks that can use them eight hours day six days a week. There are emission rules on off road diesels, but most small (private) farms are exempt; commercial uses are all regulated, and would need a Tier IV diesel.

A friend scored a small John Deere that had been bought by a wealthy homeowner with attachments and all the bells and whistles. After basically not using it for two years (20hours), he returned it to the dealer to get something smaller. My friend picked up for much less than half of new.

@Torvy there is still lots of empty space in Big Sur, but a lot of it has burned in the last five years. The unexpected part of the Big Sur fire is that we generally haven't had fires during the winter rainy season here. It does highlight the enduring impact of the drought, lack of rainfall, and a hundred years of fire suppression. This is going to take awhile to settle down to the new normal. (We are at less ~7" of rain for the year (from July). That is less than half of the "historical normal", but historic rainfall patterns have lots of drying years and a few monster rain years that average out to something more than one would expect most years. E.g. we "average" 15", but most years are closer to 10-12", and then every so often 30-40" year arrives. Apparently the 1880 Krakatoa volcano resulted in epic rains here that caused landslides and landslides that are still visible.

All the best,

Peter

 

[Torvy]

I think that it is there are so many folks working in landscaping and construction that the few tractors that do come up for sale are snapped up by folks that can use them eight hours day six days a week. There are emission rules on off road diesels, but most small (private) farms are exempt; commercial uses are all regulated, and would need a Tier IV diesel.

A friend scored a small John Deere that had been bought by a wealthy homeowner with attachments and all the bells and whistles. After basically not using it for two years (20hours), he returned it to the dealer to get something smaller. My friend picked up for much less than half of new.

@Torvy there is still lots of empty space in Big Sur, but a lot of it has burned in the last five years. The unexpected part of the Big Sur fire is that we generally haven't had fires during the winter rainy season here. It does highlight the enduring impact of the drought, lack of rainfall, and a hundred years of fire suppression. This is going to take awhile to settle down to the new normal. (We are at less ~7" of rain for the year (from July). That is less than half of the "historical normal", but historic rainfall patterns have lots of drying years and a few monster rain years that average out to something more than one would expect most years. E.g. we "average" 15", but most years are closer to 10-12", and then every so often 30-40" year arrives. Apparently the 1880 Krakatoa volcano resulted in epic rains here that caused landslides and landslides that are still visible.

All the best,

Peter

Sorry I was unclear. It isn't too many people on Big Sur. It is too many in California. The 'drought' is as much about overpopulation of a desert as it is about climate cycles.

 

[fishdrivel]

I remember going to Big Sur camping when I was a little kid. We lived in San Bernardino and would sometimes go there for a weekend.

Too many people there now.

When I was a young man, there were a lot of transients there. Hippies and kids exploring, adults who did not want to grow up or work.

We called it Big Sewer

 

[richriddle]

My Big Sur experience was with the wife. She booked us on a "retreat" at the Benedictine New Camaldoli Hermitage. Okay, not my idea of fun, but went along because many Benedictines like farms/tractors and woodworking. Got there and found out you had to observe a vow of silence during the retreat.... The wife's idea of a vacation, being with me in silence.

She didn't talk to me, but it turned out a monk there knew me well. We worked together at a hospital in the midwest. The monk and I went to the bookstore and caught up because the monks allow speaking in the book store. Go figure.....

 

[California]

Gosh, in my corner of the world, [San Francisco region] used tractors are like hen's teeth, and when you do find one it usually has a description along the lines of "used to run great when grand dad had it. It has been sitting for a few years (20), and might be missing some parts, but we aren't sure as we can't get it started", and priced at what it cost new.

No kidding! I looked several years for a YM186D. (Smallest Yanmar with PowerShift). I finally found the one without loader in Susanville, 5 hours / 300 miles NE, and over behind the Sierra Nevada range, driving from N of San Francisco to there via Reno. I paid the seller to bring it down the mountain to Dave's Tractors in Red Bluff. Then two separate day trips, a hundred miles each in low-traffic hours, to get it to my home, then from there to the ranch.

A couple of years later I finally found the ideal one, with power steering and loader. That was in Marin County, only an hour trip.

I've only seen a few others, or anything with PowerShift, on eBay or Craigslist over a 15 year interval.

Each YM186D looks like a prior owner must have had a psycho girlfriend - dents everywhere! And both look like they never spent a night stored indoors, over their 30+ year lives. But both are mechanically sound. That first one dyno-tested more horsepower than spec new. I haven't tested the loader one, but it is just as strong. These aren't pretty like a VN 'rebuilt' but at least their prices reflected their appearance.

I cleaned up and repainted all the wheels and put on new seats. And I just bought the replica top grille for the loader YM186D. I plan to clean that one up - eventually. I sold the non-loader one to a local guy who did a complete appearance restoration and it looks great now.

Like you said - "in my corner of the world, used tractors are like hen's teeth".

Richriddle - There are no regulations on buying used tractors like these but I think at 50 hp is where smog rules apply and some older tractors have to be sold out of state. Something like that. Maybe the rules are only for tractors sold new.

 

[4get gto]

No kidding! I looked several years for a YM186D. (Smallest Yanmar with PowerShift). I finally found the one without loader in Susanville, 5 hours / 300 miles NE, and over behind the Sierra Nevada range, driving from N of San Francisco to there via Reno. I paid the seller to bring it down the mountain to Dave's Tractors in Red Bluff. Then two separate day trips, a hundred miles each in low-traffic hours, to get it to my home, then from there to the ranch.

A couple of years later I finally found the ideal one, with power steering and loader. That was in Marin County, only an hour trip.

I've only seen a few others, or anything with PowerShift, on eBay or Craigslist over a 15 year interval.

Each YM186D looks like a prior owner must have had a psycho girlfriend - dents everywhere! And both look like they never spent a night stored indoors, over their 30+ year lives. But both are mechanically sound. That first one dyno-tested more horsepower than spec new. I haven't tested the loader one, but it is just as strong. These aren't pretty like a VN 'rebuilt' but at least their prices reflected their appearance.

I cleaned up and repainted all the wheels and put on new seats. And I just bought the replica top grille for the loader YM186D. I plan to clean that one up - eventually. I sold the non-loader one to a local guy who did a complete appearance restoration and it looks great now.

Like you said - "in my corner of the world, used tractors are like hen's teeth".

Richriddle - There are no regulations on buying used tractors like these but I think at 50 hp is where smog rules apply and some older tractors have to be sold out of state. Something like that. Maybe the rules are only for tractors sold new.

The YM147d' s had power shift also. Maybe you all knew that if so ignore.