Price Check - Branson 3510i

[astater]

Gents,

Been bouncing around the forums trying to price check and find a good deal on a tractor. Here's what I have for ya'll:

Branson 3510i
4x4
215 hours
FEL Quick Attach
Front Spear
Front Hay Fork
Howse 5ft Cutter
Shuttle Shift

That's all I know. I understand it's difficult, but I'm just looking for a ballpark price on this tractor. It's 3 hours away, so I don't want to make that drive if it's way off.

Seller is asking $12,500.

Appreciate the help fellas.

 

[sandybeach]

Best guess: if it's been serviced properly, with those attachments, $12,500 is good in my neighborhood. I'd expect to pay anything south of $13,000 to $15,000. If the seller will throw in cans of yellow and green - or orange - paint, maybe a bit more. :laughing:

I like to believe that my fellow man is honest, and that he takes care of his tools (and tractor). These days I sometimes wonder. As I advance farther into geezerdom, I find myself getting more cynical. That said,

Is it his to sell? Proof of ownership, e.g., Bill of Sale or receipts for paying personal property tax, etc. Will he give you appropriate paperwork?

Bargain or not, will you winding up paying for someone's misuse? How old is it? Can the seller show evidence of servicing according to the user's manual? Does he even have the owner's manual? If not, how many owners has the tractor had - or how much has he looked at he manual? An owner's manual should have some greasy, oily finger prints on it, and maybe some torn or folded pages. Writing in the margins is a good sign.

Do the grease zerks look like they've actually been serviced? Oil level in engine and front end OK? Coolant level? Hydraulic fluid levels? Have him show you the hydraulic oil level. If he can't find the fluid level "gauge", has he ever changed that oil? Ask seller to throw in his 5-gallon bucket of hydraulic oil. If he doesn't have at least a partial bucket, has he really changed the fluid? Same goes for engine oil: if he doesn't have any full - or partial - "cans" of oil for diesel engines, why not? I always have partial "oil cans" and partial hydraulic oil buckets hanging around. Air filter clean? Are the decals on the body scratched or missing (that should be a consideration of the kind of use it's had, not a deal-breaker).

Does he have ear muffs? Are there indicators that it's been driven into a ditch (in other words, is he careless when using the tractor)?

Drive it. Squeaky brakes? Hand brake need adjusting? Wear on pedals? Test the steering; does it make noise or shake the tractor on a sharp turn? Seat torn (not a deal-breaker - Gorilla tape is cheap)?

Knowing the answers to some - or even most - of the above can give you an idea of whom you're dealing with and what you're getting into.

Be on guard for a Craigslist scam (google it). Of course, if it looks too good to be true ......

I play at being a tree farmer. My day job is Digital Forensic Analyst. All day, every day I have to investigate computer crime and other cyber-naughtiness. I get to see people crossing lines and then figure out why and how they do that. That's why I expect the worst and feel like I have to analyze (or over-analyze) everything. Perhaps you'll benefit from that.

Note: all of the above is intended to be gender-neutral. Where it says "he" or "his" it is shorthand for "he" "she" "his" "her" "its" "other" or "declined to state."

 

[Omega Woods]

It's 3 hours away, so I don't want to make that drive if it's way off.

I don't think it's way off. Have you read the thread from our friend sikmusicfreak? He has had an interesting experience with his used tractor. Just make sure you evaluate it thoroughly before you buy it.

I'd buy it for 12.5k if it's been taken care of properly.

 

[astater]

I don't think it's way off. Have you read the thread from our friend sikmusicfreak? He has had an interesting experience with his used tractor. Just make sure you evaluate it thoroughly before you buy it.

I'd buy it for 12.5k if it's been taken care of properly.

Tried to find something...do you have a link to his thread?

 

[sikmusicfreak8]

Its probably a few pages down now. Long story short, I live in Southern California, bought a tractor out of Texas, sight unseen (just a couple pics), for full asking price from a dealer, as long as the tractor was gone through and needing no repairs, and all filters and fluids were changed. Tractor shows up, tach and hour meter aren't functioning, the backhoe bled hydraulics everywhere on the trip over, about 4 zerks on the hoe alone were froze, two pins were trash, completely rusted, needless to say I was quite pissed. Got the run around at first about how everything was serviced when it left, everything working, they know that for fact, blah blah blah. End result was me fixing everything, them sending me a filter pack, and giving me a 60 hour warranty to make sure the tractor ran well.

So as stated above, make sure you look over everything and that it was taken care of. Zerks are a very good indicator of how well the machine was cared for. After spending a lot of time and quite a bit of money replacing pins and fixing things, I will say that I absolutely love my Branson. Awesome tractor. I do have to replace my 3 point piston seals soon, I ordered them through Daves Tractor. Some days my implements bouncing rapidly, some days not so much, but always bleeds down. Other than that, tractor is pretty solid. Everything seems tight and is running well, so I am happy.