Purchased 1984 Ford 555A TLB
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Gale Hawkins
Super Member
- Joined
- Sep 20, 2009
- Messages
- 8,268
- Location
- Murray, KY
- Tractor
- 1948 Allis Chambers Model B 1976 265 MF / 1983 JD 310B Backhoe / 1966 Ford 3000 Diesel / 1980 3600 Diesel
Our 1983 JD 310B is literally worn out pin wise but it still works. If I was going to buy another I would shop with more knowledge naturally but as long as the sucker with start, run, dig and load it is a keeper. The main thing we have done to it was new tires and replaced most all hoses. Often the run time per usage is like 10 minutes. A local welder who has since pasted did an awesome job putting on a new cutter bar and generally beefing up the loader bucket as well a the hoe bucket.
If one has interest and/or need in an old backhoe there are some serviceable units out there. Actually I went looking for a FEL for the 1976 MF 265. The used ones were broken/bent up. I came home with the JD for only $1000 more than the best price on a new FEL for the MF.
We had a 3/4" ratchet set and but added a few large sets of HF wrenches. Replacing one $3 O-ring took us several hours over several days due to being mounted on the side of the sump/transmission housing requiring a lot of steel lines to be removed and reinstalled. Getting all of the water out of was a bear but worth the effort and it has stayed clear for years now. The nice thing about the older units is you can find workable UTF in the $4 a gallon range.
New rear tires were worth the money in our case. 40 year old tires even with some tread left are just to HARD to grip well in dirt and forget trying to use it for snow removable on steep roadways.
Every brand of old backhoes that weaknesses. Old Cases with torque converters and drum brakes comes to my mind. My would slip when hot especially in high range but after I got all of the water out of it that has not been a real issue.
I think my unit was a rental unit many years ago perhaps. The sweet spot after nearly 10 years later would be an old unit that was bought new like by a small to medium size farmer that stayed on the farm most of its life. Yet one with good power even with high wear should be OK to consider in my view.
If using wrenches and getting oily is revolting then pass on old backhoes. With that said I know of a few who will work on old iron at a reasonable rate.
Size is a factor. Our JD 310B is large to me but the 410, 510+ are just plain huge. I would consider the 200 series. We are fixing up the Ford 711 one arm loader in part to have a loader for small places. The JD 310B is just too big inside the lot for our mini horses but the short 3000 with the 40" bucket should be handy in tight places.
Best of success in the hunt. Get your cash in hand but keep it in a safe place that is handy because if you find the right one you need the cash to be ready. Checks do not work so well with private sellers often. Dealers are not likely to have inventory in the $5K to $10K range but if they do cash works well there too.
If one has interest and/or need in an old backhoe there are some serviceable units out there. Actually I went looking for a FEL for the 1976 MF 265. The used ones were broken/bent up. I came home with the JD for only $1000 more than the best price on a new FEL for the MF.
We had a 3/4" ratchet set and but added a few large sets of HF wrenches. Replacing one $3 O-ring took us several hours over several days due to being mounted on the side of the sump/transmission housing requiring a lot of steel lines to be removed and reinstalled. Getting all of the water out of was a bear but worth the effort and it has stayed clear for years now. The nice thing about the older units is you can find workable UTF in the $4 a gallon range.
New rear tires were worth the money in our case. 40 year old tires even with some tread left are just to HARD to grip well in dirt and forget trying to use it for snow removable on steep roadways.
Every brand of old backhoes that weaknesses. Old Cases with torque converters and drum brakes comes to my mind. My would slip when hot especially in high range but after I got all of the water out of it that has not been a real issue.
I think my unit was a rental unit many years ago perhaps. The sweet spot after nearly 10 years later would be an old unit that was bought new like by a small to medium size farmer that stayed on the farm most of its life. Yet one with good power even with high wear should be OK to consider in my view.
If using wrenches and getting oily is revolting then pass on old backhoes. With that said I know of a few who will work on old iron at a reasonable rate.
Size is a factor. Our JD 310B is large to me but the 410, 510+ are just plain huge. I would consider the 200 series. We are fixing up the Ford 711 one arm loader in part to have a loader for small places. The JD 310B is just too big inside the lot for our mini horses but the short 3000 with the 40" bucket should be handy in tight places.
Best of success in the hunt. Get your cash in hand but keep it in a safe place that is handy because if you find the right one you need the cash to be ready. Checks do not work so well with private sellers often. Dealers are not likely to have inventory in the $5K to $10K range but if they do cash works well there too.
OP
ovrszd
Epic Contributor
- Joined
- May 27, 2006
- Messages
- 32,246
- Location
- Missouri
- Tractor
- Kubota M9540, Ford 3910FWD, Ford 555A, JD2210
All well stated Gale.
I changed the fluid in the trans even though it all came out looking good with no evidence of water.
My hoses are 75% old, possibly original. Hard to decide what to do there. I think I'll put some hours on it and see how it goes. Some hoses are pretty expensive depending on design. I won't tolerate a hose breaking every time I try to use it. We'll see.
My front tires are in bad shape. I think their only chance of long term survival is because I have a strong tractor/FEL w/Grapple to use for that heavy work. This machine has a 4n1 on the front. I dug up a large elm stump yesterday and carried the debris away using the 4n1. It's pretty cool. But,,, it's not a Grapple. Took 4 trips when the Grapple could have done it in 2.
I am Blessed with a good shop and I enjoy wrenching so old and tired equipment doesn't bother me much. I just expect some reliability in return.
This machine is much harder to get around in tight spaces than my Kubota. And I agree, there is a LOT of difference in TLB sizes. My Brother had a JD510 several years ago. It made my machine look like a toy.
I hunted on CL and Machinery Trader for about six months total. This was the first machine I went and looked at. Second machine I called about. I was very firm about how much money I wanted to spend which limited my search. I paid less than half of what I was willing to spend on a machine. With the wear this machine has I thought I could fix all of that and still be under budget. Only risk to that plan is catastrophic failure such as engine, trans, etc. But then, I'd have that risk with a $15K machine as well. We'll see.
I changed the fluid in the trans even though it all came out looking good with no evidence of water.
My hoses are 75% old, possibly original. Hard to decide what to do there. I think I'll put some hours on it and see how it goes. Some hoses are pretty expensive depending on design. I won't tolerate a hose breaking every time I try to use it. We'll see.
My front tires are in bad shape. I think their only chance of long term survival is because I have a strong tractor/FEL w/Grapple to use for that heavy work. This machine has a 4n1 on the front. I dug up a large elm stump yesterday and carried the debris away using the 4n1. It's pretty cool. But,,, it's not a Grapple. Took 4 trips when the Grapple could have done it in 2.
I am Blessed with a good shop and I enjoy wrenching so old and tired equipment doesn't bother me much. I just expect some reliability in return.
This machine is much harder to get around in tight spaces than my Kubota. And I agree, there is a LOT of difference in TLB sizes. My Brother had a JD510 several years ago. It made my machine look like a toy.
I hunted on CL and Machinery Trader for about six months total. This was the first machine I went and looked at. Second machine I called about. I was very firm about how much money I wanted to spend which limited my search. I paid less than half of what I was willing to spend on a machine. With the wear this machine has I thought I could fix all of that and still be under budget. Only risk to that plan is catastrophic failure such as engine, trans, etc. But then, I'd have that risk with a $15K machine as well. We'll see.
dieselcrawler
Elite Member
Nice machine, Richard. Look forward to seeing it in use, hope it fits your needs and works as well you expect.
Now if only I could talk SWMBO into an old dozer... *grin* better get her horse barn built first, to 'grease the skids'!
Now if only I could talk SWMBO into an old dozer... *grin* better get her horse barn built first, to 'grease the skids'!
deranged
Gold Member
- Joined
- Nov 12, 2013
- Messages
- 257
- Location
- Marthasville, MO
- Tractor
- Cub Cadet 102, L3600 Kabota; 1530 John Deere
Always come from an angle Greg. Never head on. We lose when we do that.
You two are my heroes
crashz
Veteran Member
Nice find and nice work getting her fixed up!
I grew up on a "triple nickel". It was one of my father's main machines and he bought it new ran it silly and sold it for a 416 in 1995. Great rig, but was a main line machine and he got an amazing deal on an upgrade. I loaded a lot of trucks with that old Ford!
I grew up on a "triple nickel". It was one of my father's main machines and he bought it new ran it silly and sold it for a 416 in 1995. Great rig, but was a main line machine and he got an amazing deal on an upgrade. I loaded a lot of trucks with that old Ford!