blackd,
Since this is supposed to be a thread to expose any "hidden" agendas, I thought I ought to responde to the "Birky Tractors of Maryland" question.
It doesn't exist. Brett purchased a tractor with me (Greg Birky) and 4 other guys about a year ago. We went together a purchased a 20' container with 7 Yanmars. We all got a reasonable tractor for a good price - but not without required repairs. Brett's tractor was probably the nicest of them all.
I did the same thing a second time, purchasing 3 for myself just to sell them. I thought I might get into this as a hobby/business, and am still considering it. Every dealer on this board, and many others who aren't on this board started out small also. I did well for the first time around, but It's a real headache, and very time consuming.
You can all start pounding on me now!