hydroharry
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- Harry Bursell
Hey there Jerry B - good to see you pop in as well. Did you catch the whole story on the 149 that David James is looking at. He posted a few pics on the last thread (where your post is). I'm thinking a non-running 149 down your way in MO wouldn't hardly make a 3 figure price.
David James - based on your additional info I suspect you're gonna have to start looking elsewhere. I don't think a non-running 149 would be worth $800 even up north of the border where Don Tanner resides. All I can suggest is you ask her how she determined the value of the unit, and try to get her to understand that if the engine won't run it only has value as parts and you can't tell how anything else operates without the engine running. If she wanted to get a repair shop to look at it they are going to charge her $75 to come and pick it up, and probably $200-300 to diagnose and repair it, if it's something minor, and that's if the shop is familiar with these old tractors. And then when it's running, it may be worth $400-500, and that's if they get it running. It's just throwing good money after bad. I'd just suggest making her an offer you think is fair and tell her you'll stand with the offer for a week, after that you're buying another tractor. Good luck with it. If you do buy it and get it running yourself please expect you'll have to put money into it - and I'm not talking paint. You'll probably have to rebuild the carb, maybe the front PTO, I'd certainly decarbon the head and piston which requires a new head gasket, and points, plug, condensor, change the rearend hydro fluid and filter and some other things. You're likely going to have to put $300 into parts just so you know it's in good order ready to use - and all this is after fixing what ever the current starting problem is - assuming it will run. And after this you may needs some new belts which is another $60-70, maybe blades as well, you might need at least one front wheel spindle. This list could go on and on. I'm not trying to scare you away - there's alot of talk about these tractors being indestructible, but the truth is they do break, but they can be fixed generally for a reasonable cost if you're willing to put the time in to figure out the problem, study and learn a little, and do the repairs yourself. This site has a wealth of information, and some very very talented people to help you. There is a chance it's something minor and you'll get it started fairly easily, but you'll likely still need to do the things I mentioned to make sure it's in good running order.
By the way, I see a 129 forsale over in Lancaster and it comes with a tiller, which by itself is probably worth $200-$300.
Good luck to you. I hope you can work it out.
Hydro Harry
Old Cubs Never Die (but sometimes they need some resuscitation).
David James - based on your additional info I suspect you're gonna have to start looking elsewhere. I don't think a non-running 149 would be worth $800 even up north of the border where Don Tanner resides. All I can suggest is you ask her how she determined the value of the unit, and try to get her to understand that if the engine won't run it only has value as parts and you can't tell how anything else operates without the engine running. If she wanted to get a repair shop to look at it they are going to charge her $75 to come and pick it up, and probably $200-300 to diagnose and repair it, if it's something minor, and that's if the shop is familiar with these old tractors. And then when it's running, it may be worth $400-500, and that's if they get it running. It's just throwing good money after bad. I'd just suggest making her an offer you think is fair and tell her you'll stand with the offer for a week, after that you're buying another tractor. Good luck with it. If you do buy it and get it running yourself please expect you'll have to put money into it - and I'm not talking paint. You'll probably have to rebuild the carb, maybe the front PTO, I'd certainly decarbon the head and piston which requires a new head gasket, and points, plug, condensor, change the rearend hydro fluid and filter and some other things. You're likely going to have to put $300 into parts just so you know it's in good order ready to use - and all this is after fixing what ever the current starting problem is - assuming it will run. And after this you may needs some new belts which is another $60-70, maybe blades as well, you might need at least one front wheel spindle. This list could go on and on. I'm not trying to scare you away - there's alot of talk about these tractors being indestructible, but the truth is they do break, but they can be fixed generally for a reasonable cost if you're willing to put the time in to figure out the problem, study and learn a little, and do the repairs yourself. This site has a wealth of information, and some very very talented people to help you. There is a chance it's something minor and you'll get it started fairly easily, but you'll likely still need to do the things I mentioned to make sure it's in good running order.
By the way, I see a 129 forsale over in Lancaster and it comes with a tiller, which by itself is probably worth $200-$300.
Good luck to you. I hope you can work it out.
Hydro Harry
Old Cubs Never Die (but sometimes they need some resuscitation).