My tractor collecting days are about over.

I can't help but notice that I don't have the fire for the old tractors anymore. Every year now for the past 3 or 4 years my interest has been dying down. Heck I used to move 4 or 5 a month through the shop, but now I am down to maybe 2 or 3 a year. Used to place an ad and get 10 calls in a couple of days. Now I get 1 call in a couple of weeks. The times sure are different. There is no use in bothering with them if you can't make a buck on them. Used to be you could sell a few parts on Ebay and junk the rest and make a couple hunrded. Heck buyers on Ebay don't buy much of nothing and when they do it has to be cheap-cheap cheap. The times sure have changed and they ain't about to get better any time soon. How is it in your part of the country? Here in Pa it is pretty bad.

Seems like when you advertise something on CR or EB all you get in response is the bottom feeders. I've had a real nice semi tractor listed on CR since last Wednesday and so far I've had five calls from scammers for every one serious buyer. I can see why you guys who do a lot of selling say it isn't fun anymore.

As far as collecting goes, from what I see the new collectors are after tractors made in the 60's because that's what they grew up with. 60's era tractors bring good money are harder to afford. Our local show featured IH this year and among the 425 IH's that came in I was surprised at how many 806-856-1206-1256-1456's I saw. There was only a sprinkling of F-20's and two Regulars. To be honest, I got more of a kick out of looking at the 1256's than I did the M's and H's. The 1256's and 1456's were the big dogs when I graduated from high school and that's what attracted me to them when I saw them at the show. Jim

Need to move with the collection market. Now it's Harleys & bikes, 60's, 70's & 80's vehicles, ATVs, etc that today's 30-60yr olds can relate to.
Also not as many people can afford a rural hobby farm that needs an old tractor. Those can can still afford a hobby farm purchase a new CUT.

I've pretty much gotten out of the mood, too- used to tractor jockey a bit, still have 2 from that era that need to be fixed and sold. And a couple of collector tractors, ditto. But as you say, there's no money in it anymore, and its getting harder to get my tail in gear to get out to the shop and get after it anymore.

Guess its a combination of the times, and me getting older. It was a lot easier when I would just get on the ground and roll around under those rigs, without worrying and planning how I was going to get back up again. Both knees worked then- now, only one. And the depressing thing is, I know lots of others have it much worse than me.

(quoted from post at 09:49:52 08/20/13) Need to move with the collection market. Now it's Harleys & bikes, 60's, 70's & 80's vehicles, ATVs, etc that today's 30-60yr olds can relate to.
Also not as many people can afford a rural hobby farm that needs an old tractor. Those can can still afford a hobby farm purchase a new CUT.

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I have been doing just that. I just got a 2006 HD Ultra Classic with 10K miles on it. Just got back from Sturgis SD from bike week and I couldn't believe the amount of people on bikes out there. 99% HD, so what the heck, my investment cost will be a bit higher, but it will keep me in the shop longer during the winter months. Guy laid this bike down to avoid a deer and got real up tight about getting back on it. I didn't steal it, but I think I can keep it priced right and thereby move it quickly.

Does anyone care if I put my two cents worth in?
I was reared on a small farm in the 1940s and 50s, as far back as I can remember I was crazy aboot tractors, I used to write to companys and get their literature. I left the farm in 1960, but was still interested in all machinery.
In about 1975 I started to collect, mostly JD, I would sometimes spend more hauling it home than I gave for it. I bought tractors in Minnesota, Iowa, Kansas,Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, and other places.
Back in that day the styled tractor wasn't beeing collected and wasn't bring much money. It seems like after 1990 the tractors that one could farm with were collectable. I sold all my tractors over 20 years ago and started in the garden tractor size, they have increased in price from what they could be bought for back then.
As I go older I thought why bother with all these tractors when I could go to tractor shows and see the same ones that I owned, and didn't have to work on them.
Yes" I guess as a person gets along in years their interest wanes.

Not that many years ago I had tractors and implements ready for spring, maybe a boat or two and sold everything when people got their income tax refunds, now less than half the people work and most of them have to spend their tax refund check catching up on bills. Before hunting season evey year it was guns, 4 wheel drives and campers. Bought and fixed up chevrolet trucks and oldsmobile cars all year long, they sold real well especially when the Mexicans headed back to Mexico after cotton harvest and tree planting season, every one of them drove something back, those days are long gone because cotton harvest is basically a one or two man job these days and the Mexicans don't go home anymore anyhow.

I have even noticed traffic on this site seems to be down. Lots of reasons, economy, parts super expensive, J.R. Hobbs, the kingpin of the hobby on the JD side passed away, aging collectors, etc.

I started collecting old tractors back in the 70's when almost no one was doing it,most of the fun was finding old tractors in barns,fence rows etc and thats about done now they have mostly all been 'discovered' and in the hands of collectors.
Garden Tractors are where its at now and garden tractors are just starting to attrack serious collectors that want nice orginial machines.

The poofmaster gave me some cool aid.

Everything is fine and times have not changed.

I don't know. I just went to the hardware store to get some stuff to paint the wheels and grille on one and was talking to another collector. He said "geez,you won't have any left that you can use". I told him I paint them then get tired of looking at them after a year and put them back to work,and that's the truth of it. I wouldn't call myself a collector,but an old tractor user. What anybody else does with them is up to them. Collect them,sell them,they're not my tractors.

Then.... you aren't really 'collecting' are you? You were 'dealing' in old tractors. 5 a month? Don't know many dealer franchises than could flip em faster than that.
'Collecting' is a 'hobby'. Remember Petula Clark singing 'downtown'? That was her 'hobby'. A hobby is not to make a profit on quick turn arounds, but to kill free time usefully, lower blood pressure, distract from day to day problems and drags... troubles n worries? WE rebuild some one else's junk, sometimes create something out of nothing, for pride, self respect, make new friends, share what you learn about stuff, like on these repair forums... then use it on a seasonal hobby- of growing vegetables, feed, or- doing stuff. Some like RR's and mine, do a lot of stuff, we just try to be careful and not trash 'em- again... after all that work...
Now, if you went to the FENA 'collectors meet, in Vienna, Ohio, not far from the PA line, you would know what the tractor collecting 'hobby' is all about. And the annual dinner was in a 'collector's trophy room'.... the...commaradery? meeting new friends...and 1/2 a chicken and sautaided string beans was good too... no, the girls weren't fighting for the centerpieces, we were all behaving ourselves in there....

A used tractor dealer with a specialty in older tractors does have a dull saw in twisty ash. But collectors rarely sell, they fix or stash or relesh each unit and might sell one to advantage, or to a friend, or because of too many of the same. One is a hobby the other a business. I hope you stick around here, your voice is always welcome. Jim

Problem is people expect as much money for a farmall m as you can buy newer bigger stuff for. I just bought a good running allis chalmers 7000 from a dealer for $2000. For some reason when someone paints a old tractor they want $2500 for it. Parts are getting harder to find and people want to much money for antiques so unless your a collector or have a interest in them you will buy something else.

WOW!

I bought my Farmall H in 92? I was younger, and it was theraphy for me. I read the Roger Welsh books, and I really enjoyed working on my H and a 300U. But now my H sits, it hasn't moved in over a year, needs a mag job, but I am thinking of getting a distributor for it. Couple things come to mind, the guys who grew up on a H, are going fast or are gone. The larger farms mean fewer folks usuing tractors, and fewer new collectors. And the high scrap prices have meant that buying a old tractor and parts are more expensive. I went to a auction in the early 90's and a good running JD B went for 700. I passed on a JD70 with a lot of goodies, including new tires, for 1k.

Business has gone flat in the last 10 years here.I fix a few fence chargers in the shop now.We sold vegetables for many years.No great amount but sold whatever we didnt use.Sweet corn was slow this year.My wife put a half doz of early corn on the table.Took 5 hours to sell.A neighbor across the road bought it.He had a yard sale going and a lot of cars stopped but zero vegetable sales.We grew an early corn that is the nicest corn I have ever eaten.You cant sell it.Its only been a few days but it looks like a bad year.When I bought my Ford tractor I had an interest in buying another and fixing it up for resale but thought better of it.The economy is flatter than a scotch pancake and it will get worse.We used to have vegetables for sale every day,weekends only now.

One thing you need to keep in mind is that all these "barn finds" are ending up somewhere...

OTHER BARNS!

In a few years there will be a whole new generation of barn finds out there to be discovered and brought back to life.

(quoted from post at 10:00:09 08/22/13) One thing you need to keep in mind is that all these "barn finds" are ending up somewhere...

OTHER BARNS!

In a few years there will be a whole new generation of barn finds out there to be discovered and brought back to life.

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You are exactly correct. They go from an old barn to a pole building. Problem is that the market has gone south.