My new to me Backhoe

[ArtisanFarms]

I received a lot of good feedback on my 'should I get a backhoe' thread and ended up buying one. It is an International diesel 2500B from the mid '70s. It isn't pretty (at least not yet), and needs a little work, but the motor and driveline are strong and with the exception of a few small leaks the hydraulics are good. For just over $3K delivered. I'm the fourth owner and other than with the first owner it has been basically a hobby use machine.

I have a few projects for it at the house I'm renovating and my son has some work planned for it on the farm. It won't be run hard, but should end up being used on a semi-regular basis.

 

[dougf]

Awesome machine! I'm sure you'll love having the freedom to get stuff done whenever you want and at your pace.

 

[nadogail]

Thanks for the update. I am not as pretty as I once was, but I clean up nice. I am sure your Backhoe will one day be as pretty as the ones on the Showroom floor.

May you enjoy it and Good Health for many years.

 

[Adaylate]

I'm glad you finally made up your mind to buy the backhoe 'cause I need to borrow it Labor Day weekend. I'm just over 3000 miles from you, so if you leave now you can just make here in time..
Oh yeah, could you purty it up a bit before you bring it out?
All joking aside, you got a great deal on a real workhorse of a machine!

 

[Firebrick43]

While the tractor portion is ok, the swing mechanism for the boom was terrible on IH backhoes. It was two pistons on either side of a rack, driving a pinion. The pinion shaft had splines that engaged the boom splines. These splines wore, got loose and eventually slipped/sheared off. Parts are not available anymore. If you splines are ok, be gentle with it, dont push stumps and dirt to the side with the bucket, only straight on and don't swing wildly and come to an abrupt stop. I have seen several converted to twin cylinder like a Case. But there were things worse than an IH, Massy Ferguson backhoes were terrible.

 

[ArtisanFarms]

While the tractor portion is ok, the swing mechanism for the boom was terrible on IH backhoes. It was two pistons on either side of a rack, driving a pinion. The pinion shaft had splines that engaged the boom splines. These splines wore, got loose and eventually slipped/sheared off. Parts are not available anymore. If you splines are ok, be gentle with it, dont push stumps and dirt to the side with the bucket, only straight on and don't swing wildly and come to an abrupt stop. I have seen several converted to twin cylinder like a Case. But there were things worse than an IH, Massy Ferguson backhoes were terrible.

This is a problem we are aware of. There is some wear in the splines, but they are all there. We will start off babying it, but may end up doing some sort of rebuild.

 

[LXCam]

Congratulations!, every man should have his own hoe.

 

[Prospecter]

At that price, you absolutely can't go wrong. The tractor and loader without the backhoe is worth more than that! Well done!

 

[mike93lx]

Nice. How tight are all the pins?

 

[jar944]

While the tractor portion is ok, the swing mechanism for the boom was terrible on IH backhoes. It was two pistons on either side of a rack, driving a pinion. The pinion shaft had splines that engaged the boom splines. These splines wore, got loose and eventually slipped/sheared off. Parts are not available anymore. If you splines are ok, be gentle with it, dont push stumps and dirt to the side with the bucket, only straight on and don't swing wildly and come to an abrupt stop. I have seen several converted to twin cylinder like a Case. But there were things worse than an IH, Massy Ferguson backhoes were terrible.

Somehow managed to pop the heads all the cap screws off one side of that rack cylinder once...

 

[billconner]

Good move. Wish I had bought one before starting my project. Would have paid for itself.

 

[Firebrick43]

Somehow managed to pop the heads all the cap screws off one side of that rack cylinder once...

That is interesting to say the least!

 

[hefnerconstructionlc]

For $3k even if it breaks and you have to sell for scrap or parts, I think you would come out fine. No worse than renting. That's a heck of a score! The only thing you will wonder is why you didn't get one sooner.

 

[Jarwop]

"For just over $3K delivered"
Couldn't get it delivered for less than $1500 here...

 

[finn]

I personally know three people that bought older backhoes for home projects, and later sold them for about what they initially paid.

One of them is actually on his third old backhoe.

Expect to do some fiddling and maintenance. Mostly hoses and batteries.

Tires can be expensive, as can injection pumps if it’s a Diesel rig.

My neighbor now has a 1964 Deere gas job with leaking cylinder sleeve o rings. He occasionally has to drain the coolant out of the oil pan, a thought that horrifies me, but the old girl keeps running.

 

[Walkers]

Nice! Having the ability to bury bodies at a depth that makes them undetectable gives you the ability to persevere when idiots are annoying you.

 

[4x4Pete]

Sweet deal! Almost impossible to lose money on that. You will wonder how you survived without one!