Hi There, My name is Joe and I'm very new to this heavy equipment world. As a kid I used to help my Grandpa run his Massey Ferguson Backhoe and loaders. All I have right now is a small Kubota B7510 that I inherited from my dad. I bought 4.5 acres from my dads estate after he passed away and now I'm going to be doing an addition on the house, building a driveway, clearing some property, etc. After a guy on the local diesel truck forum bought a backhoe I realized they are fairly cheap right now and I've been looking around on Craigslist at various hoes. I have found quite a few Case 580's around the $6-12,000 range. Most of them are C's, but I did just find a 1985 580D. I have been doing some searching around here to try and figure out what I need to look for. One of the biggest problems I have seen on all of the hoes is the brakes. What's up with the brakes on these machines and how hard are they to fix. What else should I be looking at? Thanks in advance, Joe
Welcome to the forum Joe:drinkup A 580D in good shape is a nice machine. I always figured and still do, that it's a machine worth putting money into. Case made many, many improvements up to this point. I'm not sure of all the differences between the C and the D model but the larger cab is the most apparent. Brakes on the older Case models are relatively easy to fix, especially with the floor plate(s) removed. Replacement of a master or slave cylinder is often necessary and adds to the cost. Some other makes require some disassembly of the transaxle, sometimes called internal brakes. Many points to watch for on the C or D model. I'll mention a few. Check for coolant in the engine oil, also listen for a howling noise in the differential. The shuttle should feel firm when engaging at idle. Others I'm hoping will add.....Phil
Be sure and drive the machine, make sure it works in all 4 tranny gears while driving. And be sure to check steering pivots and joints. Some folks neglect to grease kingpin bearings and destroy them.