I'm currently in the market for a used backhoe, however I'm having trouble finding anything in my area. The local craigslist has a whopping 3 up right now, one beat to hell and the other two too new and pricey for me, EBay doesn't have any near by, and the local newspapers don't have any listed. Where are some other places I should consider looking?
searchtempest.com
You could try your luck at a auction. Richiebrothers has auctions in most parts of the country and Ironplanet runs online auctions every week.
There just aren't that many "good" backhoes for sale at any one time, the lousy ones come on the market more often and stay on the market longer. If you don't want to expand your area or price range, then you just have to wait for something to come along. Auctionzip or other auction listings are useful, a little more risky than craigslist even.
I have been looking for about 6 months for a backhoe. I assumed four or five thousand would buy one. I would go to auctions and junk would bring 7 to ten grand? Any road I got a call and bought a white elephant 3010 JD for $2300 . it has steering & brake problems. I get that sorted and maybe get some use from the machine.
The cost of all good used has started recovering and the pricey mini excavators are dragging the prices of used loader backhoes right along with them. If you want to buy a running unit with problems you are likely looking $8K to $15K. Try MachineryTrader.com or My Little Salesman.
My budget is at 15k right now. I'm mainly having trouble finding listings though. Here in east Tennessee I have the choice of either getting a 08 or newer far out of my price range, or buying a hunk of junk under my budget. I'd like to find maybe a '90's model or early '00's with some life left in it, but they all seem to be located either in the Midwest or west coast and I'm scared to even get a quote on shipping one from that far.
RichieBrothers.com Machinerytrader.com Ironplanet.com PurpleWave.com Bigiron.com Catused.com You can get a decent one bought for $15k. Surely you can spend a couple days going and getting it yourself if you plan on buying one? Either way, don't be afraid to negotiate! If it is a good one you don't want to miss out on it over $500 in shipping. I would be wanting one coming out of the midwest, more specifically an area that didn't have any rock in the ground. I highly recommend going and looking at it no matter what, you can't discover how much play the pins have in them with pictures, among other things. good luck!
$500? From the quotes I've seen its 2-3k to get one shipped from that far. And I don't have the equipment to make that long of a haul myself.
How big of a hoe are you trying to buy mate? 15k doesn't get anything very big that is in any reasonable condition, that being said the smaller hoes can obviously be hauled with a 3/4 ton pickup and a goosneck trailer. I guess nobody can really tell what you are doing so advice will vary.
I got a 416B 2 wheel dr for sale in charlotte nc for 15,
I shopped for several months, ended up buying a new Kubota L45 for my needs but kicked the tires on several in the area. Just have to be patient and visit a lot of junk to find the one you can live with. The last local auction had a few that bid out in your price range, all needed some work but were serviceable. I had a IH686 tractor hauled from northern Iowa to Tennessee for $800 but I had quotes as high as $2700. I just asked a local company to broker a deal with a trucker heading this way with room to load my tractor. Shop around, prices will vary.
Clintm, What year and how many hours on it?