Looking at a 520-H

[Justinc 8]

I've been on the hunt for one of these bad boys for quite a while, and I've finally found one. Trouble is, its about 3.5 hours away but that doesnt bother me, I'll just take the wife on a little Sunday stroll.

From the pictures posted, the tractor looks to be in darn near excellent condition, comes with the 48" deck and a 48" blade but nothing else, no weights, chains, blower, etc but I dont have enough driveway for a blower. Its listed as having 940 hours on it and the asking price is $1,200. I haven't called yet but I was hoping to possibly make a deal for $1,000 even.

My question is, should I wait it out and find one thats closer with possibly lower hours? Would any of you bat an eye for a $1000 dollar machine (plus cost of going to get it, lets say $200) with that number of hours?

 

There is one about 2 hours norht of where I work, 724 hours, 48" deck and 2 stage blower for $2,500, that seems high to me and of course its from a dealer so the price isn't negotiable.

 

Thanks guys.

[Sparky-(Admin) 23,236]

If you snagged it for $1000 and invested $200 to get it I think you would be right on the money. You wont have stole it and you wont have overpaid in my opinion. This is assuming that there is nothing major wrong with it and everything is in good working order. The 48" deck with a good mule drive is worth $250-$400 depending on condition. The 48" plow with the rear axle bracket is a $250+ item and the tractor alone with no attachment should be worth in the $600-$750 range.

If I average my "guestimates" for each item I get this:

Tractor>>>>> $700

Deck>>>>>>>$300

Plow>>>>>>>$200

TOTAL>>>>>$1200

 

Mike.........

[Forest Road 594]

Mike is spot on! If you don't mind driving it might be worth the trip. Only problem is when you get there and it's not what it appeared to be you just lost 7 hours on the road. I went 1.5 hours each way once and I got skunked. Since then I wont go more than an hour. Good luck

[Tankman 3,523]

Take the drive. Lucky you if the Horse is as advertised. Mike is right on with his estimate.

Forget 'bout the hour meter,

Good luck and happy moterin'! :smile:

[thedude 14]

Buy it. Price is right. I spent 900 on mine , it has a 60" deck too, but its not as clean as that one sounds, and I too went for a stroll and I still feel good about it.

[cheesegrader 433]

If you don't mind the drive, the price does seem about right.

You never know until you get there.  I passed on one only a mile from home.

Low hours, garage kept, perfect paint...

[cheesegrader 433]

What I didn't get typed in before I accidentaly posted was:

Missing air cleaner, broken volt meter, broken fuel guage, no lights, broken throttle cable, leakng lift cylinder, leaking trans, dry rot tires, 

duct tape on (probably original) trans filter.

All on a low hour 520 that looked GREAT in the pictures.

You never know untill you go.

[cdsl810 181]

For what it's worth...

 

Yesterday I just bought my 520-H.  1990 model, 511.8 hours, 48" deck only. The seller wanted $1500, but I talked him down to $900.

 

If you make the drive, you can use the fact that you drove all that way as a bargaining chip.  It really makes the little details worth dollars.  That strategy worked for me, although my drive time was only 2 hours.

 

The fact that there was one mismatched front tire was worth a $50 reduction in the price, for instance.

[Justinc 8]

Appreciate all the responses guys. I figured the 1000 dollar mark was pretty reasonalbe. I got a chance to speak to the older gentleman who's selling it this afternoon and what I got from him is that he's owned it for 14 years and the only reason he's selling is because he picked up an identical 520h with less hours. Also, I'm pretty sure that he's the kind of fella that takes care of his things just by hearing him talk. I could be wrong but just seemed like a good old boy that doesn't beat up his things.

Anyways he said it fires right up, doesnt miss and runs pretty smooth. Said it blows a tiny bit of blake smoke at first start-up but other than that its fine, blake smoke i'm not really worried about.

 

I think i'm gonna make the trip guys. If it doesnt pan out, at least I'll get to see some nice WV countryside.

 

Thanks again.

[brandonozz 168]

Personally I would try to get him to agree to the $1000 (with the contingency the tractor is as advertised) before I made the drive.  At least you know and it's an incentive for you to take the gamble of making the trip.  If you make the trip he may not want to budge on the price as he knows how bad you want it!

[Justinc 8]

Oh no doubt, I'm going to call him tomorrow and haggle on the price and toss in "since i'm making the drive". If he doesn't budge i may just hold off for a bit.

 

here is the tractor on clist. http://martinsburg.craigslist.org/grd/3764578681.html

[312Hydro 474]

Good looking . Check the 4th pic down. It looks like the hood is pushed in above the headlights. Use that for bargaining.

[ericj 1,579]

i never try to negotiate a price over the phone, just in case i show up and it's a total piece of crap and i don't even want it. i just ask if the sell is firm on price or are they negotiable on price at all. that way i hopefully don't piss them off but let them know that i am not willing to pay asking price if its not what i think it should be.

 

 

eric j   

[Challenger 27]

It's worth his asking price.  Anything less will be a bonus for you.  Good luck.

[Ken B 3,189]

Other than the hrs. being up near 1000 its does look like it has been well maintained and garaged. If he is the original owner of the tractor he knows for certain what it sold for new, big bucks. Good luck with the purchase and let us know how it goes.

[Justinc 8]

Hmm, good catch on that 4th picture showing the front end, upper hood. Might be the lighting but if it is dented i'll be sure to mention it.

Last question before I make my move. So I shouln't worry about the 934 hours on it? Just seems like a bunch and I'm worried it doesnt have much life left before a rebuild is in order.

[MalMac 1,332]

It is approaching that number of hours that Onans do start having issues. With that said it may double that number or it may not. It's not unusual for a well cared for Onan to begin its downward slide toward problems. Some members I know of have Onans with way more hours than that and no sign of trouble. Others have had major repairs way sooner. You will read Onans are famous for loosing thier valve seats. Not saying with will happen but I would say that's it not immune to it. Don't want to rain on your parade just want to bring to your attention the inherent problems that could come about with a Onan with that amount of hours on it.

[ericj 1,579]

should of mentioned this sooner i always do a compression test on an onan i am looking to buy, but i also will do one for the person looking to buy one from me. if you have a problem with the motor it will most likely show up on a compression test, not always but most of the time

 

eric j   

[Justinc 8]

Well as long as parts are still available for me to rebuild it I'm not too concerned. How long do the Eaton rears usually last, or are they a non issue.

I'm not trying to pick this thing apart here, just trying to learn all I can.

[MalMac 1,332]

If the Eaton has been care for- regular oil and filter change, not abused, never run at a constant higher than operating temp. They last a good long time to where it's usually not a very big concern. Like anything else though they have their limits of wear. For the most part it's not a very big concern. You should check it out by getting up to temp by driving it and if possible get it on a few inclines to make sure it pulls ok when warm up.

[Brian K WheelHorse 28]

Looks like a great deal either way. I payed $900 for mine and had to invest several hundred bux into mine because of some undisclosed "issues".

[Dieselcowboy 210]

I have seen on this fourm that these tractors sold new for 5-6000$ . What a hit for 900 hrs of use.

[Brian K WheelHorse 28]

The Eaton tranny is regarded as a great and durable hydro. Looks like the owner replaced the front tires with some newer Carlise's so you won't have to worry about those for awhile.  The plow is a bonus too. I would haggle but if it came down to it - it's worth $900 all day. I seriously love mowing the grass with my 520...

[Justinc 8]

Well guys I made the trek and couldn't leave without it. The owner left me a patch of grass to cut so I could actually run it for a bit, about ten mins worth. Everything works wells. The onan sounds great, fired right up, no smoke, no knocks and the hydro works good too. All gauges work and actually some of the gauge lights. The head and tail lights work too. All wiring looks to be original. A couple things needs tinkering with though.

The drive lever has some play in it, I can go full speed forward but if I start going uphill the lever backs off and slows me down a tad. In reverse I need to pull it back pretty far to get moving but I'm pretty sure full speed reverse is accomplished.

The steering is a bit loose but its mostly in the steering wheel I think as all the tie rods are tight, not sure what the fix is with that??

NEVER have I've seen engine oil as clean as this. Sure he could have changed it before I got there but with that many hours it would still be slightly dirty just from leftover oil from over the years. The owner said that he greased it about every three cuts so that's good.

My only real complaint is that I believe the throttle cable is either stretched or out of whack. It goes full throttle, dang near red line but after I cut the yard tonight I wanted to let it idle for a minute to cool off, but it idled sort of high, the tac read 3k and that doesn't seem right to me. I'd like it to idle a lot lower because I've never liked shutting down engines at anything over idle. Didn't see an idle screw but I only took a quick glance. Any help in this department would be appreciated.

Well, that's the gist of it all, other than getting pulled over in summersville , WV and I should have known better but the officer was nice enough to let me off with just a warning.

I'll give it a bath tomorrow and post pics, thanks gentlemen.

[cdsl810 181]

Great find. I had the same experience with the unbelievably clean oil in my 520. The hour meter said 511.8 when I picked up mine last week. There is not one hint of dirt, or old, or anything in the oil on mine. I actually had to touch the oil and rub it between my fingers to make sure it was motor oil and not kerosene. Says a lot for a well maintained Onan. I'm looking forward to lots of useful hours ahead.