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Any advice on weird tree spade conversion, in Upstate, SC?

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yumbrad

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Hi! I'm considering becoming a deuce owner for a somewhat strange reason - I found one for sale, listed at $9500, near me that has a 66" Vermeer tree spade mounted on it. I recently bought an old ornamental tree farm to slowly turn into a nice family farm, and I'd love to be able to move mature trees around the place. I could hire that out, but it would be expensive, especially if I want to do it slowly over time given travel distance to my place, so I looked and came across this 1968 M35 with a tree spade. I've done some automotive work and don't shy away from learning, but hoping for any advice on valuing and considering taking on this beast. According to the seller, both the truck and spade "operate", but the hydraulic hoses are all bursting, so I'm figuring a couple grand at least to replace those. Now that I've browsed around here a bit for non-tree spade prices, and seen a couple really nice condition m35s for a similar price to what they're asking for this rusty beat up specimen (but with a tree spade), I'm not sure it's a good idea. But it might be a worse idea depending on what else I might run into in getting it and keeping it operable for 5 to 10 years, which is what I'd want. Any thoughts on this idea or valuing this truck / estimating how much more I'll need to go in? Here's a link to pics: (whoops, bad link, here is another try)

http://s285.photobucket.com/user/yumbrad/library/M35
 
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MWMULES

MWMULES

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You might want to look on the members map and see if anybody in your area can come and look at it with you.
 
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yumbrad

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dmetalmiki said:
Pictures would be great..curious to what is 'what'.
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Ok, I tried to post a reply with a link to pics, and it isn't showing up. I'm guessing since I'm new, posts with links get placed into a moderation queue? If a mod can approve either/both of my non-displaying posts, that would be great!
 
montaillou

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As you say, that you know how to work on vehicles you should be able to handle the repairs and you probably know enough to inspect it as well. I don't know what tree spades cost including the cost to mount. I don't think the truck will ever be worth more than what you pay for it, but it might be worth it compared to some alternatives. If it runs now, you can probably keep it running for a another 5-10 years at a cost of $1k/year for repairs (parts only).

What does a used tree spade cost, and what does it cost to mount to a truck? I guess the worth of the truck has to be compared to this + the $2k to repair the hydraulic hoses. I can't think they would have a lot of interested buyers, should be able to haggle.
 
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Scrounger

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That is an interesting setup. I haven’t priced out tree spades for some time, however they have always been surprisingly expensive. As already posted unless there is something obviously wrong with the engine or driveline it probably is a good deal. It seems you are looking for a farm truck not a show vehicle and the M35 is an easy vehicle to keep running.
As far as the hydraulic lines go. Given the amount of lines and it appears most of them are about the same size it doesn’t look to difficult to replace them. It would probably be worth getting a crimp tool and buying the line and fittings in bulk. It is a lot easier to take one line off make a replacement, install the new one, then repeat. Removing all those lines, taking them to have new ones made and getting them, all installed correctly could get challenging.
 
porkysplace

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Scrounger said:
That is an interesting setup. I haven’t priced out tree spades for some time, however they have always been surprisingly expensive. As already posted unless there is something obviously wrong with the engine or driveline it probably is a good deal. It seems you are looking for a farm truck not a show vehicle and the M35 is an easy vehicle to keep running.
As far as the hydraulic lines go. Given the amount of lines and it appears most of them are about the same size it doesn’t look to difficult to replace them. It would probably be worth getting a crimp tool and buying the line and fittings in bulk. It is a lot easier to take one line off make a replacement, install the new one, then repeat. Removing all those lines, taking them to have new ones made and getting them, all installed correctly could get challenging.
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Aeroquip reusable fittings is the way to go , just change the rubber hose .
 
cattlerepairman

cattlerepairman

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So you are basically in need of a mobile tree spade. Hey - you found one!
The Deuce is not a collector's item. It is a work truck to be used on your land. It does not need a registration. It needs to run, drive (slowly) and stop. Bent sheet metal or inop lights...no big deal.

Basic service activities will keep it running.

As for the hydraulic hoses...unless you are trained/experienced in cutting/crimping your own, there is peace of mind in having someone else emboss his number onto the crimps, guaranteeing their safety and quality....just saying. You can always tag and photograph the hoses in place for easy identification before removal.

Never mind the looks of that Deuce, After a while you will be hooked and start looking to buy a second prettier Deuce or a 5-ton anyway, so I am not worried!
 
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yumbrad

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Thank you for the thoughts. As you mentioned Scrounger, tree spades are surprisingly expensive. A 66" like this one is hard to find used, and would probably be 20k new. This is definitely the least expensive truck/spade combo I've found, and it happens to a few miles down the same road that my new place is on. And yeah, it's for work, I'm not worried about appearance :)

Good to hear that in general, the m35 is easy to work on and keep running. I say I have some experience - not a lot. I've changed brake pads and diagnosed and cleaned out a clogged intake manifold, replaced some other parts-gone-bad here and there. So I think I'll try to contact one of the guys on here that lives in Spartanburg and see if they'd look at it with me. Harold "muddog" lives not far from the equipment dealer, though he hasn't posted in a year or so.
 
snowtrac nome

snowtrac nome

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SCSG-G4 said:
Harold is good folks! Check with the other folks in the MHCC (www.Milhcc.org) for his contact info or send him an e-mail through the 'notifications' tab at the top of the page.
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as this guy said unless you are trained and have the crimp specs, pay to have the hoses made, also as much as I like the aeroquip style re usable type fittings, you have to remember to be safe the hoses fittings and crimp dies all have to match, if you use the aeroquip fittings you must also use their hose, same goes for parker or other manufacturers
 
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yumbrad

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Well, my half-baked guess on the hydraulic work seems to have been less than half-baked. My first quote came back from Hydra dyne at $10k to replace all the hoses - they estimated 40 hrs of work, for someone who knows what they're doing - the 10k is half labor, half parts. Not looking like a screaming deal if that's the case :(
 
snowtrac nome

snowtrac nome

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Most of the labor is removing hoses ,as was said earlier do the r&r work your self, have the hose company make the hoses , the hose and fittings are expensive. I had 6 3/8 hoses made up here cost north of 600 bucks.
 
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Scrounger

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Without looking at the machine I can’t comment on how many fittings or how much line it will take. Figure about $3.00 a foot for the hydraulic line and around $3.00 each for the fittings. There looks to be a few larger lines that will cost a bit more than that per foot. The larger fitting will also be a bit more.
 
m1010plowboy

m1010plowboy

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Tree Spade longevity

I ran this girl for 17 years and the plumbing is a pain. There's nothing like doing a plant friendly job then pinching a hose in front of a client and blowing oil all over the place. The increase in value on this unit over 2 decades was shocking so they can be a good investment. Really looking forward to MV Tree Spade pictures once you get rolling.


P4100861.jpg
 
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