Does anyone have experience with older backhoes?

I know this may not be the best place to ask, because you all are a bunch of enablers. Last July we moved out to a small acreage. I have vast dreams for this property, some of which I would need to use an excavator or backhoe for. Now the normal person would probably pay someone, or rent one for the specific project and be done there. But I see this as an opportunity to own such machinery. Currently I have a narrow front Farmall H as my loader tractor for stuff around the house, and clearing snow during the winter. It works fine, but I certainly wouldn't mind an upgrade.

All that to say, I've found an older case 530 backhoe somewhat locally for $2,000 that seems to fit the bill. It Runs/Drives/Digs, but is certainly well used. I don't really know much about backhoes specifically, but I do know replacing hydraulic hoses gets expensive very quickly. This would replace our H for loader tractor duties, with the added bonus of the backhoe for backhoe things.

 What am I not thinking about? Why shouldn't I buy this thing?

I find that tractors never die.  They are so overbuilt in most cases (pun intended) that they just refuse to quit.  Dad and I have tractors in service as old as 1932 and they just keep working.

What I find with older tractors is not reliability issues, more of ergonomics and options issues.  The 1932 is a John Deere G and it basically has one hydraulic circuit.  You can lift and drop a brushhog.  It has a bucket that just goes up and down, but the bucket dump is just a latch.  You have to reset it by lowering the boom while driving backwards.  Annoying.

Over the years things just got better; float locks on hydraulics, live PTO, ingress/egress, hydrostat, etc.  As long as this one has the bells and whistles you need, go for it.

Also, make sure it has a valve pattern you jive with.  There are two main types of backhoe stick patterns: SAE/John Deere style and ISO/Cat. Most older backhoes are SAE.  If you're used to neither one, no worries.  If you are used to an ISO pattern which sometimes comes on foreign tractors and mini-excavators, it can take some getting used to.  Basically, it flips the sticks and it is like patting your head while rubbing your belly.

Hydraulic lines aren't necessarily expensive.  It's been a couple years since I've done one, but I recall doing a hose (probably 6' long) on the 78 Ford and it was $46 I think.  Just take the hose to a hydraulic shop and most times they can just re-use your weatherhead fittings and re-crimp new hose in the middle.  You're just paying for 6' of hose and 30 minutes labor.

But yes, if you purchase a brand new complete line, they're expensive.  If you have them fab up an entire oil line with new fittings, you get into some additional expense because the weatherhead fittings aren't cheap.  But it's rare that you need the fittings themselves.

Thanks Curtis, I didn't know that the hydraulic lines. Your right about the bells and whistles. My H loader has a hydraulic tilt/dump but not live hydraulics. Did not realize how much I would hate that until I started using it.

IIRC, they had a bunch of transmission options.  There was a 12 speed 4 gear/3 range, a straight 4 speed, then they had an automatic and a shuttle shift.  Do you know which one that has?  The loader/backhoe in all yellow suggests it was a municipal machine known as the 530CK (construction king).  If so, it might have the automatic or the shuttle.

I know of no problems with any of them, but for occasional use on the homestead, I would think the manuals would have a nod for reliability, but I know of nothing wrong with the auto or shuttle.

One other thing... looks like you live somewhere pretty flat.  Be aware that many of the shuttle/auto transmissions may not have engine braking in all gears.  Dad always wanted a Ford 901 Diesel with the select-o-matic auto.  About half the gears don't have engine braking, and on PA hills dragging an 8' brush hog, it gets scary trying to stop it.  He sold it and got a New Holland 42 Boomer with hydro.  Nice rig.

You can get a little John Deere or Kubota tractor with a three point hitch mounted backhoe attachment for not much money now and they are pretty capable. And you will not need to replace a forty year old hose every time you go to use it. Old backhoe have so much slop in the pins and bushings that they are an exercise in frustration. Try extending the stick and boom all the way out and push the bucket back and forth. If it moves more than a foot or so walk away. And it will probably move back and forth three or four feet. The extent of the play is how much you will miss the trench by on every scoop until you learn to control it. 

Whatever you do don’t search alibaba there is way too much machinery porn there.

I would factor in the cost of a roll hoop on that thing. 

Depending on how much you use it, backhoe maintenance can be uber expensive. Taking care of 400 acres, ours gets a fair amount of use.

Ours is a 1996 Cat 416B with a whole lot of hours on it.

Hoses are a regular failure, and there are a lot of them. A local hydraulic shop that can make hoses is almost a requirement. Some Napa stores do.  We just spent $800 on seals and tie rods on the front end, and that was for parts. We did the install. On average we spend $500-$2500 per year keeping it in good, useable condition. 

Replaced in the last 10 years, 3 cylinder rebuilds $$$$, one hydraulic pump and coupler $$$$, radiator $$$, two tires $$$$, front trunion bearings and axle shaft that got bent when the trunion failed $$$$, and the exhaust manifold $$$. 

The maintenance isn't hard, but everything you touch is heavy as hell. The front planetaries on ours are a 3-man job and I've had them off twice. Changing a rear tire almost requires another front-end loader. 

I will add that if you have any decent amount of property, a backhoe is the most useable piece of equipment you can own. 

If it runs and works I would say at $2000 you should have no problem using it for your projects for a few years then reselling it for what you have in it if you decide you dont want to keep it.

TSC sells premade hoses pretty cheap. They aren't rated for pressures as high as the parker store sells, but they are more than enough for the older equipment. They also have hydraulic fluid for around $40 a bucket that is pretty decent.

Make sure the rear tires have some life left. Those are really expensive. I would think on a backhoe tread wouldn't matter much, just that they aren't overly cracked.

Check the joints. Is there a fare bit of grease splooging out? Is it a mix of old and fresh? If its completely bare, did the owner just power wash it? Grease keeps joints alive. If the owner was fastidious with maintenance, they will grease and grease often. If the joints are grease free, its either because the owner cleaned it (rare occurence) or because they skimp on it.

I've been around a Case Super L for the better part of 25 years. Hoses blow, a few piston seals, one new ram because we dropped a huge chunk of concrete on the outrigger, and...that it beyond basic maintenance.  

I don't know much about backhoes but I do have a fairly large Bobcat skid steer. Check for play in the joints. If it's been used and abused without care (not greased) the pins and bushings will be shot. That means a lot of play in any joint that moves. My Bobcat has wear sleeves on some joints, so I've replaced some of those along with the pins. Other joints are weld repairs. It can get expensive and be a real PITA to fix it right. If it's had a jackhammer attached to the boom, wear is exponentially higher. If you look at it and it's been cleaned well, be weary of leaks. It will have a good amount. Anything that looks like new steel was probably protected with a nice coating of oil.  

I bought a John Deere TLB(tractor/loader/backhoe) and it didn't work for me on our property. I had high hopes that it would be the "swiss army knife" of property maintenance equipment but quickly found out it's or my limits. If we had a flat-ish property, I would probably still have it and all of its attachments, but I have hills and side hills and elevation. They are a bit top-heavy and I guess I didn't have the nerve to push its limits and an incredible fear of getting crushed under it. 
 

I decided to buy an older skidsteer and have never looked back. In fact, I can't see a time when I won't own one and all of the attachments I've accumulated for various jobs around the house.

Thanks for the help guys. I called the guy, and it certainly sounds like it's been used, but I think its still worth taking  a look at. $2000 is a fairly minimum investment for my projects I have in mind.

I'd love to have a newer tractor with a 3 pnt backhoe, but that is certainly out of the budget. A skidsteer is a huge want, but again, out of the budget for now.

Well, I know own said backhoe. It definitely needs some work, but its within the realm of my ability. It doesn't hurt that my neighbor has the tools for large equipment. The backhoe all works great, but the brakes, and steering need some work, and the engine burns some oil, but I still think its a fairly minimum investment. Hopefully i'm right. 

Congrats on the purchase! Hopefully it treats you well. 

I bought an older JCB backhoe... weighs 16,500 lbs. Ran great, but very sloppy at all pins. I broke the boom knuckle. Folks that can break a bowling ball with a rubber mallet would have trouble breaking a JCB.

I'm no help, just wanted to add...

In reply to 03Panther :

I ran backhoes for about 8 years when I was in my 20s. I ran a Ford 555 for several of them. What a great machine. Unfortunately, the hydraulics were stronger than the steel they were attached to and I broke the front bucket off of it. The maintenance shop never did let me live that one down. I got stuck with rentals from then on. 

Fell down the YouTube hole and found this guy doing a very GRM type repair on a worn out joint:

Looks like a plan to me if you need to tighten things up on a budget.

Two things that seem like great ideas early on but can turn into super expensive problems are older backhoes and younger side hoes. 

I'm just messing with you, I think that was a good purchase.

In reply to Toyman01 + Sized and :

Never run but a couple, and that was long enough I don't remember what they were. But after looking for parts to repair this JCB, I found out how increadably HD built they are. Some serious steel plate!

gearheadmb said:

Two things that seem like great ideas early on but can turn into super expensive problems are older backhoes and younger side hoes. 

I'm just messing with you, I think that was a good purchase.

Very good point, though!