Midyearguru, My rationale is probably not real sound for most folks. I grew up poor so everything I had was somebody elses discard that I fixed up. That's what I know. I have as much trouble with new stuff in general as older stuff. I can fix the older stuff. I'm a pretty green guy and made a decision a couple of years ago when I had yet another new truck bought back by the Manufacturer because it wa a lemon. I decided that too many people throw away good stuff and I've lost too much money on new stuff. So I'm back to fixing up old. I consider it enviornmentally sound. Redoing old equipment is the ultimate recycling. I rebuilt my bass boat from a junker. Same with my current truck and now this cub. I usually get in deeper than I wanted but I've gotten used to it.
As for the 1872. I love this tractor. It's the perfect size. Has more than enough power for anything I would use it for. The attachments are still out there for reasonable prices. And new parts are readily available. They don't cost amy more than new parts for a new tractor. I've been lucky getting the things I've needed for the jobs I do. I have a Pintle hook for towing, deck, blade, snowblower, and now a cab. If I need it I can get rear attachments and a 3pt or sleeve hitch. This tractor works like a much bigger tractor. It's stable on my hilly land. There is also nothing really on the market like these Super GTs at this time. And it just plain looks right and I have something unique. Just like with my other projects I get to meet some cool people in my search for Parts and attachments.
As for the cost. Most would buy new before dumping real money into an old tractor. My take is if you want to have a NEW old tractor i'ts going to take some cash and some elbow grease. I've replaced many small items as I've gone along and this is the second round of major go through on the cub. Kinda cleaning up what I let slide the 1st time. The more you fix the more reliable it gets. I also get to pay as I go. The money comes out of my pocket. That's hard to do buying a new scut these days. I figure I still have less invested than this tractor cost new with out attachments back when it was new. But not much less. I fugure I'm around $3,500 total now. How much would this much tractor and attachments cost new today? Everything I do makes it more suited to what I'll use it for. You have to spend money on a new one to customize it to your needs as well.
Mountain heritage, I take things apart as assemblies. That way I only have to remember the given sub assembly I'm working on at the moment. I do mark wires and such. I also take lots of pictures so I have them as a reference. I've also had most of the major pieces of this tractor apart several times now. That makes it a whole lot easier to put back together.
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