How often do you replace?

[BarkerB]

What is the turnover of your equipment? I would imagine it depends on what equipment. I tend to trade in my ATV every 4 or 5 years. I keep the tractors longer, my newest is 8 years old. I keep great maintenance records and make sure that they are serviced regularly so I think I keep them a bit longer than others.

 

[RichZ]

Tractors are built to last. I first got into farming in 2000, and my first tractor was a 1951 Ferguson TO-20. A great little tractor that I used for 14 years and sold for more than I bought it for. A year after I got the Fergy, I knew a needed a bigger tractor with a loader and I got a 1967 Oliver 1550 with a loader. I really loved that tractor and it served me really well until water got into the hydraulics and I bit the bullet and bought a brand new 46 horsepower Kubota with a cab and loader, whcih I still use today. Even with the hydraulic problems, I sold the Oliver for EXACTLY what I bought it for. Along the way I also bought a 1980 large (88 horsepower) Ford with a loader. My point is tractor really last and if you take care of them, that will last for many decades.

 

[Gardenry]

That's a good question. I've wondered that too. I can find the average use of mowers and power saws, but I've never run across the average use of large farm machinery. I don't have any large machines like a tractor or a combine. I traded up my ATV when it was four years old. I guess I'm no help with the stats.

 

[Nora]

We've had our John Deere tractor for close to 20 years now, but it doesn't have the bells and whistles of more modern tractors which may very well be why it's still going. There's less "computer" to tear up.

 

[Smarty Plants]

They make so many things with plastic now that it's hard to say whether our new stuff will last as long as our old stuff did.

We've had our John Deere tractor for close to 20 years now, but it doesn't have the bells and whistles of more modern tractors which may very well be why it's still going. There's less "computer" to tear up.

Well it's 2020 now, so 20 years ago it was 2000. I'd say that computer chips were already widely in use by then.

 

[OhSusanna]

It's mostly about replacing certain parts rather than scrapping the whole thing and buying another one. At a certain point though, a person gets tired of making repairs and decides to upgrade instead. We've had our machinery for years, but I couldn't tell you off the top of my head what's been replaced and what hasn't on it.

 

[Nora]

Well it's 2020 now, so 20 years ago it was 2000. I'd say that computer chips were already widely in use by then.

Shoot, you got me there. Sorry about that. I should have mentioned that it was used when we bought it. It was made in the 60s. We had to replace the belts and the tires, but not much more than that.

 

[greg]

You can own some machinery (like tractors) for as long as you want. How long these can last depends on the frequency of service and how well-trained the handlers are. I trade any time there's an opportunity to do so presents itself and when (subsequently) there's value for money.