WHAT WOULD YOU DO?

The prettiest little Farmall CUB you could ask for. It even had a belly mower on it. On the other side of the barn was all type of equipment for this little jewel --cultivators, planters, even a blade.

I went back to town to see this fine woman. I told her thank you for the tractor. I wrote her a check for the "little, red tractor". My question to you is..... how much would you have given her? jmh

Well, We went and got the "little red tractor" this afternoon. It is a very low time 51 Cub. This will be a very enjoyable project. Excellent shape with light rust. Hood, tank, wheels, and fenders are in perfect condition.

I did go see the fine lady that wanted to give me this tractor. I told her it was a very desirable tractor to rebuild and that it would be worth considerable worth when reconditioned. She again stated she wanted to "give" it to me.

What did I do?

I wrote her a check for $400.00 (we were both happy).

http://www.tractorshed.com/gallery/tphotos/a26549.jpg

i just got a 69 606 from my neighbor who sold his house. came with 7 pieces of eqipment. his only concern was getting it off the property before they closed. could ahve gotten more if he went all over creation and spent a lot of time selling it but that was not his concern. he only wanted it gone.

he could have gotten more but he and i are both happy. maybe she has to get the barn cleaned out and you did her a big favor.

i make a point of asking up front what they want and if they say $xxx or it free i will ask if they are sure. if they say yes than it is a deal.

i do not take things and then second guess and i am not santa claus or the tooth fairy.

i have given away loads of "great things" and despite what i "could have gotten" was thrilled they were gone.

Dug

There"s a difference between the market value of a tractor (what SOMEONE would be willing to pay for it) and what it"s worth to me. I honestly wouldn"t have much use for that Cub, and I don"t want to be in the business of selling old tractors so $500 would be the max I"d be willing to pay for it.

Now, if it were a nice TO-35 or a 4020 diesel, my answer would be much different.

What's that old saying? One man's junk is another man's gold? I've got too darned many lawn mowers now, so I sure wouldn't want it.

But, this is why the woman offered it to this particualr fellow, I would imagine. She knows he'll take care of it.

Allan

I would say that this woman from church must know you pretty well to feel like giving you this nice piece. She must know you are gonna take care of the ol' girl and not re-sell it.
If it were me, I would accept the gift for what it is...a gift. And I would do my darndest to return the gift to her.
Find out if she needs help trimming shrubs or pruning trees or plowing a garden spot, etc.
Be a true friend to her, and that will be worth more than any $$ anyone could give her for the machine.

Plus she gets the added benefit of feeling good about doing something nice.

If you write a check, it is either gonnna be too little or too much....there is no way to put a fair price on buying something like that from a friend. Someone will walk away with a bad taste in their mouth. If no money is exchanged, and this lady knows how grateful you are, there will never be hard feelings.

I have given away many things that held alot of value; things I had no use for. I would rather give them to someone I know who needs them than have a little bit of cash in my pocket.
The only time I ever felt bad about doing that was when I gave a truck to my father in law(not a new machine but still a good truck)and all he did was complain about it. You know that old saying about not looking a gift horse in the mouth.

Just be ready to step up to the plate when she is in need and you are in good shape.

That's my .02

Did you stop and ask yourself why she picked you to "give" it to? This woman is no dummy.

She knows that it would mean something to you, that you know it's value and she knows that you are fair & honest.

So, I would imagine, this probably gives her some kind of comfort in knowing who it went to and that you will take care of her dad's old tractor.

Allan

I'd go back and talk to her about what she's really got, and what it's probably worth on the market.

If after that she still wants to give it to me, or sell it to me at a low price I can afford, I'd proceed with taking ownership. Otherwise, I'd help her sell it or at least smile and enjoy the good deed done.

Yers is out back behind the barn. That "red" as she calls it is rust. It's actually a JD 2010.

Joe