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JD 260 backhoe - To buy, or not to buy?

4909 Views 7 Replies 6 Participants Last post by  Foxtrot08
I've been on the fence about picking up the 260 backhoe for my 2305 - mostly out of concerns how much I would really use it. I live in a community that is about 240 acres and I'm the youngest member by 15 years, I'm also one of 4 people who own a tractor or any sorts of equipment. Also, one of the few who has any dirt work experience. (Growing up on a farm helps, a lot. Especially with a father who was a contractor for a while.)

With that said, there is a lot of ditching, tree planting, general maintenance work that needs done around the property, however - it's not all on my shoulders to do.

Add onto this, I have access at nearly anytime to a Cat 301.5 mini-excavator down the road at my family's farm, but it's about an 2 hours to go get the goose neck hooked up, get the excavator out, load it up & chain it down then drive it to where I need it and finally, take it back. Where as, about 5 minutes to hook the backhoe up and drive it down the street.

Do you guys who have the 260 (or a small backhoe for that matter, BX series or whatnot.) Find yourself using it for small jobs here or there? Or should I side list it for now, until I move to more property? (A goal in the next 5-7 years is to buy 20-40 acres around where I live.)

I can regularly find 260's used for $3500-4000 and the powerbeyond kit is only $300 from my local dealer. So, all in all - lets say $4500 for the entire kit. Worth it for the 'freedom' of having it, or would it just take up space and collect dust in my garage?
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Not having to spend a half a day, or totally rearranging your schedule, to do a 30 minute job makes having a back hoe collect dust between uses well worth the cost.

That's strictly my opinion, others may disagree. I wish that I could have bought mine 25 years before I did!
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