[Taylor6400]

I have been searching for a used 210 loader for a bout a year now. I may have found one but it's not in great shape but doesn't look terrible either. I know nothing about loaders. What do I need to watch/check for? Top of bucket is beat up a little. Also looks like maybe the one leg on kickstand was twisted at some point. Also possibly a hydro line is bent behind bucket. He wants 2500 for it. These are near impossible to find. Ironically I am checking on a 200cx also but would need to ship it plus the wrong mounts.

Here are the pics. Comes with mounts and good guard. What do you think?

 

[TUDOR]

If a loader gets used for anything other than mulch, the bucket is going to get a collection of battle scars and an unreinforced top edge will get more than its fair share. The rest just indicates that it was used for the purposes intended and may need some minor corrections.

'Great shape' depends on your perspective. Aesthetically, the bucket needs some elbow grease and a paint job. Functionally, if there are no cracks in the arms, posts, or cylinder mounts, the cylinder rods are rust free, the lines don't leak, and the pins have little slop, who cares what it looks like, it's in A-1 condition to work.

I buy this type of equipment for what it can do, not how it looks. Paint is cheap, rusted cylinder rods are not.

 

[Taylor6400]

I hear what your saying. I don't mind buying well used. But there's a difference between stuff that's been used hard and taken care of and stuff that's just plain been abused and neglected. I don't want to buy junk. This thing is not mounted to a tractor. He is parting the tractor out.

 

[TUDOR]

FWIW, that one does not appear to have been abused. Neglected a bit, as indicated by the high water mark in the bucket, but it appears to be structurally sound and the cylinders are almost fully retracted which protects the rods.

I've abused my GT loader horrendously over the past 30 odd years and can tell you that it takes a serious effort to do damage to a loader, and that damage is usually pretty obvious. That JD210 loader arms are better built than the ones on my GT, and it's unlikely to ever be asked to perform as mine has done many times.

 

[Taylor6400]

Ok one last question. 2 of the hard hydro lines are bent. He says they don't leak and aren't pinched too bad. How much am I looking at to replace those? I don't have any experience with hard lines.

 

[TUDOR]

I bent all 4 hard lines on mine the other day when it slipped during installation.

Minor details. They have a smooth curve and don't leak, and the strain was enough to bend the valve set mounting plate.

If hard lines get bent so that there is a crease or kink instead of a curve, that puts a restriction and a weak spot in the line and makes it a prime candidate for replacement. I paid $150 for the replacement of the longest line on my loader due to pin holes last year. Subsequent replacements for that particular line will be cheaper since the replacement uses threaded fittings instead of soldered fittings and only one section of the line will need replacing in a similar event.