used undercarriage - worth it?

[nelstomlinson]

I have a JD450C with some life left in the undercarriage. I'm using it at home, so I hope to get several years more out of the undercarriage.

There is an add on the local Craigs List for a JD450-550 undercarriage. FRom the photos, the tracks look rusty, the bogies look less rusty, and I can't see any bad wear on the drive sprockets. He's asking $2,000. Is it worth driving 100 miles to go look at it? Are decent used parts worth that price?

[gregjo1948]

Is that price for the entire machine or just the tracks,(chains&pads) rollers, idlers, and sprockets? Buy these parts new and you'll probably spend 10K.

[Stan Disbrow]

Hi,

The problem with u/c is that it always looks better than it usually is. You need to measure everything to really determine the wear. Just looking at pics is likely to lead to your buying sad stuff. That said, if you can see in pics that what is out there looks a lot better than what you have right in front of you, it is probably worth going to look in person at the least.

Stan

[nelstomlinson]

Thanks for the replies.

This fellow is just offering track, rollers and drive sprockets. What I have may be a little better than what he's selling, but after I've put a few more years wear on mine, that will probably reverse. If new chain, drive sprockets and rollers are going to cost $10 grand, $2 grand for this could be a great deal if there is 50% life left, and a lousy deal if there is only 10% life left.

After thinking this through, I think what I really need to know is the following:

1) Do the JD450 and JD 550 really share the same track parts, as this fellow implies?
2) Would it be worth while installing used track if it's 50% worn (I'm guessing yes)? How about if it's 90% worn? How bad would it have to be to not be worth installing at all? Changing the undercarriage looks like hard work, and I wouldn't want to do it more than I have to.
3) What measurements should I take on this stuff that's not installed, and what numbers should I get?

[Lavoy]

Here is my general rule regarding used undercarriage. You have used undercarriage already.
New undercarriage is not $10,000, and used undercarriage other than in rare occasions is $120/ton.
Lavoy

[nelstomlinson]

Thanks, Lavoy. Up here in Interior Alaska, new undercarriage will cost what it costs in the Lower 48 plus a thousand or more additional shipping. On the other hand, because of shipping, scrap steel is worth a lot less than $120 a ton!

I may just offer him something a little above our near-zero scrap prices.

[Lavoy]

Yeah, that sucks, freight would be a killer.
Lavoy