Cub Cadet 3206 - Price and Suggestions?

[cruzenmike]

Hello.

Local gentlemen is selling an early 2000's Cub Cadet 3206 for $1200. The machine has 750 or so hours and he states that it starts right up and runs well. It comes with the 54" mowing deck. This machine has a 20hp Kohler Command Engine, shaft-driven hydrostatic (with larger pump and cast iron axle), locking differential, hydraulic power steering and hydraulic deck lift.

Supposing everything works as it should, and there are no visible leaks of any kind, is this a good price for this machine? What should I be looking for when I go to inspect it?

I have some reservations about a 20 year old machine with a bunch of hydraulics but for what I intend to use the machine for (hauling stuff), I would only expect to give it about 20 hours of use a year.

I appreciate any help you can give.

Mike

 

[bertsmobile1]

The 2000 & 3000 series were the last Cub products worth buying
After than MTD trashed the brand by substantially downgrading them.
They were commercial grade mowers that came out just a bit too late as commercial contractors had just switched to ZTR's
At that price it is a steal .
The landlord has several 2000 series mowers that all have better than 5000 hours on them as we use them to mow 1000 acres of mixed pasture & orchards
The decks are just about gone, I have welded more patch plates on the decks over wear holes than I care to count
The electrics are a problem and the switches are a right royal PIA to access .
OTOH they work day in day out some times 14 hours a day
The Horizontal shaft engine go forever because they are designed to do that, not to wear out after 1000 hours .
The other good thing is there are no electronic controls or logic boards, just simple on / off switches .

 

[sgkent]

just inspect it carefully, or pay someone who knows mowers to do a pre-purchase inspection.

 

[cruzenmike]

The 2000 & 3000 series were the last Cub products worth buying
After than MTD trashed the brand by substantially downgrading them.
They were commercial grade mowers that came out just a bit too late as commercial contractors had just switched to ZTR's
At that price it is a steal .
The landlord has several 2000 series mowers that all have better than 5000 hours on them as we use them to mow 1000 acres of mixed pasture & orchards
The decks are just about gone, I have welded more patch plates on the decks over wear holes than I care to count
The electrics are a problem and the switches are a right royal PIA to access .
OTOH they work day in day out some times 14 hours a day
The Horizontal shaft engine go forever because they are designed to do that, not to wear out after 1000 hours .
The other good thing is there are no electronic controls or logic boards, just simple on / off switches .

Bert,

I appreciate the feedback. My Grandfather was a Quality Engineer by trade and he was always fond of the Kohler Command Engines. In fact, his last 3 mowers all had a Command in them. It's too bad that he never caught onto the (Daihatsu) Vanguards; I mean he was a Toyota guy! Anyway, I am rather excited yet nervous to take ownership of something so dated. Every used piece of equipment that I have purchased ended up costing me more money that I cared to spend when all was said and done. First it was the Cub LTX1050 that the deck dismantled and the governor gear came apart and the Deere LT155 that the motor broke a connecting rod.

I take very good care of my equipment, use only oem parts and follow maintenance schedules to the "T." I have never had a mechanical failure on anything that I purchased new. It's the used equipment that always fails.

Based on what I have read about the 3000 series, which information out there is somewhat limited, I should be best to check closely for any cracks in the rear end casing, look for leaks at all of the hydraulic fittings and on the steering piston and of course run it through the normal operational checks. I have heard that the locking diff can be problematic as well, especially if someone tried engaging it while under heavy load or fast ground speed. The scary thing about having to make repairs on these machines is that some of the parts have been discontinued and others that are still available are quite expensive.

This whole endeavor is all in an effort to have a workhorse around the house that I can use for pulling my lawn roller, hauling a yard card, dethatching and aerating my grass and so on. I was dead set on a Craftsman DGT6000 but could not find a decent one within 300 miles of me. Second on my list was a Husqvarna with a Hydro-Gear G730 or Tuff Torq K66 but those are still listing for nearly $1500 with 500 hours on them. With having just purchased a new Exmark a couple weeks back, I am limited in what I can spend on this second piece of equipment (wife might cause me bodily harm!!!). Considering what this 3206 is selling for, and what capabilities it has, I do not think that I can find a better deal for a "towing" machine.

 

[cruzenmike]

just inspect it carefully, or pay someone who knows mowers to do a pre-purchase inspection.

Paying someone to inspect it is not an option as I am already having to drive out nearly 2 hours to look at it myself. I will be sure to bring a flashlight and some basic tools to try and get a good look at things inside and out. The gentlemen selling the 3206 used to work in implement sales and retired a while back. He seems like an honest guy and knows these machines quite well himself. I'll just have to take my time when I am looking it over.

 

[bertsmobile1]

For what you are doing I would be looking at something with a vari-drive ( sliding sheave ) type of tranny and a big engine
Vari drives give little trouble and do not have load restrictions like hydros do and are not damaged by hauling loads
Belts are cheap hydros are expensive
This is of course dependent on the terrain
Vartical shaft engines are a no no for hills

 

[cruzenmike]

For what you are doing I would be looking at something with a vari-drive ( sliding sheave ) type of tranny and a big engine
Vari drives give little trouble and do not have load restrictions like hydros do and are not damaged by hauling loads
Belts are cheap hydros are expensive
This is of course dependent on the terrain
Vartical shaft engines are a no no for hills

Bert,

Would this be something like an old wheel horse or a John Deere 110? There is a guy in town who has a Craftsman GT6000 manual transmission with high low and three gears, but I believe that one you would not only have the belt to contend with but maybe a clutch disc. These are supposed to be really solid machines as well, they might have a hydrogear rear axle? I've been looking exclusively at hydrostatics because of ease of use. I have a lot of trees to go around and I have a large fenced in backyard. So between making passes back and forth with attachments I figured the hydrostatic would just make it a lot easier. But I certainly see the benefit of having a machine that's less prone to failure for the long term.

 

[bertsmobile1]

Easy of use ( lazyness ) costs .
Vari-drives are not great problem because you can shift on the fly
Real gear boxes come in second because most have to be sationary to change the gears

My loan out mowers are all Cox ( Cone drive ) or Greenfields ( Disc drive ) both local brands
I loan them out because you can not kill them through misuse & abuse
Some of them are better than 30 years old & still going strong

Commercial hydros have a much longer life than domestic ones
Very few will do more then 1000 hours ( longer than you think )
I have a couple of old Bolens Durotracs that are pushing 5000 hours out of their Eatons drives

I asses a hydro drives on my trailer which tilts to a bit better than 30 deg
If they won't roll out with the bypass in the drive position they are OK
If I push then & they stop then they are very good
If I push them and they roll a little slowly then stop they are also OK
If they don't stop then thee is a season or two left in them
If they roll off all by themselves they are stuffed & need a rebuild .
A dirt simple test that has proven itself over the years
Recirculating debris is what kills most hydros but the 3000's have good filters which are replaceable
So hopefully the previous owner did the oil changes & filter replacements in which case the hydro will run almost forever .

 

[cruzenmike]

Easy of use ( lazyness ) costs .
Vari-drives are not great problem because you can shift on the fly
Real gear boxes come in second because most have to be sationary to change the gears

My loan out mowers are all Cox ( Cone drive ) or Greenfields ( Disc drive ) both local brands
I loan them out because you can not kill them through misuse & abuse
Some of them are better than 30 years old & still going strong

Commercial hydros have a much longer life than domestic ones
Very few will do more then 1000 hours ( longer than you think )
I have a couple of old Bolens Durotracs that are pushing 5000 hours out of their Eatons drives

I asses a hydro drives on my trailer which tilts to a bit better than 30 deg
If they won't roll out with the bypass in the drive position they are OK
If I push then & they stop then they are very good
If I push them and they roll a little slowly then stop they are also OK
If they don't stop then thee is a season or two left in them
If they roll off all by themselves they are stuffed & need a rebuild .
A dirt simple test that has proven itself over the years
Recirculating debris is what kills most hydros but the 3000's have good filters which are replaceable
So hopefully the previous owner did the oil changes & filter replacements in which case the hydro will run almost forever .

I did some shopping around and the materials to do the rear diff and filter change will cost nearly $200. Throw in an engine tuneup (which I would have to do) and I am spending $250 after just buying it. At that point I am going to have to talk him down a bit if I am going to buy it.

I have been looking at some "simpler" machines that might end up being a better value for me if they still run okay. Gear driven GT6000 for $600 or a Husqvarna with 24hp Kawasaki and Hydro-Gear G730 for $800 as an example.

I'll give the gentleman a call later and see what he thinks about negotiating the price. I am just not sure that it's worth the risk with nearly 800 hours and the trans filter and fluid probably never being replaced. In the absence of power steering and deck lift it might not be so bad, but one common pump and fluid on all systems could mean trouble.

 

[bertsmobile1]

800 hours on a machine that should be good for 5000 is nothing
OTOH if you don't need all of the hydraulics then there is no need to buy a mower that has them
800 hours on a residential hydro has it near end of design life
Very few residential tractor style mowers , LT or GT will run over the 1000 hr mark without a major hydro rebuild
But the 3000's are commercial grade & are good for 5000 , providing the maintenance has been done & machine not abused .