C6—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, August 11,1984
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Newton Bair
Look For The
Real Bargains
Everybody loves a bargain,
especially when it can be put to
immediate use. The trouble with so
many so-called bargains is that
once you have it you have to
wonger what to do with it. When
that happens, it’s no longer a
bargain.
Like a fellow I know who has
eighteen tractors. He just couldn’t
resist the temptation to bid on any
tractor that an auctioneer said was
going too “cheap”. Of course, this
fellow is farming 200 acres, so
maybe he can use them. It figures
out to about eleven acres per
tractor. He shouldn’t ever be
;,W
STRIKE
IT
RICH!
SELL
IT
WITH
A
LANCASTER
FARMING
CLASSIFIED
behind with the field work.
Most of us are collectors and
accuinulators, and the longer we
live the more we clutter up the
attic and the shed loft with extra
do-dads that have only ornamental
value. There’s no harm in that, and
we might even get a lot of pleasure
out of collecting “bargains”. But
beware that some of those items
we call necessities can become no
more than expensive collections of
ornaments.
It May Be
Smart To Not
Own It
I don’t need to tell you that it is
costly to own farm machines. It is
one of the curiosities of fanning
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HESSTON
FARM EQUIPMENT J|
I
1505
PIT AGITATOR
Keep your pit or lagoon
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IMEW IDEA
404 5-WHEEL RAKES
Get quality at a budget price rake a
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Bethel, PA
Phone 717-933-4114
that many pieces of machinery are
put to work only a few days a year.
Very few other types of business
would dare to operate that way.
But in the interest of getting a job
done on time, we own nearly every
piece of machinery that we intend
to use at some time, even if it’s
only once a year. What a bonanza
for the dealer who keeps us sup
plied with the stuff! He just keeps
hoping that we are a good credit
risk.
It’s easier to justify the
ownership of a lot of tools when
there are more acres under
cultivation. That fact has led to
expanded operations, requiring
more land, more cows, and a lot
more labor. All of which requires a
higher level of management than
most of us ever dreamed of. Bight
here is the place to stop and take a
good look at whether ownership
becomes an asset or a liability. Is
owning a machine an economic
necessity or is it a status symbol?
Where do we draw the line between
timeliness and profitability?
There are ways of determining
the practical economics of
ownership versus renting or
hiring. Formulas have been
developed to work it out
mathematically. The only problem
with that is that some of the
variables in the formula are hard
to pin down. What are the actual
costs of maintenance and repair?
On an annual basis these two alone
cost far more than we usually
Special
1505 Agitator
Dimension* and Weight*
Tomi wt ght H4O lbs
0«‘ iin length 22 i i tfi S
Ovorti wihiti 09
Ovei xii ne qm 1
Working depth 102 (from yin ynp
level may vary from tractor to traclon
Propeller dia 22
Drive
Weasler L 55 telescoping U |omi
assembly with 2 shear •‘alls
Tractor Requirement*
J poml htirh Category Hor 111
Narrow (Category 111 Narrow requires
reducing spacers m ban (omis of
lower lift arms >
Hydraulics single remote outlet
ASAE 8 inch stroke cylinder required
(not turnishegt
PTO S4O rpm
HP 65 PTO minimum
SPECIAL
*1.150
allow. Interest on the investment,
whether on your money or the
banks, is substantial. A machine
costing $lO,OOO with a life of 5 years
will cost $3500 a year if it sets in the
shed and does nothing. If it is used
on fifty acres, the fixed cost of
ownership will be $70.00 per acre
each year. Add all the variable
costs of operating and maintaining
it and the cost may double. You
may be able to rent or hire it for
less than half of that.
Figures Guide The
Way To Sound Thinking
Now the example I just used is
purely hypothetical without
naming any specific machine.
Anything that I would name, like a
corn planter for example, will
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immediately be justified in
anyones mind as worthy of
ownership. But there are some
machines that could just as easily
be shared among* two or more
owners, at a real saving to
everyone. The important thing to
do is look at each capital item used
in the business which a critical
eye. Then weigh the advantages it
might offer in convenience,
timeliness and status of ownership
against the true economic effect on
the business. It is a healthy
exercise in good farm
management and could make YOU
more money than owning a new
monster.
Besides saving you money, you
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