This week’s Machinery Pete “Pete’s Pick of the Week” shines a spotlight on used hay equipment and a unique custom-painted tractor.
On Thursday, the Juniper Valley Ranch Auction in Juniper, Idaho, featured a Staheli West Dewpoint 6210 pull-behind hay steamer with 464 operating hours. The machine brought $162,000 as the final bid in an auction helmed by Van Tassel Auction Co.
While $162K for a hay steamer seems like a steep price tag, it seems this lucky auction goer found a bit of a bargain: TractorHouse.com currently has 16 used 6210 hay steamers listed for sale ranging in asking price from $112,000 (model year 2015) all the way up to $234,000 for a zero-hour 2023 model. Those listings have an average asking price of $176,500, so if this machine was in good condition — considering the low hours on it — it is indeed a solid deal.
Pete also highlighted a couple large square baler machines that sold at auctions in New York and Texas:
In Plattsburgh, N.Y., a 2022 John Deere L330 with 919 bales on it sold for $100,000.
In Seminole, Texas, a Massey Ferguson 2270 XD with over 3,800 bales on it sold for $72,500.
Intrigued by the activity on hay tools, Pete went back and crunched the data from the last 36 large square balers sold at auction since 2024. It provides a snapshot of the current asking price range on used large square balers today. You can check that out over at MachineryPete.com.
“When the cost of new is already sky high with farm equipment, and then going higher potentially, it focuses attention on the good condition used machines and those values are holding really strong,” Pete says.
On the tractor side of things, Pete took stock of a unique machine that you don’t come across very often: a custom “Steiger Green” Case IH 440 AWD with 71,146 hours sold for $70,000 at an auction last week in Uniontown, Ala.
“That was a pretty good price. I think the tires on it need to be updated — and we all know what that could cost,” Pete says. “So, to bring $70K, it was interesting. It generated a lot of discussion on custom paint jobs, which you know, my deal is if it makes you happy, how do you put a price tag on that?”
Can’t get enough Machinery Pete in your life? Well, you’re in luck. The latest episode of his podcast dropped over the weekend. The new episode features Pete’s take on the farm equipment auction market and also brings in guest Jack Lyon for an update on the used construction equipment market. You can check that out over at MachineryPete.com by clicking here.
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