The passing of Labor Day Weekend always signifies a special time in the farm community. The long, hot, dog days of summer are finally in the rearview, and the vast potential of another harvest season is on the horizon ahead
In the used farm equipment buying world, post-Labor Day is also a special time. Machinery Pete says it’s “almost always” the best time to be a buyer in the market, and this fall is shaping up that way once again.
“I would say that for ’25, if you’re thinking about updating your used equipment, I think it’s a tremendous time right now to call your local dealer or go be aggressive on the auction market,” Pete declares.
Pete has over 30 years under his well-worn leather belt in the used equipment auction world. He’s confident telling buyers to go out and pound the pavement for deals because he’s crunched the data over at MachineryPete.com. Right now, he says, pricing is starting to solidify on late-model, used equipment, so there are some good deals to be had.
With that in mind, Pete also shared his “Picks of the Week” on Monday’s episode of “AgriTalk.” His highlighted picks turned out to be a 2025 Case IH Steiger 715 Quadtrax tractor and a 2006 Gleaner S98 combine.
First up, the Steiger.
That bad boy came in with only 250 engine hours and it sold for $609,000 at a DPA Auction in Iowa. While that price tag would seem high to most, it’s actually below the average used auction price for a 2025 Steiger 715. And the thing is basically brand new.
And the almost 10-year old Gleaner combine, from Abilene, Kan., with 664 seperation hours on it, sold for $191,251 at a Big Iron online retirement auction.
“Again, for a 9-year-old machine to push $200K like that, it was in beautiful condition, but that’s a pretty strong hard cash price right there,” Pete says.
Upcoming auctions to watch
Looking ahead, Pete is excited to keep tabs on the Sep. 9 Merit Auctions online live “Large Dealer Auction” sale. You can find details on the sale and get registered to bid here.
“It’s a great lineup of equipment,” Pete says. “Five combines, 31 tractors, five sprayers and five skid steers, all late model. To me, it’s a great opportunity because I think if we go another year or year-and-a-half with these tight times, and nobody buys any new [equipment], what will happen is whenever corn and bean prices go up, you’re gonna have everybody at the same time wanting to update. And that’s when prices become unhinged.”
And here is another auction on Sep. 9 Pete is keeping his eye on:
