If you had “40-year-old combine with under 700 hours” as this week’s “Pick of the Week” on your bingo card, go down to your local corner store and play your lucky numbers.
That’s because this week’s spotlight shines squarely on a relic of the past you just don’t see every day, or even every few years: a 1985 John Deere 6620 combine (shown below) with a pickup head and just 675 operating hours. The harvester is out of Baudette, Minn., and it spent a good chunk of its life in barn storage while the original owner used it to cut a small plot of wheat.
This particular “Pick of the Week” is also unique because it isn’t listed with any of the major auction companies. Its new owner (the combine belonged to the listing agent’s uncle) quietly uploaded photos and listed it for sale by owner for $21,500 on MachineryPete.com.
That small act opened the proverbial online floodgates, and now interested buyers from all over the Midwest are reaching out to let Pete know they intend to bring that bad boy home to their own barn.
“We posted this (combine) across our social media this weekend and there were 5,000 clicks on it just last night,” Pete says. “I’ve got people that I know pinging me like, ‘Greg, I want to buy that thing’. It just shows you can’t find them like that (anymore). It was really kind of an interesting item.”
While some might view the price tag as a bit steep for a four-decade old machine, those that know about such things can spot a good deal in the wild, Pete says.
“I think $21,500 — I mean, that’s why I’m getting phone calls like, ‘My checkbook’s out, I want to buy it’. That’s what I suspected (would happen),” Pete says. “It’s difficult to price it now, and we always encourage people to go to our website to look for a (anything) comparable. But it’s hard to find a comparable on a 40-year-old combine with 675 (hours).”
If you’re interested in bidding on this week’s Pick of The Week, there’s still time. Head over to MachineryPete.com and get registered.
“You just don’t find them at that age and that nice,” Pete says. “So again, there’s a lot of heat when you find an older one that’s in great condition like that.”
This Week’s Auction To Keep An Eye On
Machinery Pete will be in Mt. Sterling, Ill., on Tuesday, July 29, for the conclusion of the Mt. Sterling Summer 2025 Auction. Kerr Auctions is handling the bidding, and owner Alex Kerr and his team have pulled together a nice auction docket featuring eight John Deere 8R tractors and a fleet of used harvest headers.
Check out the auction preview video above from Machinery Pete’s Facebook page and get registered to bid online over at KerrAuction.com.
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