How do you find your treasures?

Finding a tractor is easy if you have a fat wallet. But what if you don't have big bucks to spend and your looking for a rare tractor or something like sheetmetal, front weights an overdrive, etc. etc.

I think some people depend upon their reputation as being an A-C collector to find alot of stuff also.  When you have that going for you people will call you wanting to sell things and you get to set the price also when buying in some cases if the person calling you has no idea what a fair price is on what they have to sell.   It doesn't work that way for me, anything I want I usually end up paying double what it's worth, then spending another double what it's worth fixing it up.

Pay attention to what's going on around you. Meet as many people as you can, and let them know that you collect Allis. Follow up on every lead, no matter how small. Be friendly, and open. Find things for other people.

well ive missed bargains because I was broke but thats just life. what I enjoy is hearing and seeing what others are finding. Ill never afford a really rare tractor but it doesnt cost me anything to look at pics of everyone elses tractors. Im just happy for the guys that can save a really  rare unit from the scrappers. brian S

Main thing is having a "WIFE" that you do not have to "ASK" every time you want to buy something.Trust me on this one.#2 if it is something you realy are wanting then you should already have the FUND's for if or when it pop's up.#3 never hurt's having a little pile of extra cash around ,thats when you can get REAL DEAL's when people need MONEY NOW!! and know you like buying AC item's. 

My WD45 was listed on craigslist as "Tractor". So don't narrow your search to ads that say Allis Chalmers. Who knows how many AC guys passed over that ad.

I spend alot of time on the net (To much) And sometimes it is just luck how people have said before. When I buy or sell stuff, I want to be up front with them, because you never know when they may help you again in the future. I hope I have repesented things good when I sell them. I usually have to advertize cheaper because I am from the Pacific northwest, but I also did dispatch and arrange trucking so that has helped me alot on the selling end. I have a list of about 100 plus drivers that I use and always say call if your in the area of find something, call me. Also 2 good broker sources. I have alot of friends over the years in different states and just give a call every now and then and hand out my name and phone numbers also. My friend Bob Vanderploeg and I do some back and forth and he has a huge network. He's 66 I am 39, He dont find the stuff ,it finds him LOL!!! That s my 2 cents worth. My best deal was on a D 21 in Southern CA. where my neices ag teacther and I became good friends. He said he would give me a 21 for a donation and it was sitting for about 10 years. I gave him some cash and made the round trip of 2500 miles(Hauled equipment on the way down and paid for all the fuel and motels) Sold it later back east and that paid for another big tractor. Buy and sell and trade. I think it drives my wife nuts some times, but it also has paid some some doctor bills and small vacations. My wife is GREAT about this.

patience, craigslist, and ebay

I let all my friends know I like old "junk" tractors,then I keep my head on a swivel,looking for rust poking out of weeds,craigslist also works,Epay is too expensive to buy tractors,but parts can be found.
Also make sure that when I go get a non running tractor I make it as nice as possible for the seller,they may know someone who also has some "junk" to get rid of,cussing and tearing up they're property will make them negative,but cleaning up after yourself and being somewhat professional about things may make them recommend you to they're friends.
Also,old folks who own these "junk" tractors remember paying top dollar for cutting edge equipment,they're still proud,though they know they're obsolete,so it makes them happy to know I'm not trying to make a quick buck by scrapping the thing.
The guy who sold me the Cletracs I bought was mad at his friend for not selling me the others,he knew I was not going to let anything useful go to china.

Kids just want Grandpa's old crap gone sometimes,that makes me a little sad,but I take it and take care of it,before some greasy scrapper comes and takes it to the big scrap bins.
You'll miss some,near Dad's house there was a TD14 with a pull behind ripper on it,I asked several times,and so did Dad,they said they weren't sure what they wanted to do with it,so a year later my Dad calls and says he saw the scrap man cutting it up,they'd have gotten twice scrap price and had a nice clean spot where it used to be,instead of a sl*g pile and oily mess,oh well :(