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Seneca Kansas 66538 | I was just sitting here this morning pondering some thoughts about current crop prices and also some conversations I have had lately with people about the general price of things. Thought I would jot it down and see if it makes any sense to anyone else, so if you have comments please feel free to express them.
I was having a pickup tire fixed the other day and the bill was 16.50, I had made the comment to the owner that I recalled back when a semi tire cost 10.00 to fix. The owner said yeah, but really we havent kept of with the price of other stuff, he noted about how much it costs to fill you pickup up with fuel, he was definately corret about that point and many others he had made. I went on with my day and continued to think about things while I listened to the markets with an up day in the grains, I thought to myself, when is corn to expensive since the economy is in the tank? This took me to a tractor that we have taken into the shop and the transmission removed and reinstalled. The cost to split the tractor and put it back together was 4700.00 in labor. To me I thought that is nuts, I should have just pulled it home and stuck it down in the weeds till I had time to mess with it. Well if you dont think that was unreasonable wait till you hear this, the tractor is a 9670 agco allis with a Funk transmission. Agco bought these transmission from Funk, which Ford NewHolland had the same transmission in some of its tractors as well. Funk is own by who? Deere and Company, thats right. Here comes the kicker, the reason we just paid the 4700 was because we decided it wasnt going to make financial sense to pay for the rebuild. Why? you ask, well because the parts alone for this Funk powershift came up to around $35,000.00 I suppose the tractor is worth 35-40,0000 but we would have more than that in it when it was fixed and pulled out of the shop. We said NO, button it up and pull it out of the shop. Again down the rode thinking about how high priced things are and another day up in the corn market, well thats nice to see the market up today since now I have to find another tractor sometime before harvest I hope. So I am now having a conversation about a local doctor who is building a new house which is supposed to be somewhere north of 2 million in cost. Heard a rumor the builders told him not to spend anymore on it, because if he ever moved he wouldnt be able to sell the house to anyone. Well here we go again, corn up 3/4 of a cent. To tell the truth, if we hit 10 dollar corn and someone makes a comment to me about rich farmers, I will have plenty of ammo to defend my 10 dollar corn, Im not going to stop thinking about all this. Feel free to help me think. :) | |
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Ponderings about crop prices and other costs.
