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WTB- Tucker Sno Cat

winch_warrior

New member
Hello there! New to this forum, but not new to wintertime fun! Anyone thinking about selling their Tucker Sno Cat? I might be interested. If it needs a little TLC that's ok. I'm in Colorado and willing to travel a bit for the right machine. Private message or post works for me!

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Blackfoot Tucker

Well-known member
GOLD Site Supporter
Respectfully, what are you looking for, and what is your budget?

You have a photos of a 1977-ish 542 and a 1983-ish 1644 or 1744. Two completely different track types and two different cab styles.
 

winch_warrior

New member
Respectfully, what are you looking for, and what is your budget?

You have a photos of a 1977-ish 542 and a 1983-ish 1644 or 1744. Two completely different track types and two different cab styles.
Honestly, I'm pretty open to anything as long as it's a Tucker. Always wanted one. If it's in decent shape, I'd probably be interested. 30k budget. Do you have one for sale?
 

Blackfoot Tucker

Well-known member
GOLD Site Supporter
I anticipate listing a Tucker in a month or two, but it won't be at that price point. It seems that for whatever reason, I'm seeing fewer Tuckers for sale this year.

There's another current thread started by another new member also looking for a Tucker. In that thread there are links to some Tuckers for sale. If you haven't seen that thread, here's a link:


Good luck in your quest!
 

Drifli

Active member
Hello there! New to this forum, but not new to wintertime fun! Anyone thinking about selling their Tucker Sno Cat? I might be interested. If it needs a little TLC that's ok. I'm in Colorado and willing to travel a bit for the right machine. Private message or post works for me!

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Unless you need one now, I’d just Waite. The economy is slowing fast and the free money is drying up, prices will be dropping back to normal as they always do when we head into recessions. Car prices are already dropping fast, housing is rolling over , so I’d definitely expect toys “ snow toys ” to get hit hard.
 

winch_warrior

New member
Unless you need one now, I’d just Waite. The economy is slowing fast and the free money is drying up, prices will be dropping back to normal as they always do when we head into recessions. Car prices are already dropping fast, housing is rolling over , so I’d definitely expect toys “ snow toys ” to get hit hard.
You are 100% correct. I was just putting this out there in hope of getting lucky with a purchase this time of the year. These Tucker Sno Cats are just so dang cool!
 
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Blackfoot Tucker

Well-known member
GOLD Site Supporter
You are 100% correct. I was just putting this out there in hope of getting lucky with a purchase this time of the year. These Tucker Sno Cats are just so dang cool!
Generally speaking prices are lower in the spring and highest in the late fall and into the winter. But it's also true that snowcat prices have risen dramatically over the last 10 years or so. Yes, the pandemic brought them to new heights, but I don't think they'll drop to the level they were several years ago. Unlike the market for side by sides, ski boats and toy haulers, the snowcat market in total is really quite small.

Tucker, for example, builds maybe 100 machines a year, or at least they used to. If you think back to the period of say 1977-1988, pretty much the heyday of the front engine, rubber belted Tucker era, they would have built roughly 1,100 machines. Most would have been two door models, and most would have short or mid length tracks. So if you said "I want a long track, four door machine", how many did Tucker produce? I'm speculating, but my guess would be somewhat less than 10% of their total production. That would be a total inventory of under 110. That's just downright slim pickins'. And how many of those are going to be for sale within say a one year period?

I have said this many times; that if you find a good machine at a low price, don't dilley-dally, because it will be gone. The other advice is don't focus too much on price. The lowest priced machine is rarely the best value, and parts like idler wheels, drive sprockets, and track belting add up to serious money surprisingly fast. When there is reasonable inventory available (which is not the case today) you can pay a few thousand dollars more for a machine in much better overall condition, and that's money well spent.

I think it was in roughly April of 2020 there was a Tucker for sale in Colorado and the asking price was around $8K. It was a few hour drive away and I thought about taking a trip over to look at it. But even at $5K, it needed a LOT of work, and a LOT of parts. I didn't think the numbers worked, and didn't even call the guy.

If you can be patient, and have the funds available to jump when the right machine comes along, I think you'll come out okay. But you also should be prepared to travel some distance to get it (two of mine came from British Columbia).
 

sheep_mtn

Well-known member
GOLD Site Supporter
Well....it appears to have come and gone in a matter of hours. Hope it went to a good home.
 

Blackfoot Tucker

Well-known member
GOLD Site Supporter
Well....it appears to have come and gone in a matter of hours. Hope it went to a good home.
Jon,

I clicked on the Facebook link within 15 minutes of your post, and it didn't work for me. However, I'm not a member of Facebook, so perhaps that's why.

If you look at the photo in your post the track set up is decidedly non-Tucker. The belt configuration is different. The grousers are completely different, and don't have the depth of the standard Tucker grousers. It appears some are bent, suggesting they lack the strength of a factory Tucker grouser as well. I don't see Tucker fifth wheel plates or leaf springs. Tucker idler wheels are roughly 12" in diameter and looking at the radius of the track in front, that looks less than 12", suggesting some other type of idler wheel configuration.

Maybe this system works fine, I honestly don't know, but being so far off the Tucker reservation one would be taking somewhat of a leap of faith that it works.
 

Blackfoot Tucker

Well-known member
GOLD Site Supporter
Snowcats can be found at Ritchie Brothers auctions from time to time. Searching through the available auction results, I found 92 snowcats and of those, only two were Tuckers. Both auctions were in Canada

One was a 1978 1342 groomer that was in really rough shape. Really Rough! That auction was in October, 2021 and it sold for $14,000 Canadian, or $11,306. US. Back then Tucker included a speedometer with an odometer as part of the instrumentation, and it showed 20,968 miles. That would strongly suggest the hour meter, which showed 722, had been replaced. I don’t think I’d have been a buyer at half that price….

There was also a 1975 1644 with a factory front blade. The auction was in March, 2022 and it brought $25,000 Canadian, or $19,578 US. It looked to be in fair-good condition. There was no hour information provided but the odometer showed 11,354. If you assumed an average speed of 8 mph, that would equal a bit over 1,400 hours. The machine was listed as “inoperable” but there were no details. Given what snowcats are selling for, and the rarity and desirability of that machine, it’s probably an okay price, but it didn’t strike me as a bargain.

There would also be a 4.85% buyers fee above those prices.
 

Wyfler

Member
You are 100% correct. I was just putting this out there in hope of getting lucky with a purchase this time of the year. These Tucker Sno Cats are just so dang cool!
I have a buddy who has a Tucker he's been considering selling. It's located in Southern Colorado near Ft. Garland/ LaVeta Pass. I don't know his price point, but guess around 25k.
 

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winch_warrior

New member
Thanks for the "heads up" I did talk to the guy in the morning via Facebook msg. and he said he would call back when he got off the slopes from working. He never called back and I ended up sending him another msg. to which he replied it sold. Much appreciate any help from you all! I'll just keep looking.......
 

winch_warrior

New member
Does anyone know about the Tucker Jamboree in Vail, Colorado during March? Wondering if there might be some Tucker Sno Cat selling going on?
 

The Sweet Wbj1

Active member
Honestly, I'm pretty open to anything as long as it's a Tucker. Always wanted one. If it's in decent shape, I'd probably be interested. 30k budget. Do you have one for sale?
I'd try to work a deal with Blackfoot Tucker on his 1544. Not many other machines you will be able to buy and KNOW everything has been gone through thoroughly and any problems fixed probably better than when the machine was built.
 

winch_warrior

New member
I'd try to work a deal with Blackfoot Tucker on his 1544. Not many other machines you will be able to buy and KNOW everything has been gone through thoroughly and any problems fixed probably better than when the machine was built.
That would be great. I would be interested to see some pictures for sure!
 

winch_warrior

New member
I anticipate listing a Tucker in a month or two, but it won't be at that price point. It seems that for whatever reason, I'm seeing fewer Tuckers for sale this year.

There's another current thread started by another new member also looking for a Tucker. In that thread there are links to some Tuckers for sale. If you haven't seen that thread, here's a link:


Good luck in your quest!
PM sent!
 

Jwebbmentor

New member
Hello there! New to this forum, but not new to wintertime fun! Anyone thinking about selling their Tucker Sno Cat? I might be interested. If it needs a little TLC that's ok. I'm in Colorado and willing to travel a bit for the right machine. Private message or post works for me!

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A buddy of mine may be looking to sell his. I believe it’s a 1974. Message me if you are interested. It’s located about an hour east of Grand Junction.
 

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mtncrawler

Bronze Member
GOLD Site Supporter
I'm not seeing the problem here with finding a used Tucker. Seems like there are lot's of Tuckers listed for sale at any given moment. And when someone expresses interest they come out of the woodwork. The trick is recognizing which ones won't eat you alive fixing/restoring them. Tread carefully, Tenderfoot.
 
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