23 y/o Buck

[EngineerDude]

A guy at work wants to sell me his Buck stove for $400. Price seemed high but I asked him for info on which stove, etc. The stuff he provided to me was old-looking (the picture of the company president inside the back cover looks like 'Herb Tarlek', the stupid sales guy who wore the lousy clothes on the old sitcom 'WKRP In Cincinatti'), so I asked him how old the stove is. His response was "It's about 23 years old but it's a stove and they never go bad. I have replaced the motor but everything else is still original."

Now $400 seems REALLY high!

I don't know much about stoves, is this true that they "never go bad"? Seems to me they must deteriorate with age/use, like pretty much everything else. Also, any comments relating to Buck in general or on the price (like what's a fair price for a 23 y/o Buck?) would be welcome.

 

[hornett224]

i don't know much about Buck stoves.

i would pay that much for an old Fisher or All Nighter in a heartbeat and i am not the only one.they are made of boiler plate though,not cast.Jotul is the only cast stove i would buy.

if i recall,Buck stoves are pretty good.

 

[Hummer]

I have and still use two little Buck stoves that I bought 23 and 25 years ago. They work ok and can really pump out the heat with the electric blower. I might consider using one in a garage or shop but I wouldn't get another one to put inside the house because they're too darn noisy.

There are some parts that need occasional replacement, the thermostatic controller, fan motor, fan switch, wiring harness, glass. I have to buy a new thermo controller every few years for mine. It steps up or down the fan speed depending on the temperature of the firebox. These are not cheap, ~$120 or so. Since these stoves haven't been made for a long time, parts may be hard to come by. I found only one dealer on the internet.

The thermo controller can be fried if the electricity goes out. If the thermo controller goes bad the box can warp or crack, and welds can break. A crack can spew carbon monoxide into the room, so check carefully for this.

I wouldn't pay much for any non-EPA stove and I wouldn't again buy a stove that requires electricity for operation, at any price. Just my opinion.

 

[Hugenpoet]

I believe it's illegal to sell those old non epa wood stoves.

While some local jurisdictions may have restrictions on operating non-EPA stove, genearally stoves made and sold before the restrictions were adapted are "grandfathered" and may be legally resold and used.

 

[hornett224]

just because it's not legal doesn't mean it shouldn't be done.

I believe it's illegal to sell those old non epa wood stoves.

people do it all the time.even here in new england,the land of dumb laws.classified ads are full of them.on line and in print.i have sold 4 or 5.guess i'm goin' to the big house.

 

[sawinredneck]

I use a "small buck" I think it's the 7900 series. My dad has the middle buck of the same series.
He bought his new, I think $1700, I got mine at a garage sale for $75, but I had toget the flu adapter and leg kit, as well as replace the rope seals. That was around $200 more.
For a non cat stove I think they are great. They are very noisey, but if you want to put out some heat, and put it out over a large area, they do the job VERY well!!!
$400 seems a bit steep, and I have no idea, nor do I really care about the legal implications (my Buck it thirty times more effecient than the stove I replaced it with, at the time four years old), and I have yet to see any rot or problems with them. Parts are pretty easy to get if you have a decent store close by, they can get you anything!
I have no reason to tell you not to buy one, other than the price, I think they are a fine stove.

 

[ant]

i sold a buck supreme 14 yo. for 200.00 i used it each yr. to heat my house and ran it hard.

 

[Blowncrewcab]

I Have a Buck I use every cold day, it's the only heat in my house. I Bought it used for $500 in 2001. The only thing I replaced was the fan motor. It's not too loud, I kind of like the noise on cold nights, I can tell by the cycles of the fan when to go put more wood on it. I believe mine is a "27000" series (or something like that) it doesn't have glass doors though they are available. and if it ever goes bad I'd buy another just like it if I can find it.

if the one your friend is selling is in good shape I think $400 is a good deal. You can get the fan hose adapter that moves the fan away from the stove (un sightly) but if the power does go off it won't burn up the motor..