If you decide to trade seriously look at a 62. They are so much more machine and if you buy a used one they don't cost much more than a 52. Once you see what that extra capacity will do you won't want to go back to the smaller machine.
I would investagate the cost of trading vs the cost of repairs before I went any further.. Unless your the type that "needs" new paint...I mean new galvanized metal..lol 1500 hr isn't that much and from you detail i would guess you repair cost would be less than an annual payment... But on the other hand I have a sweet '93 r62 and a good '94 r72 that need a new home.. If your interested I could send some pic's..
no I don't have the urge for new paint or the smell of new uphostery but I can't believe the metal wear on this machine already I had a l-2 prior to this 52 with a lot more hrs and not near the metal wear belts chains sprokets bars and things like these I expect but not the throat plates and grain tank already I was never really happy with this machine since we got it. the hr meter says one thing and the machine tells me another I had run a 52 prior to buying this one(demo) and have seen 62's in the neighbors field yea a 62 is really a hog and was very impressed but don't know if I need that big of a machine I was just wondering what years the mods were done at the factory on the 52's and how did they worked out thanks
Hurtt Equipment has a listing on their website that details the changes year by year and model by model. I am not real familiar with the R52's but the R62's had some major revisions in 96-98 and continual improvements in all of the other years.