Hello Richard. Yeah this kind of wear comes over time and main culprit is a loose or untightened nut under the bolster that holds the pitman arm in place. This kind of spline wear comes from years running loose. Not unheard is also the pitman arm breaking off. However im not sure what was done here cause it looks so twisted makes me think it ran into or onto something. However we may never know the truth,

If it has a front loader make sure the pitman arm is not twisted and try to figure out if the steering is not binding. If the issue is just related to pressure loss in the system or other worn out components. The older style steering bolster has not been in production for 20 years but parts can be found. Very common is also worn out steering rods but these are cheap to replace. With loader tractors the 2 and reverse gears tend to be worn also 6 gear. So make sure you drive it and test it out. Price I can't comment but a loader tractor where I live is around same range or higher even.

Thank you that's great info! I missed out on that one, it sold in 1 day but I found another with out a loader for $6000 @@SuperMAZ007