Buying Advice 2003 T5c Backhoe

[joea99]

2003 T5c Backhoe, 2WD, 2000 hrs. Is that a lot? May have been a rental machine, have not looked at it yet. What price range? How hard is it to repack hydraulic cylinders?

 

[2manyrocks]

Seems like I had to replace the engine on my T5c around the 2,000 hour mark. Replacing the seals in the cylinders isn't rocket science, but it is a messy job. You need a spanner wrench to unscrew the top of the cylinder. Then you pull it out and a bunch of oil will come with it. I'm guessing about $5,000, but it has been a while since I bought mine.

 

[Terrasteve]

If the motor has been taken care of with regular oil and filter changes it should last up to 3000 hrs or longer. There are a few threads about cylinder seal replacement on here, check those out. I would say 5-6 thousand would be in the ball park for that machine. I paid $5000 for my model year 2000 about 3 years ago. Best money I ever spent.

 

[joea99]

If the motor has been taken care of with regular oil and filter changes it should last up to 3000 hrs or longer. There are a few threads about cylinder seal replacement on here, check those out. I would say 5-6 thousand would be in the ball park for that machine. I paid $5000 for my model year 2000 about 3 years ago. Best money I ever spent.

How would you rate the digging power of the hoe? And the moving up hill capability. I used one, oh, 10 years ago and don't really recall. Do remember that I later rented a mini excavator and found that much easier to dig with. I guess that's a given, being a purpose built machine.

 

[Terrasteve]

The hoe is best suited for trenching in my opinion. Limited boom swing and reach hinder it for big holes. Not saying you cant dig holes with it, but they aren't it's strong point. The hoe will lift 700 pounds and has good power for digging. The loader will lift 1700 pounds. That's pretty stout for a machine this small. Just remember it's not a full size machine and cannot be expected to do the things a full size hoe will do. Having said that, it is a very handy small machine that will do small to medium sized jobs very well. Mine gets used a lot. I live on Flat ground so I can't say how it would do as far as hills go.

 

[Alan7s]

The hoe is best suited for trenching in my opinion. Limited boom swing and reach hinder it for big holes. Not saying you cant dig holes with it, but they aren't it's strong point. The hoe will lift 700 pounds and has good power for digging. The loader will lift 1700 pounds. That's pretty stout for a machine this small. Just remember it's not a full size machine and cannot be expected to do the things a full size hoe will do. Having said that, it is a very handy small machine that will do small to medium sized jobs very well. Mine gets used a lot. I live on Flat ground so I can't say how it would do as far as hills go.

I bought my 2000 about a year ago; had a new engine and decent tires. One cylinder leaked a bit so I rebuilt it with parts from a local shop. It wasn't bad and I enjoyed the winter job, so went on to rebuild them all. If you get one, and want to work on the hydraulics, I suggest looking for a helpful place to buy parts. Not all are, but when you find one where they'll help you for a $5 item as well as a new cylinder, it makes things a lot easier. I never ceased to be amazed at the power of this machine and completely agree with the poster above "best money I ever spent." It does our hills OK but whines a lot. You get used to it.

A neighbor recently bought a new (different brand) for $35,000 and gave me a hand with a job on my place. He commented on how much bigger the cylinders were on the Terramite, and couldn't believe the full size Dana 44 differential ("mine is like a little toy garden tractor"). . . I would not trade even for his. I'm trying not to over load it but large rocks and tree stumps dug out seem no problem for it so far. Only wish I had gotten one years ago.