tmz50/30, bil-jax 5133a or jlgt500j ???

[juststumps]

Thats a good point juststumps, thats what im gonna do but Ill have around 50-60k to play with, machine im looking at can cost as lil as 57k & as much as 65k depending on options.

buying used isnt all that bad & the worry of a monthly payment not being there helps!! If you can the best way to do it is to buy it outright, used or new!! no matter what you will profit from what you purchase unless its junk!!

most equip. co`s financing dept`s are a little hesitant to give out loans nowadays but if you have 70-80% down pay they love ya!!

LXT..........

go to your bank,, talk to them,,,manufactuers financing is a rip off... not like ford or chevy tring to give away cars at 0%..

if there is a COMMERCE BANK, close by.. check them out...

leased my 352 thru them... 22k after taxes,,,500 down for fees,, 100 buy out at the end of the lease... 440 / month fo 5 years....ends up costing 27k total.. 1 k per year hit...

could have paid cash,, but my 22k will be over 30k after 5 years...in the market...and i still have the new machine i bought...plus being 5k ahead of the game... always use somebody else's money,, if you can get a better return on yours... JMHO

one more thing,, a lease is a monthly deduction... i you by it, you have to spread out the depriciation over many years...

 

[fireman]

lifts

arbor pro please stay away from genie my machine was in the shop 15 mon of the 17 mon i owned it.had problems with charging system, hydralic pump,motor,outrigers, boom, speed control, set drive and computer.it was under warrenty and the dealer and genie turned their backs on me had to get a lawery which was the last thing i wanted to do but had no choice.genie cost me close to $85,000 last year please becareful that was my experience with genie.

 

[fireman]

sd 50

hey guys here are some pics of the sd 50 in action we did a 60 ft red oak on the lake side with no drop zone as you can see we squeezed the lift in between 2 house on a major decline with snow and ice and mud no problems with 4 wheel drive 5.5 ft clearance between houses i hope you like pics

 

[arbor pro]

bought it

Well, I bought the '05 Genie TZ50. Only 179 hours, very good shape, new batteries last fall. $21k delivered to my front door. Closest service centers are about 175 miles away. Operated great during the demo. Only negative is that the dealership frequently rented it out to painters so the lift is a blend of different colors and could use a paint job. I can handle that next winter so no biggie there.

The price was certainly right - about $5k below what it was worth IMO based on over a month's worth of research on towable lifts.

We'll see how it works out this spring...

Fireman, sorry you had such a rough experience with your lift. I have pretty good faith in the dealership that I bought this lift from. I've worked with them before on other equipment and always been treated well.

 

[lxt]

Hope all works good for ya!! & ya make lots of money!


post some pic`s when ya get a chance, funny when I bought mine there was some paint on the basket rim, removed easily with paint stripper!!

If you didnt get the drive & set option I have been checking on some neat powered dollies........kinda cool for moving the machine as well other uses & there cheaper than the D&S option!! I found one trailer caddy that will rival the self propelled units when attached to a towable & is a lot cheaper!!!

LXT...........

 

[lxt]

Fireman, Nice looking lift......Im glad everyone with different lifts are puttin up pic`s really is a nice way for others to view them!!


take care Be safe!

LXT.............

 

[arbor pro]

some pics

Here's some pics of the unit.

lxt, it doesn't have drive and set but, I have an mt-50 mini skid to move it around with. I'm just trying to figure out the logistics of hauling the miniskid while towing the lift. I have a 1-ton dump truck which I can put the mt-50 in when it's empty but, once it's full, I'll have to dump the debris and return to the job site to get the mini. I'm contemplating cutting off the front 3' of the 12' dump bed and making a platform for the mini behind teh cab of the truck. That would still give me 9' of dump bed to use and I still have a 14' dump trailer for bigger stuff. Any ideas...?

 

[lxt]

I hear Ya!! that was the problem I had, but a cheap solution im now looking at is these gas/batt powered tow dollies, their cheap & can be put in the back of a pickup, they dont take up much room & it would allow my men to move the machine easier when I have to leave to go bid, etc..

I always heard what a PITA it was when I left for them to move the machine, we gotta unhook the chipper, change the hitch, couple up, move the machine, etc.. etc.. So I thought this way I can leave & they will have a portable tow system quick & easy, with the skid steer & ball hitch that was nice!! but...........usually required more towing vehicles, so im thinking about these dollies..........many makes & some of these things are awesome.


these lift MFG, that want us to beleive the self propelled unit is expensive because of the drive train are full of it!! I just viewed a trailer caddy, 4x4, turf tires, a multi hitch unit with hydralic adjustable height, etc..etc.. this thing is awesome..

I got the video of this baby pushing & pulling a school bus!! up & down a grass/dirt incline, imagine what this could do for lifts like ours? the unit is 5ft long & 4ft wide & can be custom tailored to fit your needs.......SOoooo I had them price me the whole Azz kickin enchilada.......

Just at $5,000.00 I would be able to push/pull 25,000lbs & put it just about anywhere I want It!!! I try to get some specs of it up, its cheaper than a skid steer & it comes with attachments!!

LXT..........

 

[lxt]

oops, I almost forgot Nice Lift!! just be carefull with letting debris fly around the engine & the deadman controls!! they really should of gaurded them better. Does the upper boom have a gaurd over the hoses for the telescopic function? If not...........DO GET A GAURD, PLEASE!!!

if you rotate & any portion of that tele track is hit or just plain interfered with, you will not like the results!!!

I will post some pics showing what I mean about the hidden engine, controls & gaurd pakages!!

LXT............ hey a little spit & polish, but none the less Welcome to the world of lifts(at least this type).

 

[Xtra]

I have a Nifty TM 64 . . . 70' working height and diesel prowered. Great lift and the friction drive propel feature works pretty good, if the grade isn't too steep or it's not too wet (sometimes I'll use my stump grinder to tow it around). I put down alturna mats when moving over grass. At 8,000 lbs, it leaves deep ruts.

I also have a Bil-Jax Falcon . . .40' working height, 13hp gas engine or 110 AC, on a self propelled small skid steer like frame . . . I use this lift mostly for trim work. It can fit thru a 36" gate and only weights 3,500 lbs.

 

[lxt]

Xtra, thats a nice looking lift, I like the outriggers with that additional knuckle, & the insert in the basket is a good feature.

I like it, sharp, clean setup!!!

LXT.............

 

[arbor pro]

basket insert

I like the basket on that nifty too. Anybody know if you can get a fiberglass insert for other models - particularly the genie?

Lxt, I checked out the power dolly idea. For about a grand, I can get one to move my tz50 around (in 80% of the site conditions I would normally be working in). For the 20% of the time that I'd be working on slopes or really rough terrain, I've always got my mini skid to do the job. For $1000, I could easily see carrying the dolly around in the basket of the lift (only 100#) and use it whenever possible to move the lift around rather than have to load up my mini solely for that reason if the cleanup is going to be light and not require it.

I think I'll first see how the mini does but keep the dolly in mind.

 

[arbor pro]

LXT,

Do you use saw scabbards and tool hooks on the basket of your tmz50? I've purchased such items from Sherrill supply in the past for fiberglass buckets but I don't know if they'll fit around the wider basket tubing of the tz50. I could make my own too but, I thought I'd see what's available from suppliers first.

 

[lxt]

LXT,

Do you use saw scabbards and tool hooks on the basket of your tmz50? I've purchased such items from Sherrill supply in the past for fiberglass buckets but I don't know if they'll fit around the wider basket tubing of the tz50. I could make my own too but, I thought I'd see what's available from suppliers first.

I use a fiberglass chainsaw scabbard, same type they use on the buckettrucks its around $175.00???, for ropes I use a couple of those spring loaded snaps from lowes/homedepot, im not sure what there called I get the biggest ones they got works well, I fasten them with a couple industrial zip ties, another thing I did was took pipe insulation & wrapped the top rail of my genie then wrapped that with a good waterproof/electrical tape. made it a lot more comfortable to lean against.

those dollies are pretty neat uhh? let me know how your mini does on the steeper inclines, I had a bobcat 763 track unit & There were times that I had it straining, dont forget the tongue weight is around 500lbs & when pushing or pulling up an incline a 4500lb machines weight can be significantly increased!! there is an incline chart for this check it out!! wouldnt want you to ruin that mini its a nice machine!!!

LXT.............

 

[Xtra]

Here's another pic of the Nifty and the Bil-Jax.

I bought the Nifty used, the previous owner had the bucket installed instead of the 2 person metal cage.

 

[lxt]

I remember when the falcons first came out, I was like WOW!! neat idea, however It only served as a way to get me so far then climb, nice when you got to a level to use it for chunkin down!! nice double set up Xtra!!



Be safe Take care

LXT...............

 

[Mikecutstrees]

Rented a TM-50 today

Used a genie TM-50 lift today to take down a 30" Silver maple. Thought I would comment on what I thought here. First off it's long and was difficult to back in between houses. The outriggers worked well and leveling it wasn't too difficult. The two man basket is too large for tree work and when pruning I'm sure it would be a real pain. It moved nice but when moving it down it was jerky untill you turned down the speed. The speed needed to be turned up though to go up with any speed. The wires and hoses seemed pretty well covered. The controls were pretty simple and once I figured out all the buttons worked well although using two fingers or two hands at once to move it was a little annoying. I needed a little more height for the tree. All in all I thought it worked well. I think a bucket truck is superior in alot of ways. (Easier to get into places, Simpler controls, more well protected from debris, Smaller platform, more height usually) I rented it thinking I might buy one one day, but now I don't think so. It is very useful though. I had the tree down in 6 hours. So it was pretty efficient. The price for one is alot better than a bucket though.

 

[lxt]

yeah they can be a little jerky when lowering the bottom boom, mine is a bit, but I got the pressure setting turned up, I do need to adjust it back down, but it moves so good going up & is fast!!

No doubt this spring Ill do the diagnostics on it & put it back to factory specs, I tested out the program I got & was so happy I did something I just left it alone......moves smooth on everything except lower boom function down....tad jerky!! easy fix though!

LXT.............

 

[arbor pro]

This afternoon will be my first job using the tz-50 since I bought it two weeks ago. Since then, I've been getting out of hybernation mode and getting equipment tuned up and ready to go. I'll be taking down two 60' pines and trimming a few other deciduous trees.

Last weekend, I tried moving the lift with my mt-50 mini skid. On soft gravel, it worked great - even better than expected! the mini seemed to have plenty of power. Hopefully with new tracks, it will have plenty of traction as well.

The snow is melting quickly around here with temps in the high 30s and 40s this week. We'll see how well the mini skid guides the lift through slushy snow.

I'll report back...

 

[arbor pro]

I gave the tz50 its first run this weekend. Even with snow on the ground and soft mud underneath, the mini skid was able to get it into position with no problems. In three hours I had both 60' pines on the ground and loaded (using the min skid).

The tz-50 worked fine. I was impressed with the reach and, while there was some sway to the boom in the 15mp wind, it wasn't as bad as I had predicted. I had problems with the auto-leveling system - only to find out that the sensor had come unplugged. Once I plugged it back in, it worked great. There is definitely some 'jumpiness' to the boom when you're fully-extended; however, adjusting down the speed of operation made it smooth as silk.

Overall, I'm happy with my purchase. I'm sure there are better booms out there. Who wouldn't want a $150k self-propelled 100' lift if you could afford it and have a use for it. However, for what I'm doing and what I had to spend ($20k), the genie tz-50 fit the bill just right and I'd recommend it to anyone else with similar budget and needs.

So for anyone interested in how I bid jobs here's a summary of how the job went down:

2 - 60' pine trees to be removed and cleaned up (one 30", one 24" dia)
1 owner/operator for all labor to be performed
1 2005 tz-50 lift
1 2002 bobcat mt-50 mini skid
1 1-ton pickup and 7x14 7-ton dump trailer
1 vermeer sc252 stump grinder

1.5 hours setup and cutting with tz-50 lift
.5 hours cutting on the ground
1.5 hours cleanup and loading with the mt-50 mini skid
1 hr grinding with the sc252 (one 30" stump, one 24")
1.5 hours raking/final cleanup

Labor and small equipment: (one man) 6 hrs (estimated 7 @ 65/hr) $450
Equipment Fee (lift, skid steer, grinder, truck/trailer): $325
Hauling & Disposal: $125 (acutal cost $50)
Total Bid: $900

Less the actual dump fee, that averages about $130/hr labor and equipment. I've noticed that a number of listers on this site have trouble justifying teh cost of equipment. Note that my fee for equipment is almost as big as my labor fee. If it did this job for the cost of labor only and didn't charge for the lift, bobcat, truck/trailer, grinder, etc, I would have been working for about $15/hr. Not good enough to stay in business.

However, at $65/hr, it's a great part-time gig...