John Deere 50C ZTS - The good, the bad and the ugly?

Hi,
I run a small landscape construction company. We have a cat303 cr, but we've got some bigger jobs coming up, and I'm looking for a larger size excavator I can still tow behind a 1ton diesel. It's primary function would be to build rock boulder retaining walls, move larger amounts of materials and in general, get the larger areas graded faster. Also need something thats capable of loading a full size dump truck. However the main reason would be to lift/place boulders.
I've come accross this 04 JD 50C ZTS. I've searched high and low for user feedback, but can't seem to find anything. Anybody out there with some real life experiences?
Mainly need something reliable as my wrenching capabilities are pretty limited. The machine has 2,500hrs. and was used by 2 owner/operatos. Spec wise the machine should be capable of lifting 2x of what my 303 is capable of, which is plenty and only weighs in at 10,300lbs.

Thanks in advance.

Look up reviews for the same size hitachi, they are basically the same machine. The main things I would look at on the machine is any sign of oil leaks, crawl under and check also, the center could be leaking. Also I would look for any rod damage and anything loose, the smaller machine are notorious for wearing out bushings

I have a friend that has had a couple of 50's, he started with a "c" series and it was a great machine for him, the only thing that was blatantly obvious with it was the swing speed was painfully slow, he never had any problems with it and since the C, he has owned two other D series 50's and a 60D as well. Hope this helps

I have a 01' 50 zts. It has 6,400 hours and run great. Just keep the fluids and filters changed and it will run forever. the only thing that sucks on ours is in the summer the cab gets really hot. Glass cab with no a/c sucks.

john deere makes a good machine but maybe you should check out takeuchi tb 145 or 153 ive owned two of them and they were incredible. my cousin works for john deere and he said he would take takeuchi over john deere himself.

I used to work for an outfit that had a half a dozen of the little buggers, they always had good luck with them. We used to run the snot out of them doing stuff that was usually reserved for bigger machines, but they did the job. None of them had a/c and seeing as your sitting on the motor, we would take the glass out and the back hatch off and it wasn't too bad.

If you've never tried a kubota mini, I would try one before u buy the Deere. I have ran nearly every brand of mini and the kubota 161-3 is hands down the best performing mini.

how about yanmar?

Yeah, I think I'll pass on the 50C. Try and find a TK153 or a 161 Kubota.......... Thank you for all your replies. Any thoughts on the Hyundai 55 class machines?

Im just curious when you say youre towing behind a 1 ton diesel. Is that a 1 ton diesel ute?

Hi Denny, Sorry, but not sure what you mean by ute?

Canuck Digger said:

Hi Denny, Sorry, but not sure what you mean by ute?

Click to expand...

Ute is another name for pickup/truck.

jayjondell said:

how about yanmar?

Click to expand...

Yanmar is the #1 selling mini in the world. No need to expand their market

I think you call them pick-up trucks.

Regarding the tow vehicle, yes, it is a "pickup" I also have a F650 with a 9ft dump bed and a crane setup. I can use this truck to tow that size machine as well, on a pintle hitch.

Okay so its a big ute, i was thinking of a standard pay load ute over here which is approx950 kgs for a 1 tonner, max towing capacity with braked trailer of 2.0 tonnes. thanks ,Garrie in Aus.