Hey guys. Recently became the owner of a 2010 TB153FR. Machine has under 3,000 hours. Runs great, and looks great too for being 15 years old. The boom is tight, besides for the boom swing pins. I believe the rear most ones are the ones with play. It has enough play that during house rotation and stop I can hear a knock from the rear most pins I believe. I didn't necessarily purchase the Machine for the Zerotail boom swing to the side thing it does and plan to use it mainly as a normal mini excavator digging and lifting stuff etc. What can I expect from fixing the slop in these pins? Is it worth doing it myself or what would a shop charge for the job. Is this Machine worth keeping after replacing the bushing or pins or send it down the river and try make a quick buck. Thanks
I'm on my second 153. The machines are unparalleled for their ability to sideshift and work in tight areas but also great for loading trucks. I'd bought pins and bushings for the 1st one and intended to do the forward ones but ended up selling the machine prior to performing the task. To reach the rear ones, the cab will have to come off but it doesn't look overly onerous. Once that's off separating the boom shouldn't be too bad and then it's just a burn out and install new bushings procedure. There is an inherent issue with the machines and that's the computers. I had one acting up on the old machine and sold it like that not entirely knowing what the issue was. The new owner was told of the issue. The replacement machine I got ended up also having weird issues and I did replace the computer and it's been fine ever since.
It's a big gamble if you expect to make a profit selling it because it needs some work on the pins. If everything else is in good shape I'd replace the pins and have a nice tight machine.