[exmarkdude]

Tried out a new Thomas 255 today and was impressed. Just wanted to know if any of you guys have any experience with these machines?

 

[Tigerotor77W]

No experience, but they are built well. Rugged, relatively decent resale value, but somewhat bland on operator comforts it seems. Certainly not the sophistication that goes into a Cat, Case, or Bobcat cab.

 

[ksss]

I saw a picture of the Hyundai branded Thomas machines. It actually looks good in Yellow. On the resale, I would check Ritchie Bros. in the auction results section. You will find that the resale is quite poor. Thomas used to run their new machines through Ritchie Bros. auctions around the country. They would bring (at the sales I was at) 10-14K brand new. It was probably a good deal if you planned on just running the machine out. I wouldn't want to try and trade one in, especially on something other than a Thomas. It will be interesting to watch and see if the Hyundai machines have better or worse value. If you really want one it may be better to buy Hyundai as I suspect they may have better resale although that maybe marginal. As far as how they run I have no idea, there isn't one in this area and I have never talked to anyone that has one. Judging by their advertisements, they run name brand components and their specs are good.

 

[kELTIC]

I have a Thomas skid and excavator and I think they are rugged machines, they have a very small market share, (made in Canada), but use excellent components and are good tools for the buck in my opinion. Cheers FMK

 

[iowacatman]

I have traded and resold some Thomas SSL's. They really aren't bad machines. Pretty plain jane, Kubota engines, easy to run. It is really difficult to resell them though. Most people have'nt heard of them, and like keltic said, small market share. They haven't had a good dealer base either, but where they have a commited dealer, they do okay.

Research the local resale market. Initial price minus the resale price (plus interest, insurance, taxes ect.) equals your owning costs. If the machine is $20,000 new and worth $10,000 in 5 years, your owning costs (in very simplified terms) is $10,000. If a bobcat is $25,000 new and worth $17,500 in 5 years, your owning costs are $7,500. So the $20,000 machine may appear 'cheaper', the $25,000 machine will actually cost you less in owning costs. (operating costs are another thing)