ASV PT-100F Visibility

[parisq]

Anyone know how much visibility you lose with the new Forestry Package vs a stock PT-100 with maybe just a 1/2 Lexan (Poly?) door? I'm familiar with the stock PT-100 but haven't had a look-see of one all armored up. From pictures, the visibility doesn't look great. Kind of like a knight peering out of a helmet.

[shorty750]

been using one cleaning up pasture 1 day taken lot getting used to but
like my other heavy eq when get used to it only few blind spots left
biggest is in back.

[parisq]

Have you used a stock PT100? From the photos I've seen, the Forestry package looks like it might cut visibility more than 50%.

[shorty750]

it does cut close to half getting used to it but still tight in close corners.

[parisq]

Great. Thanks. Gonna have to find one to see if I can live with it. It's actually bordline whether I need Forestry vs. stock PT-100 w 1/2" door as the largest of the trees I'm looking at isn't much bigger than 12". Yet a 12", 60' tree can do serious damage, if not to me, then to the machine.

[QwikDraw]

If you haven't purchased an ASV yet and are buying new....

Call Kaz Equipment in S. Windsor CT and buy a Takeuchi TL250 with high flow, if I buy another skid steer that's what I would get.

If you want a used ASV w/ 1800 hrs...call me.

[parisq]

At the moment I am looking new. But I'll certainly keep your ASV in mind if things change. As an ASV owner, what do you like about the Takeuchi?

[Dargo]

Originally Posted by parisq

At the moment I am looking new. But I'll certainly keep your ASV in mind if things change. As an ASV owner, what do you like about the Takeuchi?

I was all set to by an ASV 100 until I asked around more and got a lot of feedback from rental places as well as construction companies owned friends and they all agreed that the Takeuchi/Gehl/Mustang (all exactly the same except the names and colors) was the strongest and most indestructible compact track loader made. It seems that concrete guys are the hardest on track loaders since they often just catch the edge of the bucket under a slab of concrete and pry it out. They all said that doing so would 'tweak' the loader arms on a Bobcat or ASV/Cat machine. After renting an ASV and using a friend's Takeuchi I see where the Tak is stronger built.

I actually just sold my Takeuchi TL250 and picked up a Mustang MTL20. I went from a machine with 1600 hours on it to one with only 550 hours on the meter. Man is that Mustang tight! There's nothing on the machine that feels worn or loose and it's built like a little dozer. The ASV/Cat compact track loader rides better than a Takeuchi/Gehl/Mustang machine but the ride of the Tak doesn't seem bad to me.

[parisq]

Great notes. For non-commercial use, would one appreciate a (slightly?) more fragile machine (ASV/CAT) with a better, more comfortable ride over something more stout and dozer-tough that's a kidney buster?

[Dargo]

Originally Posted by parisq

Great notes. For non-commercial use, would one appreciate a (slightly?) more fragile machine (ASV/CAT) with a better, more comfortable ride over something more stout and dozer-tough that's a kidney buster?

That is entirely possible. I wouldn't call the ASV/Cat machines fragile, but they are not the little tank that Takeuchi makes. It only makes sense that a heavier and stiffer machine is going to ride harder. One other benefit to the ASV/Cat machines is traction. A little 60 hp ASV track loader can go nose to nose with a 100 hp Bobcat, Takeuchi, Volvo or Komatsu machine and push them backwards if they are sitting on mud or snow. I'm not willing to state that one machine is "better" than the other. They are different and, as such, have different strengths and weaknesses. Personally, after running steel tracked dozers for many years, I think all the rubber tracked machines ride nice.