Rubber or steel on 4-5 ton excavator?

   / Rubber or steel on 4-5 ton excavator? #1  

crazycharlie

New member
Joined
Apr 4, 2011
Messages
5
Tractor
Kubota L5030/Kubota L35
I'm torn between the advantages of rubber and steel tracks. Looking for opinions.
 
   / Rubber or steel on 4-5 ton excavator? #2  
If you plan on crossing any asphalt forget steel. I had rubber on my kx121 kubota..5 ton. And it lasted me 2500 hrs of hard construction abuse with lots of life left. Unless your gonna be driving over broken concrete all day or working in a quarry, rubber is much more versitile.
 
   / Rubber or steel on 4-5 ton excavator? #3  
Look at the Komatsu Road-Liner tracks. They have steel track chains, with bolt on rubber pads. I think that would be the best system. Similar systems are available for other brands of machines. Naturally these are the most expensive system. Standard rubber tracks would be the most universal. If the person running the hoe is paying for the next set of tracks (owner), they would last quite a while. If you are in a lot of rock or demolition work, then I would go with steel.
 
   / Rubber or steel on 4-5 ton excavator? #4  
The market right now says rubber tracks! The steel tracks are much better if demo work around steel and rough concrete is it's daily task.
Rubber tracks allow you more flexibility as to where you go with no damage to surfaces.
 
   / Rubber or steel on 4-5 ton excavator? #5  
Nobody has mentioned this and it may not be an issue on an excavator, but it seems to me rubber tracked vehicles always move faster than those with steel tracks. It's not that they CAN move faster, but there is less noise and wear from high speed. Not sure...???
 
   / Rubber or steel on 4-5 ton excavator? #6  
Unless you have conditions that explicitly demand steel tracks I think rubber is the way to go.

I do like the rubber pads on steel tracks though.
 
   / Rubber or steel on 4-5 ton excavator? #7  
Rubber inserts bolted into the steel pads is the only way to go in my opinion.
JCB 8052 007.jpg

This way you get the best of both worlds.
 
   / Rubber or steel on 4-5 ton excavator? #9  
Had a Volvo in the yard last summer with rubber on steel and was surprised at how much they dug up the grass. They tend to pinch as they come around and pick up clods of grass, much more destructive than rubber tracks though they may last longer.
 
 
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