Compact Tractors are Designed All Wrong

[Agvg]

Someone in the 50's had the right idea for their loader build.

From:
D&RGW :: Photographs - Western History

View attachment 545753

Bruce

Well, this wasn't a very good solution and we ended up with the modern wheel loader.

 

[Agvg]

And this is the modern back hoe

 

[VeRV77]

How did I never come across this thread before? It's brilliant.

 

[MossRoad]

How did I never come across this thread before? It's brilliant.

It started about 17 years ago, and I like to bump it up every so often just because it's such an enjoyable read that also makes one question everything they know about humanity.... ok, it's not that serious, but it is informative. :laughing:

The folks that started it are responsible for my decision to purchase and articulated machine with all attachments up front where I can see them. While it's not the perfect design for some people, I'm convinced it's a better choice for most people's homeowner tasks. Unless you have to frequently pull stumps, or plow dirt, or pull a hay bailer, things like that, there's little reason to have a pulling-type machine around the homestead. Just my opinion, of course.

For example, today, I took my machine, 48" brush cutter, pallet forks with extra-wide forks and backstop, small bucket with teeth, and large light material bucket out to our tree farm on our car-hauler trailer. In about 4 hours I moved many yards of 30 year old piles of dirt full of trees and brush that had grown up in the piles. It required switching between the forks, tooth bucket, and large bucket many, many times, all of which took about 15 seconds per implement change without getting off the machine. These types of little articulated machines are very, very productive. :thumbsup:

 

[4570Man]

And this is the modern back hoeView attachment 545818

I don’t see the current backhoe going away any time soon. Sure they’re not as good as a skid steer and mini excavator but that package is a lot harder to move around and more expensive.

 

[MossRoad]

I don’t see the current backhoe going away any time soon. Sure they’re not as good as a skid steer and mini excavator but that package is a lot harder to move around and more expensive.

I am currrently in the area of many construction projects, both commercial and private.... I haven't seen a backhoe on one of them in several years. It's all tracked excavators of varying sizes, telehandlers, a dozer for initial top-soil removal and again at final grading, maybe a skid steer, but not too many anymore, dump trucks on the commercial sites to move the dirt from the hole to and from the storage pile, and that's about it.

Really, it's primarily the tracked excavators and telehandlers doing 90% of the work on both the commercial and residentail projects.

If I could afford it, I'd get a tracked excavator over a backhoe on a tractor.

 

[4570Man]

I see skid steers, backhoes, and excavators on the same construction site all the time. Backhoes pretty much own the small construction sites. City’s will never give up their backhoes. Good luck driving the mini a couple miles.

 

[4570Man]

My experience with a 50 series mini, a Kubota svl 95-2, and a full size backhoe is the size difference is too much for the mini to over come and it looses most of the time. The CTL isn’t as strong as the backhoe loader, but it’s a better loader platform and wins most of the time. All 3 machines service a purpose.

 

[MossRoad]

I see skid steers, backhoes, and excavators on the same construction site all the time. Backhoes pretty much own the small construction sites. City’s will never give up their backhoes. Good luck driving the mini a couple miles.

All I'm saying is I'm seeing fewer and fewer backhoes and more and more excavators of varying sizes.

 

[4570Man]

All I'm saying is I'm seeing fewer and fewer backhoes and more and more excavators of varying sizes.

They definitely are, but I don’t see backhoes or tractors or internal combustion engines going the way of the woolly mammoths any time soon.