Attachment prices

[theoshin]

I am going to ask a potentially dumb question. Bear with my ignorance. Why are skid steer type attachments so expensive??? A high quality 8ft mower with pto/3pt hitch costs around 50% the cost of the brushcat. The only big difference is a single hydraulic motor. The bobcat broom is around $5,000. The snowblower is around $6,000. Tiller $5,000. I know someone who works where the woods/alitec tiller is made and he told me the dealer was not making much of a profit at that price. My 12000lb 20ft b-b trailer with torflex axles and semi tilt bed cost less than my broom? To engineer a broom is not that expensive. Hydraulic motors are not that expensive. My trailer has a lot more materials cost and labor for production with more metal and axles/tires. It seems as though the market is not competitive enough in the attachment business. Ask a farmer around here to spend $5,500 on a 60 inch mower for his tractor! I notice several posters are/have looking into 3pt hitch conversions for the toolcat. Why should we have to do that when the money has been spent on the tc engineering. I don't think my dealer is getting rich selling attachments.

 

[jmfox]

I had the same reaction to that post. If you think about it, the one Bobcat attachment that is missing is the front mounted three point hitch. Maybe not from Bobcat, but they must be available from other companies who sell skid steer attachments. Right?

jmf

 

[CRJCaptain]

I had the same reaction to that post. If you think about it, the one Bobcat attachment that is missing is the front mounted three point hitch. Maybe not from Bobcat, but they must be available from other companies who sell skid steer attachments. Right?

jmf

The last time I was at my Bobcat dealer I inquired about a front mounted three point hitch...I believe that Bobcat finally makes these now.

Other non-OEM manufacturers make them too...check here:

Wide Range Enterprises Inc. - Skid steer loader (Bobcat) 3 point hitch equipment adapter with powered PTO

 

[jmfox]

Cool and thanks Captain.

The next question is whether implements, designed to pull, can be pushed.

jmf

 

[theoshin]

exactly. the ones i have looked at are not. i dont want to have to drive backwards.

the law of free market economics does not seem to be working in the skid steer attachment market. my bobcat attachments are very well built. the snowblower is a tank, but expensive. my rhino 3pt mower cost less than 1/2 the brushcat.

btw - finally got some snow (3 inches dry). the broom worked well.

 

[PAFarmboy1]

Recently I purchased a new 5600c. I had to finance four attachments, a chipper/mower/snowblower/bucket. At this point if I want to add attachments, I would be inclined to look for used implements. If there a good website that has an ample supply of used Bobcat implements?

 

[dsb5610]

There are a lot of skidsteer attachments on ebay and machinery trader. I've also found them with a google search. Good deals seem to be scarce but they are out there. I agree that in general the skidsteer attachments are overpriced.

I have a long list of attachments I would like to have but I can't justifiy most of them. I've been periodically checking for used 3pt flail mowers. I plan to convert one to use with the Toolcat since the ones designed for a skidsteer are very pricey and still do not meet my needs.

dsb

 

[UFM82]

Attachment pricing is based on a number of factors I believe. One is the actual material cost of the item. Two is the expected life-span of the attachment and 3 is the return on investment you will see. It's an absolute easy thing to see that a 6' Woods bushhog that costs about $1,000 is not that different from a 6' Brushcat, but can you run it on your Bobcat? Is it made from 1/4" steel? Does it have the safety features on it that the Brushcat does? Is it worth the price difference?
Many attachments are priced by value as opposed to cost IMHO. A hydraulic breaker is a relatively simple piece as far as parts goes but they are in the $7K and up range. Lots of machining in those pieces is where the cost comes in and you'll make good money while using one. Does it really cost that much to make a breaker? Does it really cost that much to make a Cadillac verses an Impala? Why does and Escalade cost so much more than a Yukon? Same truck, right?
I'll give you that pricing on attachments is weird. However, I'll go one extra step and say that they are worth every penny. There are a multitude of attachments and makers out there selling everything from forks to buckets to grapples to snow-blowers and chippers. Most that I have seen are poorly made, poorly designed and even more poorly supported. You can save $500 by buying a no-name grapple but when you break a cylinder rod or blow a fitting and can't get it fixed, you're out more than the money you saved. You can always get a Bobcat brand attachment serviced at a Bobcat dealer. That's a fact. That's part of the value and thus the price as well.

 

[theoshin]

agree,
i have bought all bobcat except for a alitec tiller - it is actually better/heavier built, imo. it has 2 drive motors and weighs 200lbs more. i will be getting a brushcat this spring and have a bobcat sprayer ordered.

my bobcat snowblower is built like a tank. the broom is excellent too. i buy bobcat b/o of the dealer support. if i spend this kind of money i expect good support for all pieces.
when the blower arrived it did not work well. they put a larger motor package on at no charge, now it works as it is designed. that is why i buy bobcat.

still hurts to write the check for skid steer attachments, though.

 

[PAFarmboy1]

I firmly agree with the comments about Bobcat attachments. I have been interested in and operating equipment since my teenage years from Farmall Cub Tractors to Caterpillar D9 Dozers. The Bobcat attachments that I have were worth every penny, it is simply a fact that it does hurt the wallet. I am considering a 5 ft snow blade and a utility fork/grapple for my toolcat. Has anyone purchased these implements and roughly what do they cost!