Any new seat time?... Impressions?...
There's a 115 in TX calling my name... Probably pipe dream as I don't have time
to drive the one I have...
Impressions:
Backhoe: stupid power & reach on backhoe-even with a 3' bucket it just eats dirt. Wobble sticks work really nice with light touch-not as nice as the pilots in my Case, but they're fine-probably a lot cheaper to fix, too. Not too much slop in pins & bushings, just enough to make it a little scary. Foot pedal x-hoe works good, but sometimes it doesn't respond right away.
Powertrain: 4 wheel steer is a dream come true-it can manuever as good/better than my Case. Ground clearance with the 4 huge tires is really high-looks impossible to get stuck. Powershift transmission is really cool, but you can tell it's not quite as "hooked-up" as a shuttle shift. It feels like it needs to be revved more to move around the jobsite. There's 2 blinking lights ("T" & "N") that sometimes blink on the powershift lever that indicate a "fault" in the p/s trans. Manual says that this should be checked by NH mechanic, but seems to have no ill effect and is only sporadic. Manual says trans will go into limp mode if serious and it has never done that (knock on wood). Brakes work good, but are pretty close to the floor-previous owner said they've always been like that.
FEL- huge sucker. Must be 1.8 yds. Fills my 11 yard dump truck body in 5-6 scoops! Here's the unknown secret of the LB115-even with the loader bucket FULL and raised up high, the machine feels incredibly stable. The large front tires are the reason-the machine doesn't "wobble" like my Case did when raising a full bucket up into the dumptruck. 4/1 bucket works good, but as I thought, a little hard to see over big tires in front.
CAB- fantastic, roomy industrial grade cab that feels like a real serious work station with great visibility. You feel like you're in a quarry loader. Doors & floor are VERY solid and not rusted at all. Seat is a high back air ride with compressor & lots of adjustments. Floor mat is beefy & looks like new. Controls are more like an '09 machine instead of an '00 machine-very modern and well laid out. Tons of storage bins, tinted glass and adjustments for vents, seat, tilt wheel, etc.. I like the way the back window slides up above your head instead of 3 sliding windows in Case. Some switches have light bulbs burned out and you can't tell if they're off or on. Digital gauges appear accurate, but previous owner installed mechanical hour meter and mechanical oil pressure just in case-very cool. Radio is very nice and has a flip down dust cover to keep controls sealed from dust. Fenders are plastic, but in great shape and of course-no rust anywhere to be found. Paint almost 98% in tact. Haven't had the opportunity to hook up rear aux hydraulics yet.
OTHER: Got 5 backhoe buckets and a sheepsfoot. Only used 3 of the buckets so far. All are "Gannon" brand. FEL bucket is in great shape. Paint on this machine is incredible. For 10 years old, it looks like it's a 3 yr old paint job. Puts Case paint job to shame.
BAD: Cab leaks in heavy rain (My Case leaked, too). Looked up top and cut outs for beacon lights have cracked & opened-up and allow water in the roof. Roof is kinda chincy-thinner plastic than I'd like to see and lots of unsealed fasteners holding it down to cab. I'll have to add the beacons or seal the holes better. Would like to buy new roof and make it right. Powershift trans looks like a high-tech nightmare when it goes down, but is pretty nice to drive around. Fuel tank claims to be only 28 gallons, but seems a lot bigger. Case had 50 gallon tank. Harder to see FEL than Case because of big front tires. Sits 16" higher than Case, so harder to get in/out.
All in all I think I got very lucky. Previous owner was hard core excavator and bought machine new. Maintained as good as I could possibly ask for. Never smoked in or abused. I will only use it 5-10 hours per week, so it should be Ok in it's new "semi-retired" life. I hope it holds up a few thousand more hours for me.
