help selecting new excavator

[KINGKUBOTA]

I CURRENLY OWN A FOUR YEAR OLD KUBOTA L35 TLB WITH 274 HRS., ON IT. I ALSO OWN A KUBOTA U35 EXCAVATOR WITH ABOUT 750 HRS., ON IT.(3 YRS OLD) ALL BOUGHT NEW. I AM CONSIDERING TRADING THE KUBOTA L35 TLB FOR EITHER A NEW KUBOTA U45 EXCAVATOR OR A KUBOTA KX161-3 EXCAVATOR. I HARDLY USE THE L35 WHICH IS JUST LIKE NEW. I DO USE THE U35 EXCAVATOR FOR EVERYTHING. I HAVE TRIED MANY, MANY DIFFERENT EXCAVATORS. AND I AM 100% IMPRESSED WITH THE KUBOTA PRODUCTS AND I DON'T NEED TO CONSIDER ANY OTHER BRAND. MOST OF MY WORK IS RESIDENTIAL AND I WONDERED IF MAYBE I SHOULD KEEP THE L35, BECAUSE AS SOON AS I GET RID OF IT I WILL NEED IT. SHOULD I CONSIDER TRADING THE U35 FOR U45 & KEEPING THE TLB?? . CAN ANYBODY TELL ME IF THEY THINK THE U45/KX161-3 WOULD BE TO BIG FOR MOST RESIDENTIAL JOBS. IT IS 10 INCHES WIDER THAN THE U35 AND WEIGHS ABOUT 3000 LBS MORE. OR WOULD I BE BETTER OFF WITH TWO EXCAVATORS AND NO MACHINE WITH A FRONT BUCKET FOR NOW?? HAVE FRIENDS WITH SKID STEERS. OR KEEP THE TLB AND GET A BIGGER EXCAVATOR (u45) OR IS IT TO BIG???

HELP

THANKS

 

[Boondox]

Well, first please turn off the cap lock so your post isn't so painful to the eyes.

You're talking about some remarkably different machines. If you're doing residential work I can see where a ZTS mini-ex like the U35 would come in handy. The KX161 is a huge step up in size and power, and you'd give up the zero tail swing. Sure, you could angle your boom and still get the job done, but when you're on a roll would you remember how far the tail swings on a conventional excavator? If not, you could easily do severe damage to your customer's home or fence or whatever.

Since you didn't fill out a profile it's sort of difficult to get a feel for what you'd be doing. A residential area out here means one house per five acres minimum. In that case a big machine wouldn't be a handicap at all. But I remember last time I was in California there wasn't much room at all between homes, and the KX161 would be a handicap. Can you give us a bit more information to go on? (And please, NO CAPS!)

Folks tend to either love or hate ZTS machines...interesting that you could go either way. And do you have a rig and trailer capable of hauling the bigger machine?

Pete