skid steers and cutter heads

fishfactor · Aug 8, 2011

coastalcutter said:
Look at the Cat 299 they are coming out with steel track option. Our Cat dealer has been really great in helping us with the 289c. They cost more on front end but when you are out of warrenty and they have found ways to cover ac repairs it makes up for higher price. They realize what lost time is and if we need even a fuel filter our rep will bring it to us no other dealer in our area would think of doing that. If you combine the 299 with a ciemf head it would make a pretty good combo. That dealer support is worth the extra cost. Good luck

A local competitor tried steel tracks on a CAT and steel tracks on a bobcat t320. He ended up with 3 Bobcat T870's with rubber tracks. He said the steel tracks wouldn't climb a hill. I'm talking about true steel tracks, not over tire tracks.

ShearHeadMS · Aug 8, 2011

hey thanks for the info guys! its really helped me out, the only thing is the need for another machine, right now work is kinda slow, seems like people want cheaper dozer work than high grade land clearence right now.

ralanb · Aug 8, 2011

Hey guys. I've been running steel ott tracks for 3 years now, and it is a big difference from the asv's i had. It pushes so much better than rubber. The traction is great. I am looking at a new cat machine and your right about great service from cat. Cat is coming out late this year or spring with a machine that is for strictly mulching. Cant wait.

05rammer · Aug 9, 2011

Hey fish, when you say would climb a hill do you mean it didn't have traction or power?

yellowdogsvc · Aug 10, 2011

I'm running a bobcat s750 with CAT hm 312 mulcher (FAE)

I ran 2 s300's and an s330 and a CAT 272c for the past 8 years before moving to the s750. The s750 has a good flow to pressure ratio and definitely mulches better than my 272c or s330 did. The cab is very comfortable. I mostly mulch brush piles which have anything from stumps and rocks to big logs in there and regularly mulch stuff beyond the capacity of my CAT mulcher. While not as fast as my big chipper, the maneuverability of a skid steer or ctl is unmatched in my opinion.

I run rubber tires and work in mostly rock or rough terrain. I just take it slow and steady and don't have any problems with traction or tearing up tires. I have lost the bead once and that was in terrain I had no business taking any machine into but had to cross an arroyo to get to the mulching site.

I have been running my s750 in 100 deg plus heat (heat indexes 105-110) and even after 5 or 6 hours of mulching, it has run cool. I ran the s330 for the last summers in s. Texas as well and it did a good job too. Bobcat finally got it right in my opinion...as far as radiator design and the M series a complete redesign that actually is quick to clean out. A few little tweaks here and there and the cab gets little dust and the radiators get little debris. Having an air compressor on the truck is big help...

Anyone that mulches cedar in Texas will tell you that the cedar bark is notorious for clogging radiators. Between the dry conditions (dust) and the cedar and oak shreds, other contractors have told me that their machines ran hot. I think any skid steer will if you don't use finesse when mulching and keep the radiators cleaned out. There just isn't much place for the heat to go so it builds up quickly.

Other than radiators and the fact that you are limited in hp to make hydraulic power, a skid and cutter head can be a very good tool.

I've only used flail type (brown bear), magnum, and the CAT mulcher, and Davco so I haven't tried the Cimaf style heads with the knives because of the rock but I've been told that they cut very fast.

fishfactor · Aug 10, 2011

05rammer said:
Hey fish, when you say would climb a hill do you mean it didn't have traction or power?

No traction. He put the T320 with steel tracks up against the T870 with rubber tracks on the same hill. The T320 never made it to the top and the 870 went right up. I don't know what he didn't like about the CAT machine he had with steel tracks but he didn't keep it long at all.

Digdeep · Aug 11, 2011

fishfactor said:
No traction. He put the T320 with steel tracks up against the T870 with rubber tracks on the same hill. The T320 never made it to the top and the 870 went right up. I don't know what he didn't like about the CAT machine he had with steel tracks but he didn't keep it long at all.

Do you think it might have been because the Bobcat uses a triple grouser so that it turns easier? I think a single or double grouser would provide much better traction. Some of the performance might have been due to the weight difference between the machines? The 870 is almost 25% heavier than the T320.

fishfactor · Aug 11, 2011

Digdeep said:
Do you think it might have been because the Bobcat uses a triple grouser so that it turns easier? I think a single or double grouser would provide much better traction. Some of the performance might have been due to the weight difference between the machines? The 870 is almost 25% heavier than the T320.

I'm sure a single grouser would have done much better, but I'm not aware of a CTL with them. It would probably be hard on the undercarriage. The 870 weighs more, but the rubber tracks are wider than the steel which give a lower psi and less traction in theory.

I can climb anything I am willing to in our T320 with rubber tracks. I've been up some slopes that were very close to 100%.

fishfactor · Aug 19, 2011

I just found out that the CAT he had with steel tracks was a prototype of the machine that's coming out now. He didn't keep it long because it turned into a marshmallow roaster.