Replies

1. 
   Scott_Chadbourne | Mar 13, 2000 04:21am | #2

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   John,
   What's your opinion of the various makes .... Bobcat vs Case, etc. I have been giving some serious thought of trading in my JD 401C for something a can get around with and transport easier. Salesman told me today that New Holland and John Deere were the same units until this year. He also said it is better to option out wider flotation tires than buy tracks.... your opinion? I will use unit for footings, crawlspace and lifting sheathing up.

2. 
   Guest_ | Mar 14, 2000 04:16am | #3

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   That's almost like asking if you like Ford or Chevy. To be honest with you, it's personal preference. I bought a Bobcat because the price was right and I believe that they were the innovator of the skid steer. I love it, but I haven't actually shopped the other brands. The JD - NH split was true. Also you ahve to look at who will give you the best dealer support in your area. Case has a very good machine in their new XT series, but then again you have to decide what kind of capacity you're looking for. I have an 843, but if I were to replace it I would probably buy an 873 vs. the 863 just for more lift capacity. You can never have enough. Also, I don't know what part of the country you're in, but if in cold country cab enclosures and heaters are nice options. We've added all those to ours.....also any dealer in the area ought to let you demo a unit. And I'd go with tracks if traction is an issue... wider tires are nice but they don't compare to tracks in mud and sand/pea fill. I have 12 X 16.5 tires on mine but I've seen guys with tracks go places I wouldn't dream of. Also they're more stable on rough terrain.
   Good Luck,
   John

3. 
   Guest_ | Mar 14, 2000 04:20am | #4

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   How do you get out of the ground? Do you rent or own a TLB or Mini X etc.? Who's the operator?

   If you sub-out your excavation does one outfit, one operator, handle footers, utilities, in-ground drainage, construction grading, finish grading, site cleanup, driveway construction etc. Is this kind of one stop shopping ie. an excavator with a residential engineering license available in your area? If not, do you think this approach would help with quality control, scheduling etc.?

   How would you rate the degree of professionalism of your excavator? What kind of equipment does he/she use? What type of equipment have you used or seen in use that most impressed you with its versatility, please be as specific as possible.

   I'm a skid steer with combo. bucket, backhoe and pallet forks convert. Don't know how anybody can get a place built without one. I'd really appreciate hearing from other machine owners or regular users regarding the attachments they find invaluable. I'm especially interested in using 4 in 1 or combo./clam. buckets as a modular means of clamping additional low-cost attachments to the machine creating in effect a 5 in 1 or 6 in 1 bucket.

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   Guest_ | Mar 11, 2000 09:40pm | #1

   *..the best Bobcat attachment I've bought was a grapple bucket....I got tired of trying to find laborers to load the trash truck and with the bucket I can load a truck or dumpster in minutes with minimal clean-up....and at $2500 it payed for itself in no time....I tried a 4-in-1 and told them to keep it. I have a TLB and it eats mini excavators. Although I had to demo one once for a close proximity job. The mini will do the same job but won't lift the same weight (ie. setting beams), dig as deep (12' sewer laterals) without benching, or carry the amount of material that a TLB does. But as far as I'm concerned, a Bobcat is indespensible.John