I'm looking for opinions on the 980F and early G series loaders pre-97'. My understanding is they are "very" reliable pieces of equipment. We are going to purchase a 980 or a WA500 for our project in the coming months. Are there any 500/980 model years we should stay away from? Do the WA500's compare favorably to the 980's? Thanks in advance, Tony
First off, Welcome to HEF TonyG! :drinkup We currently have 4 980Gs from varying years ranging from the earliest, to the newest one being last years model. As an operator I have nothing but joy when operating any of them. They are a good strong loader with little downtime or breakage. We also have 2 980Fs. They are a good machine but I would opt for the Gs if money permits for the newer cab and such. Thats just a personal preference as the Fs are good solid machines. As far as the other brands, I cannot comment as I haven't operated that size loader outside of Cat.
once again were back to Cat vs. Komatsu i think it all comes down to parts and service
I think he is asking for personal expierences, not which one is better. I prefer not to comment on equipment I have not operated myself. If you got "Cat is better" out of my post then you misread it. That was not said anywhere in that post.
Tony... The WA500 has been a pretty solid performer since its introduction. The Komatsu 140 series engined loaders are the most reliable as Komatsu built machines with N14 Cummins power for a while, it was a good engine but they switched back to Komatsu after a couple of years. Unlike Caterpillar which uses letters to identify model/series, Komatsu identify their series by a dash (-) and a number. e.g. -1, -3 and currently -6. Also by checking the machine serial number you can tell where the loader was manufactured, prefix A was built in North America, H is German, if there is no lettered prefix its Japanese built. Later machines use a Komatsu common rail electronic engine. Most of the WA500's you will see around were built in North America, either in Tennessee or in Quebec. 9420 Pullpan alluded to parts and service playing a part which has to be considered, but be aware that Komatsu hasn't been sleeping for the last 25 or 30 years and has a good infrastructure in North America with good parts availability, reman components etc.
i have not ran the WA 500 but i have ran other komatsu loaders. i have ran more Cat than Komatsu from my personal experience i would choose the Cat over the Komatsu
i have time in both Komatsu and Cat loaders. i ran a 980g for about a year and a half. i love the low-end torque you get from a Cat loader, their reliability is second to none, however in the early G series we had problems with the electro hydraluic control levers used to operate the boom and bucket. often the machine would not respond to the operators comand, and in vary few instances the bucket and hoist would "move" without manipulation of the control levers. this almost always seemed to happen when it was raining or alittle damp in the cab. i have sence left that company and dont know if the problem was ever corrected. as far as WA 500 loaders i ran only the -3 models. they seemed to vary "quick" out of the hole, i belive this may be because they are lighter the Cat G model. the reacurring problem we had was camshafts in the N 14 Cummins engine. we were replacing 1 cam every season, the lobes on the cams seemed to ware off! almost like the camshafts were not hardened enough. anyway thats my 2 cents i hope it helps in your purchase.
Thanks guys, Countryboy, 9420, Wulf and kid: This is what we were looking for, firsthand knowledge of these type of loaders. I probably leaning towards a 980F, I think this can be had somewhere between 70k and 110k in nice shape. I have found out, that you can also buy a 2nd Life WA500 completely rebuild for 180k...that's not bad. There's only one minor issue with the 980F series and older...the caveman operators cab. Dam that's pre-historic! However, there bulletproof.
komatsukid, you are right... the problem was the micro-finish of the camshaft lobes and the also cam follower roller would skip and stall on the cam during start-up initiating wear and galling. Cummins came up with countermeasures - an updated cam with a different finish and the roller/follower assembly was modified which should have resolved the issue.
We had a number of KTA19's with the same drama...Cummins exchanged them gratis. I found the 980F a good solid reliable performer...nothing fancy..and the cab was functional..not cramped and I'm 6'1"...although we had excellent Viking seats fitted.
We have a 980F and an early 980G. both have 10K hours plus. We did a certified power train on the F and the G will go up for sale. The G has cost us a lot of money. It will more than likely be replaced with a new 988 or a 980 G. I love the F it will stick to the side of a coal pile like a mountain goat. The G will slide down. my 2 cents
Havent run a komatsu for any length of time. But weve had4 cat 980G loaders. They were all Great perfromers and really never required any serious work. The biggest i think was a rear main seal on one machine. We keep them for 14-15,000 hours and trade them in. The first two were fitted with 6.5 yd bucket we later built up, and the last two had 7.5 yd from the factory. We load sand gravel and stone. Two buckets gives a consistent 20 ton of material on a truck. We have since replaced thes with 980H machines, also with 7.5 yd buckets,. These are good reliable machines, but dont seem to have the same response as the old 980G's. I also dont have much to say about 980F's, we went straight from 980C's to 980G's, but they seem to be a good solid machine as well.
I had a 980C and got rid of it for a Komatsu WA500 which I love. They are nice and smooth. Comfortable to.
The new Komatsu WA500-6 I spent a whole day testing some of the Komatsu equipment a couple of weeks ago. I spent most of the time in the WA500, but i am not impressed. You have to spend the time with the pedal to the metal to get power out of the loader. The gearlever keps crashing with my left knee, and it seems to me that this is only a small improvment of earlier modells. I only have a little experience in the seat with the 980C, so the Cat guys have to give you advise on that one. But, when the day was over, we stopped at the Volvo testarea on our way home... I spent 30 min in the new L90F, and 10 min in the L220E. For me its an easy conclusion: The Komatsu loaders are 5 years behind Volvo. And Volvo has grabbed the whole marked in Scandinavia. Cat is priced so high, that very few will by one here.:usa
Komatsu will be disappointed with your opinion MKTEF that the -6 is only a small improvement on earlier models because the machine has been a long time in development, looks completely different, is much more than just an evolution with new T3 engine, increase in HP from 315 to 332, bigger torque converter with lock-up, new transmission, hyd piston pumps and closed centre hydraulics, reversible hyd fan etc. I've tried the -6, 220E and 980H and can't see that Komatsu is 5 years behind with their latest loader... also maybe your comment about pedal to the metal could possibly be related to the fact that the WA500-6 engine makes it highest rated power at 1900 rpm whereas the 220E makes its highest at 1600 rpm?
I agree with Wulf, I would say the -6 is likely to be far more than a small improvement over previous models. That being said, I have not yet had the opportunity to run one. I found the Komatsu loaders I have had the opportunity to run to be very nice to operate. We have consistantly been changing over to Komatsu loaders and going away from Cat. I like the Cats, but the Komatsus seemed quicker to me. Back to the original question, if I had to choose between a Komatsu WA500 and a Cat 980, my decision would be made by parts and service availability. I think they are both good machines and don't know that I would favour one over the other based on performance, reliability or comfort. Brian
We had a 980G for about 7 years going hard everyday and that is the best wheel loader I have ever tried. It was around 15.500 hours when we changed it, to a Komatsu W500 and that was a big mistake! We have already had a lot of stuff that doesn’t work as it should just after 500 hours, and its nothing to compare when you think of the CAT 980G… Everything is better with the 980G as I can see it… Anyone had the same experience?
Frazzy... a little way up the thread there was another guy from Norway complaining about the WA500-? but it would be helpful if you are more specific with the model type and what already doesn't work as it should after 500 hrs
If you are going to be working in western Pennsylvania, you would be dealing with Anderson Equipment Co., out of Bridgeville. I found them to be good people and a dealer with well trained technicians and an adequate supply of parts. Cat has, of course, Beckwith Machinery, and they are top notch as a dealer. They, unlike a couple of other dealers I could mention, but won't, work just as well with the small contractor as the large. I like the newer 980's as I always felt the old models were underpowered and slow to respond. More difficult to service too. New models much quicker, better on fuel, less smoke, and controls are easier to use. Komatsu's have had a roomier cab for quite some time and I'd have to say their door hardware was much better. Can't remember a Komatsu loader cab door ever popping open or rattling like a marble in a tin can. Komatsu's also seem to have less problems in the center pin area. Electrics can be a bigger problem with Komatsu's in my experience.
Welcome to HEF Frazzy! :drinkup
For the older stuff, I often check if it is available at ebay first. Although there are a lot of bidding and research involved, in the end it will pay off. For example, take a look at this list of backhoe loaders . You can see how much they have been sold for too. .tg.