had a buddy ask me, as though i'm an expert..... what my thoughts were on after market rails for his excavator. said the mechanic we share found a good deal from an outfit by the name Kato. I've never heard of them before. he mentioned they do OEM work hitachi and others. any thoughts?
I personally have no experience with nor heard of Kato, a little online info. Aftermarket can be a good way to go, one name that I have seen work well is TREK. About 5 years ago they apparently had a soft bushing issue on a batch but has since been corrected and last quite well with excellent warranty. Have seen them in applications from D-5 through D-10, the D-10 in silica sand and is working great. Forestry applications and excavators have had no issues as well, good wear. The forestry applications were on 2054 processors/limbers,deere bunchers & tigercat bunchers. From what I can tell Kato offers replacements for OEM but have not seen them OEM equipped on anything, maybe someone else has though.
This is the only Kato I have heard of http://www.kato-works.co.jp/eng/index.html
I didn´t realize he was into heavy equipment. I thought Kato was a domestic aid.
Thats funny.
The aftermarket chains that my company sells is really good quality. We rarely have any warranty issues. Some of the dealers around my area sell the same brand undercarriage. I have never heard of Kato. I do know that some companies are importing some undercarriage that is really low quality and has a price to match. You need to be really picky when purchasing undercarriage. You need to check on the parts warranty and make sure the seller is willing to uphold his part also.
he also mentioned KUT brand. never heard of them either. i tend to agree with you though quicktrax, i'd be a little leary of something i've never heard of. the warrantee can tell you a lot about how strong they'll back something. good advice. again i found very little on-line info. although i did come across a few sketchy references on a couple sites.
Aftermarket rail just are not as good as oem even if the make oem rails for some one. that does not mean they are not cost efective. compare costs and what is your goal with machine. keep it forever oem worth the cost sell it after a couple years and they will still be fairly new shape. cheap is ok.