Here is our brand new Bobcat E50. We absolutely love this machine. Bobcat has done a great job with this M-Series excavator. The machine has a TON of power. Yesterday we set a 7” thick, 12’ x 4’ slab of granite that weighed about 5000lbs. with the machine no problem. Which, for a mini I think is quite amazing, our A300 couldn’t even pick it up. The enclosed cab is great, it’s the first machine we have bought with a cab. I do have to say it is not a roomy as the Yanmarr we demoed but it is extremely comfortable. It’s been 97 degrees here for the past 2 days so the A/C is nice! We also ordered a 52” grading bucket and Bobcats “Hydro Tilt” wrist attachment for it but they haven’t arrived yet. Here are a few pictures and a YouTube walk around video I did. I also have a few videos of it in action and I will try to upload them in the next few days. If you want to see pictures of anything specific let me know and I’ll do my best to get them for you. Enjoy! YouTube - Bobcat E50 Walk-around
Some more pictures.
Nice looking machine!
Here are two videos of it in action. YouTube - E50 Swinging Dirt YouTube - E50 moving rocks
really nice machine tom.... which machines did you end up demoing?
We demoed a Yanmar ViO55, Case CX50 and the Bobcat E50
Nice machine. I really like the way they did the paint job. Cab looks nice as well. Enjoy
It looks very nice and comfortable machine!
Do you mind if I ask how much you ended up getting it for?
With an enclosed cab, the thumb, 24" digging bucket, 52" grading bucket, the power tilt, and secondary auxiliary hydraulics it came out to $66,000
Just a bit off topic, but your company website is very nice and well presented. Looks like some nice projects the company has done.
Thank you for the compliment! I actually created the website and maintain it now, so its nice to hear you like it!
Nice machine and thanks for the great video's. I have the little brother, E32 and enjoy all the time I get to spend in it.
Nice machine I like it ! I saw all your video too on youtube it works good.
The 52" grading bucket and the hydro tilt came in today. I only got to try it out for a few minutes but here are a few pictures.
That's good.:thumbsup
Tom Looks great and I would love to have a tilt, but not practical on my machine. One question though. The reinforcements in the bucket are there for strength but I wonder if they are prone to having clay soil sticking in the bucket because of them?
Tom, Just curious if your web site brings in business or is it from refferals or other forms of advertising? By the way nice web site!
I would think clay would stick, but there is very, very little clay in NH, mostly sandy loam material so i don't think it will be a problem for us. But for people in other parts of the world it might be a problem.
Thank you! The website brings in some business on its own but we get 95% of our business from referrals. We don't do any advertising of any kind except for three, weekend long, home shows in the winter.
How about some pictures and videos of the E50 in action! YouTube - Bobcat E50 Removing Timber Wall
More YouTube - Setting Granite Steps With Excavator
More
You guys cant imagine how powerful this machine is, its just amazing. It will lift 8,0000lbs and i think i used just about all of that power to get these rocks out! YouTube - Bobcat E50 Moving Two Huge Rocks
Tom, what were your thoughts on the Case cx50?
I thought it was a good machine, not great but good. It was very smooth and had decent power. I thought the enclosed cab was small it didn't have a lot of room in it (I am 6'3" though). It was definitely better than the Yanmar but not even close to the E50 performance wise.
Good to know. Thanks Tom.
8,000#! IDK. That machine probably weighs about 16,000# (my guess) maybe 18,000#. My 40,000# machine can lift 10,000# barely. I am glad to hear that you are happy with that machine though. Good luck with it.
Glad you like your E50,and have been watching the videos. I have a 435 and I've been really happy with it. Lots of power and ability to lift. I will try one out to see if the hydraulics are tweaked much different, the spec sheets show higher breakout forces but I'll need to run one to compare. I think they are pretty comparable although I do like the fast track system and the dual ram on the blade so all the crap I pull over the blade fall on through. Look forward to more pics.
Here is the proof. This is the lifting chart that is on the machine, not bad for a machine that only weighs 10677lbs. The heaviest thing we have lifted that we know the weight of was a 5000lb slab of granite and the machine had absolutely no problem with it.
Well I stand corrected. I see your chart there. That 8,800# pounds is impressive... but not quite as impressive when you consider that this only applies to loads that are 3' below ground level. Once you reach ground level your load has to be over 2,000 pounds lighter. I assume that most hoisting will occur above ground and this is where I thought that size machine would fall short of an 8,000 pound lift. Again, I stand corrected, and I'm happy that you are happy with that E50.
My post doesn't add much, but TomG's videos on YouTube are well done and the E50 looks like a beautiful machine. I look forward to more videos in the future. I watched the Bobcat Advantage videos, which I'm sure are biased, but they are persuasive. I was looking at the KX161, now the KX057 as an alternative, but the KX057 is a about 10% or so more expensive for what looks like a comparable machine. I hope to have the finances together to purchase an E50 later next spring, just have to keep my nose to the grindstone and keep the spending down. More videos!
Ummmm... I bought the e50 last week and it should be arriving the week of Christmas. I couldn't wait! :bouncegri This sweet machine is going to help keep me from destroying my low back doing what I love: landscaping! (Daytime job is in the medical profession). It took me 4 months to move a measly 500 wheelbarrow loads of clay (digging out the back of a hill for a basement) and I still have at least 500 more to go for next summer. The excavator could literally do that in 2 - 3 days max. I'll have to cover it with a tarp until the snow clears in March, but I'll be sure to sit in it a couple times a month just for the sheer pleasure of it. I plan on keeping the machine for its and my lifetime. My wife's head nearly fell off when I got back from the bank after finalizing the loan, but I was able to revive her. I have long range plans that the excavator fits very nicely into. I'll post a couple pictures of it in the snowbanks up here near Minnesota's iron range when it arrives.
Forgive me but I have to ask. Why would you move 500 wheel barrows of material? Why not rent something and get it done? One last question and then I will mind my own business. A new 50 size mini ex seems like a quite a purchase for a part time landscape business. Is this your first piece of equipment?
Good question KSSS. I could rent, but then I have to rush, rush, rush when I had the machine. Owning my own machine would mean that I could take my own time, which I usually only get in small chunks of 2 hours or less at the end of the day. Eventually I'll use it to build my first house. I've been remodeling my starter house for 7 years and will be purchasing some land in 4 - 5 years to build a brand new house. If this purchase turns out to be a bad idea, its a small loss of a few thousand dollars on resale some time down the road. A person loses just as much value after driving most new vehicles off the lot. My impression is that this is a far better purchase that an equally expensive new Corvette which I could have blown my money on. I believe I purchased a machine that will help me enhance the value of each property I own from now on, and do it in a timely fashion. These boards have been quite helpful in deciding to buy a mini excavator.
Atta boy Tundra, Who wants to go running around in a 'Vette,paying insurance,paying tickets,not really being able to let it stretch it's legs,when you could be home w/ the missus doing what you love? And your right,this board is great! I don't realize how much I've learned here until I find myself digging away and a thought pops into my head...'hey there was a thread/comment about this,I need to watch here or don't do this'. As a non-professional,I caught a little flack (good flack) from co-workers about my mini-ex.But when the estimate for hand digging/replacing my perimeter foundation was 25-50K, the less than 9K purchase seemed a no-brainer.Specially considering the $900 in rentals I made prior to my purchase. Of course my 1250hr. TB-016 is no match for an E-50 but I don't have that kind of room. Skies. Jay.
Jay, Power to weight ratio could be similar between these minis.
Definitely post some pictures when it comes in! I bet your excited. You made a great purchase you wont be disappointed.
Well the E50 broke 100hrs. last week so here are some more pictures and videos. We absolutely love the machine and have no complaints about it at all. YouTube - E50 Clearing In Front Of Rock Wall
YouTube - Bobcat E50 Grading Swale
YouTube - Bobcat E50 Removing Stumps and Rocks
Hi TomG, I'm still waiting for my build date on the E50 (12/20/10), but I selected the long arm option. What are your thoughts on the long arm vs. the standard arm. I did an extensive internet search and found no pointers. The two major disadvantages I can think of are reduced hoisting ability with the bucket close to the machine, and reduced crowd force/arm force by about 20%, and also the extra size of the counterweight. Honestly, I'm thinking about taking this option off but wanted your input first, or anyone with experience using long arm vs. standard arm on any mini excavator. Thanks for your input.
We also thought about the long arm option but decided against it because we really needed as much lifting capacity as possible because of all the granite we do. Also the ground is generally very hard here so we wanted the max breakout force. You just need to look at what you want to do with the machine and decide if the extra 16" of reach and digging depth is worth loosing digging power and lifting capacity. The machine already digs to 11.5' so if your doing excavations deeper than that then yea definitely get the long arm but if your not... my opinion is go with the standard arm. Also remember that when you add the counterweight the machine doesn't remain a zero tail swing machine and it also adds 500lbs to the machine, so depending on how your planning on hauling the machine that might come in to play. But if you get the long arm DEFINITELY get the counterweight you will need it for stability.
i want an e 50 bad. i know it is only a matter of time. i cannot tell if you have the angle blade or not
We did not get the angle blade.
Thanks for the input on the arm length TomG. I called and changed the E50 build to standard arm. I skipped the angle blade too since I didn't see myself doing enough trenching to justify the angle blade option. I added the PowerTilt (+/- 89 degrees of tilt) with the 52" grading bucket. Initially I was looking at the HydraTilt, but it only gave +/- 30 degrees of tilt which seems handicapped in comparison. The PowerTilt is a bit expensive (~$5200 as I remember), but you make it look like an exceptionally useful attachment in your YouTube videos. By the way, you ought to get paid by Bobcat for promoting the E50 so nicely. No one else online has videos of the E50 as far as I can determine.
I am looking for a powertilt also for a 442 I have called 3 dealers in western Canada not one response of any kind , they all have to much money I guess . So what is a good after market manufacture or a good dealer .I have to ship regardless so I dont really care where it comes from.
Are you looking for a tilt that's independent of the bucket or one that is already built into the bucket? Because these guys make just the tilt mechanism's themselves. http://www.helac.com/
An independent would be best, thanks for the link that is what I am looking for.
Some more pictures and a video. Taking down a 50' Oak tree. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BtphqVbI_Kw
Last job of the year. The ground is frozen. Digging a 10' hole for a 36" sonotube for a pole that will support a solar panels .
Took down a few trees at a house the other day. The biggest tree was an 85' pine. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SuiInKxMKd8
More from the same job.
Your E50 looks awesome, looks like a very powerful machine too and your signage looks great. Well done =) Joel.
Thanks! We love the machine
yes very nice machine i wasnt particular to bobcat mini excavators but now with the e50 they are comparible to the cats the old series i found are under powered and also tend to roll ahead under extreme conditions the soil we have here is a very hard clay and is extremly difficult to excavate also loves to plug the bucket up bad if wet
Great looking machine. The Logo "Interstate" almost looks Photo shopped on in some of the pics. I have never seen so many mini's with enclosed cabs. I really like the enclosed cabs. When I bought mine they were close to double the price with an enclosed cab. Good luck with the E50. It is a great looking machine with from the pics TONS of Power.
Thanks! I can assure you it is not photo shopped. haha, just check out my videos. Yea the new modern enclosed cabs are great! We will probably never buy another machine with out one.
Have any of you guys demo'd the new Kubota kx057-4 looks like a nice machine
Well I haven't updated this thread in a while. So here we go... I have a lot of pictures, and videos, I'll upload them all over the next few days. I have 450hrs on the machine currently and I have had no problems. Wes still love the machine! Ripping up a asphalt driveway and replacing with brick. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lr-uhv7cBrc
More shots from the same job. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAFB8Ss56KE
Taking out some very big stumps to make way for some solar panels. Biggest stump was 32" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjOUietdYHg
More shots from the same job.
Digging up a back yard to remove an old pool that had just been filled in. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2GpVxRpYNE
More from the same job. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSFhwjHgfmI http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Vh9yetV6_E
TomG I am always amazed on how much work you do with that E50. I am glad it is working out so well for you. I love the videos and the new truck. We have been busy lately, so new equipment may not be too far down the line for us. I am envious.
WOW !! What a great machine. Your a lucky man my friend , a lucky man......... Semper Fi
Clearing out the woods at a house from some old storm damage. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=biMsp9NqjRU
More from the same job. It got a little muddy!
A small clearing job to make way for a in-ground trampoline. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDMw1BiPBlU
Random Job. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y55IutPUseo
Last set of pictures for this update, if these don't impress you then i don't know, haha. Small clearing job that had a lot of large stumps and some really big rocks! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WnO5m5TmIs
Some more from the same job.
Last two pictures. First one is of the E50 with our tri-axle. And the second is the E50 lifting a 11' x 5' x7" thick piece of granite weighing 6050lbs. It is the heaviest thing I have lifted that I know the weight of. Pretty impressive if you ask me. The power of this machine is unbelievable. Lifting the granite pad: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yviuG1n4ZZU Lifting 3,300lbs of brick out of our 6 wheeler. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxsjCZaEsVg
Nice paint job. We just demod an E50 about a month ago. We were updating our 334, and wanted to go bigger, but the E50 was too big, and the boss man did not want to hold on to the 334, so we wound up going with an E42. All I can say are these M series excavators are very impressive and night and day compared to the G series. I'm going to post a new thread with some pics of our machine. By the way, I think we seen you guys in Lexington befote.
Nice! I thnk you will really like your machine. Yea the M series machines are great! We go to the shemins in lexington all the time maybe thats where you saw us?
Not sure how to delete
We go in there on occasion, not much as we tend to stay away from planting trees and bushes as we don't want to have the headache of replacing them when the customer doesn't water them. Obviously when we do, we plant them right, but now we are usually working for one of our landscape contractors digging holes and unloading and planting. We do work in Lexington all the time though, so I'm pretty sure I saw you on Mass Ave. Nice trucks and machines you guys have, its scary how similar our fleets are. We used to have Ford 6 wheelers, now we have Internationals. We've always had Bobcat machines and nothing else. We have an S185, T190, and E42 that we just updated from our 334. The only non-Bobcat machine we have is an Ingersoll Rand WL 440 2 yard wheel loader that we bought from the Bobcat dealer when IR still owned Bobcat. And we are contemplating a heavy specd 10 wheeler as to keep some more trucking in house on the bigger jobs we are doing. And you must have your Class A CDL right?
Yea I do. Yea we don't do a lot of planing either but we get all our teco-bloc products from shemins. The internationals are great trucks, we have 3, six wheelers. Love them.
Hello TomG I was enjoying all the pic. you posted with you machine working. I noticed in some of the pic. you are spreading out material to make a smooth surface. I saw a cool trick that a operator was using. With his bucket and thumb he grabed a 10 foot length of railway tile , and used it to scrap, level and smooth a very large area very quickly.
Thanks for the compliment on the pictures. Was that video this one? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJMWTDCj6ak If so that's me!! haha
re No I did not see it on the computer ,I saw it live on a landscaping job in the area but that is the idea.
Looks great!
New E50 Hey Tom, First off , I love your video's. They are some the most informative on the web. I just took delivery yesterday on a brand new 2012 E50 and a GOPRO HD. The main reason I picked this machine was due to watching what it could do on your video's. Bobcat Company owes you a commission. Any tips or tricks on what, if anything to look for on my new E50 ? I would like to see a video on how to safety decend a steep grade and how to get back up in a safe manner. I normally run big equipment on mostly level ground but have been contracted to clean creek debris and most of the terrain is very scary steep drops and steep rises. On a big machine i have little to no issues with technique but on these little units what i have learned in my many years is not working well. I have almost killed myself more than once in the past few weeks. Anything you could tell me would be greatly apprceciated. the E50 outperforms all the others in my opinion. bobcat really stepped up on the new M series. Thanks for your time and thanks for the video's.........Farmer :usa
Pafarmer Did you demo any of the d series cat machines?
Thanks for the compliments, and yea I think they do owe me a commission!!!! Unfortunately I don't have any videos on how to navigate slopes, but I'll do my best to explain it to you. When going down slopes, try to go strait down, you don't want to get sideways at all. Always keep your boom facing down the slope to keep you from rolling and you can use it to help control the machine. When going up slopes, again go strait up, don't get sideways. Keep your boom fully out reached and facing up the hill. Remember the E50 is a zero turn machine so you don't have much weight behind you so the boom outweighs the rear of the machine. Also you can use the bucket to help pull you up the slope. Also if your still worried about the slopes, always keep your blade facing down the slope. If something goes wrong it will catch you and keep you from rolling over down the slope. You said you got a GOPRO, you done any videos yet?
E50 Yes, I tried a bunch of different machines including the CAT..........None of them held a candle to the E50. This machine is one powerful little unit. I felt the Bobcat M series was by far the best thought out of them all and the power is what sold me, and Tom's video's....They are an extremely nice unit. I am used to big machines and these little guys feel a bit unstable to me. The boom and stick is pretty heavy and on a zero tail not much weight is behind you. It's not a bad thing but feels allot different then what i am used too.
Thanks Tom. I guess what throws me off is the heavy boom and stick with little weight in the back. Funny feeling going steep with these little units. I really am not worried about tail swing so I think i am going to add the weight package to mine for the tougher terrian that i am in. I have a few Skidsteer and JD450 video's of a few jobs we just completed but I have little clue on uploading to "YOUTUBE" or how to edit. Just figured out how to run the camera. Need some time to figure these fancy electroics out....Any good free "Easy to Use" editor software you can suggest ?
You have a PC? If so, it comes with Windows Movie Maker, free. That's what I have used for 90% of my videos. If you have a Mac, I cant help you, haha. But I'm sure it has some sort of free movie maker on it.
Update? Awesome video archive!
Sorry No video yet, but I have over 450 hours on my E50 and I think its probably the best purchase I have ever made in over 35 years in this business. It's an awesome machine in every aspect. I have made more money with this BOBCAT E50 in the short time I have owned it than on most of my other equipment in their live time....Zero issues, Easy to move, Mizzer on fuel, Power to spare, Rugged, Fast cycling. In my opinion the best Mini buy far in this weigh class, All of the others simply can't measure up to it. I demo'ed them all and I couldn't be happier than with this E50..Been doing allot of land clearing. creek work and site prep, foundation, septics etc. with mine. Tom, How many hours on yours and your thoughts and opinion on your E50..........
pafarmer what series Cat did you demo ??
The 305.5 D and E model's....Way more money and not near as good in my humble opinion. I do own a Brand New 299D CAT CTL. A a few year old 312 Cat............So I am not adversre to paying more for less in the name of great support from my local CAT man but in this case it was not even close in my opinion on this weigh class machine. The E50 blew them all away hands down in every category.....My .02..........I know I sound like a BOBCAT salesman but I kid you not the E50 is an excellent offering.
I demoed the 305.5D in the Cat Dealers yard, I will stop by the Bobcat dealer this week. One thing I did like about the cat is the new coupler design enables you to turn the bucket around to dig under curbs, also I would like to get a long stick.. with the Bobcat the long stick pushes over the track with the added counter weight, with the cat it still stays zero tail. Even If I didn't get the long stick on the bobcat I would still get the added counter weight, the only negative I have heard about the 50 is its a little tippy. I need to get both in the field to test speed and power !! What was the biggest difference you noticed between the D cat and the e50 speed, trenching, or lifting. Thanks
Good luck and let us know what you end up buying. Wierd, somehow i buried part of my reply in the original post by Carl...
My E50 has about 650hrs on it and is still going great. Haven't had one problem with it. And to back up pafarmer, go try the machines, actually dig with them, lift with them, you will see why we like out E50's so much. POWER!!!!! haha. Here are a few photo updates. Pic1: Digging almost full depth Pic2: Lifting 3080lbs at almost full reach, no problem. Pic3: 52" grading bucket with Power Tilt Pic4: Lifting a Bobcat MT55
Also I got a new 36" Geth digging bucket. I highly recommend it. I have realized bobcats digging buckets suck, the pins for the teeth go in from the top so if you are squeezing wood or even concrete with the bucket and thumb the material will push the pins out and your teeth will fall off. With the Geth the pins go in from the side. The machine is a little tippy at full reach over the side but its not that bad. Probably the same as my 52" grading bucket with power tilt. I can really move some dirt with this bucket. I would say I can load a 6 wheeler or Tri-Axle faster than a skidsteer, if I'm positioned correctly. The best part is the E50 has so much power I can full out dig with it, no problem at all. And I have some every hard and rocky soil here in New Hampshire. Also the E50 is great for doing crazy excavator tricks with and getting you unintentionally famous on YouTube... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ftsg--DQCzs&feature=plcp
Carl, As they say , "try it , you are going to lover it" There is absoletely nothing left to say about the E50 ..In a word "Awesome" I like that 36" bucket Tom.....Did you buy directly from Geth ?... Looks like a must have in the bucket arsonal.. Our E50's is set up exactly alike. Minus choose cool logo's of Tom's...I have a E50 with the earth in the bucket and our company name under it....
Our local Bobcat dealer is actually selling the Geth buckets now. They are cheaper than bobcat brand and better made in my opinion. Apparently my dealership agrees.
Thanks Tom. I am going to look into getting one.
Thanks for the input guys !!
Seeing that 36" bucket on that E50 really makes me want to try one out. I think I'm gonna demo one this summer... I can think of a lot of jobs where an E50 sized machine would be perfect.
Hi Tom did you guys have any other problems with the Bobcat tooth bucket that you didn't like? I'm familiar with the lousy shank design that Bobcat uses, did you consider changing out the shanks for the standard horizontal pin type? On a different note I was wondering how you like the Bobcat MT55? I've been thinking about acquiring a similar machine on tracks as I've had a few calls for working in confined areas like small city lots etc.
Tom, Does you E50 make much noise in the travel motors/final drives? My unit only has around 250hr on it and the travel motor/final drive noise is quite noticeable. We had Bobcat come and inspect the machine. Both final drives had the same heat at 40 deg C and the technician had not had any experience with the E50 so he couldn't make any comment until he has heard another E50 operate. We've changed the final drive oil( and plan to do every 100hr in future) and it was burnt. We do quite a bit of walking on our site. Very happy with the machine but it does have a couple of things that we would like changed - when the safety bar is down the machine should not be able to be started and that when the key is turned off the lights should go out. All in all a very nice unit to operate with plenty of grunt. Firetrack
Sorry just saw your post now. We couldnt change to the horizontal pins because the teeth were welded on. The bucket actually broke on me last week, Ripped an entire tooth off. But it was found out that it broke because of a faulty weld, not my fault. haha. And my dealer ship fixed it for free and I had them change the teeth. The MT55 was nice, good for the job we used it on, it was a rental. Its just a motorized wheel barrow that can dig, cant really lift more than 500-600lbs. I guess its good for some jobs.
hmmmm very strange, no i have not had that problem... Mine doent make any noise and we have not changed the final drive oil. I have 650hrs on my machine now. Hopefully your dealer will figure it out for you, doesnt seam like you should be having those problems.
Broken bucket and once I got it back from the dentist
After reading tomg's posts on the e50 I whent out and bought one, it is a great machine! I got the long arm model and it can still lift fairly large boulders with no problem.
At work we have had our E50 for about six weeks, I did the spec's with the long stick,hyd coupler,thumb,24",36",52" buckets and the power tilt. It also has a bushmaster mower deck 48" and a us mower 48" flail ax. The machine is sweet to run just turned 18 hours last week. It is a little light off the side with the long stick while working but it has the power. Last week a crack showed up in the fuel tank where the bracket holds it in place and the plug came out of the muffler above the hyd pump. The dealer is working to get a new tank in, plug for the muffler, outer air filter with in the next few days. Like others have said it is a sweet and powerfull machine while mowing, cutting and digging and it will take alot of work off me for sure down the road.
E50 Congrats on the E50..........I too purchased one based on Tom's review of the machine last year. He is a great operator and an honest kid...........Every word of what he told me was accurate and I couldn't be happier with my E50.......Great machine. A real money maker since the day I took deliver. It has not sat still from day one. I always seem to have work for it .........
Tom, have had Bobcat tech guy come and have a look as machine is still quite loud when it walks. They seem to think it is OK but i am uneasy about it. Is it normal that the machine can be started with the safety bar down? None of my other machine have been able to be started with the safety bar down. Firetrack
Yea thats normal for Bobcat machines that it can be started with the safety bar down. Even my 2001 331 Bobcat Mini can be started with the bar down. What do you mean its loud? when walking? Do the drive motors make noise?
Tom, You can hear my travel motors from 300yards away and even further away if your tracking in high range. Both sides are the same. We have 250hrs on it and have changed the final drive oil at 200hrs and now plan to change it every 100hrs as we probably do at least 1 to 2 miles of tracking each day travelliing between drill pad sites and it is very wet conditions. We're going to put synthetic oil in the final drives. Bobcat are aware of it and advise it is normal. Firetrack
........I would not say its normal at all Firetrack........I have four times that in hours on my E50, Both drives are dead quiet....Just trying to help...:Banghead
I agree with pafarmer, I don't think its normal, mine are silent. But... 1 - 2 miles tracking a day!!!! Holy crap! Mine just rolled over 700hrs today and I probably have tracked 2 miles total... What kind of noise does it make? Squeal? Grinding? Humming? Etc...???
Was there obvious contaminate in the final drive's oil? Certainly doesn't sound normal.
i must say after watching almost all of your youtube videos you are one careful, precise excavator OPERATOR
Loud humming noise. No contamination in any oil samples taken. We change the final drive oil every fortnight on Friday afternoon and now use synthetic oil which has quitened it down some. I have a Hitachi Zaxis 35U(Same as JD 35) that has nearly 2000hrs(purchased new Dec 2010) on it that is doing similar work and its travel motors are quiet. Firetrack
I would be scared of that noise too. I would suspect the cogs but since you say that you are not getting any bad samples I would recommend that you start looking at the drive motors/hydraulics. Have you been sampling the hydraulic oil too? Who is analysing your oil? If you take the load off of it (lift a track off the ground and activate that drive motor, high and low range, both sides.) does it still do it? Based on my past experiences with Bobcat, I would not trust what they are telling you.
Firetrack, On my E50 the Faster travel speed does make a louder humming noise, not as loud as you describe, but it is there. On the slow speed it is dead quiet.
Thanks for all the information that everybody has posted on the E50. I've been looking at one for the last 6 months. I have only been doing small jobs with an 8811 attachment on my S300 and while it has done well, it has been slow. I'm ready to move into a real excavator. I think everybody has convienced me that I deserve an early Christmas present. The E50 with a nice red bow!!!
Do it!
After demoing the long stick E50 I ordered in an E55. Loaded with every option including extendable stick. Nice machine, much more stable than the long stick E50. We've put about 80 hours on it so far and only have had it for 3 weeks I think? I ordered a 36" Geith Bucket to go with it, waiting for that to come in so we've currently got a Bobcat 24" bucket. We've been trenching in a geothermal field so we haven't had the chance yet to load trucks but it seems like it should be able to load tandems and even semis from ground level with the extendable stick.
I think that my e-50 machine has been awesome, my operators seem to like it better than other brand machines of similar size that they have run. I only had two problems, one an out of the box throttle control failure and the other more puzzling problem is that it won't run off if chevron diesel, the machine just shuts down. My bobcat service department has been awesome, but no one seems to know why it won't run off chevron. I just use shell diesel now and it has been great. I don't think u will be disappointed.
We have been running an E55 for about 2 months. We tried the E50, but the 55 is much more machine. Faster hydraulics, longer reach. I am going with the 55. regards, Cd
What did you look for when the dealer delivered your new machine? Did you have them check the hydraulics to make sure it was pumping correctly, and the tracks to make sure they were properly tensioned? Any thought for me when my machine is delivered? Tony
For track tension there is usually a grease zerk behind a cover plate on under carriage just keep them pumped up with grease and you should have good tension. Thats how my bobcat 334 is.
Any other things you would look for? Tony
Make sure everything is tight pins,boom,undercarriage,track ware. Did you demo machine ?
Yes a 50 without a cab.....Largely based on Tom, I ordered a 50 with a cab, and a mower, two buckets....They said today that it was in production....I just haven`t had an excavator before, and wondered just what I should be aware of on delivery....Some have said that the accelerator switch was faulty etc....Tony
Unless you dont trust your dealer, the machine should be PDIed before your pick it up. You should get a copy of the inspection form if you want it to be sure it was all covered. I personally dont sweat that stuff. The machine is under warranty for at least a year so any defects that are there upon arrival should be found during the dealer PDI and certainly by you within a year. What I do check is to be sure that the machine is as I ordered it. I do this before signing for the machine. The mechanical stuff can be taken care off if its not right. Having a machine missing options that you ordered is a different deal. So compare your build sheet with the machine when it gets in. Once you sign for it its yours, you have no bargaining power then, but you hold all the cards in your hand before you sign on the line.
Thanks---I take what you say to heart---I trust the dealer, but like they say `trust but check`....Tony
How is that extenda-ho feature on the E55? Can you still use the secondary hydraulics for other things (like a rotating grapple)? Do you sacrifice any lifting capacity over the standard e55? Tx, mark
the secondary auxiliaries are good for running the thumb or other 'low flow' attachments, but it won't run my HB880 hammer at all, and will barely run a 15C auger. i dont know why bobcat has it plumbed that the primary hydraulics run the extenda-boom, makes no sense to me. On a tractor backhoe i've used the extenda boom lots of times with a breaker in a trench... on the e55 you have to disconnect the hydraulics going to the extenda-boom to run the hammer and then you have hydraulic lines flopping around unless you want to remove them and cap the lines every time you use an attachment (ya right) the only thing i dont like much about the extenda-boom is that it squeaks a bit against the teflon wear blocks which is normal for tractor backhoes as well we have over 200 hours on the e55 now and it's great for a small machine but I am going to figure out a way to do two things: 1 - relieve hydraulic pressure for putting on attachments, takes 3 guys to push the hoses on for the breaker on the e55 (no matter if it's running or not) but on the s185 or the t190 they go on no problem 2 - have the extenda-boom run off the secondaries my only other complaint is that the M series deluxe panel in the the hoes is very basic compared to the deluxe panel in the loaders
928G Boy To relieve pressure on my machine I turn machine on but dont start it and press aux hydraulic button then switch the toggle for your hammer,thumb etc. Dong this bleeds pressure from lines. This is how my machine is hope that it works for yours !
I think it's because OEMs don't want hammers run with the booms extended. I know this is definitely the case for hoes.
X2 on that thought. I have the same problem, installing and removing the hyd. lines, on my 435. Always have. I have talked to the regional rep about it and he thinks that there may be an issue with the accumulator (machine mounted, not the one in the hammer). I have always just cracked loose the hard lines, at the quick couplers, when connecting/disconnecting the hoses. I don't like it though. It's just plain stupid IMO. Why even call them "quick connectors". The skid loaders have a pressure relief circuit, like a case drain, in the connector mounting blocks. Excess line pressure is sent back to tank when the connectors are engaged. I'm not sure whythey don't equip the minis with them too. There are hydraulic hose connectors available that can be connected, and disconnected, under pressure. I am currently experiencing a mental block and can't remember the brand. They are available at a local hydro shop. Very expensive though (maybe $500 per pair). I think the brand is Stookie or a similer name...definately a German company.
Somebody showed me a trick a few years ago with a Bobcat 435 if you want to connect or disconnect a breaker or other attachment, you put the key all the way on with the engine shut down and the armrest down then cycle the joysticks and this will bleed off the pressure allowing you to put our auxiliary lines on.
awesome I'm gonna definitely try that thanks
This does not work on mine.
Sorry to hear that, this was the only machine I ever encountered where this technique worked.
Well on the 50 I tried to connect the hoses from the aux and had the same problem, in that the bleeding did not work...Any other way to release the pressure, other than disconnecting the line at the disconnect?? If I have to loosen the coupling, what do I expect? how much fluid do I loose, and do I need to do both of the lines ? Thanks Tony
What you have to do is shut the machine off, then turn the key one click so the machine beeps but doesn't start. Then hit the aux-hydraulics button and either pull the trigger on the joystick or toggle the thumb switch back and forth.(the ones that run the attachment) I use the thumb stick. Holding it in both directions for about 20-30 seconds. This works almost all the time. If it doesn't... Get a screw driver and push in on the inside ring on the male ended hydraulic couplings and the hydraulic fluid will drain out. Not a lot just a little that's in the lines and that works all the time. Just watch out if its under a lot of pressure the fluid will explode out! So try my first suggestion first, because that at least will relieve some of the pressure.
I did just as you said, but did not hold for twenty or more seconds in both directions....I also tried to push the on the inside ring, but that is like a brick wall..It didn`t budge...On the John Deere tractor of old, it had a ball bearing with the quarter moon of the bearing sticking out, and I could always get the pressure off by pushing it on the implement and of course getting a bit of oil sprayed on myself.....I`l try your program tomorrow , and surely hope it will work Thanks Tony
Yes ^^^ -ignition on -lockout down (so everything works) -eng off -aux hyd in in gauged (push button) Then activate the thumb circuit back and forth to relieve pressure in that system loop. Youll see the flex lines (rubber hoses) move around a bit as fluid drains. Then detach. Kinda a PITA process.
Thanks Tom----The holding the switch for twenty seconds did the trick......I also wiggled all the other controls, but I already did that so the twenty seconds is the key.....Again thanks as this was turning out to be a bad situation, as I sure didn`t want to have to get help everytime I changed things Tony
No problem. Glad I could help!
So this trick works on all the new Bobcat excavators like the 'E' series machines too?
Yes as far as I know. It works on my 2011 bobcat E50 and even on my 2001 bobcat 331. So I'd say it works on every bobcat excavator.
Works on every Cat machine too, also helps to do it prior to unhooking to alleviate any pressure in the tool. I've found that hooking hoses to themselves when uncoupled from machine helps in re-hooking later, also try storing tool out of direct sunlight if possible, the oil won't heat and expand making future hookups easier.
Good to know if I buy a Bobcat brand machine or a Cat I guess. I know I've tried this trick with other brands but it didnt seem to work.
I haven't been around anything but Cats in quite a few years but I can remember doing this with Volvo loaders, an EW170,(Samsung/Volvo) some older Hitachis, older Deeres, a Terex, and a Shaeff hoe.
Hey, My first post here! I just purchased a bobcat 435 and will be looking for an aftermarket thumb for it. Does anyone know the length of hydraulic hose I will need for a thumb.Hope this is not off topic to this post.Thanks and I sure enjoy reading this forum.
Hi Tom Yesterday I had the first chance to test out my dealer....The piston that tightens the track was leaking the grease out, and of course the track came off.....it apparently is behind the grease fitting, so may be a defective seal--- anyway they are picking the machine up tomorrow to fix it.....For me this is one of the important things before buying...Dealer Support....Tony
Was talking with our Bobcat salesman back in June when we purchased a T590. He saw the E42 and asked how it was. I said its been a great machine except for the tracks, we've had a track fall off probably 4 or 5 times in the 2 years we've had it. Luckily they have not fallen completely off, and we have gotten them back on in usually under 10 minutes. It's not just one side either, both tracks have fallen off. We had 2 334s one for 5 years and the other one for 6 years and lost a track maybe twice in 11 years, usually because we had been using the blade a lot and the tracks hadn't been greased in a while so mostly our fault. Salesman then mentioned that their is a service bulletin out that I guess in early E series excavator models they had a problem with the seals or grease fittings on the track tensioners that the grease fitting leaks out the back and after awhile enough grease escapes and the tensioner loosens up causing the track to fall off. We haven't had the time to lose the machine for a day but it is scheduled to go in to have the tensioners looked at, so FYI I would mention that to your service department if they did charge you to fix that. What wound up being the problem?
It was a broken zerk that let the grease back out --very sneakily--behind where you couldn`t see it...There was no charge, but in my case it is not a ten minute deal to get the track back on.....No other problems since that happened- twice in quick succession.. I think tomorrow I will check the tension and make sure after being used the last few months, that it hasn`t just adjusted itself a little.....A very good digger and mower and the dealer is fine ....Tony
Nice. Even though our E42 is 2 years old Bobcat said there still won't be any charge since it is unfortunately a known issue which they have acknowledged exists and is stepping up to make it right. Would expect nothing less, and I agree, Bobcat M-series machines are well worth their price and then some.
Depressurize thumb hydrailic circuit Permafrost-ed and TomG, thanks for bailing me out. Back in early 2013 you provided the solution to depressurizing hydraulics on a Bobcat E50. I needed to reconnect a line that had popped loose after brushing against a tree branch. -Working in the woods in rather tight quarters. Much to my relief, your instruction worked perfectly. -And that's especially good when you're using a borrowed excavator.
Yup, we've done that since our 334s since they don't have the relief fittings like the skids do. That's why we got secondary hydraulics on our E42 so you don't have to worry about disconnecting the thumb every time we put on the hammer. It's still a good practice to relieve the pressure everytime before removing and recoupling the hammer or another hydraulic attachment. If a hose falls off under pressure, or is taken off under pressure, before recoupling it's a good idea to relieve the pressure with the above method, and crack the female attachment side fitting to release some oil. Make sure you put a rag over the fitting so you don't get sprayed with hydraulic fluid.