Looking at purchasing a new CTL to use for forestry mulching, stump grinding, etc. Of course it will be ran in imperfect conditions as well as slight grades. Running these mulchers I'm under the impression put alot of stress on the loader so quality is key. Any other recommendations are welcome.
there’s a couple threads about just this... seems CAT has the edge when it comes to dust HeavyEquipmentForums
If this is a new world your just looking to get involved in my suggestion is to take your money and invest it in *******, the odds of making money are much better but if your dead set on loosing lots of money then by all means it’s the CAT without question. The Kubota will simply make you go broke faster LOL
That was my thread, I bought the Kubota, probably should have gotten the Cat, actually probably should have gotten a Cat 299D3 XE. The AC in the Kubota is, indeed, anemic. It isn't good even for non forestry stuff. In fact, I'm ordering some DC fans and a rheostat to put additional fans between the heater core and the evaporator coil to improve my air flow. Sometimes it blows great, most of the time though, it's barely any airflow. This is after cleaning the coils and replacing the filter, I'm actually thinking the problem is the blower motor itself but, it's difficult to get to and stupid expensive so I'm going to try adding the additional fans first and see how it goes. I'm also probably going to put an auxiliary hydraulic cooler on it. Can't really run the mulch head for more than a couple of hours without one. I like my Kubota other than the AC, it's got enough oomph to run the mulch head pretty well for my uses (at least until the hydraulics get hot), which is mostly road and fence line clearing and maintenance with the occasional larger area clearing. All the other implements I have it runs great. For what it's worth, I don't think any CTL is right for running a mulching business. They're great for the tighter areas with lots of stuff you don't want mulched or doing stuff like fence lines and roads but, if you're trying to clear land for real, you need a dedicated machine that's purpose built for this. It's tough on the machines, wears tracks out fast and it's really hard on the operator, even if the AC is working properly and you have an air ride seat. A Barko or bigger Fecon tractor is really the right choice if you're going to be serious about it. In fact, when I get to the point of actually clearing more than just roads and fence lines, I'll either be renting one of them or I'll buy one to do what I need and sell it when finished. There's no way I'd spend all day, every day in a CTL running a mulch head for pay, or even for myself.
OK, so after reading this thread, maybe the Kubota was the right choice after all... HeavyEquipmentForums
Let me know how your extra fans work. We have 95-2 and yes the blower sucks. I too was thinking of adding a fan to move the air around better.
Like said do something else if u want to make money lol. It’s true. And yes all skid steers w mulchers are over working themselves. Purpose built machines are crazy expensive though.