Hello I just joined the forum. Lot of good info here. I am in the market for a Bobcat SS. I currently have a 60hp 4WD tractor with cab, FEL and Power Shuttle. I do a fair amount of loader work and I can not see my bucket edge, loader work is slow compared to a SS and it is a beast when I am using my 7' brush mower in tight woods trails. I am looking at a 2011 S650 with 1100hrs and a 2013 S590 with 287 hrs. The 590 is $1000 more. The S650 has more HP and a bit more lift capacity, 2690lbs vs 2100lbs. Not really a major difference. I will use it for brush cutting, tilling some small food plots (50' x 80' each), general around the home projects, snow plowing, grapple bucket work. Most of the terrain will be dirt, gravel, woods, mud, little to no concrete or asphalt. Both are nice machines but I will be putting on OTT tracks from time to time especially in the spring. I have no experience running OTT tracks and have no need for a CTL. Would it be better to get the S650 because of the higher HP to minimize power loss with the tracks? How about steel tracks vs rubber OTT tracks? Any advice? Thank you for the help
I may be wrong but I think he 500's are a smaller machine than the 600's so what is more important to you maneuverability or stability?
To me, 2100 vs almost 2700 is a *big* difference in capacity. I've had the occasion where I needed to lift/move some objects that were at the outer limits of my machine by the time I had a chain at the edge of my bucket, or pallet that protrudes out a ways ...and it was frustrating and time consuming (and even a little dangerous) having to jerry rig a way to do it. And even if you're not quite at the limits, the machines get bouncy over uneven terrain so the extra capacity would aid stability. All else being equal, I'd want the extra capacity. But there again, maybe you can use your 60hp tractor for those heavy objects, and the smaller machine may provide more maneuverability. So I guess it could cut both ways. Is your terrain flat or hilly?
I have an S630 which is the radial lift sister machi e to an S650, it has an ~2200# ROC (ROC is half of the actual tipping wheight) and it's very capable of doing the things you suggest. I run a 1700 # mower and it's very stable even when on a slight downhill when you pick the mower up a few feet. I have an older 763 (46 HP) with grouser style OTT tracks and it doesn't seem to eat up much power when they are on, it does just fine so I wouldn't consider it a big factor. You may want to spend more time evaluating the hydraulic HP differenses in the two machines if you will be doing a lot of brush cutting. Mower recovery time is soley dependent on Hydraulic HP and having the correct mower for your machine.
Welcome to the Forums G21C!:drinkup If you will be mowing with it the S650 will handle the mower better. I have a Bobcat brand brush cat and I didn't like using it on the S250 we had at the time, it was too tippy.
I rented one of the Bobcat mowers years ago to run on the 763 (1500# ROC), it was a handfull, those things are heavy out front. Ha
The S590 is the replacement for the Bobcat S185, best selling skid steer for its ten plus year run. Hours are very important in my mind. The S590 is two years newer and has 25% of the hours that S650 has. Lift capacity is important if you move pallets, not as important with dirt moving. The 7 ft brush mower will be at the upper limit of the S590. 5ft mower is better suited to the S590. Which engines do these machines have? I would prefer the kubota over the Doosan/Bobcat engine. See other threads on here about the Doosan engine issues. That being said, there are 1000s of them out there and Bobcat says they are fine. Big rental yards run them and keep buying them, can't be all bad. JMHO.
Thank you for the replies. I will be going with a S650 with wheel spacers for OTT. Now I need to decide if I want high flow or standard flow. The brush mower I am looking at comes in both standard and high flow. The 2011 has the HF and the 2015 is the standard flow but has the A91 package vs the H51 on the 2011. Both have 1400hrs. Is high flow worth it? The brush cutter standard GPM range is 16-25 and will still take down 6" stock. I would be on the upper end of the standard flow and have a few more option with the A91 package, air ride seat, joystick controls, soundproofing, ect. The high flow mower needs 30-38 GPM so I would be on low end of the high flow at 30 GPM with the 2011. $2000 more for the 2015 but has a warranty yet. Thoughts? Thank you
If you find a hydraulic HP calculator and put in your specs for std and high flow you will see the difference in hydraulic horsepower you will be working with. I would also recommend against being at the very low end of the ratings for a mower, the blade speed makes a big difference when dealing with thicker trees and material.