My local Kubota dealer trying to sell me a SVL75 with cab, so to persuade me, he loaded a open cab wide track 75 on my trailer to use for the weekend. Put about 3 hours on this this afternoon, first impressions: seems to have good power for the size, breakout seems a little weak but it does have a long bucket with teeth, pilot controls seemed really sensitive but did get used to it after a while, relatively quite compared to my old JD6675. Did well pushing dirt on flat ground but slowed quite a bit on my hilly terrain. Hope to demo a Cat and Takeuchi over the next few weeks, interesting that my local Deere dealer is not interested in supporting a demo. Anything I should pay attention too when comparing the brands?
I still waiting for a Taki 12V2 to get here for a demo. They are still installing the permanent H pattern in Ga. I would like to here what you think the new Tak.
My local tak dealer has a TL12 I like, I would have like to demo the Kubota 95 but dealer said they are 4-5 months out on delivery. I plan on demo'ing a Cat 299d2 if possible.
Thought I would update the thread with the units I have demo'ed so far. This week I demo'ed a Tak TL10, TL12 and a Bobcat T740, T770. A little background on use, I want a CTL for work around my farm property, eg- dirt work, pond cleanup, tree removal, driveway work, sawmill work... and overall general whatever hits me to do work. I do want hi-flow hydraulics for future uses that may include a small mulcher. The Tak's first, the TL10 felt very strong and had good breakout compared to the SVL75, and seemed to do well when digging into a pile of dirt with no problems operating mulitple controls (the Kubota slowed quite a bit), they both had what I call very sensitive controls, eg- small control movements at max engine speed made for very quick almost jerky movements of the unit, especially movement side to side. Cab is very roomy and gave good visibility of the bucket, and I had no problem seeing around me as I have been told by a few folk who own one. The TL12 is in it own zip code to me, not sure what you really compare it too, maybe a Cat 299, it feels like a small dozer when compared to other CTLs I tested so far, this would the best choice for dirt work in my mind. It was actually a touch more fun to drive for some reason, maybe cause it just fills the bucket without complaint. I would have liked to had the time to run it down to my pond and drive up and down the dam to see how it handled a steep incline cause the weight is 1000-1500 more than the rest. Both Bobcats seemed more refined compared to all the rest, overall felt they had ok power and no problems with breakout, controls were more controllable at max engine speed and felt more comfortable making small movements in close quarters. Cabs seemed smaller than the rest and noisier which was surprising to me. No problems seeing the bucket but seeing to the side was the best so far, it felt as if they were narrower than the the others. Much better ride over rough ground than the rest, which was nice. Both units are the same size, really just a HP and hydraulic flow difference. I still working to get a Cat 289 or 299 to my sandbox this week, not sure if I will get a SVL95 demo'ed before I buy a CTL, dealers are over a month out on getting one in and my two closest dealers already have the ones they are getting in sold. So far, based on quotes and functionality, the Tak TL10 seems to be the best bang for the buck, similar specs to the SVL95 (I have to trust it would demo similar to the others) and T770 but several thousand less. Cat is 10k more than the others but I have yet to demo to see if I get 10k more... I am interested in others opinions, I am not married to a brand (I will admit to liking most things Cat). I have dealers for all the brands I have mentioned within 5 miles of me, so parts and service should not be a problem (they all seem to have good reputation for service).
It is all about what you think. I would try a CASE TR340 or 310 and see how they compare to those you have run. Everyone has their own idea of CTL bliss sometimes there is agreement and most times there is not as to what that is.
More units demo'ed I demo'ed a CAT289 and a NH C238. The Cat was a nice overall unit, ok power but did not wow me, breakout seemed weak. It was a comfortable to drive as the Bobcat and the on the verge of being quite. The easiest to enter of the door opening out units so far (still like the Kubota slide up door) but did not feel as good in the cab as to being able to see around me. About 7k more expensive than the least priced one to date. The NH C238 was almost counted it out without testing it cause the dealer did not want to bring one out to test but they had a testing area that had gravel, dirt, small hills and a muddy area. They also allowed me to put other attachments on it to play with which was nice. The unit had great power, good breakout and seemed to be very controllable with the second best ride (Bobcat is class of the pack). Had the highest hyd flow but midpack pressure. The quietest unit by a mile, no earplugs needed, the other units could only match it when off. Within 1k of the least priced unit. Overall, the NH surprised me and is stuck in my head now. I have demo'ed all I will, now comes decision time. I still like the Tak but the NH is a strong late comer...
Just my .02 if I was in a position to buy a new machine I would not buy anything that did not have a fully welded and integrated undercarriage like the Tak's and Kubota's have (I cannot speak for NH because I have not seen their new ones). I am not a fan of the Bobcat bolt-on undercarriage or the Cat torsion axle set-up (although the Cat D series ride well). I also love of the convienence of a roll-up door, but it is all about what's more comfortable, price worthy and best performing to you.
The only problem I see with new holland (speaking as a former owner of a NH excavator) is re sale value. The value at the beginning was greater but when it was time to trade in/sell it wasn't as desirable a unit. Also NH is a shell company meaning over the past 10-20 years they have changed hands many times and were cheapened up to make them more desirable. I liked the kubota svl95 I have been able to borrow from another contractor and felt it was jerky like you said but my bobcat (wheeled machine) feels jerky at full throttle also. I use the foot throttle to control speed of the machine and it seems to help. Bobcat is a good brand but you pay for it. Good luck!
I posted in your other thread, but I wont touch another CTL from CNH. I bought an SVL90...about the last one in Texas from what I gather. Breakout with the short bottom high cap bucket isn't quite as good as the Case TR320 I had, but the 90 pushes a whole lot harder and lifts a bunch more. It's also nice to lift the Kubota's cab and see that some thought went into routing hoses and wiring. The Case' guts looked like the aftermath of a silly string party. I actually would have purchased a 95, since it does multi-function better than the 75 or 90, but I wasn't ready for a machine requiring blue juice. Not yet anyway. I would've been happy with a TL10, but for me the choice came down to the dealership. Edited to add: I can't believe your Kubota dealer doesn't have a 95 to check out, my dealers had them in stock for months. They even have one in their rental fleet.
I find no fault with the TL10, except the door is clunky compared to the Kubota but that is about it. My only hang up or I would have already bought one is the dealer, they never return calls. If you want something, you have to go there and corner someone. Two kubota dealers within 80 miles do not have any, that is why I demo'ed a svl75 with hopes it had what I wanted. All say they will have one at the end of August, one dealer willing to go get one but wants money first, I want to test first. I noticed a dealer in NC that has several, not sure why he has many when the dealers around me have none. Have a T770 being delivered tomorrow to test again, the first one I demo'ed had hand and foot controls, Bobcat salesman wanted to make sure I get apples to apples comparison and test a joystick version. I see more Bobcats around than any other brand, Cat second, a few Tak, no Case, NH or Kubota.