My F-250 Powerstroke (with the very good 7.3L engine) is almost 20 years old and lots of little things were starting to go south. The wife has been after me to buy a new truck so I after a few hours of research and test drives, I was all set to order a crew cab long box F350 SRW with the 6.7L diesel. Long story short that deal fell through, I got my F250 all fixed up and I decided to keep the truck and spend what would have been truck money (about $63k) on a mini-ex for our small ranch. We only have three local equipment dealers in our nearest small city - Deere, Kubota and Bobcat. I was very interested in the Yanmar but the closest dealer was over 100 miles away. Cat - 85 miles away (I really liked the 305.) So I was checking all of the usual equipment sites for a machine under (way under) 2,000 hours and the few I found in the 4.5 to 5 ton range that I would consider were around $45k to $55k. Our local Bobcat dealer installed a W.R.Long grapple on my Deere 4720 cab tractor and did a good job so I thought I would check them out for a hoe. I played a little on an E32 (no 42s or 45s on the lot) and went in his office while he priced out an E42. I was very surprised to find that a basically equipped E42 with a thumb, cab, 12" class 4 trench bucket and a 24" class 4 grade bucket and after discounts (cash price) was about $55k out the door. We have a Texas ag exemption so we don't pay sales tax on certain stuff for the ranch like equipment. Then I started thinking how nice it would be to have the hydro X-Change so I called back and ordered that. Then I changed the bucket order from a 24" grade bucket to a tooth bucket, added a 48" grade bucket, a ripper and added the 500 pound counterweight. We're now about $60,620 out the door. The build date will be Feb 18 for the E42s - and I was pleased to find the unit is built in North Dakota. I was also very pleased to find that even though this is a Tier 4 diesel, there is no regen or DEF required - well done Bobcat (and it has a turbo.) Now I wait...
Good luck with it
You will really be happy with that purchase! I bought an E35i a couple of years ago with nearly identical options and buckets and can confirm each choice. When the task calls for a certain bucket or the ripper, having what you need and the quick exchange speeds things up and greatly improves the result.
I think the hydro X-CHange was about a $1.6k option, thought it would be well worth the cost. I wish I had something like that for my Deere 4720 tractor so I wouldn't have to leave the cab to change loader implements.
We have a 42. 5300 hours and no issues. Their quick attach is pretty slick. The aux function has three settings so you can change your thumb speed and strength. Be careful in Rocky situations, you can throw a track pretty easy
That’s a bunch of hours, good to hear it’s been reliable for you. Parts of the property have quite a few small to large rocks, I hate to run over them even in the tractor. Running the dozer over them wasn’t fun either. Thanks for the advice .
You probably have picked the E42 up now. It comes to mind that the rubber track will need to be tightened regularly the first 200 hours or so and then not so much. Enjoy the rig!
I wish! The dealer called me a couple of days ago and said the E42 was built and is or will be on a truck headed this way. He should get it sometime next week and needs to do the PDI and install the radio. Roger on keeping the tracks tight!
Very happy with mine. Its been pretty trouble free. I threw one track at somewhere less than 50 hours. Being a newbie, realized I was running them too loose. Made a couple gage tools to check track tension and make sure its within tolerance. No troubles since (cureently at about 200 hours). Mine is pretty well loaded, with the extendable arm which is very handy. That option already includes a heavier counterweight. I just added the additional 500 lb counterweight on top of that. I run an Eterra flail mower and it gets a little tippy if I work too far off the side. Hoping the addional weight will help a bit. Otherwise, its a workhorse. Wondering how i got by for 58 years without it. Good luck with yours.
I watched your youtube videos - very nicely done and nice machine! I ordered the E42 with the standard boom/stick and the 500 pound counterweight - I wanted max lift and breakout power as possible (of course a limitation will be with the hydraulics.) Bobcat has some videos up that I watched, one of which was about tensioning the tracks. The guy used a 1/2" bolt as a gauge which I thought was a pretty handy tip.
Yippee, dealer called me and said my E42 has landed . They are going to install the radio and counterweight and deliver it Thursday.
So much fun with that new machine smell. Hope you get some good use out of it.
The E42 was delivered at lunchtime today and the salesman gave me a pretty decent overview of the machine. I got about two hours of seat time and it was pretty ugly, no muscle memory yet and that will take a bunch of hours to acquire. Trying to operate the E42 reminds me of when I was learning to fly, there are three dimensions when flying and it’s sort of the same with the hoe.
We need some photos before you get it dirty!
You're gonna love the E42 - I've got one as well. Great machine - super versatile
Here's a few pix from my phone. Things got so crazy yesterday I didn't take any with the big camera but I'll take more today. A few initial comments and personal opinions: The suspension seat is okay but not nearly as comfortable as the air seat in my 4720 tractor and the cab is quite a bit smaller than my tractor but all-in-all it's very functional. Operator ergonomics are pretty good, all controls were well placed at least for me, really big guys might have a completely different opinion though. The foot pedals leave a lot to be desired (or maybe I'm not used to them) since their isn't a bunch of clearance from the front of the pedals to the cab front. They also seem pretty sensitive - maybe not linear but logarithmic response, but I'll get used to it after a few hours. And the other factor is I have nothing to compare this one to, others in this size might be better or worse. Build quality seems very good, the cab is nicely finished out. Service access was really good with all filters easy to reach (much better access than pictures/videos I saw of Deer and Cat in this size range.) The right side access panel is one piece and hinges up and out of the way, the newer E machines (E35 and below) have a two piece right side panel which is a total PITA to deal with. The salesman gave me a walk-around of an E32 when I was shopping and it took both of us to figure out how to remove and reinstall the two piece panels. This seems like a huge step backwards in design and functionality but that's just me. The hydraulic X-Change for the buckets is amazing - I'm so glad I added this to the machine order, easy peasy to change tools.
Congrats! I'm a big guy, and I find the cab on ours to be tight. In the fall, with a heavy coat on, I find it awkward to hit the aux switch for the thumb. The thumb is really strong. Have to be careful loading asphalt as it breaks the bigger pieces. Like I said before, ours has been reliable so far, and it has multiple operators, sometimes 2 or 3 a day
That is one beefy looking ripper! I almost forgot what an E42 looks like stock.
Congrats look like an great machine. What kind of buckets did you buy with the machine? Looks like you have a few on the picture.
Thank you! I bought a class 4 12" trenching bucket, 24" tooth bucket and a 41" grading bucket (plus the ripper.) Haven't used the grading bucket yet. (We've been to Norway a couple of times, gorgeous country and one of our favorites.)
Sounds like your covered for most jobs than. Here in Norway all machines almost have an hydraulic grading bucket with tilt ore tiltrotator, like all over there have an thumb. I've never seen one with an thumb here. Yes Norway is awesome, now it's a lot of snow since I live in the northern Norway, so I'm looking forward to summer and I can start to dig something else than snow But I enjoy the winter on my snowmobile so that's great, all white mountains driving snowmobile. It's just beautiful
Nice machine....i wanted one....would have to wait to order one...they had e35 in stock so i got that one...regret it everytime i get in it....42 is way stronger and darn near same foot print...great decision on your part...good luck with it
Thanks! As I studied the Bobcat line of excavators I noticed there seemed to be a dividing line between the smaller minis and the almost-midi to midi range. The E35 and smaller are the smaller minis, the E42 and above are heavier with more breakout, lift, etc capacities. Actually the specs among the E42, E45, E50 are very similar with some weight differences and reach. Most of the E42 and above have the same hydraulic GPM flow rates except for the largest E85. My E42 weight is about 9200 pounds, I've added the 500 pound counterweight option and the buckets weigh over 400 pounds so my operating weight is right at 5 tons. By the way - my Bobcat dealer said BC is going to add a 15 ton machine to the lineup!
Sounds like you guys pretty well answered my question of what size mini excavator is worth having and which isnt right? Do you guys think the E42 has enough horsepower?
Horse power in wheel loaders and excavators...is... well subjective and not as relative in these machines...
There are a few different factors at play when choosing a mini-ex. Since we're in a fairly rural area (closest large city is 85 miles away) I was primarily concerned about dealer service. My short list of machines was the Kubota, Deere and the Bobcat. Any one of those three in the 4.2-ish metric ton range would have been fine. I would have seriously looked at Cat but there's no local dealer. As far as horsepower it's up to the manufacturer to match the engine to the hydraulics and the hydraulics to the mechanical and structural design. The E42 seems to have very fast cycle times and plenty of power but I have nothing to compare this to. One other aspect of picking a machine is its weight - I wanted one under the magic 10,000 pound limitation between CDL license and non-CDL (although I do have a Class C CDL.) The weight of the E42 is no accident, I think it was specifically targeted to the under 10k weight market.
It is no secret that machines are built with DOT regs in mind. I have been in the discussions with some of the OEMs regarding it, so I know first hand that it is a major decision concerning machine sizing. I will take the opportunity to say my piece on the matter. Choosing a machine simply to stay under the DOT regs CAN be a classic case of "stepping over a dollar to pick up a dime". Again, some situations where being under DOT regs or needing a machine just over and would likely be a good reason to go under to save the hassle. However, I would caution the flawed thinking that I see all the time, in that a contractor needs a 5 ton machine but goes to 3.5 ton or less to save the DOT hassle. When you consider the loss of productivity and work over the life of the machine, it makes more dollars and sense to accept the additional regulations and buy the proper machine to meet your needs. I get the headaches involved in DOT regs, but we are in the business to make money and the productivity leap from a 3.5 ton to 5 ton is significant. I went from a 3.5 to 6 ton and found the larger machine went into 95% of the jobs the smaller machines went (granted the 6 ton is near zero swing/zero tail) but with a huge increase in capability. It expanded the jobs I could do with it and the speed at which I could do them. So when you find yourself selecting a machine to stay under the regs, I would make sure your making the selection with ALL the factors in mind. Lastly as stated, HP is not a definitive way to compare machines. The pump configuration, and how the engine compliments the layout are much more important. With that said, for many turbocharging is important. Working at elevations of up to 10K I find that turbocharging makes a huge difference. Also hyd. flow and pressure is important when running certain attachments like mowers, mulchers, hoe pacs and so forth. The machines with higher flows and pressures tend to be higher hp machines (but not always). So there are a lot of considerations to be made when choosing the right specs to meet your needs.
I could be wrong as different areas have different rules. But I’m fairly certain you need to ad the weight of your trailer when towing. So you will need a CDL with a 10,000lbs machine. I have a E32 and with my trailer and extra buckets I’m sure I’m over 10,000lbs by around a 1000lbs
Be careful in them trees, ma ma be mad if you break that new windshield