Does anyone know of any manufacture that makes or made a compact track loader with steel tracks and not rubber? I seen a picture once of one and it looked like it had loader tracks on it that were steel. A friend of mine tried to say that ASV used to make them and I told him no and that I would find out who did. They are basically useless since the whole idea of a CTL is versatility in any job condition. I just want to see pictures and find out who makes or made them. I don't know if they are still made today.
Takeuchi Made a CTL with steel tracks back when Tak's were blue TL26? I could just imagine They would beat you up pretty good though. I don't know what ever happened to them.
i believe rayco makes one in the 90 horse range?:usa
yeah rayco do the C87L C100L and they look similar to the old asv 4810 http://www.raycomfg.com/c100lsolo.htm maybe your mate got them mixed up. Have seen a Tak with steel tracks as BAREIN discribed.
i just remembered seeing steel track ctl . it was made by a company called icc.
Fecon makes a copy of the Rayco. Identical machines. The gauge cluster has a Fecon sticker over the Rayco one! http://www.icuee.com/Documents/VTS/Brochure/0g60dJADQn/FTX905-06.pdf
Supertrak makes a steel tracked CAT mulcher. They have them in single and triple grouser... http://www.supertrak.com/PDF/SK140STR.pdf
Gimme their Steel tracks and I'll be a happy man, uncomfortable, but somewhat happy. Look at the HP and weight on that sucker though, 140 hp with 50 gallons of fuel and 16,000 pounds!!!!!!!
These machines look like mulchers wonder if you can put a bucket on them easily
Bobcat offers a steel track option on T750 and T770. I have never seen one so I can't offer any opinion on them
Cat is coming out with steel tracks for the 299d
I had also heard that Terex was going to offer a steel track option for their PT100G Forestry machine.
Got a quote from Cat for steel tracks on a 299D XHP. They are available, but the price is not for the weak-hearted.
Why not share your quote?
The main reason is that they are so new, the dealer doesn't really know how to price them. It requires a whole new undercarriage and the quote is so convoluted with shop time, parts swapping, and new components that I'm still trying to figure it all out. I hated to quote it here, be totally wrong, and look stupid, but with the minimal info I currently have on the deal, the best I can figure on this, they are going to run around 24k plus the cost difference between Cat's hi-flow option and regular hydraulics. So I'm guessing 27ish?? NOT cheap... So yeah, you can buy a lot of rubber for that. You'll get 3000+ hours on steel, but also a rougher ride. I'm guessing that it will be a lot harder to throw off the steel tracks and they are going to also push a little harder on these big CTL's. There's going to be an extra ton on the ground too, so ground pressure is going to change, but also hillside performance and operating weight.... I dunno... That price to me is hard to justify, except for the fact that I am going to be using the CTL just like a little dozer on rocky hilltops. I know rubber is going to get chewed up in a hurry....
Called my buddy who is a salesman for my local CAT dealer here in WI and the suggested list price for the steel track conversion kit is $16,900 , but they will sell it for a discounted price off of that (He thinks I'm gouging him for info so he wouldn't give me a quoted price even after I promised to take him Musky fishing on my secret lake). He said it takes about a day to convert from a current CTL to the steel tracks.
$16,900??? Something is really weird here. I'm being told mid-20's and that is AFTER Cat credits back the new rubber tracks AND the undercarriage designed for rubber. Hmmm..... It would be worth my time to run the machine up there and let your buddy's guys do it.... That price they gave me just did not make sense. I just shook it off with a, "That's Cat for ya..." but even then it seemed lunatic high. That's why I was hesitant to say anything other than "Holy crap, it's high." LOL This was tracks for a 299D too?
Even at 17K you can buy a truck load of rubber tracks. Once you put steel on it your done putting on improved surfaces. It would really have to be a particular application to justify that kind of price bump and negate the machine from running in anything but dirt.
I just texted him to get the part # for the kit tomorrow.
Yeah, you'd have to really need steel to justify it. I could see it performing well in really rocky/shale type applications with a brush cutter or maybe with a six-way blade in hard pan applications in tight areas kind of like a D2 or old Oliver Cleat.
I've never ran one with steel but I bet these new machines would push like a sonofagun with a set of them on. They would be harder to throw off and they would last forever too. I'm nowhere near improved surfaces, but lots and lots of stick-ups, stobs, and rock outcrops...Like KSSS said, a person can buy a truckload of rubber for 17k, but I'm still tempted to go the steel route if it's even half-way reasonable. I guess I've spent too much time on dozers.....
Here is the part number for the steel undercarriage kit- 376-8077
Thanks Digdeep. I got with Cat on that and they said the 16 was right, but that there is a lot of labor involved in taking out the factory u/c and that accounts for the price... ~shrug~ Who knows?
My buddy said there is a CAT bulletin that estimates 10 hours of labor for the conversion.
We just got a new 289 in with factory installed steel tracks. First one I have seen. We are actually swapping them to a 287.
Hmmm... These guys think a lot of their time. I'd like to talk to your guy and get a quote. It would be worth my time to take the new machine to him.
i think it was an option on some earlier models too. :drinkup
Here is a pic i took of the steel tracks. (little out of focus) They were on a 299D and were swapped to a 299D high flow. The machine was a Cat demo we bought from Cat, The machine going on a long term rent.
I'd really like to talk with you about these....
I think Lee would be a better resource for you than I am. He works on these for a living. I did get another number from my buddy. He said to have your service guy in KY look up REHS5766. I think its some sort of instructions for assembling the kit on existing machines. He said this would help your dealer meet the estimated 10hrs of work. They don't like to do work on machines from other dealer territories if possible.
Do they offer the steel tracks with double bar grousers?
We are installing a set of metal tracks on a 299D XHP at my dealership this week, I will make a write up and pictures for those of you all if you are interested.
Will going from rubber tracks to a grouser pad over stress the existing drive line? I am told a hydraulic motor is 10k! Legdoc
I have a friend who has a Bobcat T320 with an all steel uc
I wonder how big the market would be for these machines? I also wonder how much harder it is on the machine beacuse of the steel tracks rather then the rubber ones correct me if iam worng i would have thought it would work the engine a hell of a lot more.
I rented a T320 with a mulcher and it was pure hell to run hated every minute, rough as hell!
I understand that they change out the rollers and disable the two speed. A D3 is only about 80hp and weighs over 17000lbs, and the 299D XHP is 106 net hp and runs a 3.8L engine compared to the 4.4L of the D3. I'm sure CAT understands quite a bit about steel tracked undercarriages.
The CAT CTL has a suspension on the undercarriage, and an air ride seat so I would imagine that the ride would be smoother than the Bobcat.
I considered going steel on my 299D XHP. The economics worked out about the same regarding rubber or steel and it came down to performance. Steel is tough and it will push a little harder, but you sacrifice ride, speed, and you are putting more stress on a machine that was designed for rubber. My application is not enough where I had to have steel, so I stayed with the rubber tracks. I used to work for Cat Corp as an engineer. I called a few old buddies of mine and they all had concerns about the drive line and increased wear over the long-term. That made up my mind for me. For what it's worth....
Something else I wasn't real proud of was that it would slide sideways very easy, just the moisture in the wood while mulching would be enough to let the machine slide sideways down a hill, combine the wood on the floor and the vibration of the mulcher was enough Pj
I think it comes down to an exact application were rubber tracks would be destroyed regurally and the machine would never see pavement. If it was a more usefull set up, I think you would see it more often. This is just an extension of way too many people buying track machine just to have one and don't have a real need for tracks. That is about haif of my track customers.
Like when you see a tracked machine being used primarily as a forklift? lol.
We have a basement repair company that bought a slighly used T320 because it has higflow that does nothing but runs a drill head.