we have a bunch of these.i dont run them too often but i guess they are ok..the loader operators seem to love them..too many buttons and switches for me and the controls seem dead..like you cant feel anything..i like the old cat 950's with the long levers..seems like you could tell when you were cutting a tenth..with these new ones i'm usually a foot deep before i know it..must be getting old
No not really, in my opinion volvo loaders are not worth much.
Well, they're leading the race on wheel loaders. Other brands investigate and copy what Volvo is doing... Nobody will admit that in public, but under four eyes the competitors admit that Volvo is number one on loaders.(And i have discussed it with many on the big fairs) Have a test run in same size loaders and you'll understand why. As said by reddot556, the operators love it. The new F models got electro hydraulics, so it needs some time in the seat to get used to. After some hours and a right adjusted bucket levelling system you'll levell on the tenth... Just :IMO
I've got time in volvo loaders and i was just a glad to see them go back to the dealer as i've ever been about anything, i've been in them from a 70 up to a 330. The dealer shipped them over to demo and when compared side by side with the kawasakis we had in the quarry they didn't stand a chance. It wasn't just me but all of us in the quarry had the same opinion about them, the cabs where loud, they lacked power, in my honest opinion they are not up to grade with other manufacturers.:beatsme Just ask Coalburner. But I will say this about the 70 we had, The heated seat was nice.
It sounds to me like they wer nt Volvo loaders At all, Volvo rates it self very high on operator comfort and the ''E'' range has a lot of power at low rpm. Have known some die hard long term Cat operators converted to Volvo.
Here is a picture of brand new Volvo L350F delivered to Mill in Northwest. It has the CDC and electo-hydraulic controls. Impressive machine is all I can say.
we rented a john deere the other day cause all the volvo's were busy. this machine was about the same size as the volvo pictured. it was brand new. i loved it. no key to start..you entered a code, plus it had a tv screen in it hooked up to a camera in the back so you could see where you've been!! it was pretty cool but i'd like to see it after 2 or 3 thousand hard hours.. probably nothing would work..it did look like the bridge of the starship enterprise when you started it tho..all those pretty lights and buttons
"the cabs were loud" ? .. that can not have been above 1990 years model. (or the quality on Volvo's are muchmuchmuch better in Sweden than in US) "they lacked power" ? bucketsize? Unfimilar with the tp-linkage?
We have one at work I ran now and again until it's regular operator came back. Decent cab and I generally like the layout as well as that little floor switch to lock everything in for some hard digging. The bad side is that it has fairly low hours and has no down pressure and would cost an arm and a leg to fix (company ain't fixing). The ride is rough for a loader of it's size and age and I'd like more lifting power. Another bonus though is the parking brake switch is not obvious so when the boss and I were fixing the plant and let a driver load himself he could not figure it out and we laughed while listening to the brake buzzer when he put it in gear. I do like Deere though.
absolutly my favorite loader, hands down. whups a cat all day long.
Volvo Loaders The Volvo loader is rated as about as good as it gets in the U.K. and would be the common front line bit of kit in most Quarrys/Sand pits, CAT still sell plenty of loaders in the U.K. and also are thought to be top bits of kit, the parts and back-up from these 2 Co's is of the very best, plus the kit holds a good value through out its life, sadly we do-not have J.D. kit sold with any force in the U.K. so I have no scale of how good or bad this brand is, Komatsu make some great loaders but the back-up is always found lacking, plus the parts cost is another issue, even the parts sales people laugh as they push the Bill over the counter, they also tend to rust away etc in our not to dry climate. tctractors.
These blokes are friends of mine and they have been running Volvo loaders for years and swear by them. http://www.krusequarries.websyte.com.au/site.cfm?/krusequarries/1/ There are not a lot of Volvos in this state, compared to Cat and Komatsu and while I have not operated them, I would not be too proud to own one. Our main loaders are Komatsu and we are very happy with them, but as everyone says, the backup leaves a lot to be desired. tctractors, that is an interesting point about the rust, because even though we are in a very dry climate compared to you, our Komatsu's are rusting quite badly in the cabs around the windows. Rn'R.
Rusting The rust factor as Rocksn' Roses has pointed out is very much a down side with the Komatsu kit, Volvo make a first class (if not the best) job of painting their equipment, so rust damage and grotty looks are not common to see even after 10 years working in Quarry's, the Dump-truck skips are smooth sided with no ribs so no rust pockets, I must admit to drive a Volvo after a CAT takes a good bit of adjustment due to the totaly different way things are set out, the Swede Machine is realy built for a different part of the World with loads of frost and a harder life, and to work not as the best/fastest shovel ever built, but to do it 7 days a week with out any snags, the fuel factor is now realy starting to hurt in the U.K. and Volvo engines are masters at only sipping from the cup. tctractors
Around here, they liked the old Michigans, then when Volvo bought them out, they kept going with them and keep on buying them. I've heard good things about them and I can't say I've seen one broke down or in the scrapyard yet. But there are a few who like the Cats and Deeres, which also seem to go pretty good. Haven't seen too many Kummagatsus around here, but the Suzio-York Hill quarry does have a WA900 which is incredibly huge (and an old Clark-Michigan 475, also incredibly huge).
As tctractos say ... Volvos come from a different world then Caterpillar. The domestic market, even though it is a tiny thing for Volvo nowadays being that they are #3 in the world, is demanding. Operators expect and demand topnotch cabs and companies are willing to pay for it cause a worn out operator is expensive due to how system for sickleave works. Hydrualic quickcouplers and "extra" hydrulic functions are standard, labor is expensive, if you can save in one guy with a shovel the price of that tilting bucket is soon saved. Also machines are expected to regulary work and perform in temperatures down to atleast -20C often clearing snow and spreading sand and salt so they are used to harsh enviroments. Our timber industry is very important and for handling timber at sawmills and papermills Volvo and a local brand called Ljungby got the market totally cornered. I read an article last year or something about a mill trying out Caterpillars for that roll (We call it "highlifter") but they had to give up. The machines would simply not handle it. I do think there was some trouble with the front axel not taking the strain. I doubt that was cause Cats sucks .... But they tried to use them as they would a Volvo/Ljungby and it wasnt built the same way so things failed. Another configuration on the lifting equipment maybe would have yielded a perfectly good timber handling machine! Maybe it is the same in quarrys in america. People are used to Caterpillars but a Volvo might handle differently and might need to be used in a different way to gets it worth from it.
Yeah I have to Agree .... They do make a great loading tool. The older loaders with the ZF trannys are excellent machine's. Volvo Also make there engines which are very good units as well. The Elec - Hydro controls do feel a little numb but I dont operate machines. They're leading the race on ADT's aswell
Agreed on the operator comment. We have Cat, Komatsu, Kawasaki, and Volvo loaders in the 2 to 4.4 yd range. Almost to a man, the operators prefer the Volvo. I do remember demoing a 120D back in 2000 and thinking it under powered, but I don't have that complaint on the 'E' series. The cabs are spacious and quiet, and we haven't had any reliability issues to date (I have a Komatsu that's gone thru 3 transmissions in 4000 hrs.). Can't speak on the 'F' series - never been in one.
bringing a pipe
I dont' have alot of time on loaders but each volvo I have ran has been a very good machine and I've seen alot of higway depts and quarry compaines using Volvo loaders only. The paint is second to none and after spending all day in one at times I feel better at the end of the day when in the Volvo's. Don't get me wrong we have some nice Cats as well as some Komatsu's. Alot of times it has to do with the operator and how the machine is set up for the application it is being used for as to if it is a really good loader or just another one you have. Trbo
Love Volvo. Love Cat.
I have spent many hrs in L90D's and they were the most comfortable machines to operate, smooth with lots of power, (work was in a compost/bark yard with stockpiling and truck loading work all shift long.
i have a volvo 4500, i think it is about 1985 model,i bought it about 15 years ago , had new sleeves and pistons about 1000 hours ago, still on original transmission, final drives, hydraulic pump, has worked hard, i think they are brilliant loaders.
You must be talking about the new K's. They are pretty sweet. Here is a couple shots of the cab you are talking about. Keyless start is pretty sweet on these machines. That last picture is the embedded payload scales that is an option.
I love those new k series. I have a 08 644J, and I'm super jealous, lol. Thing I don't like about the new volvos is that they hardly look any different then the old ones we have. We have michigan loaders from back in the 80's and there's hardly any difference. Time for a much needed face lift if you ask me
we have a 330 in our pit and it runs great till it breaks and it breaks alot i was running it this summer and the heated seats were kicking on with out me putting them on. so i took the fuse out ant it was fine so the next day the auto greaser stoped working so i the mechanics came the they called the dealer. so they came out well i told them that i took that fuse out and well come to find out the heated seats and the greaser share a fuse and well all in all they had to cut out the seats cause the dealer couldnt fix it and it cost 2 grand for them to come out for the day we lost a day of crushing and um the other day my boss was asking me about 988 cats hahaha cause im kind of a nerd on equipment
well for the people who dislike volvo, i disagree with that, run a volvo L120 and L150E mind you without buckets but with graples, and like them but also solid rubber tires, but hate Liebehr wheel loaders, the hydrostatic trannys in those i hate personally.. as for the options on the volvos i've ran they work ok, but then too we use ours probably far and beyond the manufactors max recommendations... but no complaints
oh i dont hate them but you know i everything you get lemons we have a 150 and 90 and they are great also two 220s and one runs fine but the newer on is kinda craper and the 330 is junk
I'm new to this forum, and just a little less than 2 yrs running equipment. I've ran Cat, and Volvo loaders. We have 3 E model L90s and 1 C model L120. Of those I love the L120. The company that I work for is a small contractor, and has projects spread out over the western half of the state. They are always "stealing" the L120 from us. When we do get it back, we fight like heck to keep it. I'm looking forward to the next couple of weeks, cause I'll get to run it non-stop, loading a pug-mill, and stock piling. I've never had a complaint about getting a bucket from a pile. Just need to know the tricks of the machine to get it to work for ya! I think with any loaders the same holds true..
I run a L150E in a sand quarry feeding a washplant. This machine is by far the most comfortable machine i have operated and i would prefer it over anything. We also have a brand new Hyundai 770-7A and the volvo beats it at anything....And the volvo has 14,000Hrs in the clock.
Here She Is. ...
The L350F replaced the L330's about a year or two ago after a long development/testing process. Much has changed in about every system. Might be worth checking to see what's changed if nothing else.
its right
We switched over to Volvo from Caterpillar in 2002 or so. We have L70's up to 220's, from c models to E. I love them, The 180's especially are great, power and speed. I like Cat's for all around applications, doing things it wasn't "designed to do", dozing, pushing, etc. But for loading trucks or material handling, hands down the Volvo's win, and burn less fuel. We have a coupe Hyundai's too...what buckets of bolts those are.
We have 4 Volvo loaders, One has 23 000 hours on and has not had any major repairs done still going strong.
I have been running Volvo L90 loader and have had many an engine failure in the 2008-2010. The middle cylinders tend to overheat causing piston failure. I am being told this is from the oil cooling jet system failing. Has anyone else had this failure and what is the fix?
This would not be the common thing, all I would suggest is checking the oil filter head valves for correct position , they are colour coded to help things, its the bypass side that feeds the spray jets I think? a common cause of blockage of the spray jets is instant gasket? used in excess by mechanics doing service work, the 2 other wats the spray jets get blocked or damaged is through lack of oil changes or damage(see service man) Volvo motors are usualy as good as it gets.
Interresting tread!! I can only agree with Volvo lovers, they are leading the development. For example look at the new K-series Cat. Here in Sweden we have read in some business related magazines that one of the guys developing the K-series and giving the input is an old Volvoemployee from Sweden.... But like always, some of the Volvo´s performs worser and it is the same with the Cat, Komatsus and all the others. Some of them work just great and some of them sucks, it is the reality.
Volvo have led the field a long time . I know jack about the big girls but 70's and 90's are well speced (quiet),reliable,comfortable and productive machines. They have their faults like crazy parts prices (you shouldnt have to buy near as many though) ,paint work on C and D models wasn't great,ignition switches and mostly little things. They are rated as the best in this part of the world and have been for 30years. Do Johndeere make their own Loader?