I just started a new job with a pipeline contractor in new york that I have never worked for before and they have a bunch of Kobelco 350 and 480 trackhoes. I must say I have run alot of different track hoes in the last 7 years and these kobelco's are by far the worst machines I have ever run and the worst part is there all only a year old!! The only good thing that I saw about kobelco was there travel speed there fast. From what I'v run I would have to say if it was my money I'd buy deere!!! how I would rate best to worst I'v run 1 deere hitachi 120c 270c 270d 330 350d 450c 450d 2 cat 315b 318b 320b 320c 322 long 325b 330b 330b 345b 345c 3 case 330 4 komatsu pc 200 pc400 5 tachuchi 15 6 kobelco 115 zero 350 480
Wow I am surprised you say that about the kobelcos. I have ran them all and they run so much faster and smoother then any other machine I have ran. I have ran all brands with the exception of komatsu. I have time on deere 120s 200s 270s and 350s and they seem to run so much slower then the Kobelcos. I know A guy that just went to work for Hawbacker and as you probably know they run all cat. He ran Kobelco the last 10-12 years. Since he started with Hawbacker he said he has ran 312s-345s and he said "the cats are a dog" compared to the kobelcos. Just my opinion . Heck I actually was on the phone with my dealer about 45 minutes ago getting pricing for a new 170. Why do you say they are the worst you have ever ran?( IF you dont mind me asking)
Well for one thing pipeline is about the most harsh comditions that you will ever see on any job. To say the least the equipment is abused and kobelco's just dont hold up 2 years ago I ran an old 330 cat rental with 8000 hours and it was tighter and smoother but yes slower than the kobelco's with 1200 hours. Both had grauser pads and the kobelco's are faster travel but will lock up and not turn, not enough power to the tracks! I do like the radio in the kobelco if that means anything!!!!!
I was just wondering I try to keep an open mind. I seem to be hooked on kobelcos and I just dont want to develope "blinders" to the other brands. It is my belief that most of the top brands are good machines and a machine will only stay as good as you treat it. Like I have on all my post," A fool and his equipment are soon parted". I take VERY VERY GOOD CARE of our machines. I just love the speed of them. I have our 135sr on a road job and I am loading our 30 ton articulating truck in 4-5 minutes. Our hitachi 120 will not even come close to that. Anyway just was wondering what lead you to your opinions:usa
Im a big fan of the Kobelcos too. Way less problems the the cats weve owned. We have a 330 H&W and a 350 H&W and they are awesome machines.
i've owned hitachi/fiat allis/deere/kobelco/hyundai/case/ruston bucyrus/......leased volvo/komatsu.. i'm a small timer, and cat doesn't feel worthy of their time to send sales people out to visit me...that's okay, a new competitor of mine that worked for the county hwy dept. just got suckered into a new 320.....wanted me to run it, that's the biggest pooch i've ever sat in. i see why cat excavator's get 20k hrs on them, they got them turned down so far that there's no chance they'll hurt themself
linkbelt
I think that is the same with a lot of CAT equipment. The C series skid steers are so dummied down that you could not hurt it. Unfortunately you get any thing done with it either. Way less productive than I am used to.
I had the chance to run 210 kebelco this past winter/spring is was a rental unit with just over 2000 hrs on it, I thought it was a fairly quick machine, it seamed to lack grunt though Kinda blaming that on the fact it was a rental might be turned down. It was SLOPPY the uper structure bobed more than my well used LS-4000 (link-belt) the pins also had alot of slop in them (once again it was a rental with a extra circut). I don't think that the longevity is built into them as some of the others have ie. Cat, Komatsue It did have a nice ground speed though and was real smooth, It seamed a bit week on the drawbar pull though I had to help it when a Cat would have had no problem. I
KOMATSU'S are quick.
Hyundai - thin panelwork, many different sources of spare parts, pins real sloppy after short time. Hitachi & Komatsu both make real good excavators ointhead
Have two Hitachi love both fast and laid out nice Also have a kobelco i think its a little slower but great lift on it for setting sewer pipe and manholes Think about a cat 5% rate on loan make u think I think the cat are built heavier, but do move a lot slow and seem to cost a little bit for the name
Of Komatsu and Hitachi which are better on fuel?
not if you keep em greased. panel work can be thin, just can't be swinging into stuff. we call our dealer, he's got all the parts we need.
Kobelco is offering 0% for 24 months or 1.7% for 60 months on the 170 we are getting.
Hi dayexco, Ours had autolubricator on them & they still wore out - real quick. Panels weren't primed right at the factory and rusted clear thru in a matter of months. We look after our gear and couldn't understand why the pins were getting loose after such a short time. Checked the autolube and it was working fine. The pins were not hardened very deep according to the metallurgist. We were working in sandy clay & recyclin topsoil:beatsme
I noticed you don't speak much of Doosan. Do you get them much, they seem quite popular in SA. Our contractors love them, they are cheap, and operator friendly. I like them.
The pipeline guys here are running Deere and Kobelco. Some of the bigger water contractors run alot of Kobelco also and the word is they love them
Our Bells aren't really Bell (Deere), but Kato branded Bell. Is that the same for deere machines or are they Deere through and through? We get kobelco through New Holland, but i don't think that they are the real thing, but an amalgamation of NH and Kobelco.
Bellboy, I believe the Deere machines are actually Hitachis
Deere excavators are infact Hitachis. Deere puts their engine in them and changes the Paint and lettering. New holland excavators are in fact Kobelcos. Once again they just change the paint and lettering. Case and linkbelt excavators are the same also, they are made by Sumitomo. I also know our john deere articulating truck has the word BELL all over it. I am 99% sure that john deere ownes BELL.
Deere doesn't own Bell. http://www.bellequipment.com/live/internet/homepage.nsf/Home.htm?OpenForm Click on the "Alliances" tab at the top
JCBgm is right. It is more of a strategic alliance, to put it in other words. Bell makes all of Deere's ADTs, our excavators are Kato, I've checked, they have 'Kato Works' written on the base of the upper structure. Super Exceed Series i think. Our dozers we get from Deere, the 700J and the 850J, but i believe the Deere dozers are actually Liebherr. Our ADTs are also distributed by Liebherr in Germany and Austria, and Hitachi in Australia. Our TLB cabs, engines, booms, in fact almost everything except the main chassis are Deere (the seats are bought from SEARS...) and Deere payloaders, except the 3 smallest in the range, are Bell made, and the tiny tikes are Liebherr. Bell also imports all of JD's forestry equipment, but our harvesting contractors prefer to use a couple of guys with chainsaws, a tri-wheel log loader and a couple of tractors. These gangs consist of roughly 30 - 50 people, as we still have this unemployment issue.
Right now dollar for dollar in the 20t size what is your best bang for your buck? I went to the deere dealership which was my subconscious first choice. Good financing I know the machine but probably the most expensive of all brands but is it worth it. The majority of my work is basement and house demo's.
I stand corrected!! > I guess alliance different then own.
I've had a few Kobelco's. First was an old 907.... nothing to complain about. But my Second one, my largest hoe, an SK-400 (a late 90's model) was not a good one. The bucket cylinder turned "blue" from heat within a few months. There was only 2 or 3 Kobelco Factory Reps in the entire country to call upon. (The local vendor wasn't worth calling) The engine smokes raw fuel like a chimney; call the vendor-they say call Cummins; call Cummins-they say call the Vendor................. just a bunch of b.s. Again, no service, bad parts supply, etc. I'll never buy another one. But, I will say that it did, still does actually, have better than average tracking power and will probably get around better than any other 100,000 lb machine than I've ever seen.
linkbelt and jcb.
Deere does in fact own 32% of Bell. Here is a good article that explains in detail the Deere/Bell relationship.