I have 2013 kamatsu pc160lc8 im needing a manual thumb which brand should go with ive looked at solsbee for $3200 and usa attachments for $1800 with this much price difference im not sure which one of these or another brand all together
I'll just put these up here. I think the pictures speak for themselves on which brand to get. Yellow one is a Solsbee.
I had a USA on a PC120. It was good. Took anything that was thrown at it. My only complaint is that it was noisy when in the stored position. Not sure if this is common with manual thumbs as this is the only one I have had. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another manual thumbs from USA.
I personally have not had any experience with either of those brands. That being said, I have some experience with a Fleco thumb and it seemed to stand up pretty well to the abuse that manual thumbs seem to encounter. I am currently using a thumb that I fabricated. The thumb itself is holding up pretty well but I have had some trouble with the 'stiff arm' (for lack of a better term). The current stiff arm is similar to the Solsbee design and I am planning on changing it to something similar to the USA Attach design. My advice would be to go with the 'heaviest' thumb that your pocketbook will allow because they have a tendency to get abused. Just my $.02
solsbee looks more durable and heavier built
I have a solsebee on a Case cx160 very heavy built. Adds weight to stick but not to difficult to take off when digging. Don't think my machine will tear it up probably would stand up to a much bigger machine. Very well made.
I currently have a hyd solsebee on a Volvo 210. I do a lot of demo and trees. Very well built thumb and there customer service is also very good. I also had a mechanical thumb from North American Attachments. Used it pretty hard and never had any problems with it. They make a good product that is a little lower in cost. I have a couple of other buckets from them also. Heavy use I would get the solsebee.