LGP Eddie

I don't know if your local dealer will do you one? Eddie.

Facts are this isn’t about the MD spying on your movements, it’s just them keeping up with the demands of their own clients. Things have moved on and the ability to provide clients with almost real time information of what they’re paying for, with actual timings, images, graphs, charts etc is pure gold to all involved. The manager of the actual client will have to spell out up the chain clearly how his budget is going, how he’s striving to ensure things are properly and efficiently delivered. Taking the branded Tablet he’ll be provided with F.O.C from the Contractor they chose to deliver their work into his meetings to provide all the required data is a very easy win. It can have its uses especially in Winter Maintenance, you clear and grit a site, take your photos, have the screen signed by a manager of the site etc. Someone falls down later in the day claiming it’s not been cleared, that client has everything from when the call out was issued, what the site was like on arrival, to measures undertaken that have mitigated the risk. Again pure gold to them. It’s just how it is and if you don’t want to find your own contracts and wish to continue down this route, just suck it up. I never wished to drive a machine looking like an orange Teletubbie, half or full day inductions plus a medical to go on almost every site, more worthless tickets than a raffle, pay about 25k to fit everything from green lights to say the seatbelt is on, more lights than a Xmas tree, monitors for every movement, to putting hi viz tape on the grab handle and steps to even get in the cab! However if I wish to continue to work in the sort of environments I do, there’s no point fighting against it. No way of dressing it up, either get your own show or spend the extra time in the van getting some alternative work and finding a way to ensure your costs to them now include another £40 every month. Eddie.

It only becomes pointless with unrealistic expectations. If you wish to remove the usual bramble etc and anything up to about 4”, or just have a good old clear up at the end of a job you’ll be fine. I recently worked with a 6 tonne JCB which had a Lipa Flail on, which I know has had an awful lot of hard use with no issues. I was impressed with it’s performance for a swinging hammer flail, but once I took a look at the actual flails I could see why, as they were absolute monsters! Guys are having great success with the Femac units, Osma from Exac-One have always been good. FAE if you want to spend that sort of money, simply loads of choice. Best advice is borrow/hire one before you purchase to see if it’ll do what you require? Eddie.

I’d say it’s really not that grey just like moving Plant Machinery with Tractors, it’s just the rewards still far outweigh the risks. Big money to be made with a Mog for guys on the large Highway Clearances etc. I’d assume the same on Domestic work with the right setup. Lets face it, put some white diesel in it and blag the rest. As one guy who recently rang me to help spec him an Excavator for site clearance said, “I’m going to pull it behind my Mog”. I replied “I wouldn’t like to get into all that Haulage paperwork hassle”, his response was “forget all that just tell them you’re going ditching or whatever I’ll run it off the Farm anyway.” It’s just how the job is, no point getting excited about it, someone will always be bending the rules, how many going on about it will have the correct Tacho setup for towing their Ifor Trailer, or a Transit with Chip body and 5 leaf springs so it’s level when totally overloaded? Not saying it’s right, but many who get excited about such things will still hire in such solutions for the saving and extra profit. Eddie.

Almost certainly got it on fine, slewed 90 and she’s gone over backwards with arm right up and no attachment on. Some Dealers insist you reverse these on and never slew them around in such instances. Eddie.

I wanted exactly the same when I had my Farmi 260 and fully understand where you're coming from. Farmi now have such as system as an option which may be worth a look, but for something custom I'd ring Global, as they're well used to fitting such systems to all sorts of bandit custom builds. Eddie.

It just wouldn’t flow share or grade anything like the Dash 3, it was slow on arm movements, but incredibly powerful. I used to say Kubota managed to build a Crane not an Excavator with it. It was much improved by some tweaks, and went on to be a top performer with me for heavy attachments, but I never looked forward to much more than a bit of scratching about with a bucket. One particularly annoying feature was an air conditioning fan that was by the right hand cab window, and the noise from it was horrendous. Kubota were slow to accept there were issues, but have reacted with the much improved Dash 4 Alpha version. However they’ve done nothing more with the cab and I think many others have now caught up. People ask me about them, they’re still as strong and reliable, you just need to have a good demo before purchase as they’re a bit of a marmite machine. The one machine I’m waiting to get to grips with is the new CAT309 CR VAB but it’s already won the award for the worst afterthought ever seen, with what is an absolute howler of an additional counterweight!? Eddie.

I did exactly the same with a Kubota Kx080-4, coming from the legend of a Dash 3, but the difference was I’d spent an awful lot of conversion money on it before finding out it wasn’t Kubota’s finest hour.? Eddie.

Getting good ones is now hard, nobody’s willing to part with them, the replacement didn’t really better it, they don’t deprecate hardly, and are just so useful. I suppose proof so far is nobody’s ever been back on here to say they’re a pile of shite and they lost their shirt on one. Just for the past few years have been a very safe toe in the water, but most soon jump up a bit in scale and spec having seen what a machine can achieve for them. Eddie.

TB016 will boss it easy enough, the manipulation available makes all the difference. Eddie.

There’s a few options but I’d always spec a 5 tonne rotator for the little price difference. Touch over 2.5K including the VAT, depending on the final spec. Obviously a bit of pipework to budget for when it arrives. Pipes are always best sorted on the machine unless there’s an established pattern available. Eddie.

This is a great setup for the 1.5 tonners, a TG12 UG7 Intermercato Grab. I supplied this one with 6 way valve so the customer could switch from Grab to Rotate as like most he only had one auxiliary circuit. This he piped himself on the Grab, but you can also install the valve on the machine, whatever works best for the individual. The difference between this and free swinging is night and day and allows you to get the best out of the Excavator. Obviously more expensive, but nobody goes back, and will hold its money tremendously as they’re always sought after. Eddie.

I don’t know if they’re still going but a company called Fabrication by Design in Redditch used to do all the custom work for AR Demolition, who in my opinion have some of the best Excavator setups at work in the UK. Worth a call. Eddie.

Certainly no more experience than buying one, having a good crack at it and moving it on. The Valtra was brilliant because we were able to ditch the pto Pump and simply select how much oil we put through the valve block to make it fast enough yet controllable. It’s a while ago now, but we somehow worked out how to control it all through the mini joystick of the Valtra and straight off the spools which would have been nice. Certainly if you’ve a roofmount Tractor and one comes up, it may be a real handy thing in someone’s armoury. I may be completely wrong, but in my experience for 60 tonne, get yourself a good fixed mount rotating grab on your machine to do the donkey work and a decent cutter, you’ll soon have your 60 tonne and a tidy job. Eddie.

Been there in a similar way, but my applications were all for low impact non commercial applications, in terms that site impact and improvement was the main consideration not profit from the timber. I started a thread on it and went on to actually purchase a Kesla Stroke Head, but in reality never used it. Everything just gets sheared now. The Stroke Processor was good, and in the time we had, Greg really cracked the operation of it and it was doing the job nicely. I’d say they’re for a roofmount tractor though ideally. Eddie

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I’d hunt down a Takeuchi TB016 if possible. Eddie.

Should be started at all of the ends back to the middle to ensure it gets done. Too tempting an option when a bucket of money has been thrown at a new line from London to Birmingham to say, that was too expensive, pull the rest. Spread some of the work opportunities out too. Eddie.

The early ones (pel job era and couple of years after) are poor enough, don't know a lot about the new ones but I've heard they have improved a lot. Was looking at a newer 24 ton one a few weeks back. Great spec and high quality, I presume this has filtered down the ranges. The Pel Job machine range was brilliant in its day. Eddie.

Yes it was, I’ve done a fair bit of work on site before, and they’ve been fantastic letting me do some much needed shaking down there. Nice location for some video and images too. Eddie.

Some shots from yesterday with the dedicated Vosch Grapple Saw setup on the Sennebogen. She’s all shaken down now, plenty of my own thoughts on mods/attachments going forward, but it’s one hell of a safe/productive mobile tool carrier. It’s now available, no movement order, standard low loader, road registered and can drive into tight sites or out again to safe parking no problem. I’m requiring Demo sites to showcase it, so anyone with something suitable, I’m certain a great deal can be sorted. Eddie.

Been some video turning him into the Sawdust man!? Eddie.

Just a little snippet of Mondays mission, first try out of the Sennebogen with the Stump Grinder. Plenty will recognise the location, and more a surgical removal than blast them out given the status of the surroundings. Brilliant reach, flow and power. Eddie.

Needed an 1/2 drive impact gun for a specific task on a machine. It’ll be rattling around the machine toolbox or van so didn’t want to go with anything expensive. Quick google had this current Machine Mart offer up. I wasn’t expecting much, but it effortlessly fetched the wheel nuts off the Defender straight out of the box and actually shocked me how tidy a thing it is for the money. Couple of batteries and charger included. Eddie. https://www.machinemart.co.uk/p/clarke-cir18lic-18v-brushless-2ah--impact-wre/

Last one is spinning up what is a most unusual but I’m hoping could be a very effective attachment from Vosch on the Sennebogen. Basically a big Hedgecutter Head, Rotary blades designed to suck material in and literally obliterate it. It can also be fitted with twin sawblades, but after I nearly sh@t myself just spinning this up, sawblades would need some care! I can’t wait to see what it’ll tackle. Eddie.

Don’t go pulling the Servos off the armchair, this is literally the first time trying the Vosch Swinging Hammer Mulcher on the Sennebogen, so it’s all just messing about stuff, but I’m happy to share it. Yes your Robopower will do this bramble, but let’s throw in some 10” birch and see if you can do them top down from 13 metres!? Out to about 10 metres was ok off the wheels, we measured 12.3 metres up this batter from the extended leg to give an idea what it can do. The Mulcher never slows and it’ll just drive along nicely if you wish. Eddie.