LGP Eddie

Done loads in my time, stack the mats on top of each other, chain to blade and simply skid to where required with you, keeping the front just up off the ground. Drop on where required and you’re good to go. These are 5m x 1m x 150mm thick which is a very common size and my Kubota Kx57 would handle them if called upon. Just make certain they’re good quality mats, if they’re light, they’re almost certainly shite! Eddie.

I don’t know if you’ve any timber bog mat hirers reasonably local. Very inexpensive to hire, and you can skid them easily behind an Alpine if required to get them to the location. They do a wide range of lengths and thickness mainly in 1 metre wide. The 75mm thick versions will protect and strengthen as you require. I’ve used them on many projects for actual bridging, sometimes going up to the crane mats that are 250 or 300mm thick. Very quick and effective.

Wouldn’t think it particularly aimed at loading/unloading trucks. Most stuff lands on site via crane truck now and even tonne bags can be simply landed on a pallet. Small outfits could save themselves a lot of handball and far safer than the tricks we’ve probably all used to shift tubs, pallets and bags about.

Yes you’re all thinking be handy with that diverter valve on the auxiliary and a lifting mast too! Eddie.

I could possibly have posted this before in the past on here, first glance it got fairly hammered as a safety nightmare back in the day when first spotted, but fair play the guy seems to have battled through and produced something that really has to be worthy of consideration. From experience of just about every trick going to move pallets of materials with a mini, this has to have some potential now. End of life for all them TB016’s I told you to buy that have probably gone up in money now! Eddie.

I was meaning to fit a momentary 6 way valve setup on the back of the boom that just interrupted the existing auxiliary circuit when required to power the rotate. It’s an ideal place to tap into the existing auxiliary circuit, fit a couple of inline flow reducers to get the rotate down to a sensible speed, then follow the existing auxiliary circuit steel piped up the boom and down the dipper. To power the six way valve momentarily, go for a foot operated switch, unless a spare is available in the servo levers, don’t be tempted to tap into the horn for obvious safety reasons. If you’re tapping into the offset boom for a continuous auxiliary circuit then you’ll have to jump right back to the actual machine base. You can do this either way with manual taps (Martin is spot on you’re unlikely to need offset boom much on grab work) or go six way valve and have it switchable from the cab. You’ll be unlucky to need flow reducers coming off the offset, so try it first it’s easy to add them after. This is the closest you’ll get to a factory double auxiliary circuit experience for absolute minimal cost/hassle. For guys running larger machines there’s a really well sorted option available now that can virtually give you as many auxiliary functions as you like all proportionally controlled from a single Hammer circuit, doesn’t even need to be two way. I’ve done a lot of work on it and it’s far and away the best option to protect things like the Felling Heads from too much flow/pressure that can cause heat and internal damage. You are able to get great control setups all on the joysticks, but it does come at a cost. It’s how I can run something like a GMT Felling Head on a 40 tonne plus machine all proportionally from a single circuit, without the flow she’s putting out simply killing it! Eddie.

Many fit the 6 way valve to the side of the grab, but it can fall down a bit being vulnerable if not guarded and those lovely loops of pipe to snag! Another way is to mount the 6 way valve on the back of the boom, where the steel pipework meets the rubber hoses. It’s then a fairly straightforward job to follow the existing single auxiliary circuit up the boom/dipper and make additional brackets to mount the additional quick couplers. Not quite a factory 4 pipe machine, but tidy and less vulnerable in such applications. Eddie.

This is one of the best ways to be get yourself another set of auxiliary pipework, with the added benefit it’s usually fairly low flow and quite suited to a rotators needs without messing with restrictors. The hassle to take the ram off and replace with a suitable bar is probably effort better utilised to make a nice job of the pipework. This is a 6 way changeover setup and is switched continuously from boom offset to your new auxiliary circuit, and will give a much better user experience than the momentary changeover from grab to rotate functions which is the other popular solution. You’d be well advised if you buy a fixed top grab to ensure it can be retrofitted with the rotator at a later date. DM if you want a price on an Intermercato setup and 6 way valves are very inexpensive. Eddie.

Always been slightly confused with regards to what I could legally tow behind a 7.5 tonner on my Grandfather rights 7.5 tonne license, as I’ve an old paper license with no mention of the 107 code. Thanks to a post here I checked up online this morning and here’s the screenshot of my C1E category entitlement. I would say this and my license are pretty conclusive I can tow up to 12,000kg, but like so many others the worry is how can you possibly retain it if you have to renew/replace your license? The opportunity should be given at the time they wish to add the 107 code to provide evidence that you have utilised it and wish to retain it? Eddie.

It’s just you can pry with them and they don’t like the side loads. Most manage to get them straight and they grabs already told you by then where it needs a bit more metal. Tiltrotators are even worse at killing such stuff due to the ability to get all sorts of odd angles of loading into the grab. For others reading this with Tiltrotators, if you have a grab that isn’t manufactured in the first place to have a bolt on top, then please ensure you get it fully welded or at least put cap screws in it. Yes they do break clean off! I have all my Intermercato Grab tops for use under Tiltrotators done to my spec, it’s not cheap for a reason. If you’re going to say Engcon/Rototilt etc bolt theirs on, yes they do, they’re engineered like this, milled/stepped faces, wide bearing area etc and a totally different (very expensive!) thing. Eddie.

Simply watch you don’t bend it Stephen, it’s very easy to do once rigid mounted, get it plated up at the first sign (just watch for it to start rubbing one side when closing) and you’ll be ok, but it you do kill them in one it’s pretty much an in the skip job. Seen two go this way from different manufacturers. The TG and GX type Grabs have an Excavator specific top for this reason. Yes I do still sell them, the TG and GX type are almost industry standard now, and sadly hate to report they’re getting industry standard for getting stolen now too, so keep them safe. Eddie.

Looked at many options for beefing up access tracks before and the quotes from the Trackway Restoration guys have not been the cheapest, but I’ve tried to dig through the results before and it’s pretty impressive if done properly. You can add imported rough concrete/hardcore or as dug rock if available, they’ll grind it to a product, grind again with cement, grade with whatever camber required and compact. Can be cost effective if there’s plenty of material already down or you can get hold of material normally heading for the crusher cheap. I love using concrete sleepers for access tracks, yes you’ve a bit of hassle hauling them, but not much else you can literally scrape off/grade what you’ve got and end up with a decent ready to use track that you can lift and sell back on if required. Eddie.

Plenty of choice out there, they just seemingly get better and better, as carrier machines gain more flow, and heads improve In performance. The new Prinroth M450e for instance needs no case drain and is direct drive from the motor with no belts. Very desirable features for users. Eddie.

My take on Case drain is you’ll get away with it piped back into a free return pipe (Hammer Mode) on most machines, but a simple trick to T in one way check valve with suitable low cracking pressure free to air will help you prevent motor seal damage should something happen untoward, as it’ll give a path of least resistance. The difference between Mowing and full on Fixed Tooth Mulching is night and day in the pounding it gives Hydraulic systems, you want that free return in the harder application to get oil away unrestricted and generally keep things cooler. If you go full on piped case drain the next consideration is where to pipe it? Put it straight into the tank and if the motor shits itself, the debris could be straight in your tank? Plumb it in just before the return filter and you could just as well plumbed it into the return on the head as the back pressure of the filter will be the same. Decision is yours, but if you go for the tank, ensure that it’s piped well down into the oil to prevent it aerating the oil. Try the filler cap first, Kubota KX080 for instance will take a bsp reducing fitting and dowty washer straight in, and just weld a suitable piece of hydraulic tube into the large portion of the fitting to take it well below the oil. The rest is easy to pipe up and there’s even spare ways in the Kingpost if it’s not a Two Piece Boom version. More importantly for most reading this is get yourself some Tema Hydraulic Fittings instead of the Flat Face if you’re actually Mulching a lot. You can replace the O rings in seconds on these and get the quality caps for them. However the best bit of Tema’s is so many people don’t know they lock? Push the collar in and twist it 90 degrees, then most importantly screw a quality jubilee clip up behind the collar. Total belt and braces, fix it in the field with a small pick and O ring, plus you can’t flick the collar back and knock your case drain off. Case drain off = motor shits itself instantly! Hope this helps a few, and yes bitter experiences behind the lot of that. Eddie.

I’ll be honest, Shear isn’t a Grab no matter how you look at it. They will all cross cut and move material. If you can be bothered to take the blade out, you still end up with a pretty slow awkward setup to a grab, but like anything if it gets it done and makes money at the required pace it’s all good. Takeuchi isn’t putting much at that (be bar not psi) but should stand a tweak no problem. Whatever you choose, you really can’t go wrong, certainly move up a gear or two.👍

Literally so many options now, the obvious one you missed out off was the OMEF 300 which is a very strong/simple piece of kit with huge ram and great geometry that will go better in large material than a TMK. Very cost effective, bombproof tool and can be had with an absolute top quality worm drive continuous 360 rotator that will stand the test of time. Turns it into a great all rounder. I actually hire out an OMEF400 such is my faith in it’s build. TMK300 with Turbo Ram is the tool in smaller material, these are real fast bits of kit and the Turbo ram a great piece of engineering, you really do get the speed, but when the larger portion of ram catches up it still packs a punch. I run a TMK300 full spec, Turbo Ram and Collector under an Engcon Tiltrotator, continually toy with switching it for an OMEF just for more cut, but I’d lose all the speed! Intermercato have a few in the mix here, choice would be T-Cut 25 which is an absolute tank of a build, and huge ram. Big opening and use it either side of the blade. Doesn’t seem to suffer the loose blade bolt issues of the 200/250 E models that are strong simple shears themselves. Sold plenty of Intermercato, absolutely rock solid Shears, mate just completed 8 miles of Rail work with the most basic 200E with larger 250 blade fitted. Made him same money with absolutely no issues as any of the more expensive offerings. Whatever you decide, get the pressure checked on your machine and have it properly set to the Shear requirements. If you go TMK and Turbo ram, get it properly setup. So many just think these things will just plug straight on and Cut, then moan one make is nowhere near another they’ve tried? Facts are some like TMK will tolerate lower pressure than others, as TMK are the only manufacturer that you can really spec the Ram to the pressure you currently have, they offer such a range. Try low pressure with the big hitters like the T-Cut and OMEF and you’re going nowhere fast!

What’s the actual weight your Transit is legal to tow? Do you wish to go Cab or Canopy as this impacts what Tiltrotator solutions are available to you. Plenty of companies can retrofit a proportional rotate circuit with rockers in the joystick to match any Factory single circuit. No single brand of Tiltrotator is cheaper than another across a range of quotes, as most sales guys can give their own discounts and spec can vary so widely that you must ensure absolutely everything is like for like before a true comparison. Everything breaks, but in this game there’s guys out there that could bend an Anvil! Brand loyalty is savage, dig a bit deeper and you’ll often find they’ve not even slept with someone who had one! Eddie.

You’ll not go wrong with an FAE, brilliant bits of kit. I’m at a bit of a loss when you say Hi Flow, as generally the Priority Valve is dialled in for the machine and you’re good to go. It’s either on or off and when activated should provide about as good as you’ll get to the head leaving enough for the machine to function on. There is a good explanation of a Priority Valve here and how it manages to balance the needs of the Cutting Head with the Machines need to be able to multi function. There’s a good explanation of a Priority Valve I found, that may help guys understand what we’re going on about. Eddie.

Just wondering why 150m in off the hard? Can something not be done at the road/track? Eddie.

Switching out the standard dipper arm for the telescope of a small timber crane isn’t going to be hugely expensive and could actually be lighter than a standard dipper arm when you take into account the bucket ram and linkage. Easy to plumb in on the standard bucket service, and a Mecalac would handle it easily. Trade off in such configuration is you can’t lift/drag yourself about.

I’ve had no success with the Factory with regard to the auxiliary pressure, but yes absolutely they can resolve it if you point it out. If you go new with JCB you get a lot of options that can be factory fitted without the hassle of third party involvement or removing/replacing parts, and it can work out considerably cheaper that way. You may be getting ahead of yourself on auxiliary flow though from that size unit. If you like it, ask for a flow test to be done as there will be a lot of long faces if it’s not pushing out the flow you require for a specific attachment. I never believe brochures from any manufacturers when it comes to power/flows. Eddie.

Got tagged in so had a read through. The CAT 309 with Hi Flow is now default choice, simply because it runs a genuine extra dedicated hydraulic pump setup to give you a solid 140ltr/min auxiliary flow without eating up the other functions. CAT are always good on hydraulic pressure too. All factory fitment so no messing about with priority valves from third party suppliers and invalidating warranty etc. With Two piece boom it would be quite a weapon. The 309 has the larger track frame from the 310, so will be ultra stable. If it’s too big, then Mecalac Mcr as you’ll be able to remove the standard dipper and easily fit a telescopic extension to it. They have the geometry/stability to make full use of it, and combined with their ability to tow trailers, you’ll have a handy forwarder setup too. The Mcr are brilliant at carrying anything from a Mulcher to a Winch converted to hydraulic too. JCB have low auxiliary pressure that can easily be resolved, I’ve helped several people overcome this. I don’t see the same negativity of their current Midi range and rate them myself. Eddie.

Everyone I know gets kit inspected as the norm, and that’s because we wouldn’t get on site without it. Machines are Loler and All my attachments are Puwer inspected. Everything is done by Matt at Shropshire Plant Services, top service, not expensive. All shackles and lifting slings are disposed of after 6 months, or immediately if damaged. The cost of the mainly 5 tonne Roundslings I use isn’t even worth taking the slightest chance, and the smaller shackles are the same. I have several sets of chains and larger shackles specific for tasks, that are never in regular use, these are tested when a project requires them, as they’ll always end up running out mid project on me otherwise. I have paper copies of all the certs in the machines, and a file of images on my phone just for certs as well. You can’t beat having a paper copy for any inspection on site, but invariably now the person doing the inspection will ask if you can e mail them over copies, that’s despite the fact you’ll have already sent them before you had the order number! Eddie.