Backhoe Choice

[Snatch]

I am a civil engineer and have just started a very small engineering and construction company. I am thinking about purchasing a used backhoe for general minor earthworks and hereby seeking advice on a brand.

What type would a suggested brand (JCB, John Deere, Case, Cat, N.H) given that I live on an island in the Caribbean that with no dealers. The most popular brands on island are Case and JCB. As a first timer with very limited budget, I need a machine that is reliable, with part easily accessible and relatively inexpensive with value for money. My intention is to procure service parts from the Florida or any other US state.

What decision would someone with good experience in the industry make if it was up to them?


Great Website!!!!!!!!!.


Thanks
Snatch.

[Tigerotor77W]

How old of a machine are you looking at? Without a doubt, some of the best parts distribution is by Cat; given your location, well, Kelly Tractor is a pretty big Cat dealer in Florida, but whether you could get parts quickly from ANY manufacturer might be in question.

I personally am a fan of Cat, Case, and Deere. I think Cats and Deeres are about equal; the Case machines are very reliable and I haven't heard much bad about them.

I'm hesitant to recommend Komatsu, JCB, and NH because I'm not sure how their parts distribution will work in your area (including Florida). Komatsu is still new to the TLB market, and although their machines are generally very reliable, there's no telling how a four year-old machine will run for the next ten years. JCB and NH make very good backhoes -- both sport some of the best performance on the market -- but again, parts may be an issue in your area.

If you're looking for a strong, rough and tumble machine, Case or NH are probably at the top of the game. JCB is also a strong contender. If you want a reliable machine that can give you good resale value, has excellent operator comfort, and offers good parts distribution, Cat and Deere come to mind.

I am a civil engineer and have just started a very small engineering and construction company. I am thinking about purchasing a used backhoe for general minor earthworks and hereby seeking advice on a brand.

What type would a suggested brand (JCB, John Deere, Case, Cat, N.H) given that I live on an island in the Caribbean that with no dealers. The most popular brands on island are Case and JCB. As a first timer with very limited budget, I need a machine that is reliable, with part easily accessible and relatively inexpensive with value for money. My intention is to procure service parts from the Florida or any other US state.

What decision would someone with good experience in the industry make if it was up to them?


Great Website!!!!!!!!!.


Thanks
Snatch.

[Snatch]

BobcatS250,

Thanks for your response. I am looking for a machine with about 2000-2500 hrs, which seem to be the acceptable range for used equipment. I am not to keen on resale value. CAT & Case is always my first choice because i have heard so much about these brands, but i also understand the parts are abit costly more so for the CAT. I have read alot about the John Deere Backhoes but have not seen them in action or heard any reports on the cost to maintain them.


Snatch

[Nac]

I have had expierance with Cat , Case and John Deere. The Cat's are good but seem to be tipsy when booming over the sides. Case is th old stand by that all you use to see in my area. lately you see more and more John Deere's I have ran them seem to be very stable and powerfull. I would suggest John Deere in my area they seem to be the best with me. I have had bad expierance with the Cat and Komatsu Dealer in my area, well just my opinion.

[Tigerotor77W]

If you can afford the price, I believe the Case L series have been a good machine for many contractors. They should be in your hour range.

Cat's machines have been getting better with the lifting since the C-series. They originally had some problems with the boom relief valve opening too often when craning, but I believe they've done better with them now.

Deere machines are good, but I'm not sure I'd take an older Deere over an older Cat.

[Case 580e]

cant go wrong with a case

[Preppypyro]

A good question would be, how limited is your budget?

Case, cat and deere are all great. Around here you see mainly case, and actually there is still alot of older case's still out and about.

Cat and JD are around too, and they seem to do just fine.

[insleyboy]

Case L series has stood the test of time in our area for heavy industry. Your application it seems would be a perfect fit. Case models are light , hard to get stuck, awesome visability, long strong reach, great breakout power the list goes on and on.The front end is balanced and powerfull. Get a 4x4, extendahoe and if your needs are more reach, the 590L is what we use. I go back to our 580 and sometimes cant believe how much more machine the 590 is!!!

[JS580SL]

As far as new machines, Im was diehard case till my dad bought a 410G. More power, better, balance, a twice the comfort of a case. I still swear by the Super L we had though. For what you need look for a Series 2 L. Cant go wrong. Stay away from early L's though. And I wouldnt go anywere near a cat unless its free and even then I rethink it.

[ATCOEQUIP]

Go with Case. I have less problems dealing with Case parts than anyone else. Cat is good with parts, after you sit on the phone for 25 minutes for the parts guy to find the part you need to order it. With a Case machine, unlike Cat, you can look up your part online at their website. This applies to all Case/New Holland machines. And as a mechanic, I'd take a late model 580K or 580L over any machine to perfom repairs on. My second choice would be Deere ;)

[ATCOEQUIP]

I have to ammend something concerning my last post. You can view Cat parts diagrams at their website once you submit the info about your machine that you own, they'll make the parts diagrams available for you to view. But I'll add this, Cat diagrams and parts pages are not nearly as user friendly as Case. :)

[Bob t]

Thanks for the info very interesting cat did have a problem with lift on the 416's but have corrected this with the c model.

[tonka]

get a CASE 580 and call her a day!

[Cat 430E IT]

i just did a project for a business admin class and i saw alot for sale at what i thought were decent prices. Look on Rockanddirt.com

Tim

[9420pullpan]

Definitely Demo a new "E Series" Cat

[Nothinbetter]

I like Case, Deere, and even Ford/New Holland. Cats are very well built, but I have yet to find one that isn’t “jerky/touchy“. I admit I’ve only run 3, two 416 C‘s and a new 420 E. The E was the best by far, but still not as nice as a Deere 410D or newer. To me Deere has always seemed to be the best overall, easy to get parts, strong, long lasting and very good “feel” with the controls. Deere seems to me to start good in cold weather. Case and Ford seem very good, but not in the same league as Deere or Cat for strenght on the loader end. To me they just feel "lighter".

[leverpuller]

I would go with JCB they are a good backhoe they mustly have perkins dieasl motors not reel hard to get parts for

[leverpuller]

I would go with JCB they are a good backhoe they mustly have perkins dieasl motors not reel hard to get parts for I run a cat 420 about every aother day JD is nice I like there dozer beater case is nice I like there dozers backhoe I don't know

[JS580SL]

410G vs 430EIT.........410 hands down, walks all over the 430(or anything) if you ask me. My dad has one, what a nice machine. Comfortable, quick, stable, powerful, smooth.

[john1066]

The Deere 410G is one of the best backhoes i have run yet. other than the 710G but thats another animal. Cats are not worth the money. Only thing to look at is if you are going to drive it over the road or trailer it. the deere rearends don't hold up to driving at high speeds all the time. Jim could tell us more about teh case but i think they are built more for traveling

[davidd]

Greetings all,
I dont like to derail a thread but the mod says a newbie has to post 3 replies in order to start a new thread. If that keeps spam out that is fine.

I have a question about ford 555b that I am looking to buy. 8500

All seems to be in order except the forward - reverse shifter. will not shift it into forward. Move the lever and nothing happens. Reverse is fine.
Sometimes you can go quickly from reverse to forward and it will go into forward but not all the time. I think this is an electric shifter.
Does this sound like a major repair?
Any coments about this 555b in general are welcome.
Thanks a lot.
David d.

[Case 580e]

if it electric then just look and see if there are any wires or anything disconnected or check the transmition fluid

[davidd]

Thanks Case 580e

[Buckethead]

I personally like the newer Deere's. 310, 410 any of them. Very smooth backhoe. My second favorite is Case, I learned on a 580E with foot swing. I ran a few Cat 416s, I didn't really like them, but I ran a new 430? last year I thought it was a big improvement over earlier Cat rubber tire hoes. I ran a few Ford 555s over the years they all had constant leaks in the hydraulic steering, I would stay away from them. Komatsu seems to make a decent backhoe as well.

[Case 580e]

no problem let me know if the problem is fixed when you check it

[GaryHoff]

Try a case, 580m, (most L series would have more than 3000hrs)
Second choice would be cat

[later814]

I have some experience shipping machines to the Caribbean... specifically Anguilla. A lot of people have made mention to getting parts and that has always been critical to the people I've dealt with on Anguilla. Rimco is based on Puerto Rico and they are set up to get parts to pretty much every island in the Caribbean.

There are lots of good clean D-Series machines available as the slowdown in the US has created a glut of good used equipment. I would look for a 2004/2005 420D IT... it's a nice machine and you'll be able to keep it running without much issue.

[Jeremy/case580c]

I bought my old 77 case 580 c because everyone I talked to said that generally they are the least costly to own. So far so good other than a few leaks.

[Washoe2]

I have a 580d it is a good machine

[KoMATSU_MAN]

I would suggest you get a CAT because in the "americas" those are most common although i do think the parts can sometimes be expensive

[dblaneyfan]

I would recommend the JCB to you. I watched some '04 and '05 214E's sell at Ritchie yesterday for $16,000 to 18,500 (usd). These were 4X4, good looking machines. Most had tight pins and bushings, and good tires as well. The JD 310G's ('04 and '05 4x4's) were anywhere from 23,000 to 26,000. Cat was in the 30's. Parts can be less aggravating to order with JCB (and I deal with Cat, JD and JCB very often).

[davidd]

Hi Deblaney
I am also in S. Ga. Where and what is Ritchie?
David d.

[CM1995]

Where and what is Ritchie?

Very large auction company http://www.rbauction.com/index.jsp

[cgraham1]

I just bought my first backhoe, a Case 590 Super L.

[W8KT]

Case seems to be the most available in my area.