Which big excavator?

Trackhoe,

If you liked the 330CLC, then you would absolutely love the 350DLC. Better performance plus everything else you asked for on the 330CLC.

Pretty SWEET:thumbsup

Cat's D series is gunning to put the Deere D series to shame. Cat knows that Deere's C series pumps out the juice better than Cat's C series, I imagine the 330DL is a beast. Seen quite a few in the last couple months around here where Deere/Hitachi and Komatsu are front runners.

The Deeres look like nice machines as well, but I hate the black boom and stick, trying copy Volvo I guess. Shoulda stuck with yellow.

farmboy -- out of curiosity, are you an operator or do you represent a dealer? Your knowledge of the industry is an interesting mix...

(PS: that's a compliment -- not any type of offense taken!)

has anybody ran one of these 350s yet are they in the same weight class as a 345 or they a tad bit smaller. that would be a heck of thing to see those two dueling it out. the 330 clc i ran was brand new it was actually a pipe crew hoe and i got to run it on a staurday backfilling curb, it was a very nice machine to run the controls were unreal, just so smooth, i absoutley loved the thing but im a still CAT fan and will always be one

Gents,

Thanks for the props! :waving

Tiger,

No offense taken. I guess you could say a little of both. I have (and still do) spend some time in the seat, but have also sold a piece or two along the way.

What about you...am I correct to assume that from your "lawyer line" and some of your view points that you work with the Caterpillar organization in one form or another?

At the end of the day I just enjoy jawing about iron and dirt moving. I think just about every machine out there is probably a good design these days. In my opinion so much of the decision to go with brand X over brand y is based on how the manufacturer and dealer support the machine after it is sold. There are some brands do a great job of this and others that don't. I think this is why you see more particular brands out there than others.

Trackhoe,

It is the next size class smaller than the 345. The 350DLC is a 77K lb machine and the 345 is around 105K lbs.

farm boy wow you really know your stuff, i wont need to look anyhitgn up anymore ill just ask you:thumbsup I did read an article about them way back in the summer, and it was pretty neat article. in that case i wonder how it would macth up to a new 330 dl being 79,700 lbs. i wish i had the money to gout and buy both and try them both out just for the heck of it.

farm_boy said:

Gents,

Thanks for the props! :waving

Tiger,

No offense taken. I guess you could say a little of both. I have (and still do) spend some time in the seat, but have also sold a piece or two along the way.

What about you...am I correct to assume that from your "lawyer line" and some of your view points that you work with the Caterpillar organization in one form or another?

At the end of the day I just enjoy jawing about iron and dirt moving. I think just about every machine out there is probably a good design these days. In my opinion so much of the decision to go with brand X over brand y is based on how the manufacturer and dealer support the machine after it is sold. There are some brands do a great job of this and others that don't. I think this is why you see more particular brands out there than others.

Click to expand...

I'm actually not involved with Cat right now... I'm only a student who has interned for them in the past. I'd really like to go back, like NOW, but education comes first. If I may ask, do you work for a Deere dealer?

TRACKHOE71 said:

farm boy wow you really know your stuff, i wont need to look anyhitgn up anymore ill just ask you:thumbsup I did read an article about them way back in the summer, and it was pretty neat article. in that case i wonder how it would macth up to a new 330 dl being 79,700 lbs. i wish i had the money to gout and buy both and try them both out just for the heck of it.

Click to expand...

I agree with your first statement! And specifically to this thread, I'd really like to see this test as well. I wish there were a "Road and Track" or "PC World" of the construction equipment industry, so we could see numbers before doing the demo.

Tying up the two latter points of both posts, I agree. I really think machine performance is [generally] a wash between manufacturers; certainly in some situations performance alone isn't a good enough judge to disregard the "non-iron" considerations of parts support, price, and operator preference. But still, seeing actual tests is something we've all asked for before; the price of doing them (and logistics of publishing them fairly) is the dangerous part that may never come to fruition [publicly, anyhow... all manufacturers run such tests].

Has anyone seen the new Kobelco sk350 specs? Its very impressive. I will share specs. for those who are interested.They have units sitting in Calhoun waiting for delivery.

I'm interested... are these specs for a Tier III Kobelco 35-tonner?

Tigerotor77W said:

I'm interested... are these specs for a Tier III Kobelco 35-tonner?

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The specs for the SK350 are impressive. It is a 35 tonne machine.

http://www.kobelcoamerica.com/produ...04806303&line=000004786203&NavID=000004724403

The thing that would place doubt in my mind is the engine. Kobelco has went away from the Mitsu engine (a great engine in my opinion) and to a Hino engine. This in and of itself is enough, but this new engine is pretty small when compared to the other major players out there in the excavator world that are T-III (Cat, Deere, Komatsu). Volvo is still T-II with a huge 12L engine.

Tigerotor77W said:

If I may ask, do you work for a Deere dealer?

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I can't really say in this setting what I do now or who I work for, but I can tell you that I do not work for a Deere dealer. I do however deal with equipment almost every day.

farm_boy said:

The specs for the SK350 are impressive. It is a 35 tonne machine.

http://www.kobelcoamerica.com/produ...04806303&line=000004786203&NavID=000004724403

The thing that would place doubt in my mind is the engine. Kobelco has went away from the Mitsu engine (a great engine in my opinion) and to a Hino engine. This in and of itself is enough, but this new engine is pretty small when compared to the other major players out there in the excavator world that are T-III (Cat, Deere, Komatsu). Volvo is still T-II with a huge 12L engine.



I can't really say in this setting what I do now or who I work for, but I can tell you that I do not work for a Deere dealer. I do however deal with equipment almost every day.

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First, your second point: that's fair. I'm relieved you're not a Deere dealer. Just don't tell me you work for Deere itself! :crying

As far as the SK350 goes, well, I'm Chinese and saw Hinos in China. Given that I thought they were... kinda cheap (this was in 1999, mind you), I thought perhaps they were China's own product. Apparently, they're a subsidiary of Toyota -- which suggests to me that the engine might not be so bad. Two thoughts: where did you find the displacement of the engine? And if the engine really is smaller, doesn't that imply better fuel consumption?