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Mel-Trac T660

No1Hookman

Active Member
Joined
May 4, 2005
Messages
31
Location
40N 81W
Occupation
Duh.......
Anybody ever come across one of these? They were built by the Melroe Brothers in the '80s. Had 6 wheels and were powered by an Isuzu diesel. Much more operator friendly than the Bobcats at that time. Wobble sticks for drive and bucket control. An ejecting bucket with foot control. I had one and made the mistake of selling it when I had a little money trouble around 1988. I had never seen one before or after.
 

Taylortractornu

Charter Member
Joined
Nov 13, 2003
Messages
481
Location
Iuka, Mississippi
Occupation
Privvate landfill operator/manager
I ve seen them in pictures a man in the georgia trader paper had 3 for sale. 2 had 6 wheels and one had 8. Ive seen the forestry versions in a BC book I got at booksamillion with a shear on the front
 

xcmark

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 28, 2010
Messages
357
Location
Foxboro , Ma.
Occupation
construction
there was one forsale in Burlington Ma. about 2~3 weeks ago on craigslist. Add claimed there was under 200 of them made!
 

No1Hookman

Active Member
Joined
May 4, 2005
Messages
31
Location
40N 81W
Occupation
Duh.......
Like this one.......... If anybody knows of one for sale, do tell.:)
 

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TALLRICK

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 28, 2007
Messages
195
Location
florida
This thing is amazing. Wonder why it never caught on? Too expensive maybe? As a 6 wheel atv enthusiast for several decades the idea of a 6 wheel skid steer always seemed probable. Guess today's rubber track loaders took its place. There was also a modified Bobcat with 6 wheels. Seems to be a forestry machine though.
 

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landtekk

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 29, 2008
Messages
68
Location
chugiak,alaska
The one I saw had mechanical drive, no chains each wheel had a differential connected by a jack shaft. Probably expensive but the owner had nothing but praise for it. It is quite a bit heavier at about five tons.
The videos are great to see, Thanks Trihonu.

The modified skid is cool in the way it can shift the center of gravity on the machine to gain traction or be able to lift a little more in a bad position. The walking beams enable the tires to stay planted. The short deep holes can be bridged a bit, and taller banks can be climbed. With the walking beams I'm not sure that you could actually pick the rear wheels off the ground as it might become a taildragger. I'd like to see a real world view of it working.
I also wonder if adding all the extra drivetrain,that there might have been an power issue with the stock engine or if it was modified?
 

jerrybeckman

Member
Joined
Nov 16, 2009
Messages
14
Location
Elizabeth, CO
Occupation
concrete demo
There was one for sale in the Denver area about 3- 4 years ago for under 3K. I wanted it but couldn't pony up the dough. It sure looked interesting.
 

980C

Member
Joined
Aug 3, 2008
Messages
16
Location
North Dakota
Occupation
Truck Driver
There's still a couple of them sitting at the Bobcat factory in Gwinner. They used to use one of them for snow removal around the yard once in awhile, but they have been parked out back in the graveyard for a few years now.

There have been several other odd machines that never made it past the prototype stages, too. (My dad was one of the higher-ups in the engineering/experimental department there for many, many years). We had some really interesting machines out at our place from time to time, putting hours on them.
 
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