72" vibratory roller

I'm going to look at a used 72" vibratory roller this weekend (Bobcat brand)...anything to keep an eye out for? What are your guys opinions of this type of attachment for SS's/CTL's? I have limited time using/running one on a CTL, but what I did do, seemed to do a wonderfull job. Those of you that own or run them, what kind of work are you utilizing them most on? Thanks.

Edit: BTW, It has a smooth drum...and I just realized its actually a 73" wide unit.

I have heard that most all of these attachments cant keep the seals in them. I have never owned one but I would like to, as I investigated them, thats what I learned. The MBW seems to be the exception to this. However they are 12K. It would be nice to thow one on the trailer and not have to hump a twin drum roller around all the time.

KSSS said:

I have heard that most all of these attachments cant keep the seals in them. I have never owned one but I would like to, as I investigated them, thats what I learned. The MBW seems to be the exception to this. However they are 12K. It would be nice to thow one on the trailer and not have to hump a twin drum roller around all the time.

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Thanks KSSS. Plans for going to look at the units(guy actually has 2) got changed, due to sellers schedule....then cancelled again yesterday due to weather. I'm suppose to call the guy 2day, and either go out this afternoon or 2moro.

I probably wouldnt use it a lot, but for the right price, I wouldnt mind having it....also, I have a friend in the excavating biz that I think would either rent it from me or hire me out (w/my machine & roller) on occasion.

I'll post what I end up finding out.

Maybe it's too late but this has been discussed on this forum before. As I remember it those who had experience were not satisfied with performance. I think it was recommended to look into an Allied attachemnt for skid steers. It's like a big plate compactor vs a drum. Try search as it's probably way better information than my vague recollection.

DGODGR said:

Maybe it's too late but this has been discussed on this forum before. As I remember it those who had experience were not satisfied with performance. I think it was recommended to look into an Allied attachemnt for skid steers. It's like a big plate compactor vs a drum. Try search as it's probably way better information than my vague recollection.

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Your recollection was not vague, DGODGR, ……… I own an Allied Skid-Pac as it was discussed in previous threads here, the Drum rollers do NOT do what most expect from them …… as a matter of fact I don't ever remember that I have ever heard anyone mention that the Drums were great ……. talking to various rental outfits they are also very high in maintenance as KSSS said …….. in the last 4 yrs that I have had mine the only repair/failure that ive had was a female flat face coupler (Parker) jammed in the closed position while on the machine (had to be beat off)…..but that has nothing to do with the packers components ……… I use this unit alot, and not just for road building or general compaction duties …… I have a conversion saddle that I bolt on to the unit to use on my 312 excavator, I have used it on the 312 when packing contours as in ditchlines, burms, or slopes over banks ect. where the wheeled machine will not go ….. with another saddle that bolts to the bottom of the packer I use it to probe and drive fence posts, its ABSOLUTELY AMAZING how this thing works in hard and very rocky soils and NO post breakage at all, its also not a man killer, a very SAFE operation …… We will never use the hyd post pounder attachment for the skid ever again.

Snocrete, I would buy a drum roller if I got it for next to nothing just for shi*s and giggles i'm sure they have their place, I was thinking like if it had the ability to free wheel like a lawn roller would be cool, maybe with minimal hyd-flow it would give a minor compaction quality to ground that needed to be stabilized until grass seed or vegetation rooted in.

If You wind up getting it for the price you envision let us know how it works out ………… Cheers

I probably chimed in on the previous discussion but I don't remember it....

I have a 48" Bobcat vibratory roller attachment. The reason I bought it back in 2003 was to compact around multi-family foundations while backfilling - did everything I expected of it and saved me a ton of money in stone backfill, it paid for itself more than once.

The problem with the attachment is the shaft bearings and the rubber isolators on each side are a wear item. I have replaced the bearings once and if it gets used much again I will need to replace the rubber isolators. The attachment works well for it's intended purpose - compacting in tight places. It takes a skilled operator to run it as it needs to float over the ground because if you use down pressure it will accelerate the wear on the bearings and rubber bushings.

If you are looking at a used unit, check the shaft bearings for wear and the rubber isolators for any tears, damage, etc.

Thanks for the responses everyone.....as for running it correctly, i know because I was instructed by someone very familiar with these attachments right from the get go. When I ran one previously I found utilizing the "speed control" on my SJC controls worked well...setting it at 2.4 or 2.7 mph (not sure bout that, but somewhere around there???). Then of course allowing it to float - NO D.P.

Unfortunately the seller has been very difficult to corner up. I have tried daily, since 1 or 2 days previous to my original post, to meet up with him....other than 2day. I'm starting to wonder about the whole deal???

I did find an inside source about these attachments. I was told both units need bearings & isolators.?..?...not sure how I feel about this? I have a real good idea about cost in repairing both. I suppose if I get both for the right price, fix both, maybe I could sell 1 and end up with a nice roller for cheap? I looked around a little on the net, and it seems a roller like these in good working order (and decent cosmetic shape) goes used for around $4500-$5500???? Does this seem right??? Thanks again for the advice.

I know this is an old thread but I think bearings go more often because of lack of grease. We grease inner and outer bearings, 4 fittings, every 5 hours. I trained myself to do this on my chipper's and mulcher's bearings too due to vibration and extreme operating conditions. It sucks to have to go through so much grease but the sticker on the unit says "every 5 hours" so it must mean something.


KSSS mentioned seals. Since 2001, I've replaced seals in my 48 inch twice. It's motor isn't rated for the machines I owned since 2003 and so I will get a slow leak. Have NOT had a seal blow apart, yet. I have replaced the rubber boot once but no bearings in miles and miles of ranch roads. That doesn't mean my bearings aren't wearing out but the roller is still working. It's a Bobcat 48 inch. I'm going to upgrade, I think, to the newer style with bigger motor and more compaction force to match my bigger machine's hydraulic output.

I picked up a new 72" last summer from Bobcat. It has been nice when it works. The issue that seems to be re-surfacing is the bolts that hold on the smooth plates keep coming loose. We have cleaned and loctited them, but they still seem to come loose, or snap. So far Bobcat has fixed it. I had 4 bolts snap in about a 15 min time frame after about 2 hours of working it. It started to reverse the shaking from the ground back into the machine. :bash It also got pretty loud. No grease points on the new style, hope that isn't an issue. I don't use the sheeps foot much, so I guess I should have just ordered the smooth one only. It takes me about 6 hours to install the plates back on and I use all new hardware. Used it about 40 hours this last summer so far.

Equip

Equip Junkie said:

I picked up a new 72" last summer from Bobcat. It has been nice when it works. The issue that seems to be re-surfacing is the bolts that hold on the smooth plates keep coming loose. We have cleaned and loctited them, but they still seem to come loose, or snap. So far Bobcat has fixed it. I had 4 bolts snap in about a 15 min time frame after about 2 hours of working it. It started to reverse the shaking from the ground back into the machine. :bash It also got pretty loud. No grease points on the new style, hope that isn't an issue. I don't use the sheeps foot much, so I guess I should have just ordered the smooth one only. It takes me about 6 hours to install the plates back on and I use all new hardware. Used it about 40 hours this last summer so far.

Equip

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sorry to hear you are having problems. Bobcat corporate should get involved and see if your roller is out of spec somewhere. Wow, no grease points? I'm not sure how I feel about permanently sealed bearings.
If I was a better mechanic, I'd look at other brands but getting support when I need it is tough. I already have a fleet of attachments and machines on the ranch and not enough time. I realized recently I spent the last 20 years of my life working hard and changing a rock and cedar choked ranch into something pretty (but useless except for the privacy it provides) and I'm not having enough fun. Spending 6 hours putting the plates back on the roller would have me talking to someone up the food chain and trying to get an answer or a trade.

Good luck!

Equip Junkie said:

..... I had 4 bolts snap in about a 15 min time frame after about 2 hours of working it. It started to reverse the shaking from the ground back into the machine. :bash It also got pretty loud......
Equip

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I have a couple of thoughts about this but since I've not been there to see, and feel, in person, I suggest you take it for what it's worth. Whenever I have noticed that the compaction energy is returning to the machine, instead of being transmitted to the ground, it seems to be from one, or both, of two things. Compactor travel speed is too slow, and/or the material being compacted has reached maximum density. I have not noticed this on ride-on machines but I have seen it on walk behinds. What I notice when an operator is going too slow with a ride-on is cracks (parallel with the length of the drum, or across the machine) in the material being compacted (usually 3/4" aggregate base course). Another noteworthy thought is that different types of materials often times require different frequencies to best achieve the desired compaction.
Regardless of the thoughts above, I think it's safe to assume that the energy that is returning to the machine is what is making the bolts come loose. If I were you I would try to find someone else who is using one and pick there brain. I would want to watch them use it too.
Lastly, I'm not sure why it is taking 6 hours (per your post) to install the shells. On the bigger convertible units I have experience with (54" & 66" single drum, articulated compactors) it only takes about (2) hours to install the shells. In those cases the drum is smooth and one installs the pad foot shell kit (2 halves) over it. I'm not sure how the Bobcat one installs. If I were only using it for gravel I would seriously consider welding it on if it took me 6 hours to fix it every time it came loose.

Good luck.

I have played around with speed and throttle control to help reduce vibration feed back into the machine. I contacted a guy locally who had run the bobcat packer a bunch and he mentioned the same things. The bolts snapping and coming loose could be associated with the vibration going into the machine. The material I have been packing has mostly been 3/4 crushed gravel on driveways and it is pretty obvious when it is compacted but not always. I did one driveway where I added 3" of 3/4" crushed limestone and it looked packed, but was giving a lot of machine feedback regardless of throttle or speed. When I drove my truck down the driveway it left ruts. I also had a number of bolts come loose in a short order, and wouldn't stay tight during this job.

The guys at the Bobcat dealer took 4+ hours with 2 guys to put it on the first time and the second time it took even longer. The first time I did it by myself, it took me 6 total. The biggest issue is the blocks that the plates mount to. After struggling with lining up the holes, I took it all apart and found that the blocks were not exactly the same length. (Varied up to 1/8" in length) This would put the holes out of alignment. So I spent some time lining up the holes in the little blocks and that made it better, but there was still some fudging and one block would not fit no matter what way I put it in. I have seriously debated welding it. Will consider that more so after I am out of warrantee. I know that moisture content has a large effect on it as well. Thinner layers with already compacted material underneath seems to be the hardest to find the correct speed/throttle combo to prevent feedback.

It is winter here now, so not much use going on with it now. I have found most of my Bobcat implements well designed and built. Hope this isn't any different.

Equip

Update for the Bobcat Vibratory packer. I spoke with a Bobcat mechanic. He mentioned that in the past they packer plates were attached with bars that went from one side to the other, not the little blocks. They no longer sell these even for the older models. They only sell the little blocks with the pins and extra bolts. I have decided to try and fabricate the bars myself and see how they work. I started taking the plates apart, measuring the spacing on the holes. I found 2 broken bolts and a number of pins missing. I had only used it for about 30 mins from the last time the plates had been put on by Bobcat. The ones that had the broken bolts also were missing the small pins that hold the blocks in place while torqueing the bolts. I have made the bars, just need to finish painting them up(need some warmer weather ) Will try to take some pictures. Hoping this will help in reducing time frame for putting together. So far I am under half the cost of replacing blocks, pins and bolts. Which is a good thing too.

Packer mod complete

Well, I finished the 4 bar mod for my packer. It took me a little over 3 hours from start to finish with a few minor adjustments needed. That is a 3 hour savings over using the blocks that Bobcat provides. Here is a picture of the last bar going in. With the help of another person, I could probably do it in one hour. Change out the bolts each time to make sure they don't strip out. Something good from this slow time.

Not meaning to hi jack the thread, but for small pads with hard pan, would a vibratory padfoot attachment work with breaking up the chunks and able to achieve 95% compaction? What size lifts would be the maximum 6"?