Caterpillar 426 Series II?

[gasifier]

Hello folks. I’m looking at purchasing a Caterpillar 426 Series II loader backhoe. Working hour meter currently at 5,497.0 and going up as the owner uses it. A good man on this forum (Cmark) just used the serial number I posted to figure out that it has a build day of January 15, 1991. The machine appears to be in very good condition for its age with the current owner stating he is the second owner and has had it for 15 years. It has 4 wheel drive, a full cab with heat, plug in heater, general purpose bucket on loader, and E-hoe with an amulet clamp/thumb. I am not a contractor and won’t be dependent on it for income in anyway. I will just be using it on my 81 acre hobby farm. I’ll be doing trail work, moving clay and topsoil, digging small to medium stumps, drainage ditch work, etc. Im not worried about speed, I like to take my time and enjoy the process. I have heard good things about the Caterpillars. Any experience on reliability? I appreciate your time.

 

[gasifier]

I failed to mention I have owned many loader backhoes in the past. Mostly smaller ones. From several of the TLB series Kubotas, to Bobcat 300B, to Deere 310J. (I do not consider myself an experienced operator, that is for sure!) This time around I’m going with a full size again, but trying to keep the price down. I generally buy a piece of equipment with low hours, get a good amount of work done with it over a 6 - 18 month timeframe, and then sell it and try to get all my money back. Or close to it. Has worked out fairly well. With the exception of one Ag tractor. But the buying and selling is getting old though. I’m thinking it may be time to find a not too expensive, reliable machine and keep it. I have not owned a Caterpillar yet. Would like to hear of any experience with operating this model or similar, reliability, etc.

 

[gasifier]

Well, my transport guy said something like “It’s a big b*****d.”. He was right!

Thanks Mike!

 

[NH575E]

No experience but that is a good looking machine for it's age. Congrats on the new Hoe!

Looked them up and saw one for sale in VA with 14,000 hours on the clock. Most I saw with the hours you say this one has are much uglier than yours.

 

[DGODGR]

I have run series II machines but not owned. I've had a both "B" series and "C" series Cat 416s. In fact, I still have my 416C (which I bought new in '97) and it has over 13k hours on it. IMO they are great machines. The series II machines are the second generation of the Cat TLBs. As you can see Cat copied the case over-center, twin ram boom design for the series I & II. The "B" model got the "banana", or excavator boom. The 426 is practically the same as the 416 but has a bit more depth/reach and slightly more HP (but same engine). Keep an eye on the torque tube of the loader bucket. They tend to crack where they are welded to the loader arms. The B and C series have issues with the pin/bushing sets at the bottom of the boom (where the boom mounts to the swing frame) if not kept well greased but I'm not sure if series II is the same. The rear axle (front is as well) is a ZF wet brake affair. Good axle but brakes can be very noisy, especially if you don't have the right oil in there. I've had to replace the rear brakes 2 times so far. They seemed to last about 5k hours. I've done the work myself both times. It requires removal of the rear axle and then disassembly to get the brakes linings changed. Can be done by a shade tree mechanic if so inclined. You will know that the brakes are worn out if the pedal goes soft (brakes will work but pedal will slowly keep pushing in as if there is a leak in the brake hydraulic lines -because there is) and you will eventually bleed all brake fluid into the rear diff. This is because, when the linings get thin enough the brake piston will travel so far it goes beyond the seals (the leak I mentioned) and this allows brake fluid by.
Support for Cat machines is widely regarded as the best in most areas of the country. I have never had problems getting parts (though, in my experience, even Cat is now having COVID related supply chain issues from time to time).
Every machine has it's strong suits and achilles heals as well. Having lived with Cat 'hoes for the last 20+ years I'd have no problem buying a series II, B or C machine.

 

[gasifier]

Thank you for the responses. Interesting. It appears to be in good shape. I received it in the dark last night so will get a better look at it sometime today. We have had some mild temperatures lately so I’m actually hoping for some colder weather to freeze up the ground. Suppose to be -9 on Monday. But my family company leaves New Year’s Day. You can only weight so long to try it out!

 

[gasifier]

My family company left for about three hours to visit other friends and relatives. So I had a chance to fire up the 426 and give it a try. As with all equipment, it is going to take some time to get use to it. But everything seems to work well. I was able to easily dig a large Ash stump out and place it into a burn pile, then fill the hole in and level everything off by back dragging. So far, so good.

 

[Swetz]

gasifier,

Congrats on the new to you hoe. Looks great! I can tell you first hand, you are going to love the Amulet thumb. I installed one on my NH backhoe about a year ago. Well made unit.

Happy tractoring!!

 

[gasifier]

gasifier,

Congrats on the new to you hoe. Looks great! I can tell you first hand, you are going to love the Amulet thumb. I installed one on my NH backhoe about a year ago. Well made unit.

Happy tractoring!!

Thank you. Appreciate it. The Amulet came with the machine and I know, from looking at them in the past, that they are not cheap. So I was happy with the final purchase price with the thumb included. Thumbs/clamps are awesome for soooo many things.

 

[Nige]

Can I suggest that you continue posting all your experiences, repairs, improvements, etc, with your new acquisition on this thread.?
It will provide great information in one place for anyone who has to travel the same path in the future.

Like this one........... https://www.heavyequipmentforums.com/threads/my-cat-426-project.83248/

 

[gasifier]

Can I suggest that you continue posting all your experiences, repairs, improvements, etc, with your new acquisition on this thread.?
It will provide great information in one place for anyone who has to travel the same path in the future.

Like this one........... https://www.heavyequipmentforums.com/threads/my-cat-426-project.83248/

Sure will. I am in the middle of trying to find a parking brake cover for the inside of the cab. A triangular shaped piece of plastic with three holes for mounting. I believe it is part number 9R1584. I thought I found a source but they listed no price. Had to fill in my name and e-mail and request a quote. ?

Anyone with any info on source/price, I would appreciate it if you let me know.

When I put my serial number into the Cat website it comes up as a 259D skidsteer track loader. D’Oh!

I have made contact with Milton CAT in Syracuse and some place on the net called AVSPARE? to get a price.

 

[edgephoto]

Sure will. I am in the middle of trying to find a parking brake cover for the inside of the cab. A triangular shaped piece of plastic with three holes for mounting. I believe it is part number 9R1584. I thought I found a source but they listed no price. Had to fill in my name and e-mail and request a quote. ?

Anyone with any info on source/price, I would appreciate it if you let me know.

When I put my serial number into the Cat website it comes up as a 259D skidsteer track loader. D’Oh!

I have made contact with Milton CAT in Syracuse and some place on the net called AVSPARE? to get a price.

My local dealer parts account shows it is available in the York warehouse.

 

[gasifier]

My local dealer parts account shows it is available in the York warehouse. View attachment 251091

Cool. Thanks for the info! I’m glad to see the price is not bad. I’ll see what the closest dealer and other guys say when they get back on Monday.

 

[edgephoto]

You should be able to sign up for an account online. I look up my own parts, order them online and then just go to the dealer and pick them up.

 

[gasifier]

You should be able to sign up for an account online. I look up my own parts, order them online and then just go to the dealer and pick them up.

Yes. I did that the other day. But for some reason I didn’t see a price on the part. ? Not sure if I did something wrong or not. But I’ll get it figured out. It’s just an aesthetics thing. But I always try to fix anything wrong on my machine. Thanks.

 

[edgephoto]

I am with you. I like things to be 100% if I can help it. My machine's cab was in rough shape but I got a good deal on her so it is worth it to me to fix her up. Everything worked when I bought her. Just had some issues I know I could fix.

My thought process was to buy a machine that everything works for a good price that needs some TLC. This way by doing all the hoses, repairs, cleaning, and maintenance I would know what I have and be familiar with it. When all is said and done I will have a machine in good cosmetic and operating condition for about 2/3s of what a machine in better cosmetic shape was selling for at the time I bought mine.

 

[DGODGR]

I am with you. I like things to be 100% if I can help it. My machine's cab was in rough shape but I got a good deal on her so it is worth it to me to fix her up. Everything worked when I bought her. Just had some issues I know I could fix.

My thought process was to buy a machine that everything works for a good price that needs some TLC. This way by doing all the hoses, repairs, cleaning, and maintenance I would know what I have and be familiar with it. When all is said and done I will have a machine in good cosmetic and operating condition for about 2/3s of what a machine in better cosmetic shape was selling for at the time I bought mine.

This is a great theory/idea but purchase price will be critical for this formula to work out. Buying parts is always expensive. If you were to "part together" a complete machine it would likely be, at least, 100% more expensive than buying the assembled sum of said parts (as in a completely assembled machine) and you'd still have to assemble it. In my experience one really will only save the money spent on labor (assuming that one does the work himself) and we often over look what our time, and the hassle, is worth. Unless one is just looking for the enjoyment and satisfaction of doing the work, it's usually a better value to buy something that's already in great shape. Often, the advantage of buying a lesser expensive machine (that requires some "TLC") is that one can afford the price of entry, can hopefully get some use out of it, and can bring the machine up to par over time.

 

[edgephoto]

This is a great theory/idea but purchase price will be critical for this formula to work out. Buying parts is always expensive. If you were to "part together" a complete machine it would likely be, at least, 100% more expensive than buying the assembled sum of said parts (as in a completely assembled machine) and you'd still have to assemble it. In my experience one really will only save the money spent on labor (assuming that one does the work himself) and we often over look what our time, and the hassle, is worth. Unless one is just looking for the enjoyment and satisfaction of doing the work, it's usually a better value to buy something that's already in great shape. Often, the advantage of buying a lesser expensive machine (that requires some "TLC") is that one can afford the price of entry, can hopefully get some use out of it, and can bring the machine up to par over time.

I don't disagree at all. For one, I had the time since I bought the machine before I actually bought the land I intend to clear with it. Also with the prices of lumber and the rampant inflation I am not building any time soon.

Second is, I enjoy working on mechanical things. It is my therapy. My goal was not to bring a machine back from the dead or build one from parts but rather find one in good mechanical condition that runs, drives and operates but needs some attention. I knew the costs of parts before going in. If I paid for labor then yes I did the wrong thing. The only thing wrong mechanically with mine was one boom cylinder was dented and needed to be fixed professionally. All the other cylinders I resealed were done as PM not because they were leaking or did not operate. I replaced nearly all the hoses so far and have a few to go. I paid on average $30 per hose. I happen to know the hose maker and paying cash gets me a giant discount.

If I was going to make a living with a machine I certainly would not buy a 30 year old model. I would get something newer and turn key. Downtime in this case is costing money. For me I wanted a simple, old school, all mechanical machine. Electronics fail and you need specialized equipment to communicate with them. I also do not like all the admission controls, they just add more stuff with the potential to fail.

 

[gasifier]

Hey folks. My Caterpillar’s seat works well sliding back and forth. But when turning it seems to be quite a chore to get it around. Hard to go from driving position to hoe operating position. Almost like it is all gummed up. Any of you experience this? Could it just need some lubricant? Maybe a spray of Liquid Wrench or WD40?

 

[Billrog]

Grease it.