JCB Excavators Any opinions?

[kyoshidog]

Hello everyone,
I have been looking for a new mini in the 12,000-14,000 range having just sol a Kubota KX 121 and want to get a machine with a little more power and reach. One of the best deals I have found is on a new JCB 8060. I have seen adds for these but know very little about them and was wondering if anyone has any input. I am curious how one of these compares with a Deere or a Cat? I want to make the most informed purchase I can which means that price is certainly not the only deciding factor. I would appreciate any comments of knowledge that you folks would like to share!

Thanks in advance
Karl

 

[KSSS]

Hello everyone,
I have been looking for a new mini in the 12,000-14,000 range having just sol a Kubota KX 121 and want to get a machine with a little more power and reach. One of the best deals I have found is on a new JCB 8060. I have seen adds for these but know very little about them and was wondering if anyone has any input. I am curious how one of these compares with a Deere or a Cat? I want to make the most informed purchase I can which means that price is certainly not the only deciding factor. I would appreciate any comments of knowledge that you folks would like to share!

Thanks in advance
Karl

JCB might make some good equipment but at least here, no one supports them very well so you don't see much of their equipment out West. Resale out here is poor. I base that on watching JCB equipment go through at auction.

I think Takeuchi builds a fine excavator, the 153 is a very productive excavator. The IHI NX65 I think specs very well. The Hitachi/Deere mini's are capable but certainly no powerhouse. Cats C-Cr machines are much better than the older machines. The CASE B series is a very nice machine and specs well (the 50B is as close as you can get to the weight you want).

There are not a lot of machines in that weight class.

Takeuchi TB153FR weighs 12.5
IHI NX65 weighs 14K
Deere 60D weighs 13K (I think)

These machines come to mind, not to say that is totally inclusive. I think this weight class has some real advantages. With the 153, I match many of the specs of the 16K machines but with less weight. Once you are at 10K or just over adding a couple thousand pounds really doesn't change the trailering issues and the physical size is about the same. For me this size machine is a perfect match.

 

[Digger Dan]

What about the Kubota 161, would that not fit your needs... Curious, How good or bad was your 121, how many hours did you put on it?

 

[strott]

Volvo may be worth a look - they do some short radius machines as well as standard tailswing in that size category if you work on limited sites e.t.c.

 

[kyoshidog]

The Kubota 161 seems like a nice machine but I just wonder if you are going to get the hours out of one versus a Takahuchi, or Cat etc. Thy just don.t seem as heavy duty to me. My 121 was ok but not a lot of power.
I will look at both the Takahuchi and the Volvo as they each have good reps. Are parts hard to get for eitther? I am in the POrtland Oregon area.

 

[strangehand]

kubota kx161 is a tight machine and it is easy to operate with sveral moving. But the bucket force is smaller than other machine,such as yuchai YC60 ,volvo EC55,liugong 906C


in my area, the volvo parts is more expensive than any other brands!

the color of takeuchi is white and it is easy to dirt!

 

[Anto Modded]

Friend has a 2003 i think 8060 with over 6000 hours on it. Worked it for a few months, nice digger. Hasnt given any trouble since new. Here is 2 pics i found of it. Used it to poor the floors in a garage........

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v336/AntoModded/diggers/8060-1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v336/AntoModded/diggers/8060-2.jpg

 

[maddog]

I own a 4000lb unit and feel it is a great little machine, no problems.

 

[JimInOz]

Another bloke from Australia had some JCB troubles this year.
http://www.classicmachinery.net/forum/compact-excavators-f16/jcb-8080-excavator-t2083.html

If anyone out there has the chain specs on a JCB 8052,please let me know.
I think I have a nice set here,but need to ID them for sure.

Jim

 

[Allgood]

After being the king of renters for a while because my little Bobcat 325 was just way too small, I wanted to get what basically amounted to the largest machine I could legally haul behind my 1 ton pickup without any special licenses. I rented a Tak TB153FR and was very impressed with it, very impressed. My only issue was that it's weight just barely put me over the legal limit. Yeah, I probably wouldn't get caught, but you know how it goes. That's when the Takeuchi dealer showed me the TB145. Other than not having the ZTS, it pretty well matched the 153 *** for tat and is about a two thousand pounds lighter due to not having to shorten the tail for counter weighting. Needless to say, that did the trick for me and I love the machine.

As others have said, there are many quality machines out there. Myself, being cheap, I was looking for a used machine that was only about couple years old and preferably not from a rental company. Yes, I know some rental companies keep up with their stuff quite well, but I've also seen what people do to equipment that they have rented. About the only thing I was strongly and frequently advised against was grey market stuff. The prices seemed great and the machines even felt great and strong. It was only when I tried to see how hard it would be to get parts fast that I saw their point. Good luck with whatever you get and happy digging!