Skid Steer

Archive for the ‘skidsteers’ Category

Below are 9 reasons why articulated mini loaders are raved about by operators to be far superior than skidsteers:
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r1.Articulated mini loaders are very VERSATILE. You can operate every accessory that you can use on a skidsteer. Articulated mini loaders use an endless amount of tools including, pallet forks, 4-in-1 buckets, grab buckets, general purpose buckets, light material buckets, grabs, log grapples, post hole diggers, dozer blades, sweepers, mowers and trenchers – just to name a few!
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r2.Skidsteers dig up grass, sand and even asphalt by skidding on the ground to steer, the same way a tank steers. Articulated mini loaders on the other hand, use articulated steering that creates MINIMAL DAMAGE to the ground, as it isn’t skidding on it. Skids steers can crack paving and even rip up asphalt, particularly on hot days. The skidsteer operator when working on established residential and commercial properties must go back and repair all the damage created by skidsteers tyres. The time lost doing repairs by skidsteer operators is very costly for contractors as they aren’t able to charge for it, wastes critical time and customers are unhappy about the damage. Articulated mini loader drivers instead of having to go and repair damage caused by skidsteers, just go on to the next job to make more money. Upfront costs of purchasing an articulated mini loader are higher than a skidsteer, but these upfront costs are quickly gained back through the operating life of the mini loader.
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r3.Skidsteers WEAR OUT TYRES FAST on hard surfaces as the whole weight of the vehicle is skidding on the tyre making downtime and maintenance costly. Cost of the actual tyres is one issue, but fitting charges, tyre waste surcharges, travel time to and from the tyre repair centre is often not taken into account and is often more costly than the tyres themselves!
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rARTICULATED mini loaders use articulated steering which doesn’t damage tyres, reducing maintenance cost and downtime. The whole front end of the loader pivots to turn the mini loader in the direction required. Articulated steering isn’t hard on tyres, the ground, the operator (particularly if he is sitting on the rear of the mini loader – this is critical to the right choice in buying a mini loader, that the operator sits on the rear of the mini loader, every major manufacturer now has they operator sitting on the rear chassis of the mini loader) or on the mini loader. Skidsteers on the other hand must generate a lot of pressure in the other wheels to force the whole machine to skid and turn around on the spot.
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rA big advantage of articulated mini loaders over skid steers is that they have a lot more choice of tyre patterns than skid steers as they can use a deep lug with efficient self cleaning space between the lugs. Skidsteers on the other hand, can’t use a deep lug or it will get ripped off when the lug is skidded on. Skidsteers must use a lug that is very close to the next lug so the force can be spread over a few lugs or it will simply get ripped off. This means skidsteers have less efficient traction in slippery conditions, causing more damage to the track and extra fuel consumption. Skid steers may still be able to move through muddy terrain but this only occurs with a lot of slippage as the lugs you can use on a skidsteer are limited in both depth and self cleaning ability – spacing. When skidsteers grip on solid surfaces it can be very hard on the driver’s neck, this doesn’t help operators have a nice after work life!
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r4.Skidsteers often do not have much reach when they are dumping their bucket so you can only load trucks from one side. Skid steers need to drive around the other side of the truck or trailer to load it. The centre of gravity of the load of skidsteers is often kept as close to the skidsteer as possible, this maximizes lift capacity which is particularly crucial when operating from a very short wheelbase, as it cannot handle much weight out the front. Articulated mini loaders can load trailers from one side as they REACH onto the opposite side saving time, diesel and in urban areas you don’t have to venture onto the road, which saves a lot time. This is possible as mini loaders often have more reach than skidsteers, allowing them to work much quicker at filling trailers.
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r5.Operating an articulated mini loader is very simple – you have a steering wheel, the same as any car and a joystick which controls all the mast functions. Pull the joystick back and the mast goes up, push the joystick and the mini loader mast goes down and side to side controls crowd and dump. The simple nature of driving an articulated mini loader allows new staff to become productive rapidly. When operating a skidsteer there are many different types of operating systems, however none of them inc

The power output of mini loader, mini digger, skid steer, wheel loader and front end loader engines can be measured in Kilowatts (kW), metric horsepower (PS) or imperial horsepower (hp). It is important to note when comparing different makes of industrial loaders what engine output is being stated, for example is it the gross output, net output or net continuous output that is stated in the specification sheet. Each measurement is significantly different so they cannot be compared. Most mini loader manufactures’ brochures use gross output as this is the highest rating of the engine, however it is important to know what output is being referred to.
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rFor example the Kubota engine V2203, which is used in many different brands of earthmoving machinery, including the Schaffer Loader 3150, has a Gross Intermittent output (SAE J 1995) at 2800RPM of 36.4kW or 49.5PS. The Net Intermittent output (ISO 3046 IFN) at 2800 RPM is 34.3kW or 46.7PS. However Net Continuous output at 2800RPM is 29.8kW or 40.5PS.
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rYou can see from the Kubota engine used in the above example how the output rating changes by up to 20% depending on what output rating method is used. This shows how important it is to compare the right output readings with loader engines.
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rTo calculate between kW and PS (metric horsepower), you simply multiply the kW value by 1.36 or if you only know the PS reading simply divide that figure by 0.735. Just a side note, there are two forms of horsepower – metric (PS) and imperial (hp or HP). The imperial horsepower has a slightly lower value than the metric horsepower.
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rThe acronym SAE above refers to the standards produced by the Society of Automotive Engineers. ISO refers to the International Organization for Standardization standards. Both these groups publish standards so manufacturers in this case can all rate their engines with the same method to enable direct comparisons to be made.
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rAnother big talking point between operators is whether or not to use a turbo engine.
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rTurbo engines have advantages and disadvantages. Some advantages of turbo engines include – low emissions as the turbo runs very hot burning particulates, this is the big reason many manufacturers are starting to add turbo’s to their small diesel engines – to gain compliance with Euro Level 3a and American Tier 4 compliance. Turbos also have good fuel economy; particularly at idle as a small capacity engine is running. Turbo engines are also of a lower engine weight compared to equivalent PS engine, however weight of a loader effects how much it can pick up, so this may be a disadvantage.
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rThe biggest issue with turbo engines often lies in the turbo lag – the turbo must kick in before power and usable torque is obtained. When using a front end loader or mini loader, the operator is often going at slow speeds digging into the material to be moved with their bucket. If the skid steer loader engine is operating at low RPM, then the turbo won’t kick in and they don’t have enough torque to load easily – the operator must always operate at higher engine speeds so the turbo is active and torque is available. A non turbo diesel engine however usually has a wider torque band so can be used at any RPM speed to load. The non turbo mini loader engine has a wider torque band simply because the bore capacity is bigger. Turbo’s also add another layer of complexity to engines and most manufacturers say they are best idled down after use to protect bearings and stop-start operations such as front end loaders and skidsteers in soilyards generally try to avoid turbos, mainly if no turbo timer has been incorporated on the engine.
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rSo when comparing engine output to determine the best front end loader, wheel loader, mini loader, skidsteer or fork-lift for your application it is important to check how the output has been measured ie. according to which standard and also, the type of output readings, so you are really comparing the same measurements.