Compact Track Loader, whos the best?

[TheRealWorld]

I once hired a guy by the hour who was reasonable, his machine was junk and he billed me for two repairs while he was here. It was not a good deal!

 

[paulsharvey]

So, regardless of what the client sees, you still need a number for your time to throw on bids, plus materials, and where I think Many small guys go wrong, Profit. You should be paying yourself, your equioment/helpers, your material (with some profit), and then company profit after you paided your wages to yourself.

 

[Hay Dude]

And if you run an expensive brush mower, add even more. Dirt work isn’t going to bring the same coin as brush mowing.
I have done very well renting a large frame with a forestry mower for a week and doing clearing work.

 

[TheRealWorld]

So, regardless of what the client sees, you still need a number for your time to throw on bids, plus materials, and where I think Many small guys go wrong, Profit. You should be paying yourself, your equioment/helpers, your material (with some profit), and then company profit after you paided your wages to yourself.

And you have to cover the government fees, like taxes, Social Security, licensing, compliance fees, and future legal fees, I guess I am tired of the government!

 

[4570Man]

And if you run an expensive brush mower, add even more. Dirt work isn’t going to bring the same coin as brush mowing.
I have done very well renting a large frame with a forestry mower for a week and doing clearing work.

I agree completely with bidding a total job cost but my opinion still remains that if you need a 16,000 pound $150,000 skid loader then you actually need a real dozer.

 

[Fixastuff]

Re billing. Remember machines are wearing out as you use them. Need to charge enough to cover expenses pay yourself well and save up for machine repairs or replacement. I’ve said it here before the best thing I did as a dirt working business was going from homeowner work to underground utilities.

 

[Hay Dude]

As far as brands go, I don’t think you can really go wrong with any of them. Whatever one brand may have as a slight advantage of another, could be more than offset by a lower purchase price or better dealership support.
Just buy what brand makes the most sense for you. A well cared for lesser unit may prove better in the long run than a nicer unit that was run hard & put away wet.

I usually buy more machine than you think you need. Leaves room to grow.

 

[TheRealWorld]

I demoed a brand new Tackuchi before I bought my Kubota machine and I’ve ran a few older ones on jobs and I wasn’t impressed. A Kubota cab isn’t exactly luxury but the Tackuchi cab was sure enough basic. The Kubota 75-3 actually has a much improved cab over the previous models. The Tackuchi step into the cab is too big and significantly impairs the visibility of the bucket edge. The Tackuchi controls are loose especially the steering to the point it was difficult to accurately place pallet forks in the pallet. I used 2 brand new ones and they were both like that as well as the older ones. I’m not saying they’re a bad machine, they aren’t and I’d buy one if the deal was good but they certainly aren’t industry leading like some people seem to think. I looked at a Tackuchi mini x as well and it was fine but the Kubota price was better and the Kubota dealer was offering a better trade for my used Kubota as well so I bought another Kubota.

 

[TheRealWorld]

Thanks for this informative info, after a great deal of research I am 99 percent sure I will go with a Cat 249D3, and I will fill you all in on it when it happens and give you updates on price and other info I have learned. Price was a big part of it, Cat was very reasonable compared to others.

 

[Todd727]

A lot of things to unpack for you. Primarily, you need to decide what you are going to use the machine for. I use mine for forestry work and mulching, so HP and hydraulic HP were a primary concern.

I've owned NH C238, C345 and now the Takeuchi TL12v2.

I looked at everything while making the purchase decisions.

The Tak has the biggest cab, a Kubota engine and is one of the most powerful machines for mulching.

Things I like about the Tak:

Lift up door is fantastic. You can get in and out of the machine, without the lift blocking the door. Handy in an emergency or if you get stuck with the arms a few inches off the ground. The high-flow machine comes with six hydraulic connectors. It makes it very easy to run complicated pieces of equipment, like a six way blade or a boom-swing mower. As I said, the cab is huge and nice. Not sure what someone else was complaining about. These are luxury cars.

Tak cons:

Biggest issues, it takes too people to safely lock the loader arms in the up position if you need to work on it. Absent that, you are going to have to pray that the arms don't fall at the exact instance that you get out. I don't like that. Also, for whatever reason, the Tak doesn't allow you to lock the hydraulics on in continuous flow in both directions (unless they finally updated). This is sub-otimal when running a Harley rake or a bi-directional mower. Probably my biggest beef. There are also differences in the V model and R model, which you should look into and understand.

New Holland pros:

Nice cab, they are shorter as NH maintains the position that farmers need to get the machines into low clearance barns. Fair enough, but that leads to one of the cons below. You can lock the arms up for maintenance from within the cab. This is a very nice piece of mind. That safety is one of the reasons that people like the JCB/Volvo machines too. You can lock the hydraulics into continuous flow in both directions (Not HF, but that is normal for all machines I've seen). They do offer an enhanced HF which requires a jumper in the 14 pin connection.

New Holland cons:

Swing out door, which is a result of the lower, smaller cab. NH maintains there isn't enough room for the the door to maneuver overhead. The door issue then leads to problems entering and exiting when you have hydraulic lines hooked up. You essentially are blocked on the left by the hoses and on the right by the door if you can't go straight ahead because of the type of attachment. Kind of odd they don't put the connections on the same side the door swings out. You can now get a machine that matches the TAK power output, but at the cost of getting a 16,000lb machine. That gets into the territory, where you start needing much bigger truck and trailer to move it. For reference, the TAK is closer to 12K.

The biggest thing you should consider, IMO, is dealer support. It can be very handy to have a good, responsive dealer.

For commercial type work, or heavy duty use, I'd recommend you look at Tak, CAT or Deere.

Farm and Ranch, you 'd probably be happy with Kubota or NH/Case

Occasional, budget constrained but with excellent dealer support, you could look at the Gehl, Yanmar (new product), JCB or various other "off" brands. I would shy away if I didn't have a dealer that I was confident was going to support these and be around for the long haul.

Your usage plans will really dictate what you want. Don't go to small though, you'll be surprised how much you tax these machines with all the attachments you can get. I have close to 20 different ones and use the all.

 

[kenhar]

I didn't read near all the replies. You said track loader and most of the responses refer to skid steers with tracks. There is a big difference. A track loader is like a bulldozer with a bucket instead of a blade. I don't know of anyone making them today other than maybe caterpillar. Back in the day, Case, John Deere, Dresser, to name a few, manufactured track loaders. Cat has always been considered the Cadilac of track equipment. I have a Dresser 175C that is comparable to a 977 Cat comparing weight and power but today costs about half as much as the Cat. On a given job, it will work with any comparable size machine.

 

[tassmannn]

I'm a Deere guy, But Cats and Kubotas are great too. Make sure you can get service on whatever you get. In our area, we have a Beard (John Deere) and Ring Power (Cat). Not a big fan of the Kubota dealer here, but their service is great!

 

[todd92]

It also depends on what you plan on using it for. My primary use is the MX track on my farm. I got a Kubota SVL90-2. It's been 100% reliable, does the job and the pros that I hire periodically to make changes, that use CAT's exclusively to build the SX tracks, say they like it better, it's just not what they can rent a bunch of in every city they go to.

However, knowing what I know now, after owning it for 8 years, I would get an ASV, because of the weight distribution. I still can't groom the 2 tallest, steepest jump faces because it always feels like it's on the verge of tipping over backwards. The pros just zip up and down like nothing, but it still scares the hell out of me.

 

[Fixastuff]

I didn't read near all the replies. You said track loader and most of the responses refer to skid steers with tracks. There is a big difference. A track loader is like a bulldozer with a bucket instead of a blade. I don't know of anyone making them today other than maybe caterpillar. Back in the day, Case, John Deere, Dresser, to name a few, manufactured track loaders. Cat has always been considered the Cadilac of track equipment. I have a Dresser 175C that is comparable to a 977 Cat comparing weight and power but today costs about half as much as the Cat. On a given job, it will work with any comparable size machine.

Everyone on here is talking about CTLs Compact track loader, it is the correct term for the machine.

 

[paulsharvey]

Everyone on here is talking about CTLs Compact track loader, it is the correct term for the machine.

Yes, exactly. Another thing, Back Hoe. Technically track hoes are a back hoe, as they "hoe" back towards the machine, but most people "mean" TLB, tractor-loader-backhoe when they say back hoe. The position of the hoe on the machine, front, back, heck the side, does not matter.

 

[Dunno]

As paulsharvey mentioned post #2, I’d look at Gehl machines. I have a 60hp 6625 from 1989, and still going strong. Very simple, not smog or def or electronics to deal with. Not as nice as newer machines, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything. Made in Wisconsin. Hopefully they’ve kept the torch burning.
Also, look at buying OTT (over the tire) treads for a regular skidsteer. They’re wider -18” - than most tracked skidsterr tracks. I had planned to buy a tracked machine, but I don’t get stuck anywhere now with OTT on my sometimes wet property. If you need to run in tires, you can take treads off, but are a pain the first time you put them on. 1/2 hr to switch over if all goes well.

 

[Lineman North Florida]

When I bought my Kubota SVL 75-2 back in 2022 Deere and Cat were around 18-20k higher for similar sized machines, which was just to much more money for me to justify, lastly I wouldn't own a CTL that didn't have a roll up overhead door, it's a must for working by yourself IMO.

 

[paulsharvey]

So, if the Cat-249 is really at the same price or even lower than competing makes, I wouldn't hesitate for a second to buy a Cat. Much of why some people have avoided them, is they are generally higher dollar than the others. Like them or hate them, noone can deny the big advantage of Cat is parts are always no more than 72 hours away. The Cat dealers also tend to have excellent mechanics. That's not to say Deere doesn't, but if a deere dealer is 80/20 Ag vs Const, they just aren't as good at it. I really would feel confident in saying Cat is the world leader in parts and service.

All of that is strictly based on that Cat249 meeting Your requirements. Somethings like loading over the side of a dump truck (or trailer) can be a deal breaker, or hydralic flow.

 

[Notforhire]

Anyone have experience with the JCB side entry CTL.
JCB must be confident in the single lift arm system as they carry a lifetime warranty on bending/breaking the arm.

 

[paulsharvey]

Anyone have experience with the JCB side entry CTL.
JCB must be confident in the single lift arm system as they carry a lifetime warranty on bending/breaking the arm.

I have never used one, but I have seen several out in the wild. I've seen them a few times as a 18" asphalt milling head host on paving jobs, and a couple times as general grading machines. I haven't heard any complaints.