L39 Question

[tnuke]

Hello all,

I am new to this forum and have read everything that I can read about the bota l39. Thanks to all for expressing their knowledge and passion for these tractors.

I am the owner of a small contracting business and getting to the place where I need a small earth mover/ workhorse. I have been considering a bobcat skid steer or something comparable but just don't like the limited use for which they are made. Don't get me wrong they have their place.

One of the everyday tasks which I have is moving pallets of brick and block. My question to you experts is this, understanding that no one has actually used an L39, how accurate is the given loader max lifting capacity of 2200 lbs? A pallet of bricks weighs just about exactly 2200 lbs and so it is a must for me that it can really lift this much.

Unfortunately the Kubota website stilll isn't giving the specs so my info has come from this great web page.... Bota L39 Specs

My last question before I run on too long is how much bigger is the L48 in length. I am worried about the lack of maneuverability as it looks bigger.

Thanks All,
Tim

 

[JimMorrissey]

tnuke,

Welcome to TBN.

Usually Kubota is conservative with their lift capacities....according to what people have found testing at home and such. Since nobody owns a L39 we'll have to see what it's capable of. It sounds like from your description a L39 AND a big turbo skidsteer are what you need. A friend of mine is a mason and they use the monster Bobcat to haul brick, and a L35 to take care of misc. earthmoving / landscaping.

The problem I see is that your pile of bricks will extend out beyond where the center of a loader would be...thus the load is futher out. As you know, the further something goes from the lift point, the harder it is to lift. A foot make a big difference in lift capacity and the 2200 lbs of lift is rated from the center of the bucket, not three feet out on the end of pallet forks. I don't know if you'd want to bring a machine to its absolute max capacity day in and day out. Moving brick pallets is a tough job for any machine.

A L48 is a big beast, but if you can only afford one machine and it needs to be a Kubota, that might be the way to go. There are other machines (Bobcat) that might work better for your needs. You should look at everything and try to test things before you buy. As a business tool, this is an important decision.

Check this out:

http://www.bobcat.com/products/item.view.html?itemId=7566

 

[jmc]

tnuke,

January 2005 issue of Compact Equipment has a one page feature of the L39. page 52. (Unfortunately its not in their web version.)

They list the " breakout" force for the loader at 3,560 lb at the pivot. You may know this but usually loaders have more lift down low and the lift decreases up high. So their 2200 lb spec is probably at full height. If you're not lifting those bricks too high, your're going to be down near the breakout spec.

Still, as Jim said, the center of your load will be out past the point where they rate the lift. You can calculate breakout capacity out there if you know the HORIZONTAL** distance between the loader arm pivot near the cab, and the bucket pivot where they rate their lift. Say its 6 feet and the center of your brick load is 2 ft beyond the pivot. Then your new breakout is 3560*6/(6+2) or 2670 lbs.

They also mentioned the price is $36,920.

John

**horizontal distance is not measured along the length of the arm but the distance along the ground between the points under the two pivots.

 

[tnuke]

Thanks a lot guys for the great answers. I guess I should've been just a bit more specific. I am an onramental mason and as such don't move huge volumes of brick around. I may move 4-5 cubes a month or so. I spend most of my time moving dirt in grading situations for driveways and such. It would be great if I could afford a b-cat and a bota but thats not going to happen for awhile.

I did look at the Bobcat B300D and it is a sweet machine indeed. The main drawback for me is the inability to remove the BH and no 3 point attachements.

One of the things that I will use a lot is boxblade. I am sure that a good pro skidsteer driver could get the same effect etc. but i am familiar with the boxblade and you can't teach a young dog new tricks I guess.

Thanks as well for the heads up on the loader lift capacity. I wonder when they figure their specs if they include the weight of the loader which looks to be about 960 lbs? Also how much light would you figure a set of forks might be.

I would def. go for the L48 except that I think the weight of the L39 will put plenty of strain on my 2001 F350 Triton 5.4 (Retired Home Depot truck). Unfortunately I don't have the diesel then it wouldn't matter. The thousand lbs. saved will make a difference in my guestimation.

Thanks Again,
tim