Mini Ex Comparsion - Deere 17G vs Bobcat E20

[nforktractor]

Hi, Been looking for a while, kind of whittled it down to the Deere 17G and the Bobcat E20 min ex's. Anybody have any experience or information regarding these machines? TIA

 

[tman1020]

I researched and checked out both of these machines pretty heavily. The John Deere is made by Hitachi with I think a yanmar motor. not sure what country. The bobcat E 20 is made in Czech republic and uses a Kubota engine up until recently and now they’re Yanmar. The E 20 has a longer reach. Both good machines but I feel the E 20 has some advantages. The longer reach would sell me. Also the visibility on the E 20 is fantastic. I feel the slightly larger size/weight of the E 20 would make quite a bit of difference in the small machines.

 

[nforktractor]

Thank You T-Man, the deere does say 17, as in 1.7T and the Bobcat 2.0 as in 2T, there is a difference.

 

[Fixastuff]

If you don't need zero tail swing check out a tb216. I had the 17g, e20, tb216 and cat 301.something all at my house demoing them and chose the 216. The big butt made it much more capable and stable especially working over the side. Just have to pay attention to the butt swing working close to buildings.

 

[nforktractor]

Not too familiar witht the TB216, there are few dealers around, nobody lists any prices, I'll have to contact them, and they all seen way too high. Bobcat, JD take your pick, here in northern Virginia, $44K out the door, I might need to look at used, but these things, when they say used, they look way used and too expensive (2,000 hours $25K).

 

[lilranch2001]

The guy who does my earthwork has the Deere, it’s 7-8 years old and he likes it. It is pristine, I thought he bought it new, but he told me that he bought it with 2000 hours on it, just looked well taken care of

 

[Fixastuff]

McClung Lohan will be your takeuchi dealer in Northern VA. 2000hrs isn't much if a machine is taken care of. That's what the warranty hours are on most.

 

[jqc99]

I've had an E20 for a few years and have been super happy with it. I've been amazed at how strong it is what it can do for its size. I haven't had any issues with it at all. I have a factory installed thumb, which has been proven invaluable for my needs. I also have four different buckets for various uses. The retracting tracks are really nice for getting into tight spaces. As great as it has been, I may end up needing to upgrade to a larger machine. I can't comment on the Deere as I have never used one, but I would highly recommend the E20.

 

[lilranch2001]

I do agree with you as far as I thumb, if I had a mini, I sure would want a thumb to go with it

 

[Joel/ak]

A thumb is a must. Put one on our little 324 and it's night and day for what you can do