Skid steer back-up camera

   / Skid steer back-up camera #11  
In the 1.5 years I've owned my Bobcat S 185 skidsteer I have put on about 63 hours plowing our driveway, which has 3 houses. Rear visibility is very poor, and I plow in the dark most often. The bottom of the driveway goes along high tide, and the upper end meets a state highway. I plow up and down the highway, often hours before a state truck comes by, and seeing all around is important. A portion of the driveway is so steep that I really should only back up it but visibility in the dark is too poor to do that. So I bought an inexpensive, Chinese back-up camera. A Leekooluu-USA with a 4.5 inch screen was $49, delivered to AK by Amazon. I hate to buy Chinese stuff but was told that even the brand sold by Bobcat is Chinese. Installation took about 45 minutes, most of that time taken up deciding where to run the wires. I mounted the camera on the orange counter-weight using existing holes. I think I will cut a piece out of an orange Tide laundry detergent bottle to make a snow cover to protect the camera. I had to wait for a day without rain for installation as my garage ceiling is too low to allow lifting the cab. I have no idea about durability but it sure works well. It works in dark and daylight. One remarkable aspect; in reading the instructions I saw that I could email their Leekooluu customer service and choose 1 of 4 options as a gift. Option #1 was a complete second unit. So sure enough, a second camera, video, etc. came for free, cutting the price per unit in half. Since the thing is unitized, if any part of it dies I can just plug the replacement into the existing set-up. For me the small screen was the right choice as room inside the Bobcat cab is very limited. I sometimes wear a Colt Commander in a shoulder holster when I plow (as I am a 2nd Amendment nut, I guess) and if I gain 5 pounds I will be in trouble. I also rebuilt the tire chains, and now I am ready for another winter of plowing. I don't look forward to winter but I must say that the heated cab (and the Bobcat has a great heater) makes the plowing very tolerable.
We put one on ours ten years ago. Put camera on rear. Used an old cell phone in cab. Bought at Best Buy.
 
 
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