Equipment World August 2020

equipmentworld.com | August 2020

®

THE TECHNO

DOZER

Used Equipment Market Report:

IS NOW THE TIME TO BUY? P.19

MACHINE CONTROL GOES TO VERSION 2.0

P. 42

P. 62

How two contractors are reinventing the screed

Own Your Job. with the Right Tires.

Michelin has a wide range of tire offerings to bring you the perfect tire fitment for your quarry and construction equipment. With an expanded line of options to choose from, you’ll have exactly what you need to conquer your job.

Find the right tires on Quarry.MichelinEarthmover.com.

Copyright Š2020 Michelin North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Vol. 32 Number 6 |

Cover Story

P.

table of contents | August 2020

42

Machine Matters:

JUST HOW GOOD CAN DOZERS GET?

OEMs answer that question with their latest models

Equipment 12

Marketplace

Check out new backhoes from Cat, skid steers from Bobcat, pavers from Volvo, wheel loaders from Komatsu and product launches from Skyjack and Atlas Copco.

19

Used Equipment Market Report

Is now the time to buy a used machine?

68

Lifting Attachments

Load, hoist and move with these tools to enhance your construction equipment

EquipmentWorld.com | Summer 2020

3

table of contents | continued

Features 51 Contractor of the Year Finalist

Wendell Howard, T & K Utilities, Asheville, North Carolina

®

equipmentworld.com facebook.com/EquipmentWorld twitter.com/Equipment_World Editorial Director: Marcia Gruver Doyle Online Editor: Wayne Grayson Senior Editor: Don McLoud Contributing Writer: Richard Ries editorial@equipmentworld.com Media Sales Geoffrey Love: gdlove@randallreilly.com Pete Austin: paustin@randallreilly.com Drew Ingram: drewingram@randallreilly.com Patsy Adams: padams@randallreilly.com Jordan Arsenault: jordanarsenault@randallreilly.com Michael Newman: mnewman@randallreilly.com Art Director: Tony Brock Advertising Production Manager: Leah Boyd production@equipmentworld.com

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55 Excavator Special Report

Manufacturers round out their lineups and introduce new features

62 Road Works

Reimagining the screed: Brothers invent new system to achieve denser asphalt

Departments 7 On Record

Making our way through the murk

9 Reporter

Report: Boston Dynamics’ jobsite robot ready for sale; Krank offers no-fee auction services

74 Collector’s Corner

Fun with J.D. Adams road graders

Editorial Awards: Jesse H. Neal Award Finalist, Best Series, 2020, American Business Media Jesse H. Neal Award Finalist, Best Art Direction for a Cover, 2020 American Business Media Azbee Award of Excellence, Feature Series National Silver Award, 2020 American Society of Business Publication Editors Best Single Issue, 2019 Construction Media Alliance Azbee Award of Excellence, Special Section National Gold Award, 2019 American Society of Business Publication Editors Jesse H. Neal Award, Best Single Issue of a Tabloid/Newspaper/Magazine, 2019, American Business Media Jesse H. Neal Award finalist, Best Subject-Related Package, 2019, American Business Media Best Editorial Series, 2018, 2019 Construction Media Alliance

For subscription information/inquiries, please email equipmentworld@omeda.com. Equipment World (ISSN 1057-7262) is published monthly except May, June,

and July, which will be combined into one summer issue by Randall-Reilly, LLC, 3200 Rice Mine Road N.E., Tuscaloosa, AL 35406. Periodicals Postage-Paid at Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: SEND ALL UAA TO CFS (SEE DMM 507.1.5.2). Non-postal and military facilities: send address corrections to Equipment World, P.O. Box 2029, Tuscaloosa, AL 35403 or email at equipmentworld@omeda.com. Customer service: 1-800-517-4979. Single copies are available for $6 US, $9 Canada/Mexico and $12 foreign. The advertiser and/or advertising agency will defend, indemnify and hold Randall-Reilly, LLC harmless from and against any loss, expenses or other liability resulting from any claims or suits for libel violations of right of privacy or publicity, plagiarisms, copyright or trademark infringement and any other claims or suits that arise out of publication of such advertisement. Copyright ©2018 Randall-Reilly, LLC, all rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. Equipment World is a trademark of Randall-Reilly, LLC. Randall-Reilly, LLC neither endorses nor makes any representation or guarantee regarding the quality of goods and services advertised herein.

4

Summer 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

Jesse H. Neal Award, Better Roads, 2011 American Business Media Jesse H. Neal Award, Best Subject-Related Series of Articles, 2006 American Business Media

Experience the Progress.

True Power Liebherr Dozers PR 716 - PR 746 At Liebherr, we custom-engineer every machine to perform as efficiently as possible.

The Tier 4F emissions system in our dozers is practically maintenance free, designed from the ground up. The electronic drive system automatically adjusts to keep operators in the “sweet spot” – even when saving fuel in ECO mode.

And like all our machines it is built to last with exclusive Liebherr components.

Locate your dealer at liebherr.us/dealers-emt.

Liebherr USA Co., Construction Equipment Division 4100 Chestnut Avenue, Newport News, VA 23607 Phone: +1 757 245 5251 E-mail: Construction.USA@liebherr.com www.facebook.com/LiebherrConstruction www.liebherr.us

on record | by Marcia Doyle MarciaDoyle@randallreilly.com

Making our way through the murk

A

s we put together our used equipment special report in this issue, Dennis Howard’s quote stood out to me. As the vice president of fleet and remarketing for Deere-dealer RDO Equipment told us, “If you watch the news and then go talk to five contractors, you’re going to feel a lot better after talking to the contractors. Most people are positive and they’ve got work.”

Encouraging words for now. But will contractors continue to have those everimportant backlogs as they make their way into the fall and winter? No one knows – people are staying far away from crystal balls right now – and we’re all getting fed up with the not knowing.

There are signs that it’s going to be a bleak winter. PSMJ Resources’ Q2 forecast – which looks at proposal activity for architecture, engineering and construction firms – saw backlogs slide from plus 6 percent in the first quarter to minus 24 percent in Q2.

The Architectural Billings Index, long a bellwether resource for construction, stood at 40 for the month of June. Any score below 50 indicates that architects see declining billings, but the 40 also held signs of hope since it was a definite improvement over May’s 32 index number.

In an intriguing more real-time look at what’s happening on jobsites, the Associated General Contractors of America is partnering with construction technology firm Procore to track weekly jobsite hours. By mid-June those hours – which had peaked to 15.1 million for the week of June 7-13 – slipped down to 14.6 million during the week of June 21-27. Whether

this is a short-term anomaly or a snapshot of things to come, everyone will agree that June is no time for a decrease in construction activity.

The tea leaves are not settling on this one any time soon, especially since we experienced a pandemic spike instead of the expected mid-summer reprieve. The hesitation is palpable. “We won’t be buying anything until we find out what’s going to happen to our economy,” one respondent to our used equipment survey told us. (See page 33.)

December sales results will offer one clue, although that clue won’t be readily available industry-wide until we’re into the new year. Jay Germann, general manager for used equipment with Komatsu-dealer Roland Machinery, says equipment dealers can set their watch on two big selling cycles: March madness and December.

December is typically when contractors huddle with their accountants to see if any end-of-tax-year purchases will be advantageous. This year, both new and used equipment buys will continue to qualify for a 100 percent Section 179 deduction in 2020, as long as the equipment is put into service before Dec. 31st.

But, as contractors continue to tell us, it doesn’t matter how much of a write-off you can get, how good the deals are or how much zero-percent-interest financing you throw out there: if it doesn’t make sense financially, they won’t bite. Whether they have the wherewithal and, perhaps more important, the will to buy in December – and indeed throughout 2021 – is still immensely speculative.

EquipmentWorld.com | August 2020

7

THIS IRON WILL WORK SMARTER. MORE EFFICIENT. MORE POWERFUL. Exclusive, three-pump hydraulic technology for incredibly fast cycle times. Reduced tail swing with a full-sized cab.

Yeah. That’s the ZX345.

HitachiConstruction.com

reporter

| staff report

Boston Dynamics’ jobsite Krank offers robot now ready for sale no-fee auction

equipment sales

N

B

oston Dynamics says its robot Spot is now available for sale.

The Spot Explorer model comes with a price tag of $74,500.

The Spot robot has previously been available only for shortterm lease from Boston Dynamics. The 150 projects involved in the Early Adopter Program included construction sites.

Hensel Phelps used it on its main terminal project for the Denver International Airport to automate the capture of laser scans and 360-degree images, according to Boston Dynamics. Quebec-based construction firm Pomerleau used it to automate the capture of about 5,000 images weekly on a 500,000-square-foot project.

The robot, shaped somewhat like a dog, can climb stairs and traverse rough terrain, as well

as go into dangerous places to reduce safety risks. The company says it can operate on sites without the same constraints of drones and wheeled and tracked robots.

Spot is currently only available for purchase in the United States, subject to the company’s terms, “which require the beneficial use of its robots.”

The company says the robot is geared toward such tasks as: • Inspecting dangerous, inaccessible and remote environments.

• Automating data collection on a site.

• Carrying “payloads” on unstructured or unknown terrain.

Max payload is 30.9 pounds.

Payloads include cameras and LIDAR devices.

Spot has a max speed of about 5 feet per second. It is 43.3 inches long, 19.7 inches wide and 33.1 inches tall. It weighs 71.7 pounds.

–Don McLoud

etworking platform Krank’s new auction feature, now in beta testing in the U.S., allows companies to host their own auctions and sell equipment online. Users create their own secure private marketplaces, choose who can participate in the auction and determine the auction terms – all without buyer or seller commissions or fees, Krank says.

Krank, based in the United Kingdom, says it does not get involved in the deal flow, and payments do not flow through the platform. Before participating in an auction, bidders must first request to connect with the seller’s network (which Krank says is similar to a connection request in LinkedIn) and be accepted by the seller. This gives sellers control over who knows about the sale.

To host an auction, users upgrade from the basic free account on the Krank networking platform (by desktop or via the app) and create a 30-day sale or rent listing for the item for sale.

The system guides you in determining whether to select a reserve or no reserve auction, determining the opening bid price and start date and time.

Krank is initially targeting this auction service to the crane, earthmoving construction and aerial work platform sectors. A global rollout of the auction service will occur later this year.

–Marcia Doyle EquipmentWorld.com | August 2020

9

reporter |

continued

OSHA reveals leading trench violations in construction

E

xcavation violations were the sixth-leading cause of citations issued on construction sites by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration in fiscal year 2019.

Of those violations, failing to provide trench protection was the leading cause for an excavation citation, according to data presented recently by an OSHA official.

Failing to protect a trench from collapse accounted for 805, or 67 percent, of the 1,173 citations for serious excavation violations OSHA issued between October 1, 2018, and September 30, 2019, according to Scott Ketcham, director of OSHA’s Directorate of Construction.

Ketcham provided the statistics at a May 28 webinar on trench safety hosted by the CPWR Center for Construction Research and Training.

The next leading causes for serious excavation violations, according to Ketcham, were: (Note: The citations overlap, so percentages and figures will add up to more than 1,173 or 100 percent.)

• Failure to provide a ladder or other proper means of entering and exiting a trench – 396 citations (34%) • Placing spoil too close to a trench where rock and dirt

A LONG WAY

TOGETHER

could fall in on employees – 330 (28%) • Failure to provide daily inspections of excavations – 302 (26%) • Failure by the designated competent person on the jobsite to protect workers from potential cave-in – 106 (9%) • Hazards created by water accumulating in a trench – 49 (4%) –Don McLoud

EARTHMAX SR 41 No matter how challenging your needs, EARTHMAX SR 41 is your best ally when it comes to operations that require extraordinary traction. Thanks to its All Steel radial structure and the special block pattern, EARTHMAX SR 41 provides excellent resistance against punctures and an extended service life. In addition to long working hours without downtime, the tire ensures extraordinary comfort.

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10 August | EquipmentWorld.com New 2020 ADV_Earthmax SR 41_US_7x4,5_USA.indd

1

27/02/20 14:50

At worksites

it’s time to FoCUs on sAFety A busy site with busy workers and distracted drivers is a perfect recipe for injuries or worse.

Let Mobileye help keep your drivers focused and prevent injuries before they occur.

Are you doing everything you can to protect your crew?

Sure, video can help you review what happened afterwards, but wouldn’t it be better to prevent any injury before it occurs?

Mobileye’s collision avoidance system includes forward collision warning, alerting drivers before an imminent collision with a vehicle ahead, and pedestrian collision warning, alerting drivers before an imminent collision with pedestrians – for example, construction site workers, crossing their path. And, we know that work sites can be active from dawn to dusk, but no matter: our detections function even in low light conditions.

1

2

1

The camera unit containing the camera, EyeQ® chip, and speaker, mounted on the inside of the windshield behind the rearview mirror.

2

The EyeWatch™ display for visual alerts, mounted in the bottom corner of the windshield.

For more information on how Mobileye can help save lives (and money), contact us at +1-877-867-4900 or go to www.mobileye.com/en-us/contact

marketplace | by Don McLoud Cat has launched its 420 and 420 XE backhoes with a new engine and hood design.

The 92-horsepower C3.6 engine delivers quicker acceleration on the road and a 10 percent improvement in fuel efficiency over the 420F2 and 420F2 IT, which the new backhoes replace. The redesigned hood gives the operator better visibility to the attachment. A new boom cylinder increases lifting capacity by 15 percent.

Other features include four-speed powershift transmission, springapplied hydraulically released parking brake and four-wheel drive with a locking rear differential. The XE model has more convenience and comfort options, such as seat-mounted controls, electronic loader controls and a deluxe high-back, air-suspension seat.

|

DonMcLoud@randallreilly.com

Cats new 420s deliver greater fuel efficiency, lifting power R’S O IT EDPICK

More paving with less fuel Volvo Construction Equipment designed its new P5110B tracked and P5170B wheeled asphalt pavers for heavy commercial and light highway work. The 20-ton pavers are powered by Volvo’s 173-horsepower Tier 4 Final D6 engine, which is also used in the manufacturer’s L60H to L90H wheel loaders. Volvo says it designed the engine for fuel efficiency, with the tracked model achieving an average 3.7 gallons per hour and the wheeled paver getting 3.3 gph. The engine is also designed to reduce vibrations and produce a lower noise level of 79 decibels.

12 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

Boosting power and productivity The WA475-10 is the first introduction of Komatsu’s nextgeneration wheel loaders. It features a new hydraulic mechanical transmission that combines a hydrostatic transmission with a planetary mechanical transmission. The hydrostatic delivers extra torque when more power is needed, while the planetary transmission saves fuel during lighter tasks. The new loader gets a boost to 290 horsepower, 18 more than the WA470-8.

It also gets a 14 percent increase in productivity, a 20 percent stronger boom lift and 8 percent more breakout force.

Rough-terrain scissor reaches 63 feet

Skyjack has unveiled its tallest scissor lift, the rough-terrain SJ9263 RT, which has a platform height of 63 feet. The scissor’s platform has a capacity of 1,200 pounds. The lift’s standard platform dimensions are 14 feet 2 inches long and 6 feet 3 inches wide.

It can be expanded to 23 feet 4 inches long with a dual extension option and can accommodate four workers. The lift is powered by a 24.8-horsepower Kubota dualfuel engine. It has a two-speed hydraulic motor and a computercontrolled hydraulic pump.

EquipmentWorld.com | August 2020 13

LOWERING EXCAVATOR OWNERSHIP AND OPERATING COSTS A FLEET MANAGER’S GUIDE TO

Evaluate key features, learn best practices and better utilize machine-specific data

YOUR GOAL: Control the operating costs of the excavators in your current fleet.

We know there are daily challenges that get in the way. Unexpected downtime, excessive fuel use and unintentional operator misuse — to name a few — all contribute to higher operating costs.

Your choice of machine, and the service and technology provided by the OEM, can make a big difference in your operating costs — and ultimately, your total cost of ownership (TCO). Here are some things to consider:

START BY EVALUATING MACHINE FEATURES AND THEIR IMPACT ON TCO When it comes to purchasing excavators, evaluate the features that provide you with the best value over the life of the machine. A few examples: • Fuel-saving features such as integrated work modes and auto idling.

For most owners, fuel consumption is the first cost of operating an excavator. Built with nine different settings within four work modes, Volvo excavators allow operators to dial in the exact amount of power and control for the task at hand, while burning as little fuel as possible. The auto idle feature automatically switches the engine to the high idle setting after five seconds of inactivity, lowering the engine’s RPM and saving fuel.

• Productivity features like Dig Assist. In-cab machine control systems show operators — in real time — how to level sites, dig trenches and grade slopes, or even create complex, multidimensional site profiles. They make operators much more accurate — ensuring they get the job done right the first time, every time.

• Guarantees for less worry. Choose a machine with that comes standard with a lifetime warranty on the boom, arm and frame, as well as a fuel efficiency guarantee — as Volvo crawler excavators do.

PARTNER SOLUTIONS | VOLVO LOWERING EXCAVATOR OWNERSHIP AND OPERATING COSTS

USE MACHINE MONITORING TO CORRECT PROFIT-DRAINING OPERATOR BEHAVIOR Evaluating machine features is only the start. To truly get the lowest TCO, you need to monitor how the machines are being used. Volvo ActiveCare Direct makes this incredibly easy. Monthly reports include information that empower you to train your operators in ways that can lower your TCO significantly. Examples include: • Limit excessive travel to reduce half your maintenance costs. Excessive excavator travel time is the number one cause of undercarriage wear.

It puts a lot of stress on the tracks, sprockets and idlers, and these repairs can represent more than half of your machine maintenance costs. ActiveCare Direct monthly reports show excavator travel time by machine and across the whole fleet — making it easy to spot opportunities for operator training or site reconfiguration.

• Reduce idle times to boost resale value by $20,000 and reduce service costs by $9,000. It’s important to first evaluate similar machines to determine if there’s a large variance in idle percentages. For example, if you had data to help an operator get the same amount of work done while reducing his idle time from 50% to 33%, the difference in lifetime hours could add $20,000 in resale value at the end of five years — not to mention the lower-hour machine would require five less service intervals over that time, estimated at a $9,000 difference. By tracking idle times with Volvo ActiveCare Direct, you can set realistic goals for improvement.

• Train operators to use the right work modes and save $10,000 per year. Too often, operators have a tendency to jump directly into the highest mode, regardless of the task. With a Volvo excavator, balancing engine RPM with hydraulic flow is simple.

Everything is integrated into a single dial to change both the pump flow and engine speed — a feature unique to Volvo excavators. With programs like ActiveCare Direct, you can track any operators who run in too high of a work mode and help them change that behavior. By simply switching to a lower work mode, you could be saving upwards of $10,000 per year, per excavator.

AVOID UNNECESSARY DOWNTIME So many telematics programs still send a large number of confusing fault codes — but those are becoming a thing of the past. ActiveCare Direct makes them simple and useful. With easy-tounderstand case alerts, you get the fault codes that went off, their probable causes, the specific action you should take, and the possible consequences if you don’t. It’s that simple.

Learn more about how ActiveCare Direct simplifies fleet management by contacting your local dealer or visiting VolvoCE.com/ActiveCareDirect.

TAKE ADVANTAGE OF

SPECIAL FINANCING NOW THROUGH AUGUST

Ownership costs are another part of the TCO equation, and we’re committed to helping lower those, too. Right now, we’re offering incredibly low rates starting at 0% for 24 months on 2018 and newer excavator purchases through August 31. These offers are packed with flexible options like:

90-day payment deferrals Skip one payment per year Get a $1,000 credit on your Smart Commercial Account that can be used toward qualifying purchases — from parts and service to attachments and rentals Get details at volvoce.com/EWCrawler.

marketplace

| continued

Stronger lift arms, larger cooling system

Bobcat has added two skid steers and two compact track loaders to its new R-Series. The S64 and S66 skid steers and T64 and T66 compact track loaders are powered by a new 2.4-liter, turbocharged Bobcat engine. Horsepower ranges from 68 on the S64 and T64, to 74 on the two larger models. All four have max lift height of 10 feet and boast lift arms that are 20 percent stronger than previous models. Operating capacities range from 2,300 to 2,450 pounds. The loaders also have a redesigned cooling system that is 50 percent larger than on the M2 Series.

Run 11 hours on one tankful

Atlas Copco’s newly redesigned XAS 188 air compressor can deliver up to 189 cubic feet per minute of air flow for 11 hours on one tank of diesel fuel. The company calls the XAS 188 the flagship of its small range of diesel air compressors, designed for towing to and from worksites. It is able to run two 90-pound hammers at the same time. The compressor’s fuel tank holds 27 gallons and delivers 189 cfm at 2.37 gallons per hour. The single-stage, oil-injected, rotary-screw compressor runs on a 49.6-horsepower Tier 4 Final Kubota engine.

These product introductions are just a few of the many featured regularly on equipmentworld.com.

Compare specs online Go to Equipment World’s SpecGuideOnline to get a quick comparison of up to three separate models of a machine type. Search through our database, which contains more than 40 machine categories and 40,000 specs.

Our specs include the following machines COMPARE SPECS

• Directional Drills • Skid Steer/ Compact • Excavators Loaders • Backhoe Loaders • Lasers/GPS • Trenchers • Asphalt Pavers/ Cold Planers

• Compactors

• Compressors • Concrete Pavers • Crawler Dozers

• Off-Highway Trucks

• Wheel Loaders/ Tool Carriers

• Scrapers/ Motor Graders

Visit

specguideonline.com Spec Guide Online_EWSG19_PG.indd 1

16 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

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• Is now the time to buy a used machine?...pg. 23 • Survey: Contractor interest high in researching used equipment...pg. 33 • What’s selling: Top financed used models...pg. 24 • Financing: From zeropercent interest to high-risk lending...pg. 35

2020 USED EQUIPMENT MARKET REPORT

T

he used equipment market is no different from the rest of the construction industry – the pandemic of 2020 put spring’s buying season on pause and added a huge dose of uncertainty into the mix. For our new 2020 Used Equipment Report, Equipment World editors talked to a variety of experts to gain insight into the current market and to offer clues as to what the future holds.

In this report, we reveal the top financed mod-

els since the first of the year. We provide results from our survey of equipment users in which we gauge their buying mood and show the types of equipment they’re interested in. And we show the loan and lease deals available, what to do if you have credit challenges and advice for when you need help making payments.

You’ll find the information we gained on the following pages:

23

Used equipment plays an increasing role as equipment buyers struggle to navigate 2020’s strange environment.

24

The top financed used models so far this year

25

Comparison prices on select low-hour machines

33

Survey shows strong buyer interest in researching used equipment purchases

35

Used equipment financing sees uptick during pandemic

36

Section 179 and bonus depreciation for 2020

38

Top 10 construction equipment lenders

EquipmentWorld.com | August 2020 21

A NEW, SMALLER TELESKID JOINS THE RANGE

3TS-8W | ROC: 3,208 lb

NEW 2TS-7T | ROC: 2,096 lb

3TS-8T | ROC: 3,695 lb

Unique machines with endless possibilities.

JCB Teleskids are the only skid steers and compact track loaders with a telescopic boom, allowing you to lift higher, reach farther and dig deeper than ever before. With three models to choose from, with rated operating capacities from 2,100 lb to 3,700 lb, you can complete tasks and access areas you wouldn’t have thought possible ... until now.

For more information, visit www.jcb.com/teleskid or contact your local JCB dealer.

/JCBNA

@JCBNA

JCBNA www.jcb.com

5448.1

Used equipment is playing an increasing role as equipment buyers struggle to navigate 2020’s strange environment.

A pause on live auctions: Ritchie Bros. converted to online-only auctions in response to the pandemic.

By Marcia Doyle

“W

e were set up to have a good year, and then it became a who-knows year,” says Dennis Howard, vice president of fleet and remarketing, RDO Equipment, a Deere and Vermeer dealer with 75-plus locations in nine states. But from an April 1st low point, RDO has seen used equipment demand and values “come back and fairly rapidly,” Howard says.

Used equipment sellers had to forgo the typical March madness this year, says Jay Germann, general manager for used equipment, Roland Machinery, a Komatsu dealer based in Springfield, Illinois. “But we had a great April, well over our anticipated number.

May was good, and we feel June will be strong because we have a lot of machines that are booked and

ready to be delivered.”

“There’s still a lot of work going on,” says Randy Arrington, used equipment manager for Empire Cat in Arizona and southern California. Companies with large fleets aren’t dumping equipment because they’re keeping it utilized, he says. As a result, pricing for used general-construction machines has held steady.

“We’ve seen no lag in the number of machines that we inspect and source,” Arrington says. “The only real difference right now is that they won’t buy on speculation. They want to make sure they have a contract signed and they have the job.”

Cat has seen used equipment prices drop 6 percent through April year over year, says Nick Yates, used equipment sales and operations manager, Caterpillar.

EquipmentWorld.com | August 2020 23

A recent used equipment lineup at RDO’s branch in New Braunfels, Texas.

Top financed used models YTD by equipment type Equipment World looked at the financed used equipment sales from Jan. 1 - May 31, 2020, to determine the top used models by number of units sold for eight types of machines. These numbers come from EDA, a division of Randall-Reilly, parent company of Equipment World.

Top financed used compact track loaders

Top financed used wheel loaders

1. Cat 259D

1. Deere 544K

2. Bobcat T650

2. Cat 926M

3. Bobcat T590

3. Cat 930M

4. Cat 289D

4. Deere 644K

5. Bobcat T770

5. Cat 950M

Top financed used skid steers

Top financed used dozers (including LGP models)

1. Bobcat S650

1. Cat D6N LGP

2. Bobcat S185

2. Cat D6K2 LGP

3. Cat 262D

3. Cat D5K2 LGP

4. Kubota SSV75

4. Cat D6T XL

5. Kubota SSV65

5. Cat D8T

Top financed used compact excavators

Top financed used articulated trucks

1. Cat 208E2 CR SB

1. Cat 740B

2. Deere 35G

2. Volvo A40G

3. Cat 305E2 CR

3. Cat 740

4. Cat 305.5E2 CR

4. Cat 730C

5. Deere 50G

5. Cat 730

Top financed used excavators

Top financed used backhoes

1. Deere 210G LC

1. Deere 310SL

2. Cat 336F L

2. Case 580 Super M

3. Cat 336E L

3. Case 580 Super N

4. Cat 320F L

4. Cat 420F

5. Cat 323F L

5. Case 580 Super L

24 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

“But while year-overyear pricing might be down, month-over-month pricing for the past five months is relatively stable,” Yates says.

Used equipment prices are “now at or better than they were three to six months ago,” says Howard Hawk, president of the online auction site Bidadoo.

He says this is surprising in light of decreases of 5 to 15 percent seen in spring.

“We expected to see a further decline or for them to stay depressed, but they’ve definitely bounced back, and in some cases are up 10 percent from the beginning of the year,” Hawk says. “We’re seeing a tremendous amount of demand out there.”

Online-only Stay-at-home orders in spring prompted auction companies with live auctions to move to online-only platforms. It wasn’t a hard right, however. Ritchie Bros says 65 percent of its transactions were already conducted online before the pandemic.

For the three months ending in May, Ritchie says used equipment prices declined around 3 percent compared to the same period last year. “We were actually starting to see deflation in prices in 2019,” says Ken Calhoon, vice president of data analytics for Ritchie Bros. “Now we’re seeing that the price deflation has somewhat flattened and stabilized across Canada and the U.S. and even internationally. We’re encouraged to see this stability, and it’s certainly not what we saw through 2008 and 2009.”

Comparison of 2019-2020 prices on select low-hour machines “If we look at our Avg. price top 15 equipment Mar-May 2019 Mar-May 2020 difference categories, the Skid steers Avg High No. of units Avg High No. of units 2019-2020 vast majority are Bobcat S740 $17,667 $21,000 7 $24,000 $32,500 6 55% performing above Kubota SSV75 $26,875 $34,000 4 $20,167 $27,000 3 -21% expectation right Kubota SSV65 $25,056 $27,500 9 $24,763 $33,600 3 22% now,” Calhoon adds.

CTLs What’s helped is Cat 259D $31,059 $42,500 17 $26,585 $52,000 65 -14% that a financial crisis Bobcat T650 $33,188 $44,000 8 $27,222 $34,000 9 -18% did not precede Bobcat T590 $20,900 $22,000 5 $23,808 $34,000 13 14% the pandemic, says Excavators Doug Olive, Ritchie senior vice presCat 336F L $285,000 $290,000 2 $239,750 $270,000 4 -16% ident of pricing.

Cat 320F L $149,357 $160,000 7 $134,375 $160,000 4 -10% “Credit is still availCat 323F L $150,000 $160,000 2 $138,250 $140,000 2 -8% able and there’s still Wheel loaders work.” Demand is Cat 926M $123,667 $130,000 3 $115,000 $127,500 3 -7% also good, even as Ritchie has pivotCase 321F $60,500 $65,000 3 $62,500 $62,500 2 3% ed to online-only Dozers auctions. The comCat D6K2 LGP $148,200 $185,000 5 $107,500 $107,500 1 -27% pany’s Edmonton, Cat D5K2 LGP $91,857 $122,500 7 $95,700 $106,000 5 4% Canada, auction on May 18th set a com- Source: TopBid.com, ~2,000 hours and below. Machines were chosen on the basis of the number of units in auction sales during Jan.-May 2019 and 2020. pany attendance record of 23,500 online bidders. Its Fort Worth, Texas, auction June 2-3 had This spring saw many bidders new a site-bidder record of 11,600 registered to the online experience, according to attendees, the first time that particular Hawk. Questions from these buyers sale site had eclipsed 10,000 bidders. centered on “how does it work?” “how “We did have a large oil-and-gas dispermuch does it cost to ship?” and “can I sal in that sale, and it performed better trust you?” he reports. All of which Bidathan our expectations, as did the condoo had ready answers for; the 17-yearstruction equipment.” old company has been online-only from “All in all the demand is still strong,” its start. says Chris Deason, U.S. business develWhile Bidadoo works in partnership opment manager with Yoder & Frey, a with eBay, eBay also sells used equipdivision of Euro Auctions. Yoder & Frey ment. “Specific to eBay’s heavy equip“People are still has resumed live auctions after onment vertical, 2019 was a strong year working, and there line-only sales in spring. “Still, 70 percent and that velocity persisted through the are still a lot of jobs. plus of the bidders are online,” he says. start of 2020,” says Nick Stalcup, eBay “Equipment prices have held steady head of heavy equipment, parts and If you watch the news throughout everything; most values have attachments. “Around the time the public and then go talk to seemed pretty consistent.” health policies were enacted, and swaths five contractors, you’re The pandemic accelerated trends that of the consumer and business populagoing to feel a lot were well underway, including online tions were forced to shop almost exclubetter after talking to bidding. “This spring, if you wanted sively online, eBay did see accelerated the contractors. Most equipment, you had to go online,” Hawk growth as users looked for new avenues says, “and some of those behaviors have to dispose and purchase equipment.” people are positive changed forever.” and they’ve got work.”

Location, location Bidadoo reports its web traffic has – Dennis Howard, Because the spring version of the doubled year over year. In May, it saw a RDO Equipment pandemic had such an uneven impact 66 percent sales increase compared with – causing some states and cities to May 2019. And 62 percent of its traffic is shut down construction while projects now from mobile devices.

EquipmentWorld.com | August 2020 25

didn’t miss a manhour in other areas – location has played an even greater role than usual in the used equipment market.

RDO’s footprint covers nine states. Howard says, “You could almost watch as a state started opening back up that the equipment discussions in those markets started happening. We’re not where we were, but we’re definitely trending in the right direction in both a demand and value standpoint.”

Both Texas and North Dakota, tied to the oil field, have seen equipment demand drop dramatically, Howard says. The machines used in this market – mid-size excavators and dozers – have also seen decreases in demand. But Howard notes that major metro areas such as Dallas and Phoenix have come back after the drop in the initial stages of the pandemic.

While oil and gas is definitely down, Deason says, customers in these markets are saying the banks are not forcing asset sales yet. “But it’s coming,” he says. “Inventories out in West Texas are packed full of gear.”

“What’s keeping us up in Arizona is housing, which is very active,” says Arrington, and housing is a market that attracts compact-equipment buyers who tend to trade after three years, 3,000 hours. “The next guy who wants to start his own business is right behind them wanting to buy that piece,” he says.

“We’ve been fortunate in our areas that contractors have been able to keep on working,” says Kenneth Tysinger, used equipment sales, MayRHI, a division of National Equipment Dealers. May-RHI covers North Carolina and South Carolina and carries Hyundai excavators, Hitachi wheel loaders and Bell articulated trucks, among other lines.

26 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

Today’s used equipment buyers expect a transparent view of a machine’s condition. In addition to multiple machine photos, Bidadoo also takes a video of a machine’s start-up and operation, including dashboard gauges.

“Our used equipment sales have been steady year over year so far,” Tysinger says. “In the Texas division of our company, there’s been a market slowdown, but it’s been more oil-andgas related rather than the pandemic.”

Factors in play Not all of this summer’s used equipment market realities are pandemic-related. Equipment cycles and the impact of the Great Recession were still in play, Hawk says. “This year was already going to be a large used-sale year, but the situation has put that on steroids.”

Hawk says the start of the last decade – still reeling from the Great Recession – saw lower new equipment volumes coming out of manufacturing plants, followed by a large buying cycle in 2011-2013. If the market follows a typical seven- to eight-year cycle, now is when the industry is selling.

Also in play: the general uneasiness that buyers have in any election year.

“In every presidential election year as long as I’ve been in the business,

“This spring, if you wanted equipment, you had to go online, and some of those behaviors have changed forever.”

– Howard Hawk, Bidadoo

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Manufacturers such as Volvo Construction Equipment promote their certified used equipment, which comes with a warranty. people get reluctant to pull the trigger on jobs,” Deason says. “This slows spending just because of the concern of who is going to be in office and whether or not they are going to be pro construction.”

Lease returns, which typically run three years/3,000 hours, are also in the mix, Germann says. “Used equipment is much more available right now, which has led to prices becoming soft, but that’s a trend that’s been happening for quite some time,” Germann says. “A lot of lease returns are happening for all manufacturers and it’s somewhat flooding the market right now with quality used equipment.

Two to three years ago, you couldn’t find low-hour, late-model equipment, but now there’s an influx of new stuff coming into the market.”

There’s another factor making used equipment prices attractive, Germann says. “We are seeing zero-percent interest rates from almost every manufacturer on used equipment, something I’ve never seen in my years in this busi28 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

ness.” (For more on what’s happening on the financing side, go to page 12.)

What’s hot “All of our wheel loaders, excavators and artics have remained relatively strong in the used market,” says Tara Stryker, director of remarketing, Volvo Construction Equipment. Her division handles the equipment that comes off Volvo Financial Services leases. Year to date, artics make up about 45 percent of the company’s used sales, with wheel loaders (17 percent) and excavators (16 percent) as the top three products. Machines coming off lease are typically three years old with about 4,000 hours, she says.

As always, “late and low,” meaning late-model, low-hour equipment usually defined as 2,000 hours and under, trends differently than the rest of the used equipment market. “Those late and low machines never really saw the hit,” Howard says, “and that category is doing a bit higher than we thought it would be at this time of the year. It

“It’s digital, digital, digital these days to attract buyers. … We are moving into a digital space where you are shopping and buying with confidence online.”

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Roland Machinery developed sales flyers, took screen shots of them and used these screen shots in social media and texts to reach out to customers during the pandemic. The simple method proved so effective that the dealer will continue it.

seems a lot of people are transitioning their buying patterns from new to that type of equipment.”

“We’re seeing a lot of strength for those later-model, lower-hour units from end users, dealers and brokers,” Olive says. “In the past few years, that type of equipment has been difficult to source. Right now, you can find these machines anywhere in North America.”

Deason agrees. “Before this, we weren’t seeing a lot of low-hour gear because fleet owners were keeping them because of new deliveries being so tight.” But now there’s more lower-hour units because the fleets are downsizing. “So there’s a lot more newer gear than you would have seen 12 months ago,” he says.

Cat is seeing large wheel loaders (350 horsepower and above) get higher-than-average prices. “Our hypothesis is that this is a combination of limited supply in the U.S. market and limited availability of new machines,” Yates says. “Whether it’s us or other manufacturers, there’s a good demand on the bigger gear, so that translates into higher prices.”

“Wheel loaders are hot,” Germann says. “We’re moving 3- to 8-yard loaders as fast as we can get them.” One reason, he says, they are both coming from and going into material-handling infrastructure work. “When we get their trade-ins, they get gobbled up.”

Also doing well: small and mid-size excavators, Germann says.

The Carolinas are also seeing mid-size excavator demand, as well as demand for articulated trucks, according to Tysinger. “But the excavator market is starting to change some because of all the machines that are coming off the pipeline and gas line projects in the Texas and Oklahoma area,” he says.

“The 18- to 36-metric-ton excavators are starting to pile up and affect prices.”

Compactors and dozers are in less 30 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

ww w. rol an du

sed .co m

demand, Tysinger says. “A lot of the D6N-size dozers are coming off the pipelines as well.

We’re starting to see D65EX-17 dealers in other re2014 Komatsu 6 226 ber Serial Num gions offer machines 4,877 hours age at lower prices, New Undercarri Sigma Blade which will have an 205 HP impact here on the 44,355 lbs Palmyra, MO East Coast.”

0000 Price: $139,5 Another strong performing segment in Arizona is compact equipment – skid steers, compact track loaders and compact excavators. “Our sales dollars are down some but our unit count is up,” Arrington says.

“General construction has been really strong.”

Conversely, Empire’s mining market is down because of lower production demands. It also represents the vagaries of the used market. “A year ago you couldn’t find anything mining for sale,” Arrington says.

•

•

•

•

•

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Impact of new equipment sales “One of the biggest drivers of used equipment pricing is the current availability of new equipment,” Yates says.

“Customers have to fulfill their needs with equipment, and a used piece sitting on the ground is more readily available sometimes than new equipment.”

“Many OEMs have reported increases in lead time for new machines, and it’s primarily due to the lower demand in the past three months as well as oil and gas prices going down,” Yates adds.

Some equipment manufacturing plants temporarily shut down in response to both the pandemic health

“Whether it’s us or other manufacturers, there’s a good demand on the bigger gear, so that translates into higher prices.”

– Jay Germann, Roland Machinery

We are the leading manufacturer of construction and agricultural grade attachments for compact excavators, skid steer loaders, tractor loader backhoes, and large excavators.

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concerns and lower demand. Temporary plant closings in spring included Cat’s excavator plant in Victoria, Texas, and its skid steer and compact track loader plant in Sanford, North Carolina. John Deere also temporarily suspended operations at its Dubuque Works construction and forestry plant in Iowa.

“We were having some trouble getting certain models of new equipment such as our intelligent dozers before the pandemic,” Germann says. “With some factories being temporarily shut down, that put a strain on some other models. There are some models we can’t get for several months, and if a guy has immediate needs, he’s going to turn to used.”

“In early spring, we went out and bought some lease returns on the open market with under 3,000 hours, and we’ve sold them all,” Germann says.

In the coming months, the impact of reduced production from these temporary closings and production slowdowns will make itself fully felt in the market, Howard says. “If the jobs hold, we’re going to see an equipment demand over the next six to nine months, and values will rise on late-model, low-hour equipment,” he says.

Attracting today’s buyers When the state of Illinois issued stay-at-home directives, Roland Machinery went to plan B on contacting customers. “We couldn’t visit our customers, so we changed our market strategies,” Germann says.

A simple solution proved effective: Roland made onepage flyers, took screen shots of them and sent them out through text and social media. “I don’t think email works,” Germann says. “But if people get a text message, they look at it. And we ended up getting on every social media platform in a big way, and all of that has driven some sales. It really helped our April results, and we’re going to continue to use this method.”

“It’s digital, digital, digital these days to attract buyers,” Empire Cat’s Arrington says. “This includes video and full-blown inspections online; not four pictures of the machine, but 40 pictures. You want the buyer to know that you’re accurately representing the tractor that they are looking at. We are moving into a digital space where you are shopping and buying with confidence online.”

“Our motto is ‘no surprises,’” Arrington continues. “It shows up the way it was inspected, and if it’s not, we’ll either buy it back or make it right.” To further ease buyer concerns, Empire is working on a project to flat-rate freight by a buyer’s location. “Freight adds no value, but you still have to transport tractors,” he says. “We’re looking at ways to minimize the impact of freight cost and take out the humps and dips.”

Manufacturers also promote their certified used rebuild programs as a way to ease buyer concerns.

“The biggest risk in used equipment is the unknown,” Volvo CE’s Stryker says. “Every used machine has its own story to tell, and if you don’t know what that 32 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

story is, it’s a huge financial risk.” The Volvo certified used program, for example, gives machines a lifetime frame warranty and a six-month, 1,200-hour powertrain warranty. About 40 percent of the machines coming off Volvo Financial Services leases go into Volvo’s certified used equipment program.

“This allows a buyer to confidently look at a piece of equipment without going to kick the tires,” Stryker says.

“It’s important that they know where that machine is in its life cycle, the machine’s previous applications and how much wear it has left.”

Murky crystal ball “Having backlog gives contractors the confidence to buy equipment,” Germann says. “A lot of contractors we talk to in our area don’t see their load of work extending out past 2020. They have work through 2020, but going into 2021 they are uncertain.”

Germann says Roland Machinery budgeted for a flat year in 2020 and now estimates sales will be down. “The good news is that our gross profit margins are off just a small percentage. And that may be because guys are turning to used to buy instead of new, and they are paying a bit more for it. But in 2021, we’ll budget down or flat.”

Whatever happens, watch used equipment pricing.

“Used equipment pricing tends to lead any significant changes in the market,” Stryker says. Coming out of a downturn, there will be a recovery in used prices before they appear in new equipment, she says. With unavoidable availability issues stemming from supply chain disruptions, expect increased demand for quality used equipment that can go right to work.

“We’re going to see a continued increase in selling activity throughout the year,” Hawk says. “The used equipment channels are going to be very, very busy. And because there’s not a lot of new equipment in the supply chain, the demand should remain strong and “One of the biggest prices should be relatively positive.” drivers of used equipment In summing up, pricing is the current Yates says, “You availability of new always have to be equipment.” prepared to go up – Nick Yates, Caterpillar or down in this space.”

SURVEY SHOWS STRONG BUYER INTEREST IN RESEARCHING USED EQUIPMENT PURCHASES

By Marcia Doyle

Have you researched buying used equipment in the past 90 days?

I don’t recall

1%

No

34%

W

hile there are many hesitations in today’s used equipment market, there’s no doubt that respondents to Equipment World’s used equipment survey like to track what’s currently for sale.

When we asked if they had researched buying used equipment in the past 90 days, 65 percent said yes. Items high on their search list included excavators (40 percent), compact excavators (31 percent), skid steers (26 percent) and dozers (24 percent).

Conducted in June, the survey highlights 146 respondents’ plans for used equipment buying and selling.

In the mood to buy?

Yes

65%

Do you think you might buy used equipment this year?

I’m not sure

39%

Yes

43%

This research may mean they are in the mood to buy … or it may not.

“We’re still in the market for used equipment, but we have zero plans to spend any money that’s not in the budget,” says one respondent.

“I carry no debt and have cash reserves,” explains another respondent. As a result, “I am checking the market for used equipment to buy.”

But there are definite hesitations. “We won’t be buying anything until we find out what’s going to happen with the economy,” said another respondent.

The vast majority of respondents – 75 percent – used the variety of online used equipment sites in the market to research used equipment. In addition, respondents also researched machines at used equipment dealers (54 percent), auction companies (47 percent) and their local OEM dealers (43 percent).

Buying

No

18%

Twenty-seven percent of respondents said they had bought used equipment in the past 90 days.

Again, excavators and dozers were their primary machine of choice, at 18 percent each.

When asked about their satisfaction level with their used equipment buys, 52 percent said they were either somewhat or very satisfied. On a 1 to 5 scale, with 1 being very dissatisfied to 5 being very satisfied, the satisfaction level of these purEquipmentWorld.com | August 2020 33

chases averaged 3.3.

Respondents named three primary reasons why they bought: to meet a jobsite need (46 percent), to take advantage of current prices (33 percent) and to expand their fleets (33 percent).

Selling Twenty-four percent of respondents said they had sold equipment in the past 90 days. Top on the sell list were backhoes (31 percent), dozers (23 percent) and excavators (23 percent).

The majority of selling respondents – 60 percent – sold these machines themselves; 34 percent said they sold equipment through auction companies and 23 percent said they used an online site. (Multiple answers were accepted.)

On a 1 to 5 scale, with 1 being very dissatisfied to 5 being very satisfied, respondents’ satisfaction level with these sales averaged 3.3. Forty-three percent said they were either somewhat or very satisfied with the price they received for their equipment.

Respondents’ top reason for selling was that they no longer needed the machine (54 percent). Perhaps a sign of the times, 31 percent said they sold to increase cash flow.

Future buying, selling plans A strong majority of respondents either are or may be in the used equipment market this year. When ask if they might buy, 43 percent said yes, and 39 percent said they were unsure.

Machines of high interest for possible purchase are excavators (38 percent), compact excavators (30 percent) and backhoes (22 percent).

On the selling side, thirty-four percent of respondents said they might sell additional equipment in the remainder of the year. Another 43 percent said they were unsure whether they would sell.

Top on the for-sale list are backhoes (50 percent), excavators (42

34 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

Where have you researched used equipment in the past 90 days?

Online site Used equipment dealer Auction company Local OEM dealer Rental company

75% 54% 47% 43% 18%

Multiple answers accepted

Why did you buy the used equipment you bought in the past 90 days?

To meet a jobsite need To take advantage of current prices To expand my fleet To replace a machine Other To take advantage of current financing offers

46% 33% 33% 18% 8% 3%

Multiple answers accepted

What types of used equipment would you be interested in buying?

Excavators Compact (mini) excavators Backhoes Compact track loaders Skid steers Wheel loaders Dozers Compact utility loaders (also called mini skid steers)

38% 30% 22% 19% 19% 17% 17% 10%

Multiple answers accepted

Why did you sell the equipment you sold in the past 90 days?

No longer needed the machine A way to increase cash flow Traded it in for a new machine Other Multiple answers accepted

54% 31% 17% 20%

USED EQUIPMENT FINANCING SEES UPTICK DURING PANDEMIC

By Don McLoud

D

espite the pandemic, some financial institutions are reporting increased lending activity for used equipment.

Rich Fikis, president of Komatsu Financial, says that in April at the beginning of the company’s new fiscal year, used equipment lending was off to a slow start, but then May brought a hefty bounce-back.

“It looks like some people were probably sitting on the sidelines trying to figure out what might happen, but our May was actually our strongest May in the last three years as far as used equipment financing goes,” Fikis says.

Komatsu focused on its equipment coming off lease and launched an aggressive campaign offering 36 months

“It looks like some people were probably sitting on the sidelines trying to figure out what might happen, but our May was actually our strongest May in the last three years as far as used equipment financing goes.”

– Rich Fikis, Komatsu Financial president

EquipmentWorld.com | August 2020 35

at zero-percent interest – the first time in company history for zero-percent interest on used equipment. It has also been offering 90 days of no payments on loans and providing oneyear warranties on its used equipment. As the pandemic took hold, such incentives became even more helpful for contractors concerned about preserving cash flow.

“Cash flow is definitely a concern right now,” Fikis says. “A lot of the customers we’re talking to still have a sizable backlog from before the virus hit but are just a little bit more cautious about cash flow.”

Komatsu offers complimentary maintenance on its new equipment through its Komatsu Care program. Fikis says the regular maintenance that occurs under the Komatsu Care program enables the company to provide a one-year warranty on its certified used equipment that comes off lease.

“It’s been generating some good buzz with our used-equipment managers,” he says of the company’s incentives. “In times like this, any little extra to get someone over the hump is helpful. If the customer is considering rental or new or used, any extra leverage helps them when they make that buying decision.”

John Deere has also seen a boost in lending activity and offered aggressive incentives for used equipment.

“We have seen a modest increase in the used equipment market this year over the last two years,” says Jayma Sandquist, Deere chief marketing officer and senior vice president U.S./Canada.

“Initially, as states were shutting down, we saw projects being placed on hold or delayed as both our dealer channel and customers implemented safety protocols,” she adds. “Now, as states are beginning to relax restrictions, renewed interest is occurring.”

At the onset of the pandemic, Deere offered 90 days of no payments and zero-percent interest on its certified used construction equipment.

“We believe contractors are looking for options to protect and maintain cash flow in response to pressures in the construction space, as well as the energy segment,” she says. “As states begin to open, our dealer channel is focused on having the equipment available with different finance options and/or rental options to support customers.”

36 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

Section 179 and bonus depreciation for 2020

P

urchases of used construction equipment will once again qualify for 100 percent write-off in 2020 if the equipment is put into service before December 31.

Used equipment qualifies for the Section 179 deduction, which increases for inflation in 2020.

Buyers can deduct up to $1,040,000, a $20,000 increase from 2019. The spending cap on purchases has increased $40,000, to $2,590,000. After hitting the cap, the deduction reduces on a dollar-for-dollar basis before ending at $3,630,000.

Bonus depreciation for 2020 will again be 100 percent, meaning the buyer can depreciate the entire purchase price of the equipment in the first year. It does not have a cap.

Tax experts say contractors should check with their accountant before deciding whether Section 179 or bonus depreciation or both is best for them.

Some differences between Section 179 and bonus depreciation: • The Section 179 deduction is limited to taxable income and cannot be taken if the business posts a loss. Section 179 deductions can be carried forward if the full amount could not be taken the first year because of income levels.

• Bonus depreciation is not limited to taxable income and can be taken if the company experiences a loss.

• Most often, the Section 179 deduction is taken first, and then bonus depreciation is taken once the Section 179 cap is met.

Tax savings for 2020 used equipment purchases Equipment purchases Section 179 max deduction Bonus depreciation Total first-year deduction Tax savings

$2,000,000 $1,040,000 $960,000 $2,000,000 $420,000

This chart shows a hypothetical savings for $2 million in used equipment purchases at a 21 percent tax rate.

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When you have credit issues The various incentives being offered by large equipment manufacturers and lenders are often tied to a contractor’s credit rating. And those with poor credit or new businesses that have not established a credit history might have to search for other lending options, if mainstream banks and financial firms turn them down.

That’s where Y.E.S. Leasing has found its niche.

The company offers lease-to-own options for its customers and doesn’t look at credit history. (Y.E.S. stands for Your Equipment Specialists.)

“A lot of companies are looking at business credit history,” says Cory Cataldo, the Miami-based company’s chief development officer. “We’re looking at your business. We want to know you, know what you’re doing.”

Cataldo says the company’s business has stayed strong during the pandemic, especially as some mainstream financial institutions have tightened lending standards.

The company’s leases are actually more similar to loans than traditional leases, but with some differences. Instead of a down payment, customers provide a deposit. But the deposit goes toward the purchase of the equipment. At the end of the lease, the customer owns the machine, instead of traditional leases in which the equipment returns to the finance company. The leases do not have an interest rate as do loans. But they do come with a steep price.

As an example, Cataldo says, the purchase of a $100,000 piece of equipment over three or four years with a deposit of $20,000 would cost the customer about $180,000 over the life of the lease. “And that’s a lot, 180 on 100,” he says. “But at the end of the day, with the equipment we’re funding, you’re typically going to make anywhere from $800,000 to over a $1 million for having it.”

“We take a lot of risk. We charge a lot of money, but we are not sharks,” he adds. “We do things that make sense for our customers. And we like to say, ‘We’re the best of the bad options.’”

He says leasing with the company will cost less than renting a piece of equipment over the same term. “On a $100,000 price point, we’re typically $150,000 cheaper than renting over a three-year period.”

The company limits its exposure to $150,000 per used machine, and up to $200,000 for a used directional drill due to the higher price points on good used drills. Deposit requirements range from 15 to 20 percent of the purchase price. Terms are typically 36 to 48 months.

38 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

Top 10 Construction Equipment Lenders

No. of units

1.

CATERPILLAR FINANCIAL SERVICES CORP.

12,817

2.

JOHN DEERE FINANCIAL

8,909

3.

KOMATSU FINANCIAL

4,518

4.

CNH INDUSTRIAL CAPITAL

4,083

5.

FIRST NATIONAL BANK

2,940

6.

WELLS FARGO VENDOR FINANCIAL SERVICES 2,676

7.

KUBOTA CREDIT CORP.

2,596

8.

WELLS FARGO EQUIPMENT FINANCIAL

2,169

9.

STAR CAPITAL GROUP

1,744

10. CIT BANK

1,384

This chart reflects total financing from Jan. 1, 2019 to May 31, 2020 by the top 10 lenders for construction equipment, as provided by EDA, a division of Randall-Reilly, parent company of Equipment World.

Most of its customers are either small firms bringing in $20,000 a month in revenue and have a few employees, or firms that bring in $200,000 a month with 30 to 40 employees, Cataldo says.

“We work with guys that typically would have had trouble getting financed. It’s usually challenged credit,” he says. “We look a lot at cash flow and what they bring in, and we look a lot at not just their need for the equipment, but our knowledge that they’re going to make more from that equipment than they pay us for it, so that it’s worth it for them to keep paying.”

Rather than looking at credit ratings, the company examines a contractor’s cash flow. “Usually if what they bring in gross is about 50 percent of the cost of the machine they want to buy, we approve that person 90 percent of the time,” Cataldo says. “Now if they meet that metric, about half the time they end up getting approved for a 15 percent deposit.”

The company requires an application and for the applicant to show the past three months of the business’ bank statements. The company also goes through a questionnaire with its applicants to get a better idea of the business, its projects and why it needs the equipment. If the application proceeds, the company wants verification of contracts and bank statements. It does not run a credit check,

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE 2019 WINNER Nick Georgelos, the owner of Geo Contracting has been selected as the winner of the 2019 Contractor’s Dream Package. Based in Girdwood Alaska, Nick is involved in excavation services for residential, commercial and government clients in the state of Alaska. Nick is a long-time subscriber and registered for the Contractor’s Dream Package on the Equipment World website.

The awards presentation was hosted by Kendall Ford of Anchorage. Nick was very appreciative to all the sponsors of this great program.

Visit www.ContractorsDreamPackage.com for your chance to win!

Michael Newman (R) presenting Nick and Lauren Georgelos with the Contractor’s Dream Package.

Sponsors for the 2019 Contractor’s Dream Package:

which could hurt a customer’s credit rating.

Y.E.S. will finance auction purchases and can give approval before the auction occurs, Cataldo says. It will finance contractor-to-contractor sales but tries to steer buyers toward authorized equipment dealers instead. Private party sales can run into title problems on the equipment, in which the seller may not even be authorized to sell it. It can also be a problem if the equipment proves to be a lemon.

“The advantage of when you’re buying at an authorized dealer is that if you do get a piece of junk, they have to care,” he says. “…And they have a staff that could at least work on it and fix it for you.”

Ditch Witch of Florida Caribbean steers its customers toward Y.E.S Leasing when they do not qualify for other financing.

“Y.E.S. is a great option for people that have a good business, they just have challenges elsewhere,” says Gary Landry, territory sales manager for the Plant City-based dealership. “It is a more expensive product, but it can get equipment in their hands.”

“Is a great option? No,” he adds, “but it’s an option that if you can get a piece of equipment that you can make a bunch of money off of on a monthly basis, then it’s worth it.”

reaching out to customers to offer assistance as needed during the uncertain times.”

Communication is the key – and sooner rather later – for contractors who foresee challenges in making payments.

“Communication is 100 percent the most important thing in this situation,” Fikis says. “We always know that there’s going to be those peaks and valleys where customers struggle. But if they’re talking to us about those struggles, the vast majority of the time we can find a way to assist them and help them get through this difficult situation.

“I can’t reiterate enough that proactive communication is by far the most important aspect of that.”

If you hit financial trouble Financial institutions are reporting an uptick in contractors seeking new terms on their equipment financing and in some cases defaulting on loans during the pandemic.

“We saw a historic number of requests for payment relief and we were able to accommodate the vast majority to help our customers through these challenging times,” says Deere’s Sandquist. “We also proactively called many of our construction customers to gauge confidence in their financial situation, and we worked with them to revise schedules if necessary and appropriate.”

Komatsu’s Fikis said the company also saw an increase in requests to restructure. “It’s definitely not unprecedented or unexpected,” he says. “We learned a lot from the 2008-2009 years. We assisted a decent chunk of our customers then, but we also understood very quickly that it led to a lot of customer loyalty after we were willing to assist in those times. So we were proactive in March in

40 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

“We believe contractors are looking for options to protect and maintain cash flow in response to pressures in the construction space, as well as the energy segment.”

– Jayma Sandquist, John Deere chief marketing officer and senior vice president U.S./Canada

machine matters

| by Richard Ries

JUST HOW GOOD CAN DOZERS GET? OEMs answer that question with their latest models

D

ozers have been recognizable in their current form for nearly a century. After this much time a machine this basic must be fully evolved, right? Not so, say manufacturers. Their newest dozers are more advanced and more capable than ever before.

The Cat D5 is available in five different blade styles. The Cat C7.1 engine is rated at 170 net horsepower and is mated to a fully automatic three-speed transmission. Operating weights range from 37,875 pounds (VPAT) to 42,858 pounds (LGP Folding VPAT).

42 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

Technology marches on Much of the advancement of dozer design is owed to technology. One example is Komatsu intelligent Machine Control 2.0, which debuted at this year’s ConExpo.

Version 2.0 of iMC consists of a suite of features, including Proactive Dozing Control. While other systems are reactive and adjust blade position and drive torque in

?

EquipmentWorld.com | August 2020 43

CTLs as dozers

machine matters |

continued

The Case DL550B has a true dozer-style undercarriage and is available with rubber or steel tracks. Operating weight is 18,000 pounds, horsepower is 114 and the vertical-lift machine has ROC of 5,500 pounds at 50 percent of tipping load. It is compatible with Case SiteControl CoPilot for mastless control of basic slope and grade.

The 74-horsepower Case 650M features a new undercarriage with improvements to the track frame, idler, sprockets, rollers and extended-life SALT HD tracks, as well as a reinforced mainframe. The box-style C-frame and updated cooling package are designed for heavy loads and harsh conditions.

response to conditions, the iMC 2.0 package is proactive. It uses machine learning to update its internal map of the work area with each pass and anticipate the need to adjust performance parameters. Older systems had trouble with the first pass to remove topsoil. This new technology can be used from first pass to last and can start the job without GPS, drone or survey information.

Another feature of iMC 2.0 is Lift Layer Control, which provides uniform spreading. Jason Anetsberger, senior product manager for iMC for Komatsu, says the stroke-sensing cylinders and on-frame inertial measurement units (IMUs) are similar to what has been used in the past. “It’s what we do with the information, the data processing that sets iMC 2.0 apart.”

Liebherr offers three levels of assistance with its OAS - Operator Assistance Systems. Free Grade gives active blade stabilization during fine grading. Definition Grade is for automatic blade positioning when creating 2D grades. The optional 3D Grade machine control system will model complex terrain shapes. Liebherr Active Sensor Control stabilizes the blade in all axes and is standard equipment. Active Sensor Control relies on two independent, permanently 44 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

C

ompact track loaders are now getting into small dozer territory, as illustrated by two largest-of-their-line ConExpo intros: the Deere 333G with SmartGrade and the Case DL550. Case previewed the DL550 as Project Minotaur at the 2017 ConExpo.

Both machines give users the ability to toggle between dozerand CTL-style joystick controls at the push of a button, a six-way power-angle-tilt blade and vertical lift.

Both are also claimed to be firsts.

“The implementation of SmartGrade is the first time a fully integrated grade control technology will be available on compact equipment,” says Deere. The DL550 is described by Case as “the industry’s first fully integrated compact dozer loader.”

One key difference between the two is in the dozer blade mounting. The dozer blade mounts to the Deere 333G as would any other attachment. This preserves the speed and ease of changing attachments, while DozerMode control holds the boom against its stops for consistent dozing, the company says.

On the Case DL550 the blade mounts on the C frame as in many traditional dozers. This enhances dozing precision while ensuring that the power and stress involved in dozing is transmitted through the chassis instead of the attachment coupler, Case says.

The John Deere 333G has ROC of 3,700 pounds at 35 percent of tipping load and is powered by a Yanmar turbocharged engine rated at 96.6 net horsepower and 291.3 pound-feet of torque.

An optional EH Boom Performance Package includes return to dig, return to carry, boom height kickout and electronic self-level functions.

machine matters | mounted, integrated gyroscopic and inertial sensors and allows high grading speeds and high-precision fine grading.

Cat Stable Blade has new sensors and a new algorithm for smoother results in manual dozing. Slope Indicate and Slope Assist for 2D grading have also been improved. Cat 3D is now available in medium-size dozers. It is driven by three IMUs and two GNSS sensors and features an improved user interface.

Blade load monitoring and traction control are new to the D5 and will be coming to the D6 and D7. These models have improved

46 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

continued steering power and a variable turning radius. The deceleration pedal controls the turning radius; it can also slow the machine to a full stop. Hill hold is standard, as is hill descent control, which will engage the brakes if needed.

The 850N is the first in the upcoming N Series dozer line from Case. One key feature is the inclusion of the Case Universal Machine

Control platform, making each machine compatible with products from any of the Big 3 machine control technology providers: Topcon, Trimble and Leica Geosystems.

Compatibility is enabled through the use of universal components, including wiring harnesses, jumpers, and brackets and mounts. “This allows Case dozers to be deployed straight from the dealer

Deere 700L, 750L and 850L dozers feature new operator stations with more space, increased storage and improved visibility. Options include premium heated and ventilated seating, automatic temperature control and a rear camera. New ergonomic joysticks feature rocker switches for forward-neutral-reverse movement and a proportional thumb roller for precise blade angle and power pitch adjustments.

The Komatsu D71PXi-24 is the first dozer to feature the company’s intelligent Machine Control (iMC) 2.0, unveiled at ConExpo this year. The D71 has not been launched yet, and details of the final design are under wraps, but we know it will have hydrostatic drive and a 237-horsepower Komatsu engine as well as Komatsu’s Parallel Link Undercarriage System. The PLUS undercarriage uses a rotating bushing design to extend undercarriage life to as much as twice that of non-PLUS dozers.

into whatever grade control system the customer is currently using,” says George MacIntyre, product manager, Case Construction Equipment. “It also increases residual value, as that Case dozer will be compatible with any solution upon resale into its second and even third operational lifespan.”

Transmissions on L Series dozers from John Deere come with factory presets. Operators can customize those presets to further personalize the machine. Presets can be configured to match operator preference

or the demands of various applications. A personal identification number (PIN) can be used to automatically load operators’ settings when they start the machine.

Hard parts “A key part of the upgrades on the 700L, 750L and 850L were the blade options,” says Cory Brant, solutions marketing manager for John Deere. L Series blades have an abrasion-resistant skin. New blade offerings, including a 161inch option for the 750L, “ensure

that every customer has the right blade for their operation.”

The Cat D7 sees a return to an elevated drive sprocket for easier cleanout and good drive system balance. The D7 has been at shows but will not enter the market until 2021 as the latest in the Next Generation series of Cat dozers. Other Next Generation models include the D6 and D6XE, which have been available for some time, and the D5, which became available this year.

Next Generation features common to all include a fully automatic powershift transmission with lockup torque converter and new cabs with fully integrated ROPS for improved visibility, increased interior space and easier entry and exit. “Next Generation cabs are allEquipmentWorld.com | August 2020 47

machine matters |

continued

The PR 736 G8 is the first of Liebherr’s Generation 8 crawler dozers. Powered by a 217-horsepower Liebherr engine, the PR 736 G8 is available with a straight, semi-U or six-way blade with capacities of 5.36 to 7.27 cubic yards. Buttons and keys are used for standard functions, while the 9-inch display provides access to fine adjustments.

new, from the seats to the monitors and everything in between,” says Sam Meeker, Cat product application specialist. “This is, after all, the operator’s professional office environment, and it should appear and function accordingly.”

A ROPS canopy is standard on the Case 850N; an optional ROPS cab features floor-to-ceiling straightpanel glass doors for improved visibility to the blade. Cab-forward design, a sloped hood and a smaller 48 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

front idler sprocket further enhance forward visibility. Case retuned the undercarriage and cab mounts on the 850N to reduce vibration. Noise drops to 73 decibels.

The D71 from Komatsu is more than a showpiece for improved hard parts; it is the bellwether of trends in this size class (the D71 has 237 horsepower and weighs 52,000 pounds). “With its hydrostatic transmission, slant-nose design, rear-mounted radiator and

iMC 2.0, the D71 has amazing versatility,” says Kurt Moncini, senior track product manager, excavators and dozers for Komatsu.

He says that dozers in this size class 20 years ago had all outside straight blades. Now the default is power-angle-tilt blades, “yet they’re robust enough to do the work of an outside straight blade.”

“D71-class machines are being used more and more for finish grading, not just moving large volumes of material,” adds Chuck Murawski, Komatsu product marketing manager for torque converter dozers. “Improved hydraulics, the HST and iMC 2.0 make this possible.”

Sponsored by:

CONGRATULATIONS

to the 2020 Contractor of the Year winner and finalists

IN

R

E

N

W

Toby Drake

Bret Barnhart

Matt Mitchell

Scott and Dianne Johnson

Drake Construction Kotzebue, Alaska

C. M. Mitchell Construction Sneads Ferry, North Carolina

Rick Goodmanson

Goodmanson Construction Roseville, Minnesota

Ray Lippis

Ray Lippis Excavating Canon City, Colorado

Bret Barnhart Excavating Mounds, Oklahoma

Dirtworks Incorporated Palmer, Alaska

Scott Roberts, Tyler Roberts JLR Contractors Provo, Utah

Rick Davis

Mountain Valley Contracting Grand Junction, Colorado

Clint and Amber Stephenson CLS Excavation Liberty Hill, Texas

Thomas J. Giordano, Joseph Giordano Jr. Giordano Construction New Castle, Pennsylvania

John, T. J. and Michelle Muggli Muggli Contracting Miles City, Montana

Wendell Howard

T & K Utilities Asheville, North Carolina

Drake Construction, our 2020 Contractor of the Year, has a great story. So do you.

equipmentworld.com | Summer 2020

One way to make sure it gets told is to become one of our 2021 Contractor of the Year finalists.

Our Contractor of the Year program honors the forward thinkers, high achievers and just plain good people in construction. These are the construction companies that get the job done right, on time and within budget.

Their clients sing their praises, their vendors wish all clients were like them, and their workforce is dedicated and loyal.

ÂŽ

P. 10 OF THE YEAR

2020 CONTRACTOR

TOBY DRAKE DRAKE CONSTRUCTION, KOTZEBUE, ALASKA

Miles above the Arctic Circle this company excels at construction and logistics using barges, ice roads and airplanes

P. 21

COMING OUT OF

Sound like your company? Then it’s the perfect candidate to become one of our 12 Contractor of the Year finalist firms in 2021.

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Interested? To get started, visit EWcontractoroftheyear.com.

Sponsored by:

contractor of the year finalist

| by Marcia Doyle |

MarciaDoyle@randallreilly.com

Asheville contractor T & K tackles mountains, gains fans

Wendell Howard, T & K Utilities

“I

took off my coat and tie and went into the ditch,” is how Wendell Howard describes his introduction to construction after majoring in accounting and business in college and working at a bank.

For the next nine years he gained experience working under mentors such as Clarence Little and Garland Terry, who provided guidance he values today. “I soon learned around them that I didn’t want to be the guy who didn’t know what he was talking about,” Howard says with a laugh. “And they showed how to treat people well.”

Howard went out on his own in 1995 and formed T & K Utilities, named after his children Taylor and

Keri. He lined up some sewer service work, did an RPO on a backhoe and a Cat 120 excavator and dipped into the equity of his home.

He was up and running.

His company now has revenues of $10 million to $13 million doing site development, water, sewer and grading projects throughout greater Asheville. The mountainous area presents plenty of challenges as the company builds roads and installs utilities in high-end housing developments.

For example, when one developer needed a road paved late in the season, Wendell went to his asphalt supplier and convinced them to supply mix for the road. “That saved me a lot of money through the winter,” says client Andy Baker

City, State:

Asheville, North Carolina

Year Started:

1995

Number of employees:

52

Annual revenue:

$10 million to $13 million

Markets served:

Site development, water, sewer and grading

with TFM Carolina.

“I wouldn’t trust anyone else with the projects I put out for bid,” Baker continues. “Wendell checks all the boxes.”

Howard’s son Taylor joined the firm 10 years ago and heads up equipment maintenance, safety and other business operations. He’s learning from Howard what it takes to handle the reins of the company, including the networking skills that have been finely honed by his father. (The two are also partners in an interesting side gig, H & H Distillery, which currently offers six different spirits, including Asheville Coffee Liqueur, a recipe from Howard’s mother.)

The company’s current mix is 70 percent private/30 percent public.

EquipmentWorld.com | August 2020 51

contractor of the year finalist |

continued

Part of the T & K Utilities crew: Monette Bauer, Ashley Dean, Wendell Howard, Spencer Simmons, Lyle Lance “You’ve got to work with what you know,” Howard says. “We work hard at getting it right the first time.”

Getting it right “Your people are what makes your business,” Howard says. “I don’t have a lot of turnover on my key people. If I make money, I share it.”

His philosophy extends beyond money. “I don’t ask them to do something in a ditch or on a job that I wouldn’t do,” he says. “Truth is, sometimes I’d rather be in a ditch than in an office.”

The day’s work can start at a gas station located a short distance from the T & K office. Some mornings the location serves as the backdrop for coffee and planning before crews separate out on jobs. “They kind of let us use it as our office since our shop is located about five miles down the road,” Howard says.

After that, Howard is usually on site at one of several jobs around town, something you sense is the best part of his day. And all along, 52 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

he’s making notes on the pad that’s always within reach. “I’ll be making notes when I’m at a stop light, going over what we need, what materials are ordered,” Howard says. “Time is where you make or

Three generations of Howards – from left, Taylor, 5-year-old Hawkins and Wendell – in front of a project in downtown Asheville. T & K is working as a Tennoca Construction sub on the project.

lose money on a job.”

This appreciation for “time is money” gets noticed by clients and extends even to project disputes. You get the feeling that Howard doesn’t want to spend a lot of time dickering. Baker calls him “incredibly fair.

In fact,” he adds, “we find ourselves negotiating against ourselves, with me trying to pay him more and him trying to charge me less.”

And Mark Letterman with the City of Asheville remembers a pump station project where T & K went to an alternative supplier to get the job done per specs and on time. “They ate the difference in cost to finish the job on time,” he says.

Thriving and surviving When the Great Recession hit, T & K was building golf courses.

Howard realized adjustments had to be made, and he started bidding public work. “But then there were 15 bidders on every job,” he says.

“We were just trying to break even and just turn it around,” he comments.

T & K Utilities now has revenues of $10 million to $13 million and does site development, water, sewer and grading projects throughout greater Asheville.

But all in all, the downturn didn’t have a huge impact on company fortunes.

“We cut back to 40 hours for maybe three weeks and then we started to have the workload and we still had the people and were still able to do work,” he relates. “When there was a job, they wanted us back.”

It also helped that Howard wasn’t carrying much debt. “We had some money laid back and I tried to be conservative about it,” he says.

“And we’ve been blessed to be able continue working during this pandemic,” Howard adds.

The right equipment Asheville’s scenic terrain presents challenges, especially as T & K creates roads and places utilities in highend housing developments. “He does significant mass grading for us, and he always has the right equipment for the job,” says client Baker. “He’s always conscious of what a road system will take, and if he has to, he will go about getting the equipment on site a different way.”

It took some time for Howard to get to that point, however. “One of the first machines I had was a Cat 120, and I asked my salesman Doug Lassiter for a month’s demo,” Howard recalls. “I also asked to pay my rent in arrears. I told him,

‘If I make it, I’ll stay with you,’ and that’s what happened.”

This relationship with Carolina Cat is now part of the way T & K does business. “Our dealer will listen when we have an issue on a machine,” Howard says. “They’ll take it seriously. They know our business and they help us find equipment.”

“We have a strong service relationship,” agrees Steve Norton with Carolina Cat. “And Wendell will do anything to help anyone and will go past any expectation to get the work done. His attitude is extremely contagious.”

Today T & K has a variety of earthmoving equipment, including excavators, wheel loaders, dozers, compact excavators and skid steers. “On a typical utility job, we’ll have one excavator digging, another excavator with a roller bucket for compaction, and a wheel loader to handle stone and sometimes a dozer to clean up after everything,” Howard says.

The company also recently bought an Asphalt Zipper milling attachment, which it uses instead of saw-cutting a road. “We work on a lot of downtown streets, and we’re able to just quickly mill it up using that attachment,” he says.

Rentals are usually restricted to smaller machines, although How-

ard sometimes rents an artic or a sheepsfoot roller. “I almost would rather have a payment on a newer machine instead of a rental,” he says. “I haven’t done an RPO in a long time, because I’m either going to keep it or not.”

Howard believes in maintenance agreements, particularly when buying new equipment. “I don’t like being down because my equipment is down,” he says.

Quality reputation Client Preston Kendall with Ingles Markets likes to use T & K’s name when he’s getting city approval of new construction. “If the meeting’s not going well,” he relates, “I’ll say that I’m asking T & K to do the job, and then it usually gets approved.

They have that kind of reputation for doing quality work.”

Continues Kendall: “He shows up and gets the job done when he says he will. He could teach others craftmanship, caring for the job and how to treat the people you are around.”

“They are a contractor you can trust and count on,” adds Letterman with the City of Asheville. “We can always count on them to meet a deadline even if things are working against them.”

EquipmentWorld.com | August 2020 53

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excavators

| by Marcia Doyle |

MarciaDoyle@randallreilly.com

MID-SIZE TO LARGE

EXCAVATORS ConExpo introductions gave excavator manufacturers a chance to round out some of their lineups and introduce new features. And of course, there was also plenty to talk about with their current models. For a more comprehensive look at today’s excavators – including compact excavators and excavator attachments – check out the Excavator and Attachment Yearbook at www.equipmentworld.com/excavatorguide/.

EXCAVATORS, >10 TO <20 METRIC TONS

Cat 315 With an advanced hydraulic system, the new Cat 315 can increase productivity up to 8 percent compared with the 315F it replaces, Cat says. The excavator also offers a 10 percent higher swing torque for additional efficiency when working on slopes and 14 percent more drawbar pull than its predecessor. Powered by a Cat C3.6 engine, the excavator comes standard with the Cat Grade with 2D system, which can be upgraded to Advanced 3D and Grade with 3D. Compared with its predecessor, the model comes with a 13 percent larger cab and offers 60 percent greater vertical visibility.

Make

>10 to 14 metric tons operating weight Hitachi NEW Komatsu NEW Kato Rhino Link-Belt Hyundai John Deere Cat Case >14 to 16 metric tons operating weight NEW Kato Hitachi NEW JCB Hyundai Case NEW Cat NEW Cat Doosan

Kobelco SK140SRL-7 Kobelco Construction Machinery USA’s SK140SRLC-7 has a digging force of 24,800 pounds with a compact design and long digging reach capabilities. With a dig depth of 19 feet 7 inches and a swing speed of 11 rpm, cycle times are reduced by about 10 percent, the company says. The strong drawbar pulling force produces powerful travel capabilities, enabling it to tackle steep and rough terrain with ease, says Kobelco.

JCB 131X, 150X JCB has introduced its 13-ton 131X and 15-ton 150X. Both units are powered by JCB EcoMAX engines, the 131X with a 74-horsepower and the 150X with a 109-horsepower diesel, both of which do not require a diesel particulate filter or diesel exhaust fluid. Other features include a 15 percent larger JCB CommandPlus Cab and higher-diameter pipework to boost hydraulic efficiency, when compared to the previous JS131 and JS145 models. With flat glazing and new cab mounts for improved isolation, in-cab noise is reduced to 67 decibels, 68 percent lower than the previous models.

Model

Operating weight (metric tons)

Max dig depth (ft/in)

Bucket capacity, SAE heaped, min-max (cu yds)

Net hp

ZX130-6 PC130-11 HD512LC-7 REX130 130X4 HX130LCR 130G 311F CX130D

12.1 12.8 12.9 12.9 13.2 13.5 13.88 13.9 14

19’ 11” 18’ 1” 18’ 4” 18’ 0” 18’ 2” 18’ 4” 19’ 9” 18’ 4” 18’ 3”

0.47 - 0.99 0.34 - 0.78 -0.7 0.42 - 0.98 0.39 - 0.77 0.48 - 0.99 0.27 - 1.0 0.32 - 1.12

101 97.2 105 115 102 71 98 70 102

HD514MR-7 ZX135US-6 131X HX140L CX145D SR 313 GC 313 DX140LC-5

14.1 14.3 14.3 14.53 14.6 14.6 14.6 14.87

18’ 2” 19’ 7” 19’ 11” 16’ 2” 18’ 1” 19’ 10” 19’ 10” 20’ 1”

-0.47 - 0.99 0.46 - 1.16 0.3 - 0.93 0.36 - 1.08 0.27 - 1.33 0.27 - 1.33 0.30 - 0.85

105 101 74 116 102 73 108 109 Specifications continued on pg. 56

EquipmentWorld.com | August 2020 55

excavators |

continued

Doosan DX170LC-5 The 17-metric-ton Doosan DX170LC-5 falls below the 80,000 gross vehicle weight rating limit, allowing for easier transportation and reducing the need to obtain a special transport permit.

The excavator offers four power modes and four work modes – digging, breaker, shear and lifting – to maximize efficiency and fuel economy in specific applications. Operators can configure the work mode by adjusting a dial switch on the right-hand console. A rearview camera is standard and an optional sideview camera is available. Camera views are accessible on the 7-inch LCD screen mounted in the cab.

Make

Bobcat E165 The largest excavator in Bobcat’s lineup, the 131-horsepower E165, is matched to 700 and 800 frame size Bobcat compact track and skid steer loaders. With four selectable power modes, operators can adjust machine parameters to the job. Smart Power Control matches load to engine rpm, hydraulic pump torque and engine response and can be activated while in the digging work mode. Variable Speed Control automatically reduces engine rpms during low workload requirements, such as the slew portion of the dig cycle.

Model

>14 to 16 metric tons operating weight (continued) NEW Kobelco SK130LC-11 Kobelco SK140SRLC-7 Sany SY135C Wacker Neuson ET145 NEW XCMG XE150U Hyundai HX145LCR Link-Belt 145X4 Spin Ace w/Blade Sunward SWE155F NEW Hyundai HX140Lc John Deere 135G Mecalac 15MC NEW Kobelco SK140SRLC-7 Offset Boom Case CX160D Takeuchi TB2150 Volvo EC140E Doosan DX140LCR-5 NEW Bobcat E145 JCB JZ141 >16 to 19 metric tons operating weight NEW Cat 315 LiuGong CLG915E Liebherr R914Compact Kobelco ED160-5 Blade Runner Komatsu PC138USLC-11 Volvo ECR145E NEW Doosan DX170LC-5 Link-Belt 160X4 JCB JS160NLC Cat 316F Kobelco SK170LC-10 Hitachi ZX160LC-6 John Deere 160G LC Gradall XL3200 V NEW JCB 150X Komatsu PC170LC-11 (Standard) Cat 318F Hyundai HX160L >19 to 21 metric tons operating weight Liebherr R920Compact Hyundai HX180L Doosan DX180LC-5 Komatsu PC170LC-11 (Heavy) JCB JS190NLC 56 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

Kobelco SK130LC-11 Kobelco Construction Machinery USA‘s SK130LC-11 has a digging force of 24,818 pounds and is equipped with independent travel, which allows the machine to move, lift and swing simultaneously without experiencing loss of power. Automatic swing priority instantly delivers full swing power during combined operations without switching modes.

Powered by a 96-horsepower engine, the excavator uses a selective catalytic reduction system with diesel particulate filters to reduce NOx emissions.

Operating weight (metric tons)

Max dig depth (ft/in)

Bucket capacity, SAE heaped, min-max (cu yds)

Net hp

14.9 14.9 14.9 14.92 15 15.16 15.2 15.2 15.33 15.40 15.4 15.3 15.6 15.6 15.83 15.87 16 16.0

19’ 7” 19’ 7” 18’ 1” 18’ 0” 18’ 1” 16’ 1” 18’ 1” 18’ 2” 16’ 2” 20’ 0” 16’ 4” 17’ 1” 19’ 11” 18’ 0” 18’ 3” 19’ 7” 19’ 7.2” 19’ 10”

.30 - .88 .30 - .88 0.7 - 0.9 8.8 - 28.3 0.41 - 0.94 .68 - 2.42 0.50 - 0.98 21.5 .76 0.47 - 0.99 0.12 - 1.31 .30 - .88 0.32 - 1.12 -0.33 - 1 0.30 - 0.85 11.3 - 37.5 0.46 - 1.16

96 105.4 103 73.9 120 116 102 121 127 101 136 105.4 112 114 (gross) 119 113 113 74

16.2 16.3 16.32 16.4 17.0 17 17.4 17.4 17.5 17.6 17.6 17.7 17.95 17.799 18.1 18.3 18.8 18.83

19’ 8” 19’ 3” 19’ 19’ 1” 18’ 0” 18’ 2” 19’ 11” 19’ 11” 20’ 7” 21’ 7” 21’ 3” 21’ 4” 21’ 4” 19’ 2” 19’ 11” 19’ 7” 21’ 6” 18’ 7”

0.27 - 1.33 0.47 - 1.0 0.42 - 1.05 .30 - .88 0.34 - 1.00 0.33 - 1 0.38 - 1.26 0.50 - 1.14 0.33 - 1.29 0.46 - 1.19 .6 - 1.0 0.47 - 1.17 0.48 - 1.11 0.20 - 1.125 0.46 - 1.16 0.48 - 1.24 0.46 - 1.19 .51 - 1.37

108 113 122 95.6 97.3 119 127.3 112 125 117 127 116 122 153 109 121 117 128

19.4 19.48 19.6 19.6 19.9

19’ 21’ 6” 20’ 0” 19’ 7” 21’ 8”

0.40 - 1.25 .51 - 1.37 0.38 - 1.26 0.48 - 1.24 0.46 - 1.18

150 128 127.3 121 125

EXCAVATORS, 20 TO <50 METRIC TONS

Sany SY155U, SY225C Powered by a 105-horsepower engine and weighing in at 35,274 pounds, the Sany SY155U has a nearly 18-foot dig depth capability and a 27-foot 4-inch overall maximum reach with minimal tail swing. With a bucket breakout rated for 23,155 pounds, the excavator is designed to move materials around a narrow or confined jobsite. In addition, Sany’s new SY225C fills the gap between its current SY215C and SY265C models. The 164-horsepower unit has a 54,013-pound operating weight. It features a 21.5-foot dig depth, a max reach of 33 feet 10 inches and a 28,551-pound bucket breakout rating.

Make

Hitachi Liebherr Volvo NEW John Deere NEW XCMG >21 to 24 metric tons operating weight Gradall Hitachi Sunward Komatsu Cat Hitachi Case Rhino Link-Belt Kobelco NEW Cat NEW Volvo Cat NEW Liebherr Hyundai Komatsu LiuGong JCB Sany Doosan John Deere Kobelco >24 to 25 metric tons operating weight Komatsu NEW Kato NEW Sany Hyundai Gradall NEW XCMG >25 to 28 metric tons operating weight Komatsu Liebherr Komatsu Doosan Hitachi

LiuGong 915E LiuGong North America’s 915E has an operating weight of 35,935 pounds. A standard rearview camera improves operator visibility when traveling. The 915E is powered by a 121-horsepower QSB4.5 turbo-charged Cummins engine. Six selectable working modes (Power, Economy, Fine, Lifting, Breaker, Attachment) optimize hydraulic performance and fuel consumption for specific conditions. Auto-idle speed function reduces fuel consumption and engine noise when pilot controls are in neutral.

The model has a bucket capacity up to 0.47 cubic yards and a maximum digging depth of 19 feet 3 inches.

Volvo EC300E Hybrid Unlike systems that capture the swing energy of an excavator’s superstructure to electrically assist the engine, Volvo’s EC300E hydraulic hybrid harvests energy generated by the down motion of the boom and uses it to charge the engine system. The boom-down motions charge 5.28-gallon hydraulic accumulators, which then deliver energy to drive hydraulic assist motors that help power the engine system. The machine can work in ECO mode and Hybrid mode simultaneously. Volvo says the process delivers up to 20 percent higher fuel efficiency and up to 17 percent less CO2 emissions with no loss of performance.

Model

Operating weight (metric tons)

Max dig depth (ft/in)

Bucket capacity, SAE heaped, min-max (cu yds)

Net hp

ZX180LC-6 R918 EC160E 200G XE210U

20.1 20.29 20.7 20.76 21

23’ 2” 20’ 21’ 3” 23’ 2” 21’ 11”

0.51 - 1.31 0.72 - 1.50 0.39 - 0.76 0.55 - 1.34 1.05 - 1.5

116 163 148 144.8 173

XL4200 V ZX 210-6 SWE215F HB215LC-1 320 GC ZX210LC-6 CX210D REX210 210X4 SK210LC-10 325 EC200E 320 R922 HX220L PC210LCi-11 CLG922E 220XLC SY215C DX225LC-5 210G LC SK210HLC-10 Hybrid

21.256 21.5 21.8 21.85 21.9 21.9 22.0 22.0 22.2 22.4 22.5 22.5 22.8 23.10 23.36 23.4 23.4 23.5 23.55 23.6 23.63 23.8

22’ 0” 20’ 3” 22’ 2” 21’ 9” 22’ 21’ 11” 21’ 0” 22’ 8.4” 21’ 10” 22’ 22’ 0” 22’ 3” 22’1” 22’ 2” 22’ 1” 21’ 9” 21’ 6” 22’ 0” 21’ 8” 21’ 7” 21’ 11” 22’

0.20 - 1.125 0.9 - 1.29 35.3 1.05 - 1.37 0.61 - 2.09 0.9 - 1.29 0.55 - 1.76 1.3 0.61 - 1.75 .63 - 1.8 0.72 - 2.08 0.36 - 1.44 0.61 - 2.09 0.72 - 1.96 0.68 - 1.75 0.66 - 1.57 1.2 - 1.6 0.38 - 1.25 0.52 - 1.83 0.59 - 1.41 0.56 - 1.29 .63 - 1.8

153 160 173 139 121 160 160 150 160 160 172 154 162 163 173 165 160 173 163.6 162.1 159 160

PC210LC-11 HD823MR-7 SY225C HX235LCR XL5200 V XE250U

24.4 24.5 24.5 24.56 24.699 25

21’ 9” 21’ 1” 21’ 8” 22’ 0” 25’ 4” 22’ 9”

0.66 - 1.57 -0.52 - 1.83 .67 - 1.75 0.25 - 1.75 1.04 - 1.6

165 172 163.6 173 153 190

PC240LC-11 R924 PC238USLC-11 DX235LCR-5 ZX250LC-6

25.1 25.15 25.2 25.4 25.4

22’ 8” 22’ 2” 21’ 9” 21’ 10” 25’ 0”

0.76 - 1.85 177 0.72 - 2.16 175 0.66 - 1.57 165 0.59 - 1.41 181 1.0 - 1.9 177 EquipmentWorld.com | August 2020 57

Specifications continued on pg. 58

excavators |

continued

Cat 325 Featuring a compact radius design, the 172-horsepower Cat 325 can work in tight spaces, despite weighing 49,604 pounds. To help meet transport requirements the excavator comes with the choice of an 8.3-ton or a 4.9-ton counterweight. Operators can program and store joystick and power mode settings using an operator ID. With the standard Cat Grade with 2D machine control system, operators can program up to four target depth and slope offsets to reach grade faster.

Make

LBX Link-Belt 210 X4 The Link-Belt 210 X4 features an electronically controlled 160-horsepower Isuzu engine. The 48,900-pound 210 X4 delivers up to 9 percent faster cycle times than its predecessor, largely due to a proprietary control valve with a 30 percent larger hydraulic passage area, says LBX. In addition, the size of the arm, boom and auxiliary spools was increased to reduce pressure loss and distribute oil more smoothly.

Maximum digging depth is 21 feet 10 inches, and the machine has a 31-foot 11-inch reach at ground level.

Model

>25 to 28 metric tons operating weight (continued) John Deere 250G LC Cat 323 Kobelco SK230SRLC-5 Kobelco SK210LC-10 High & Wide Case CX245D SR Hitachi ZX245USLC-6 John Deere 245G LC Link-Belt 245X4 Spin Ace w/Blade Link-Belt 250X4 Volvo EC220E NEW Cat 326 Case CX250D LiuGong CLG925E Sany SY265C John Deere 350G LC Doosan DX255LC-5 Hyundai HX260L Kobelco SK260LC-10 Liebherr R926Compact Kobelco SK270SRLC-5 Doosan DX225MH-5 Liebherr R926 Volvo ECR235E >28 to 33 metric tons operating weight Kobelco SK260LC-10 High & Wide Hitachi ZX300LC-6 Volvo EC250E NEW XCMG XE300U Link-Belt 300X4 Cat 330 GC NEW Volvo EC300E Hybrid NEW Liebherr R930 Case CX300D Doosan DX225LL-5 Doosan DX300LC-5 Kobelco SK300LC-10 John Deere 300G LC NEW Sany SY265CLR (Long Reach) Rhino REX330 Hyundai HX300L JCB JS300 LiuGong CLG930E Case CX290D Material Handler 58 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

Gradall XL 4100 V Gradall’s new XL 4100 V hydraulic excavators are equipped with a 7.7-liter, 248-horsepower Volvo Penta engine, providing power to drive the 6x4 or 6x6 models at speeds up to 60 mph. The same engine repositions the machine from the upperstructure cab at speeds up to 5 mph, and powers the boom movements. A pressure-compensating, load-sensing hydraulic system has relief valves on all circuits, delivering the right amount of power to the boom. Without the need for selecting work modes, the system performs a variety of jobs with cycle times and boom-end power comparable to conventional excavators.

Operating weight (metric tons)

Max dig depth (ft/in)

Bucket capacity, SAE heaped, min-max (cu yds)

Net hp

25.45 25.5 25.6 25.7 25.8 25.8 25.80 25.8 25.8 25.8 25.9 26.0 26.1 26.1 26.13 26.2 26.7 26.9 26.9 27.2 27.6 27.6 27.9

25’ 0” 22’1” 21’ 7” 20’ 10” 20’ 1” 21’ 9” 21’ 8” 21’ 10” 22’ 8” 22’ 1” 22’ 4” 22’ 8” 22’ 7” 22’ 0” 26’ 10” 22’ 4” 23’ 0” 23’ 22’ 6” 21’ 9” 16’ 9” 22’ 10” 22’ 2”

0.9 - 2.0 0.61 - 2.09 .63 - 1.6 .63 - 1.8 0.65 - 1.2 0.51 - 1.55 0.51 - 1.55 0.61 - 1.75 0.76 - 2.43 0.63 - 1.66 0.68 - 2.46 0.68 - 1.90 0.76 - 1.8 0.5 - 2 1.3 - 2.4 0.61 - 1.45 1.41 - 1.96 .875 - 2.25 0.72 - 1.96 .63 - 1.8 -1.50 - 2.29 0.63 - 1.66

188 162 160 160 160 159 159 160 177 172 202 177 173 194 271 185.1 179 178 175 160 162.3 204 172

28.6 29.4 29.6 30 30.4 30.6 30.8 30.89 31.0 31.2 31.2 31.2 31.40 31.5 31.6 31.65 32.2 32.5 32.7

21’ 10” 25’ 10” 23’ 2” 23’ 7” 23’ 4” 23’ 8” 23’ 5” 24’ 1” 23’ 4” 11’ 3” 23’ 11” 23’ 7” 25’ 10” 43’ 8” 24’ 2.1” 24’ 3” 25’ 1” 23’ 11” --

.875 - 2.25 0.9 - 1.6 0.73 - 1.98 1.80 - 2.09 0.76 - 2.43 2.01 0.72 - 2.69 1.63 - 2.81 0.72 - 2.42 -0.67 - 2.09 .875 - 1.875 1.23 - 2.09 0.5 - 2 1.8 0.68 - 2.42 1.12 - 2.52 1.8 - 2.1 --

178 249 213 250 207 202 240 245 207 162.8 266.5 252 223 109.4 252 230 241 209 177

Case CX350D LR Designed for deep or long-distance digging applications, the CX350D LR excavator features an elongated boom and arm and additional counterweight. With an operating weight of 88,200 pounds, the CX350D LR has a 268-horsepower engine and up to 24,500 footpounds of bucket digging force. The extended arm and boom provide a maximum dig radius of 61 feet 3 inches, and a maximum dig depth of 46 feet 3 inches.

Make

Komatsu NEW Komatsu >33 to 35 metric tons operating weight Kobelco Rhino JCB Volvo Liebherr >35 to 40 metric tons operating weight Hyundai Hitachi NEW Liebherr Sunward Hitachi John Deere Doosan NEW XCMG Komatsu Cat Komatsu Doosan Komatsu LiuGong Sany Case Doosan JCB Cat Hitachi Link-Belt Kobelco NEW Kobelco Cat Volvo John Deere NEW Liebherr NEW Cat >40 to 50 metric tons operating weight Hyundai Komatsu NEW Komatsu Volvo Volvo Doosan NEW Liebherr Volvo

Liebherr R 926 and R 938 Liebherr’s ConExpo introductions included its R 926 and R 938 excavators. The 28-ton R 926 is powered by a 204-horsepower Liebherr engine.

Bucket capacities vary from 1.15 to 1.75 square meters. The unit can be equipped with an optional 2D or 3D machine control system.

The 38-metric-ton, 299-horsepower R 938 has bucket capacities between 1 and 3 square meters. The R 938 succeeds the R 944 C.

Hitachi’s ZX345USLC-6 The ZX345USLC-6 is the largest of Hitachi’s reduced-tail-swing excavator line. Designed for roadbuilding or working in congested quarters, the ZX345USLC-6 uses an Isuzu engine that does not require a diesel particulate filter. The model features a full-size cab designed for a 35-metricton excavator. A TRIAS II three-pump hydraulic system provides additional flow to maximize productivity without sacrificing fuel economy, Hitachi says. When demanded, the third pump supplies additional hydraulic oil to the swing circuit without stealing oil or speed from other functions.

Model

Operating weight (metric tons)

Max dig depth (ft/in)

Bucket capacity, SAE heaped, min-max (cu yds)

Net hp

PC290LC-11 PC290LCi-11

32.7 32.7

22’ 8” 22’ 8”

0.76 - 2.13 0.76 - 2.13

196 196

SK300LC-10 High & Wide REX360 JS330 EC300E R936Compact

33.4 33.6 34.1 34.2 34.31

22’ 7” 24’ 2.4” 26’ 7” 24’ 1” 23’ 4”

.875 - 1.875 2.4 1.12 - 2.52 0.72 - 2.69 0.72 - 2.81

252 257 281 240 258

HX330L ZX350LC-6 R934 SWE365F ZX345USLC-6 345G LC DX300MH-5 XE360U PC360LCi-11 336 GC PC360LC-11 DX350LC-5 HB365LC-3 CLG936E SY365C CX350D DX300LL-5 JS370 336 ZX380LC-6 350X4 SK350LC-10 SK390LC-10 335F ECR355E 380G LC R938 340 (Straight Boom)

35.05 35.1 35.29 35.6 35.7 35.70 36.0 36 36.2 36.5 36.5 36.6 36.6 36.6 36.7 37.0 37.06 37.1 37.2 37.4 37.4 37.8 37.9 38.0 38 38.21 38.90 39.9

24’ 2” 26’ 10” 24’ 3” 24’ 6” 24’ 10” 24’ 10” 21’ 7” 24’ 5” 23’ 11” 27’ 0” 24’ 3” 24’ 8” 24’ 3” 24’ 1” 23’ 11” 24’ 1” -26’ 6” 26’ 10” 26’ 10” 24’ 1” 24’ 10” 23’ 9” 22’ 11” 24’ 12” 26’ 10” 24’11” 21’ 9”

1.88 - 2.75 1.3 - 2.78 1.31 - 3.27 53 1.2 - 2.1 0.9-1.6 -1.83 - 2.35 0.89 - 2.56 1.2-3.5 0.89 - 2.56 1.06 - 2.46 0.89 - 2.56 2.09 - 2.5 0.52 - 2.3 0.88 - 2.72 -1.12 - 2.52 1.2-3.5 1.3 - 2.78 1.08 - 2.93 .875 - 2.75 .875 - 2.75 0.68 - 2.58 0.72 - 2.69 1.3 - 2.4 2.48 - 3.92 2.1 - 3.1

270 271 272 338 249 249 267 285 257 273 257 312.5 269 280 275 268 266.5 281 311 271 268 270 270 200 240 271 299 311

HX380L PC390LC-11 PC390LCi-11 EC350E EC380E DX420LC-5 R945 EC480E

40.32 40.8 40.8 41 43 43 43.45 45.5

24’ 8” 23’ 10” 23’ 10” 24’ 11” 26’ 6” 25’ 4” 24’11” 30’ 1”

1.91 - 3.03 0.89 - 2.91 0.89 - 2.91 1.1 - 2.5 1.1 - 3.3 1.5 - 3.23 2.48 - 3.92 1.2 - 2.7

300 257 257 302 302 337.9 299 277

Specifications continued on pg. 60

EquipmentWorld.com | August 2020 59

excavators |

continued

Link-Belt 160 X4, 245 X4 Spin Ace, 350 X4 LBX and Trimble have joined to create Link-Belt Precision Grade upgrade kits for Link-Belt 160 X4, 245 X4 Spin Ace and 350 X4 excavators. These kits provide all components, hardware and software required to upgrade a standard machine to 2D/MG (Machine Guidance) or 2D/MC (Machine Control), or to upgrade a machine with 2D/MG already installed to a 2D/MC capable machine.

The Link-Belt Precision Grade 2D/MG system uses technology from Trimble to provide the operator with visual and audible indication when they are above, below or at their desired target grade. The Link-Belt Precision Grade 2D/MC system provides these capabilities and adds autonomous control of the boom and bucket while the operator controls the speed of the stick.

Make

Deere 470G LC The John Deere 470G LC now features an integrated grade guidance system that gives operators the bucket’s location in relation to a 2D reference or 3D design surface. Developed in cooperation with Topcon, the system provides the details operators need for precision excavation projects such as digging trenches for pipes, shaping ditches or slopes or digging structure foundations. Equipped with a display in the operator station, the grade guidance system shows the elevation and position of the bucket cutting edge with respect to a target plane (2D) or design surface (3D).

Model

>40 to 50 metric tons operating weight (continued) Rhino REX450 LiuGong CLG950E Komatsu PC490LC-11 Komatsu PC490LCi-11 Case CX490D Link-Belt 490X4 Fixed Frame Komatsu PC490LC-11 (Var. Gauge) >50 to 66 metric tons operating weight NEW Cat 349F Hitachi ZX470LC-6 Case CX500D ME Volvo EC380EHR Doosan DX490LC-5 Hyundai HX480L Link-Belt 490X4 Expandable Frame John Deere 470G LC Doosan DX380LL-5 Kobelco SK500LC-10 Cat 352F Doosan DX530LC-5 Kobelco SK500LC-10 Mass Hyundai HX520L Sany SY500H Liebherr R956 Kobelco SK500LC-10 High & Wide Volvo EC480EHR Komatsu PC650LC-11 >66 to 90 metric tons operating weight Komatsu PC650LC-11 SE Hitachi ZX670LC-6 John Deere 670G LC Rhino REX700 Liebherr R966 Case CX750D Link-Belt 750X4 60 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

Komatsu PC290LCi-11 The new PC290LCi-11 features intelligent Machine Control (iMC), which uses 3D design data loaded in the control box to accurately check its position against the target to semiautomatically limit over-excavation. Powered by a 6.69-liter, 196-horsepower engine, the excavator has intelligent Machine Control joysticks, which can switch between semi-auto and manual mode, and a design surface offset function can be operated with switches on the control levers.

Operating weight (metric tons)

Max dig depth (ft/in)

Bucket capacity, SAE heaped, min-max (cu yds)

Net hp

46.5 48.0 48.9 48.9 49.6 49.8 50.0

25’ 7.4” 25’ 9” 25’ 5” 25’ 5” 25’ 4” 25’ 4” 25’ 5”

2.7 2.9 - 4.1 1.47 - 4.15 1.47 - 4.15 2.03 - 3.37 1.37 - 4.04 1.47 - 4.15

337 378 359 359 362 362 359

50.2 50.2 50.7 50.7 50.9 51.04 51.2 51.22 51.5 51.7 52.5 52.9 53.5 53.68 54.5 56.24 56.6 63.6 65.1

26’ 11” 27’ 2” 21’ 4” 21’ 4” 25’ 6” 25’ 6” 24’ 10” 27’ 2” 13’ 7” 25’ 7” 26’ 5” 24’ 0” 21’ 3” 25’ 0” 27’ 1” 28’ 3” 24’ 6” 23’ 0” 27’ 10”

1.2 - 5.0 1.8 - 4.2 --2 - 3.81 1.8 - 4.19 1.37 - 4.04 1.8 - 4.2 -1.5 - 4.26 1.2 - 5.0 2 - 3.81 5-6 1.8 - 4.19 3.0 - 4.0 2.16 - 4.58 1.5 - 4.26 -2.05 - 4.98

408 362 362 307 373 424 362 367 312.5 369 408 373 369 424 399.6 340 369 380 436

66.4 69.9 69.90 70.0 70.55 71.8 71.8

23’ 2” 30’ 0” 30’ 0” 23’ 7.2” 32’ 4” 27’ 7” 27’ 7”

5.0 - 7.5 1.7 - 6.6 1.7 - 6.6 5.2 2.16 - 7.19 2.47 - 5.91 1.78 - 5.86

436 463 463 354 435 460 512

Gradall XL 4300 V The 173-horsepower XL 4330 V Gradall excavator can work at the front, rear or sides of the undercarriage without outriggers. This design allows for greater efficiency – with no need to stop work to lower outriggers – and provides stable operation, enabling it to pick up and carry cargo around jobsites, says Gradall. Weighing 43,580 pounds, it has a maximum speed of 18 mph both on and off pavement. The XL 4300 V has a maximum reach of 30 feet 4 inches at grade and a maximum dig depth of 21 feet 3 inches.

Hyundai HX130LCR, HX145LCR, HX235LCR Hyundai Construction Equipment’s large crawlMake

er excavator line includes the compact radius HX130LCR, HX145LCR and HX235LCR. These are designed for working in confined areas where conventional excavators don’t fit. An optional dozer blade is available, which helps backfill, grade and improve overall versatility.

Even though these excavators are made for tight spaces, the cabs are equipped with many standard comfort features such as heated air-ride seats, 8-inch touchscreen display and Bluetooth hands-free calling.

a 29-foot 10-inch boom and operating weights ranging from 269,300 to 275,240 pounds. The SP short undercarriage has a 25-foot 7-inch mass excavation arrangement for high-volume earthmoving jobs, with operating weights ranging from 259,960 to 265,900 pounds.

EXCAVATORS, 50 METRIC TONS AND ABOVE

Komatsu America PC1250SP-11, PC1250LC-11 Komatsu America’s PC1250SP-11 and PC1250LC-11 are designed for a range of applications, including sewer and water, general construction, mass excavation, as well as mining, quarry, sand and gravel. The PC1250 is available with two undercarriage and boom arrangements, LC or SP. The LC long model has

Model

Link-Belt 750X4 ME Cat 374F NEW XCMG XE750G Volvo EC750E NEW Kobelco SK850LC-10 Hitachi ZX870LC-6 John Deere 870G LC Komatsu PC800LC-8 Cat 390F Liebherr R976 >90 to 150 metric tons operating weight NEW Volvo EC950F NEW XCMG XE950G NEW Hyundai HX900L Komatsu PC1250-8 NEW Volvo EC750E HR NEW Komatsu PC1250SP-11 NEW Komatsu PC1250LC-11 NEW Hitachi EX1200-7 >150 to 300 metric tons operating weight Hitachi EX1900-6 Komatsu PC2000-11 Komatsu PC3000-6 NEW Hitachi EX2600-7 >300 to 500 metric tons operating weight Komatsu PC4000-11 NEW Hitachi EX3600-7 >500 metric tons operating weight and over Komatsu PC5500-6 NEW Hitachi EX5600-7 Komatsu PC7000-11 Komatsu PC8000-11 Hitachi EX8000-6

Volvo EC950F The 90-metric-ton EC950F by Volvo Construction Equipment is designed for high capacity in tough applications. Equipped with a Volvo D16 engine, the excavator has a boom-swing priority valve. The EC950F uses ECO Mode, which optimizes the hydraulic system to reduce loss of flow and pressure, while the integrated work mode allows operators to choose the best work mode for the task at hand: I (Idle), F (Fine), G (General), H (Heavy) and P (Power max).

Operating weight (metric tons)

Max dig depth (ft/in)

Bucket capacity, SAE heaped, min-max (cu yds)

Net hp

72.4 72.8 75 83.02 84.2 85.6 85.6 85.6 86.2 88.20

23’ 7” 28’ 1” 21’ 9” 29’ 8” 31’ 10” 31’ 5” 31’ 5” 28’ 3” 31’ 8” 34’ 9”

1.78 - 5.86 2.5 - 6.5 4.97 - 6.93 2.6 - 6.28 1.78 - 8.50 2.0 - 7.6 2.0 - 7.6 2.23 - 5.93 2.8 - 8.5 2.62 - 8.89

512 472 540 502 510 512 512 487 524 544

93 93 93.7 108.8 115 118.2 122.4 129

27’ 4” 23’ 7” 31’ 2” 30’ 8” 22’ 6” 25’ 11” 38’ 0” 30’ 9”

5.1 - 9.16 6.02 - 9.16 5.6 4.4 - 6.8 -8.6 - 11.9 5.3 - 9.5 6.8

603 600 615 672 526 758 758 760

192 201.9 261 283

26’ 10” 30’ 4” 25’ 11” 27’ 1”

5.8 - 15.7 15.7 19.5 22.2

1,039 1,046 1,260 1,500

404 408

26’ 3” 28’ 4”

29 28.8

1,875 1,944

539 605 690 763 837

28’ 7” 28’ 11” 27’ 7” 26’ 3” 27’ 7”

38 44.5 49.7 55 56.2

2,520 3,000 3,350 4,020 3,888 EquipmentWorld.com | August 2020 61

road works

| by Don McLoud |

DonMcLoud@randallreilly.com

Valley Paving uses the Oxclaw screed plates and Bullox attachment system while paving County Road 8 in Scott County, Minnesota.

REIMAGINING THE SCREED

Brothers invent new system to achieve denser asphalt

F From left, Stuart and Michael Frost, owners of Mountain Construction in Wyoming, say their new screed plate invention is achieving 85 to 89 percent density right off the screed with some mixes.

62 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

or years, Stuart and Michael Frost dreamed of a better screed.

“The one thing that’s never changed in our lifetime, or my dad’s lifetime for that matter, is the basic screed,” Stuart Frost says. “… So my brother and I just started toying around with the idea of trying to do something better.”

The two brothers have worked on paving crews since they were kids. They started with their family’s business, and for the past 20 years, they’ve run their own highway paving company, Mountain Construction in Powell, Wyoming.

“We’re field guys and hot

plant asphalt operators and screed operators ourselves,” Frost says. “We know all the aches and pains of paving and problems with paving.”

The two main problems they’ve wanted to solve were how to get better density behind the screed and an easier, faster way to change screed plates. They believe they have solved both problems with a new screed plate design and attachment system. Two other family-owned paving contractors, who have been using the new screed plates in their areas of the country with a variety of materials, agree.

“It’ll change our industry for the better, no doubt,” says Travis Shilling, vice president of Shilling Construction in

Manhattan, Kansas.

“I think we’ve got a solution to not only keep us in the bonus the entire time, but it could potentially be the new way of paving,” adds Brent Carron, vice president of Valley Paving in Shakopee, Minnesota.

All three contractors keep reaching the same conclusions.

“What we’re consistently seeing is a much denser mat,” Frost says. At the same, they can maintain normal paving speeds as compared with tamper bar screeds that require slower paving, he says.

They back up their comments with videos and photos posted on social media. They’re working with their state departments of transportation and planning official tests to put some hard data to their observations. The Frosts have a test of the screed plate planned with the Federal Highway Administration on an upcoming job.

While inventing the new screed plate, the brothers also developed a system for attaching their plates, one they say that takes two to three

hours to install instead of two to three days.

“Anybody that’s had to go change screed plates all their life is going to love that in itself,” Frost says. “It’s a miserable process, believe me.”

Riding a wave In the winter of 2018, the brothers had a breakthrough. They envisioned a sine wave concept as opposed to a flat screed plate.

The asphalt mix would travel from the top of the waves down through a gradually widening channel, like an upside down funnel. The design would add a lateral movement to the process instead of just vertical downward pressure.

“Once we came up with that notion, it just kept making more and more sense to us,” Frost says.

Then the testing began.

“My brother and I kind of set up a little mad scientist lab in our airplane hangar and started creating some of these patterns out of moldable materials that we could test,”

Mountain Construction paved a section of County Road 7 in Big Horn County, Wyoming, this spring with Oxclaw textured screed plates and Bullox attachment system.

he says. “It was showing promise like we’d hoped.”

In the process of achieving the right pattern for the screed plate, they encountered a problem. “The problem was, how do we create this crazy texture on a screed plate economically or feasibly,” he says.

“The only obvious answer would be to cast them.”

Being able to cast the screed plates also provided an opportunity to use materials more wear-resistant than steel. The brothers used a 26 percent chromium carbide cast.

Then they had to figure out how to attach their new plates. They decided to remove the traditional screed plate and put what they call a “conductor plate” in its place. The conductor plate remains permanently. The cast chromium carbide plates lock into place on the conductor plate. The screed plates come in 1-foot sections for most of the screed, and 4-inch sections for the screed center to provide the flexibility to crown the screed as needed, Frost says.

The screed plates are held in place on the conductor plate by high-temperature silicone cord that is stretched and slipped into a taper lock on the back. Frost says that when you release the cord it sucks the plate in tight, and then lag screws are added on the sides. The new system provided a much faster way to change the screed plates.

The brothers were awarded two patents in December 2018. They call the textures on the screed plate Oxclaw and the connection system Bullox. They market the products through their company Axenox.

In Fall 2019, they put their new inventions to the test.

Mixing into place The brothers mounted the Bullox attachment system and Oxclaw texture screed plates to two of their pavers: a Cat AP1055F and a Blaw Knox PF220. One of the systems is on a rear-mount Cat SE60 V vibratory screed, and the other is on a EquipmentWorld.com | August 2020 63

road works

| continued

rear-mount Carlson EZR2 screed.

On their ďŹ rst job, a 42-foot-wide street for the city of Powell, the brothers used the plate system on the Carlson screed. They had planned to use it only on the bottom lift, but they soon changed their minds. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It was such a success, we paved the whole thing,â&#x20AC;? Frost says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It was obvious to us at that point we had something special.â&#x20AC;?

Instead of the aggregate swimming to ďŹ nd its place in front of the rolling, the kneading action of the screed provides a stable mat so the rollers just have to press it down, he explains. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s requiring less roller action, and the longitudinal joint is staying contained and straight and has better density. â&#x20AC;&#x153;And what weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re seeing is just what we were hoping would hap-

The Oxclaw textured screed plate.

pen,â&#x20AC;? he says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The aggregate is kind of forced to ďŹ nd its place in the mat at the screed.â&#x20AC;?

Density gauge readings are coming in at 85 to 89 percent compaction right off the screed with some mixes, Frost says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;More importantly, the mat is much more stable, allowing us to get more density while still hot with less shoving and check cracking.â&#x20AC;?

Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve since used it on other projects, including one for the Wyoming Department of Transportation and one for the FHWA. The Oxclaw and Bullox are also getting some attention on social media. Kim Wilson with Axenox shared a 30-second video on the Paving Nation Facebook group. In the video, Frost steps off the back of the paver as it is laying the mat, and no footprint can be seen. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It was a full-time job trying to keep up with the comments and answering the questions about it,â&#x20AC;?

Wilson says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just basically promoted itself.â&#x20AC;?

www.Bane-Welker.com

64 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

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As the online discussion continued, one concern kept popping up about the finished pavement.

In the photos, thin, longitudinal lines appeared. Some commenters questioned whether the pavement was smooth.

“It’s actually a smooth surface, but it leaves a little shadow, and in photos, the shadowing is exaggerated,” Wilson says. “And the biggest thing that we get … they want us to prove it’s smooth.”

“It is smooth,” Frost adds. “And we appear to be getting a better ride.”

A shadow, but no doubt Travis Shilling was one of the first to comment on the posts about the new screed plate.

“When I saw it, a light bulb went off. That makes total sense to me that it would get better density right behind the screed,” he says. “Man, why didn’t I think of that?”

The 55-year-old Shilling Construction likes to be at the forefront of

new innovations, he says.

He texted and talked with the Frosts through the winter. He decided to install the system on a new Cat AP1055F paver with an SE60 V screed. The Oxclaw and Bullox system arrived in April. The local Cat dealer installed it on the screed with guidance from the Frosts via Zoom meetings, Shilling says.

So far, Shilling has primarily used

it on large parking lots, including for the local airport and a school.

One of the projects on a parking deck required tight turns around multiple medians, not a market the Frosts had initially targeted. But they were pleased to see the screed plate designed for road and highway work was achieving the same results on jobs requiring multiple in and out turns.

The Oxclaw screed plate, as seen on the bottom of a Shilling Construction paver.

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| continued

A Shilling Construction paving crew uses the Oxclaw screed plate system on a recent job. Travis Shilling says the pavement is smooth, and the lines are just shadows that are more apparent on cloudy days.

“On the parking lots, the first base lift was a 4-inch lift, and normally if you walk across that, you’re sinking in pretty good,” Shilling says. “And with the Oxclaw, there’s minimal indentation when you’d walk across it. You can really see that the density was far more than with a conventional screed like we’re used to.”

The positive results occurred on the later lifts, as well. He said he has achieved full density on his projects.

The shadowy texture of the pavement was also present, but the mat is smooth, he says. “It’s just a different look. It looks like it’s rough in texture, but it’s really not.”

The Kansas Department of Transportation has been out to look at his jobs. Shilling will test the screed plate on a KDOT four-lane divided highway project on K18, from Manhattan to Interstate 70. The plan is to pave two lanes with the Oxclaw and two lanes with a conventional screed to compare results.

“So far from talking with them, they’re really pumped about it,” he says of KDOT. “They know the benefits of getting more compaction initially from the screed and less hammering on the mat with the rollers.”

‘Have to see it to believe it’ The next contractor to try out the new screed system was Valley Paving in Shakopee, Minnesota.

Company owners Rich and son Brent Carron met the Frosts by chance last winter at an equipment demonstration in Las Vegas. The Carrons and the Frosts hit it off, and the Frosts

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road works

showed them photos of the Oxclaw and Bullox. Soon after, Valley Paving bought a new Roadtec paver with a new Carlson EZR2 screed and installed the Oxclaw and Bullox system.

Brent Carron met some resistance from his crew, which was accustomed to winning awards from the National Asphalt Pavement Association and was skeptical of the strange looking screed plates.

“Snake oil!” Carron recalls crew members telling him. “It’s not going to work. I’ve never seen a bumpy screed before. How’s it going to lay a nice flat mat?”

After one job, they became believers, he says.

“So the first day that we did this, we achieved anywhere from 95 to 96 (percent) density across the entire mat on all of our courses,” he says. “So that is phenomenal.”

He says his crew now doesn’t want to use anything else. After about two months with it, they’ve

used it on about six projects.

“We’ve put about 45,000 tons through it so far,” he says. “We’re using it on city streets. We’re pulling approaches with it. We’re paving a driveway with it today. It can be used in all sorts of applications.”

He’s hoping to test it on the company’s upcoming project with the Minnesota Department of Transportation to pave a section of Interstate 94 from Minneapolis to St. Paul.

“It’s one of those things where you have to see it to believe it,” he says.

That, says Stuart Frost, is the next step: getting DOTs, equipment manufacturers and others in the asphalt industry to check out and test Oxclaw and Bullox.

“We want to prove it, test it,” he says. “We already know now that it appears to be good for the industry, but we want to find the strengths and weaknesses and make sure everything’s covered before it goes to market.”

A worker for Valley Paving leaves barely a footprint as he walks on a newly laid mat behind a paver equipped with Oxclaw screed plates.

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lifting attachments | by Don McLoud | DonMcLoud@randallreilly.com

Adjust fork width from the cab

Xtreme Duty Heavy Lift Hydraulic Pallet Forks by Construction Attachments can be adjusted from the cab for width between the forks. Minimum fork width is 12 inches and max width is 44 inches. The forks move in and out simultaneously. Fork length is 48 inches. Lifting capacity is 5,500 pounds. The forks come standard with factory-installed couplers. Ball fork sleeves are optional. They are compatible with skid steers and compact track loaders. The top guard is designed for maximum visibility of the load.

Lift pipes and concrete barriers

Doosan hydraulic quick couplers come standard with a lift eye so operators of the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s crawler excavators can lift and place objects. Operators can engage the excavatorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Lifting Mode to increase pump torque, lower engine rpms and enable an automatic power boost when lifting pipes or concrete barriers. The coupler is built with extra high-strength and abrasion-resistant steel.

High-volume loading, precise sorting Cat Demolition & Sorting Grapples are designed for high-volume production loading and precise sorting. The shells open wide and maintain their grip on large loads.

The grapple can also pick, sort and place small materials.

Dirt and other fine material are screened through skeleton and perforated shells, which also give operators good visibility to the load. A large-bore cylinder design delivers high clamping force and fast cycle times. Operators can also work close to container edges and walls. Models in the lineup are the G200 GC, G300 GC and G300.

68 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

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Maneuver in tight spaces

Genieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new 13-foot platform enables two occupants to work at height with its 600-pound capacity. The platform is compatible with the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s S-65 XC telescopic boom lift.

The company says the 3-foot-wide platform maneuvers easily in tight and restricted spaces and gives operators a more comfortable workspace. The platform has 14 lanyard points, six more than the 8-foot platform. It also uses the same digital loadsense system as all Genie XC booms. It can be transported with a standard-width trailer due to its off-center transport lock.

Lift heavy, wide sheet material

JLG designed its new sheet material handler to deliver heavy, wide materials at height. The telehandler attachment has a lifting capacity of 3,000 pounds and a maximum fork spread of 72 inches. It can pick up and place such items as wallboard, drywall and plywood. It features 100-degree horizontal tilt for placing items. It has a maximum load width of 22 inches and a 180-degree swing capability. It is compatible with the following JLG telehandlers: 742, 943, 1043, 1055 and 1255.

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lifting attachments | continued

Forks for heavy lifting John Deere’s Worksite Pro pallet fork frames can handle forks rated up to 6,200 pounds. The frames are available in 45- and 60-inch models and can be used on Deere G- and E-Series skid steers, K-II and K-Series compact wheel loaders, and on competitors’ machines. Features include a brick guard design for added strength, smooth surfaces to prevent load damage and a load-securing “D” ring for transporting materials. The frames are designed to offer an unrestricted view to the fork tips. Angled side corners and steps allow easy, safe cab access.

70 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

Maneuver materials in tight spaces Manitou’s 360-Degree Rotating Fork Carriage is designed for handling materials in tight spaces and in complex positions. The attachment is compatible with the company’s MRT 2150, MRT 2470 and MRT 2550 rotating telehandlers. The carriage features constant load-position and weight monitoring, adaptive overload control and no forward tilting when rotation is greater than 120 degrees and the boom is lifted over 9 feet 8 inches.

The 47-inch forks have a capacity of 8,800 pounds front and 5,500 pounds rotated.

Lift saw-cut concrete and more

Vacuworx’s SL 2 Subcompact Vacuum Lifting System features a variety of modular pad options for its base unit, which can be operated by manual or wireless remote control. The attachment for compact equipment is designed for lifting saw-cut concrete, but it can be used for other applications. Standard pads are 24 by 24 inches. Options include 12-inch by 36-inch pads for narrow trench cuts.

Other sizes are available upon request.

The combined base unit and pads weigh 100 pounds. The SL 2 has a lifting capacity of 4,400 pounds.

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collector’s corner

| by Don McLoud |

DonMcLoud@randallreilly.com

Kelly Ronningen, front, and son Kurtis grade the driveway to the family farm on a J.D. Adams No. 1-C in 1990– with a helping hoof from Toots and Babe.

K

graders on his dairy farm in West Concord, Minnesota. They were manufactured by J.D. Adams, a company whose namesake founder invented the leaning-wheel pull grader in 1885. The Indianapolisbased company had gone out of business around the time Ronningen’s father brought one home, but the leaning concept behind Adams’ invention remains with modern motor graders.

Ronningen is particularly fond of a reversible model he found about 10 years ago at the semiannual horse auction in Waverly, Iowa, he regularly attends. He had read about the Little Roadster models, which allowed the operator to reverse the blade. It was not an easy process by modern standards.

“Today they Kelly Ronningen had planned to avoid motor graders for his collecdon’t think tion, but he couldn’t pass up this rare tracked J.D. Adams model. anything

elly Ronningen remembers when he was a young boy and his father came home with a horse-drawn road grader.

His father borrowed the grader from a neighbor to smooth out the driveway to the family farm.

“Turns out my dad had run one of those with a team of horses for his township when he was growing up” back in the 1930s, Ronningen says. “And I thought that was cool.”

It was in the late-1950s when Ronningen saw that grader and so began his love for the turn-ofthe-century road machinery. He now has about two dozen antique

74 August 2020 | EquipmentWorld.com

about turning the plates from right to left,” he says. “But back then, usually the blade was too long to turn between the wheels. On this one, you lay the plate down flat.

And you have the horses swing the grader around the blade to get it to go the other way.”

Most of Ronningen’s collection consists of pull-type, horse-drawn graders. “I said I’d never collect motor graders.” But one day when searching eBay he came across a motorized crawler model he couldn’t resist.

“It’s a 1921 model and it’s got tracks on it instead of wheels in the back. … I’ve never seen another one like it.”

The tracked J.D. Adams 102 model had been used on a military base in Idaho and later maintained a municipal landing strip.

“It’s a crank-type start,” he says. “It’s Kelly Ronningen not easy to operate. There are no hydraulics; it’s all man-powered. You turn the cast-iron wheels, one wheel for each side of the blade.”

He marvels at the technology of the old graders – the big iron beams, the heavy welds, the gears.

He’s enjoyed showing his collection at events, and he’s spent some time running them on his dairy farm.

“Probably one of the most fun things I’ve ever done was to grade my driveway with the team,” he says, referring to his horses.

When asked how it feels to operate the old graders, he chuckles.

“It feels like you wouldn’t want to have to do it all day. It’s hard work and dirty.”

Photo credit: Dairy Star

Fun with J.D. Adams road graders

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