For All You SkidSteer Masters Out There...

[Mwal]

Yeah bobcat was the one we tried that had the option. I don’t mind bobcat they just don’t have the power that the cats do. They had a better system for tightening and putting tracks back on for a while now I think most everyone has gotten better as well.

[b101uk]

the last ones I drove were Bobcat, Case and NH, all with foot peddles for the bucket/boom, the steering was either via two central conventional tiller levers or a single unified T tiller (pull backwards, push forwards, twist left/right).

I preferred two tiller levers setup over the T tiller setup, as the former was easer to drive with 1 hand while keeping your hand on the throttle on your right side, and was easer to get in and out of too.

This was back before tracked skidSteers were a thing, so we would spec them with uprated hydrostatic wheel drives, so you could fit duel wheels for added traction, better flotation and stability on side-slopes, with the added bonus, if you ever got stuck or knew you were going to get stuck, you could use the gap between the duel wheels as capstan winch.

[Jonny3355]

I work for my dad in industrial paint coatings i drie a jcb skiddsteir

[TZ441]

ISO controls are the only controls once you get use to them. Cat makes the best skid steer hands down a cat 299 will push dump belly dumps. As far as how I use them I’m a construction worker, I run equipment for a living and usually every job we do has one on site. I have done everything from build dikes in residential neighborhoods during a flood fight to put them into tanks with a excavator and use it to clean the tank. They have all but replaced small dozers and loaders and ease of moving is another plus. Farming we also have one pick rocks move seed pallets clean brush up cleaning barn and the list could go on and on.

Alot of my neighbors would disagree on CAT being the best, but in my area all skidsteers are used in a agriculture area not cunstruction so ya. On our place we run a 2014 New holland L220 with hand and foot controls. For our next one i really wanna try the JCB Teleskid it would make using our Montana post driver easier and other tasks with the extenda boom. Also the side entry door in agood option cause when you have the door on th enew holland getting out of it with the loader up infront of the door is almost impossible. Most of my neighbors use bobcats but ive never really been into the bobcats cause i dont really like how they used to have the enigine in horizontal instead of inline with the skidsteer.

[Dairydeere]

Yeah, Case is the closest dealer for skidsteers in my area, JD isn’t for a while, and Cat is about 40 miles away, however we still manage to have 4 Caterpillar wheel loaders on the farm. My dad grew up with Case and I think that might be part of it

[Mwal]

Yeah, Case is the closest dealer for skidsteers in my area, JD isn’t for a while, and Cat is about 40 miles away, however we still manage to have 4 Caterpillar wheel loaders on the farm. My dad grew up with Case and I think that might be part of it

Deere still makes a pretty nice small to mid size pay loader, when it comes to bigger it’s tough to beat a 980 cat

[Dairydeere]

Yeah, we have a 930G and 924K for manure, and two 926Ms for feeding. The problem is the local JD dealer isn’t certified to sell construction equipment, so parts are hard to get. And from experience, those Cats last a long time considering their workload on the farm

[Mwal]

When they are that small do the k and the m series have steering wheels still or did cat flip everything to joy sticks? Our 980s only have Joysticks and I thought I wouldn’t like it but after trying it I loved it.

[Dairydeere]

They still have steering wheels, which I like working with. What do the joysticks do as far as what direction causes what action?

[Mwal]

They still have steering wheels, which I like working with. What do the joysticks do as far as what direction causes what action?

The left joystick steers and then the right runs your loader arms and bucket curl. It’s nice because everything is mounted to the seat so it’s all independent of the machine so it’s a lot smoother than hanging onto a rigid steering wheel all day.

[Dairydeere]

Hmm, that sounds a little different to what I'm used to. I know that I like being able to have a hand free in the cab when I'm driving and working the boom, skidsteers drive me insane because I'm driving them and I can't have a free hand because both joysticks have to stay full forward so I don't go veering off to one side. The wheel loaders we drive are nice becuase I can have my left hand free while operating the boom, as the throttle and brake are foot pedals

[Mwal]

Yeah it’s still the same it’s just a joystick instead of a steering wheel in the k series