In the new(er) Case mini's, i.e. the CX36 and CX50, do the hydraulic pumps squeal or whine? I was talking with one of my subs the other day about purchasing a mini-ex this year (I currently rent from Komatsu exclusively on the excavators.) I mentioned that I was considering Case, Deere, or Komatsu.

As one of my subs he does the heavy lifting on my large projects and owns all Komatsu equipment (excepting one Deere CT322 due to control set) but before that he owned some Case excavators. He indicated that he had several problems with Case hydraulic pumps needing repair and that they "whined" a lot. At the time he asked his Case dealer's service tech about that and he indicated that when you are moving that much hydraulic fluid you will get whine or squeal. He then said to me as his Komatsu 220 and 78 were working behind us, "funny, I don't hear those machines whining moving all of that fluid".

There are 5 that I can think of in this area. The guys that have them really like them. One of those is in a rental fleet and I have rented it. I liked it.

I spoke with my dealer about them and he said they have zero problems with them. The whining in the hyd. could be do to several things that are not the machines problem. Wrong hyd oil, filters, sticking valve or a valve going over relief for some reason. Kobelco has been building mini excavators for a long time. They are solid machines. I would have bought one except they don't speak as well as the TK so I went that way. I will say that the B series mini is much better than the original series. I was not impressed with the A but the B series is much improved.

I do not see a lot of Case mini's in my area, mostly Cat, Komatsu, or Bobcat. Deere and Case mini's are rare. I see quite a bit of Case skid steers and larger Case excavators so I know the dealer is doing something right. Case Equipment has been around a long time and overall I'm sure that its good equipment.

 

Thanks KSSS.

I'd like to try and stay with one brand of equipment if possible since I think that establishes a better working relationship with the dealer when needing support or those other little things they can make happen "up the chain" when you need it the most.

I've used Case skids before and liked them. Same for Deere. I've never used Deere or Case excavators nor Komatsu skids so I'm working from different ends of the brands. Of the three in my area I'd say Case and Komatsu have had better dealership experiences with me. The Deere dealer in this area that handles the mini's is also the AG dealer. The heavy division dealer of Deere here does not do much with the mini's.

Who here is/has run the Deere 35D? Compared the Case to the Deere in mini excavator series?

 

The Deere/Hitachi's are extremely quiet in pump noises.

 

The Deere and the CASE on paper are very close. The boom swing on the CASE is a neat idea in the way it functions the swing. If you go to the CASE website they have a really got comparison page that shows the specs in comparison.

 

I have not run the Deere 35D but I have a buddy who has one. He said he has had great service out of it. Around here Cat,Deere, Takeuchi, and Kubota rule the mini excavator market. I have yet to see one of the Case/Kobelco machines. I always thought that was strange because I do see a farir amount of Case skid steers.

 

I have a deere 35D mini and it is a great machine.I work it very hard and it does not let me down. I carbody and blade is made by Komatsu.The pumps are very quiet.serviceability is very good on the D series but not on the C series, on the D's the cab tilts forward and the panels come off very easy.
Here is a pic of my old mini and my new mini.

minimax

 

I rented 2 different case 36 minis. Both were extremely slow operating machines. They seemed to have power but no speed at all.

If I were you and was happy with the Komatsu minis I'd stay with them.

Case = Can't Afford Something Else. Something funny I heard.

J.

 

I have a deere 35D mini and it is a great machine.I work it very hard and it does not let me down. I carbody and blade is made by Komatsu.The pumps are very quiet.serviceability is very good on the D series but not on the C series, on the D's the cab tilts forward and the panels come off very easy.
Here is a pic of my old mini and my new mini.
View attachment 101839
minimax

That is a nice thumb on your machine. I want a thumb and a swivel knuckel on a mini when the day comes that I buy one. How much was the option of that thumb?

 

Thats a Pro link HPF thumb and it ran about $3500 dollers but worth every penny!

minimax

 

minimax,

Two things, you have steel tracks correct? How do you like that on the mini and what made you decide steel over rubber (if they are steel). Also, did you by chance look into PSM and get a quote from them?

 

MiniMax.......would you show some more pics of your pro-link fully extended out and fully retracted? I would like to see cylinder on the stick and see the throw plus how the linkage folds up. How wide is the thumb outside to outside? Last question: who's that old hippie lookin' type standing between those two mini's in the pic you posted?

 

coopers, Yes I have steel tracks,but they do have bolt on rubber pads.I went with steel tracks because steel tracks don't get ate up in brush cutting and I can replace one rubber pad if it gets cut up,They also don't flex like rubber tracks do,so for over the side and steep slope work the machine has more stability.RockSet N' Grade my thumb is 12 1/2" wide,and that hippie is me:laugh::laugh:. The tracks and thumb both have 838 hr on them and I took the pic's today
Here are pic's of tracks and thumb.

minimax

 

CWS sure makes a nice bucket, I like tht style, it's better for carrying logs with a thumb and not rolling out.

 

Here are a few more pic's.One of the pic's show how close the thumb will grab some thing to the machine,one for the other pic's shows at full reach the thumb does not get in the way for digging.

minimax

 

MiniMax....thanks, those pics answered my questions. I should have my new progressive link thumbie installed by mid next week....will share pics.......and yea, I knew that had to be you

 

Thanks for the input on the machines. I think Deere makes great equipment but the 35D has less reach and less bucket/arm force than the Komatsu. Same for the Case.

In the end I would prob. go with Komatsu first then Deere and Case last. The Case comes in last on bucket/arm force, lift cap, and reach/dig depth.

However, I could put up with those things if it was less money and just as reliable. However, most mini-ex's hardly ever need any repair work performed on them until they get some serious hours on them-at least that's what my research has led me to conclude. Of course that assumes you perform the regular maintenance items and do not abuse your equipment.

Anybody have any different thoughts on the maintenance aspect of mini-ex's?

 

Thanks for the input on the machines. I think Deere makes great equipment but the 35D has less reach and less bucket/arm force than the Komatsu. Same for the Case.

In the end I would prob. go with Komatsu first then Deere and Case last. The Case comes in last on bucket/arm force, lift cap, and reach/dig depth.

However, I could put up with those things if it was less money and just as reliable. However, most mini-ex's hardly ever need any repair work performed on them until they get some serious hours on them-at least that's what my research has led me to conclude. Of course that assumes you perform the regular maintenance items and do not abuse your equipment.

Anybody have any different thoughts on the maintenance aspect of mini-ex's?

The specs on these machines are so close that it really comes down to which you like best in the field. Breakout is less then 500 pounds the dig depth comes down to a half and inch. This is on the 36 sized machines.

 

Thanks minimax.

I figure that steel would be a good route for me to take too since I'm focusing on land/brush clearing, stump clearing etc. and I've always been curious about the rubber versus steel. Every time I use a mini in clearing land I am always being careful not to get caught up in the stuff I'm in for fear of having downtime dicking around with putting a track back on.

 

Steel tracks definately aren't a necessity for land clearing work, you won't blow rubber tracks off very easily unless you're not running the correct tension. But if you have the option to get steel, like when buying a new machine, it's probably not a bad idea.

 

Okay good, I haven't had a problem yet but like I said, I was hoping it wouldn't be a big deal. I'll probably won't buy new so finding used with steel would be hard.

 

Pape in mt. vernon has a nice deere 35c mini with steel tracks with both on pads,extra set of rubber tracks,cab,pro link thumb.only has 2400 hrs.I'm just kidding. there is a pic of it on page one

minimax

 

Do you have a extra counter weight on that 35? I recently ran a friend of mines and I don't remember it having such a large counter weight.

 

BIGBEN2004,Yes I have a extra counter weight on my 35D,it helps with the brush cutter head and I set 2000 LBS concrete blocks with that machine.You can see some of my wall behind the pic of mini.

minimax

 

Dayum guys, where'd my thread get to on mini-ex's?!?!?!

Just kidding, at least I know you guys are serious about your equipment and that lends credibility to your comments.

There's more brand loyalty here on Lawnsite than in some discussions about trucks and Chevy, Ford, or Dodge. Better not get between a man and his Bobcat here, or Cat, or Tak, or Case or, or, or.......


Now, where's that search function-subject mini-ex's.

 

Jefftb....if your machine is whining it is malfunctioning somewhere......period. Load that bad-boy up as fast as you can and take it to service to at least have it documented that it is a "whiner", which is not a good sign at all. Can't diagnose it for you from this side of the keyboard, yet I do know these machines (no matter what color) are not built to whine.