# Fire in da woods!!!



## kkottemann (May 5, 2010)

Well.......my cat 299c caught on fire last week....took just a bit over a year of mulching to do her in..well, i'm not sure she's done yet. Cat started taking it apart today. should know in a day or so what the verdict is....my guess is total electrical replacement plus hoses and AC unit...too bad the bills don't stop coming in when your down for major repair!


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## hammerlogging (May 5, 2010)

bummer man, good luck!


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## kkottemann (May 5, 2010)

thanks....this year has been a real pain so far....hopefully this is the icing on the cake.


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## catbuster (May 10, 2010)

kkottemann said:


> thanks....this year has been a real pain so far....hopefully this is the icing on the cake.



Wow. That sucks. I've lost one too. But, at the time, that SSL, my truck and saws were all I had. Just work through it, pick up a big job or 2, and pay it the hell off.

By the way, the 299C's hve had problems overheating with a mulcher from the strart. You aughta try a Takehuchi or Bobcat, Gehl is the same as Tak, and their good.


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## gwiley (May 10, 2010)

I always like to use the stories here as reminders to check my own situation.

This is a good reminder to check the fire extinguishers in our equipment. When I bought my used skid steer, the fire extinguisher in the cab was over 15 years old and had failed a LONG time ago. One of the first things I did was to mount a new fire extinguisher in the cab.

Many of us already know this but tend to rationalize, ignore, procrastinate...If you run any sort of equipment that you can't afford to replace you should spend the $20 for a basic ABC extinguisher. It could make the difference between a few days downtime versus a few weeks.


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## kkottemann (May 10, 2010)

she cuts real good, but does not have the guarding needed for this work...next one isn't going to be anything but a dedicated unit! bobcat is real good, but this is all i do right now so i need a bit more machine that any of those have to offer. going to get this one back it a few weeks and keep plugging away...going to be tough starting back up with no $$$ to work.....You gotta love this Sh#$ to stay with it...and I do love it!!


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## redprospector (May 10, 2010)

kkottemann said:


> she cuts real good, but does not have the guarding needed for this work...next one isn't going to be anything but a dedicated unit! bobcat is real good, but this is all i do right now so i need a bit more machine that any of those have to offer. going to get this one back it a few weeks and keep plugging away...going to be tough starting back up with no $$$ to work.....You gotta love this Sh#$ to stay with it...and I do love it!!



You're right, you've got to love it to stay with it.
Every time I get a new piece of equipment, people think I'm getting rich. So they run out and buy one. Then they find out it's a lot of work. Kinda like a real job, only worse. 
Sorry to hear about your machine. Keep hanging in there.

Andy


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## catbuster (May 11, 2010)

kkottemann said:


> she cuts real good, but does not have the guarding needed for this work...next one isn't going to be anything but a dedicated unit! bobcat is real good, but this is all i do right now so i need a bit more machine that any of those have to offer. going to get this one back it a few weeks and keep plugging away...going to be tough starting back up with no $$$ to work.....You gotta love this Sh#$ to stay with it...and I do love it!!


 

Taht's the issue. No gaurding. You have to be insane to not have the cat mesh door and the gaurding you need.


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## kkottemann (May 11, 2010)

man...i have custom fabricated guarding on this thing.. the "forestry kit" they sold me with the machine was a joke and lasted maybe 2 weeks.....I've put well over 6k in custom work on this thing!


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## gwiley (May 12, 2010)

kkottemann said:


> man...i have custom fabricated guarding on this thing.. the "forestry kit" they sold me with the machine was a joke and lasted maybe 2 weeks.....I've put well over 6k in custom work on this thing!



Pictures or it didn't happen  Show off that custom work and let the rest of us enjoy it vicariously.


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## kkottemann (May 12, 2010)

CAT finished the quote for repair today.......$37,500.00 to fix!!! Haha...thank god for insurance!!!! What a Pain in the azz..


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## catbuster (May 12, 2010)

kkottemann said:


> CAT finished the quote for repair today.......$37,500.00 to fix!!! Haha...thank god for insurance!!!! What a Pain in the azz..



Do you the the mesh ass door? Best thing ever. Probly would save the machine from overheating.


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## hammerlogging (May 12, 2010)

catbuster said:


> Do you the the mesh ass door? Best thing ever. Probly would save the machine from overheating.



you riding this dude for a reason? dudes a forester practicing real forestry: rare. Anything positive to say?


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## kkottemann (May 12, 2010)

yep got the mesh door......helped out a good bit. overheating was not the issue here. I ran it for a total of 18 minutes before she caught fire on this day ... Water temp was under 205 and hydo oil was around 150.....electrical short was the cause of the fire. spark probably lit up some debris under the after cooler between the cab and motor.

I am a forester....practicing real forestry! thanks for the prop. been a timber buyer, harvesting manager for a timber co., operations manager for a tree service and prescribed fire specialist for the nature conservancy..went on my own 7 years ago to cater to them all and have more freedom in my life...so I thought...haha!


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## SchafferLoaders (May 29, 2010)

*Schaffer articulated wheel loader mulcher as alternative to track mulcher*

Hi Guys,


Sorry to put this post up again on the site, but I was reading this thread and thught their might be some new people that could give me any feedback! 

Kkottemann sorry to hear about your fire, that's not a good situation for anyone. Hopefully they get it back on track ASAP and you are earning again. 


We are going to release in Australia an articulated loader 9330Z-high flow.
This will have a 130hp water cooled deutz matched to a load sensing bosch/rexroth hydrostatic pump. It will be designed for 150 litres per minute at 250 bar, maybe not the biggest flow on the market but it will definitely do this. Some customers of mine that own skid steers have put flow meters on their machines and have been suprised at the actual results.

The 9330Z wheel loader is built from scratch for the job, it has a purpose built hydraulic cooling package (one side step is now an extra cooler, even the standard Schaffer Loaders have good cooling!), extra large alternator, full underbelly protection, optional plexiglass windscreen (unlike a skid steer the cabin is somewhat protected from the mulching head by the mast), ride control (nitrogen filled shock absorber on the mast) for long distance travelling, air intake goes through a few filters including self cleaning precleaner and a whole lot of other extra's to make it right for the job. Schaffer are serious about supplying the right machine for the job and construct different builds depending on the country the machine is going to.

You will get a much greater lift capacity than a skid steer as you have a longer wheel base and more weight out the back of the rear axle, giving you superior lift at the front.

Obviously you can operate other tools - augers, trenchers, 4-in-1, grab bucket, log grab, pallet forks with about a 3 tonne payload, use as a loader etc...

Road speed is standard at 20km/hr, but there is an optional 35km/hr.
The mast is incredibly strong - its not made of a hollow box section that can be put out of shape, its made of solid 30mm plate. Pins are a minimum of 50mm, but many are 80mm and all have 5mm bushes - the German manufacturer believes in building something to last.

Tyres would be solid filled from the start and we have an option of remoulded aircraft tyres that were originally rated at 20 tonnes per tyre at 235 mph! Or cut resistant forrestry tyres.
With a tyred vehicle you don't have all the under carriage and track maintenance which according to maintenance costs of bulldozers is meant to be around 70-80% of the total cost of running the machine. There are other forestry mulching units out there on wheels, but I think they are all dedicated (so not versatile for a contractor with other jobs - pallet forks, auger work, bucket work, logging) around 300hp so we are talking a totally different machine to the Schaffer wheel loader 9330 high flow.

Being articulated the Schaffer 9330 wheel loader will be kind on the ground, even fully articulating it hardly scratches the sufaces saving your tyres and your back. Some potentially interested customers have told me mulching big trees could be an advantage as you just articulate to turn the mast so can mulch something down instead of having to reposition the loader. Also visibility out the back is great as you are sitting more on top of the engine than a skid steer.

The centre of gavity is very low as there is a lot of weight low out the back of the rear axle, part of the reason you can pick up so much weight at the front. Also solid filled tyres really add to the low centre of gravity.

I'm not suggesting this is a total replacement for a tracked skid steer, just a machine for less steep country and the ability to run any tool a bobcat can. I'm a big believer for the right machine for the job and are interested in this introduction. Schaffer Loaders have sold this machine in Europe for other high flow applications and now we are looking at putting the mulching head on it.

As something different I've attached the wheel loader mulcher version plus a story about a big farm in Germany that has a unit with 19,500 hours on it and another with 21,000 hours on it. I don't think in the mulching/forestry environment you are going to get those sort of hours though! 

Cheers in advance for any feedback,

Cameron Moir :greenchainsaw:
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