First BIG Tigercat forwarder arrives
THE NEW, TOP-OF-THE-RANGE TIGERCAT 1085C FORWARDER HAS arrived in New Zealand, boasting a 25-tonne log carrying capacity.
Although it was first released a couple of years ago in North America, as the 1085B, these big boys were largely reserved for the home market until now.
In launching here, the 1085 skips the B-series and goes straight into C-specification for the New Zealand market that sees a longer and wider bunk available to provide improved visibility when the forwarder is fully loaded as well as a larger working envelope for the boom.
The boom was also upgraded as part of the C-series moves, to give more lifting power and greater slewing torque.
The first of the new Tigercat 1085C forwarders has gone to work for Dean Dalhenburg, who is carting Eucalyptus not far from Invercargill, in Southland.
Tigercat refers to the 1085C as a “severe-duty forwarder” and the only one produced by a major industry player with a 25-tonne capacity. The base weight of the machine is 27.3 tonnes.
The 1085C is built for carting such loads over long distances and is especially well matched to steep slopes, thanks to the Tigercat bogies that are well proven in severe-duty six-wheel drive skidder applications. Tigercat’s unique WideRange™ transmission allows travel at speeds up to 7 km/hr (4.6 mph) with tractive effort sufficient to carry 20-tonne loads up 60% slopes.
While Dean has opted for the conventional flat bunk, contractors can specify the optional low-wide bunk system that expands up to 7.6 m2 in the new 1085C, which is fed by the Tigercat hooked F195T85 crane and choice of either the standard FG43 grapple, or larger FG53. Tigercat says the new crane and grapples have increased production in some applications more than 30% over competitive machines.
The 1085C centre section is based on the Tigercat skidder design and is built for long life through the use of pre-loaded, tapered roller bearings in the articulation and oscillation joints.
As with all Tigercat products, components are laid out for easy access to service points, making for quick and painless daily maintenance routines. The operator station is large and comfortable with optimised sightlines and ergonomics, while sound levels are under 66db at full 2,200rpm engine speed.
Power is derived from a Tier 2 version of the Tigercat FPT 230kW (308hp) engine for markets like New Zealand, driving through the WideRange®, infinitely variable speed, hydrostatic transmission.