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Bobcat with forklift mast, or without, vs Hummerbee!!!!!!!!

79K views 147 replies 36 participants last post by  Mtn. Bee 
#1 ·
What's your opinion?
What are the Advantages and Disadvantages?
Likes and Dislikes?
mobility and visibility?
Thanks, Bo.
 
#117 ·
Sorry to dissappoint, but don't give up yet.
My buddy, Nick VanCalcar (7000 hives) has five towables kinda / sorta like mine, and we have a drag race scheduled when we meet in cherries this spring. All of his are 350 Chevys. Mine is a 351 Ford W-HO 4V.
If I can get my daughter out there with a camera we will post a Utube.
Then we can argue Ford v.s. Chevy and forklifts at the same time. Stay tuned!!
;)
 
#120 ·
Buzz. I'm 61 and the goal was to do something I enjoyed that was more physically demanding than my day job; I'm a biologist but mostly work behind a computer screen all day. Since I had a day job, I put all the profits back into the bees. I started 12 years ago and owe no money on anything I have for beekeeping. My second goal was to stop recycling all profits into the bees when I had enough colonies to ship to CA for almonds. I try to send 680 (1 double hive per stack with the rest singles) for the 34 4-way stacks that will fit on a semi trailer. I reached that point about 6 years ago and have been paying myself ever since. I split here in ND in mid-May so I have to split them heavy to have strong hives by late June when the main nectar flow begins. My main issue was time management to have time to do the bees justice. I harvest my honey but pay a friend who is a large commercial to process the honey. I get my hives back the first of May and split them over 2 weeks; this time of year, I haul them here, cull the weak, medicate and pump syrup in them 1-3 times (more for singles). By the time November rolls around, they're ready to ship and the cycle starts over. I send them to a great beekeeper in CA who takes good care of them through almonds (we share the profits). Due to the volume, it cuts into my hunting and fishing but I do fish 2 weeks on summer vacation and hunt most of the things I want in late fall. Our LONG winters give me time to do maintenance and odd chores to make the next year run smoother. I have a Ford bee truck so I'm rooting for Harry in the upcoming drag race!!!

Bottom line is, no secrets---just not enough sense to have a more leisurely lifestyle!! Actually, I enjoy the bees and the hard work.

Chip
 
#121 ·
Chip, we aren't exactly in the right thread for this discussion but you just layed out a nice blueprint for how to get to the point of profitability in this business when you are starting from scratch. It requires a day job and the willingness to do a lot of work to reach the point of sustainability where you are right now. Job well done, others need to learn from you. Obviously you enjoy hard work, I can't say the same. I do it because it was the culture I was raised in and I live by the creed that anything worth doing is worth doing well. Let's see now weren't we talking about forklifts or something?
 
#125 ·
I have loaded many a tote with the ole Hummerbee as well. They can definitely handle them but don't try it on any type of a downslope. It might be a little bit more of an adventure , though, without the fluid filled tires.
 
#127 · (Edited)
Do the foam filled tires change the ride and handling characteristics much? I never considered the fact that they would be heavy enough to help stabilize a load, guess I just assumed it was all about never having to worry about flat tires.
 
#128 ·
There are different densities of foam and I don't recall what I put in mine but I followed the advice of Dean at A&O. I just asked for a soft foam here in town at the local Firestone and the ride didn't change noticeably, even last winter when I blew snow at below zero. If you opt to fill them, Dean could tell you which foam density to avoid. The stuff is very heavy.
 
#130 ·
Sorry it took so long to reply but I got busy. So, putting some fire back into this debate. Keith is ALL wrong and I'm ALL right!!! JK Keith :)

My dad was actually the lucky one that happened to be up in Michigan and so he was the one that got to try the thing out. I haven't seen it in person yet, however I have a buddy that bought one and he'll have it sometime this winter here in Fl. so I'll have plenty of time to try this thing out in the real world.

He said it was smoother than the turbo but wasn't really sure that it had a noticeable increase in power over the turbo. He tried to spin the wheels on some good sod but it would only stall the motor however it would spin all wheels on gravel. Our turbo will not spin the wheels except on softer terrain.

You do sit 15 inches forward from the turbo so you are a lot closer to the forks and visibility is increased. This comes from the new joint design with the trunnion axle. You also sit 3 inches higher which I personally don't like. It IS rated at 3000 pounds.

The steering wheel column must be tilted up at both positions if you want to get on/off the driver right side. The joystick works all mast controls simultaneously although when used together it does slow down the function. The joystick operates up/down and tilt while two sets of buttons control sideshift and clamp. The buttons were not hooked up when he tried it out.

The engine cavity is much more open in person than it is in the picture according to my dad.

It is definitely quieter than the turbo. You don't have that trademark whine since there's no turbo and not the extra gears in the gearbox.

They've added a lot more cooling capacity.

And it also has a hover button which allows you to hover when the terrain is too rough...JK

So it seems to be a better machine than the turbo and 1k. Time will tell
 
#134 ·
Sorry if I'm off topic, but there was talk a while back about cutting out the barrier bars in a bobcat....bad idea. I tipped a bob the other day, that barrier bar kept my head in one piece. If it wasnt there I would have smacked the bucket :(
Having used both a bobcat and a hummerbee I wouldn't go with a bobcat unless you are a very good operator, the bobcat is way too bouncy. I have been using a tracked one, maybe the wheeled ones are better??? Hummerbee is just a better all around machine for moving bees IMHO.
Mike
 
#140 ·
So I hear the XRT was at the Ca. convention. The people I talked to about the machine said "they were not to impressed by it" "1K knock off without the quality" They also had to do some repair in the parking lot. I was just wondering if anyone was out there and what there opinion was?
 
#148 ·
lake thompson honey: Hey I have a new quick attach adapter plate that fits a Gehl and converts it to fit Bobcat attachments that I was going to try to fit on my Toyota loader but I don't know if I am going to do it b/c I was thinking about putting a mast on instead.
PM if you would be interested?

I sure like my Toyota loader but have thought about a Swinger or Hummer but can't justify the cost in my small operation!
see pic below:

http://i1305.photobucket.com/albums/s545/mike_hicks3/picture0018_zpsefcce116.jpg
 
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