Working wood with the Unimog SEE

[peakbagger]

I picked up a SEE (Special Emplacement Excavator) about a year ago in place of something like a Kubota for working around my property and others property. Price wise the going rate for a SEE was pretty close to Kubota with a heck of lot more capability. It also is road legal so no need to trailer it. The Army bought them for the cold war which was ended by the time they went into service so most of the fleet have just sat in depots for 25 years. This one had 40 hours on the engine and 465 miles on the odometer. I did have a few surprises that delayed actively using it, the big one was damage to the electrical harness from a rat gnawing the wiring harness during storage in Texas. Apparently the rats in Texas like Mercedes Benz electrical wires as many of the units being sold out of the Texas depots have the same damage. Its a bit tedious to repair but mostly time consuming. They sell at auctions typically in the 10 to 20 K range, some have been stripped for parts and the auction firms move non running units around with forklifts and sometimes do damage to the suspension. There are also units that were reconditioned by the military that have little or no miles, they go for a bit more.



The backhoe normally resides folded in over the bed when traveling but once its on site the entire unit rotates up into the working position shown. The backhoe is Case 580. It also has a rare for the military optional ripper bucket used for frozen soil and loose ledge. The SEE is quite tall but the wheel base is shorter than a F150. It is very maneuverable. It also has a 16 speeds forward with selectable four wheel drive and air lockers front and rear. The tool boxes on the side held a hydraulic jackhammer, hydraulic rock drill and a hydraulic chainsaw but mine didn't come with the chainsaw.

I drove it about 15 miles over to my brothers place. It has geared hubs to increase ground clearance, that in combination with a short wheelbase and the loader hanging out front makes for slow travel. About 30 MPH is about as brave as I got and on some of the steeper hills in my area it can be real slow trip uphill.

I dug a few trenches around the property ripping out some hardpan and loose ledge and then did some stump removal. It doesn't have the umph to rip stumps outright but using the ripper hooks on the bucket to rake and brake the roots to either side seemed to work.

My brother had a few 2' plus diameter 20' long green white pine logs up on steep slope about 40 degrees. The SEEs have high approach and departure angle so I backed it into a ditch on the side of the road and backed up the slope in low gear, 4wd and locked diffs. From a dead stop I backed up on over about 2' edge of the ditch, no spinning and barely any load on the engine. We chained the log to the pintle and I pulled it down the hill and up the road. The other two logs went the same way. I figure the logs were about 2000 pounds each. The SEE is rated for 5 ton trailer so pulling logs wasn't an issue. There are some videos on the web where folks are using the same base chassis as a skidder in some significant mud and I can see why.

At the end of the day I drove it home after stopping to fill it up. 6.7 gallons of diesel total. This was about 7 hours of run time with about 4 hours of running at high engine speed to support the backhoe.

I am in the process of picking up 30 acres of land that hasn't been cut since WW2 so I expect I will be using it frequently next summer.

 

[HybridFyre]

Hot Damn that thing looks fun! I can't imagine what running a hydraulic chainsaw must be like!

 

[peakbagger]

The utilities have hydraulic pole saws. I really wouldn't want a hydraulic chainsaw as the ones that were supplied didn't have chain brakes and apparently Kevlar chaps may not stall them quick enough.

 

[lotawood]

I use one of those at work, not much time in it though.

I do have the chainsaw. But the specs are underwhelming. I think I remember maybe equal to an 025 stihl but you run a 90(?) hp engine to use it. I suspect the torque is up there; haven't used it. No chain brake and I have more than enough saws to chose from. The breaker tools seem like they may come in handy in the future.

This one's main use is a mobile backhoe.

I need to get new seals on the backhoe pivot cylinders. Thanks for reminding me it is a case 580.

 

[peakbagger]

If you look carefully at the photos you can see a "diaper" on one of the cylinders due to a seal. The more I use it the less it leaks. There should be Case nameplate on the backhoe. A Case dealer should be able to use that to buy the right repair parts

I have heard that getting the cylinder caps loose is a particular PITA from folk who have done it.

Someone on one of the forums has found a stash of the up until now not available electrical schematics for these. PM if you want a link as I expect that once they are gone that's it.

 

[Jags]

I have seen earlier pics when you first got it, but I still find it to be an interesting piece of machinery. For a rough country environment I can see the usefulness of the 4 x 4. I have a 580 CK backhoe, so that part I am real familiar with. I will bet the loader operation has a learning curve to it.

 

[peakbagger]

I have done some work with the loader, its not a bulldozer and is really only good with loose soil. I have poor eye to hand coordination so the backhoe is definitely a learning curve. It will gladly pull the entire rig around so when I hook something with the ripper hooks I have to be careful. Keeping the ebrake set helps but it limits my ability to move the rig around intentionally as I have remote bucket lift switch that I can use to raise and lower it from the backhoe seat. I hear mixed opinions on exactly which model of Case backhoe its closest to. I have heard 550 all the way to 580 that why I cautioned the prior poster to use the model and serial number on the backhoe just in case. This rig has a ductile iron dipper and mast instead of fabricated steel if that makes any difference.

One nice thing is I bought it from a private owner who picked it up at auction, he replaced a lot of the backhoe and loader hoses as sitting out in the sun for 25 years sure didn't do them any favors. I expect the folks who bought the ones in Texas direct at auction probably will have a rash of hose failures although the reconditioned one probably should be in good shape.

I do want to buy a standard bucket for it and set of forks but a wood lot purchase is going to tie up some funds for a bit.

 

[sportbikerider78]

That looks fun as hell. I would turn instantly into a redneck version of Mad Max.

 

[fossil]

That's one of the ugliest things I've ever seen. I really like it.

 

[BigFir]

That is the coolest thing I've seen in a long time! Make a great off road recovery vehicle!

 

[lotawood]

Thanks. I will look for a model plate for the backhoe.

I think there are plenty of Unimog info on the web. It is a Unimog with buckets on both ends and a hydraulic tool system in the middle. The hydraulics are on a hose reel.

It has a three way switch for 2wd, 4wd and 4wd lock. The front loader is not very stout compared to a tractor-loader-backhoe. It is a manual transmission 4 speed with a splitter, like the red button two speed axle, but I think the splitter is in the transmission.

It has an air system on it that I am trying to get a hose on, to at lease pump up a tire away from home.

 

[peakbagger]

Thanks. I will look for a model plate for the backhoe.

I think there are plenty of Unimog info on the web. It is a Unimog with buckets on both ends and a hydraulic tool system in the middle. The hydraulics are on a hose reel.

It has a three way switch for 2wd, 4wd and 4wd lock. The front loader is not very stout compared to a tractor-loader-backhoe. It is a manual transmission 4 speed with a splitter, like the red button two speed axle, but I think the splitter is in the transmission.

It has an air system on it that I am trying to get a hose on, to at lease pump up a tire away from home.

Unfortunately, the SEEs suspension is set up for very long travel which is exactly opposite to what is needed for a loader. The rare HMMH (high mobility material handler) has front suspension lockout which might improve the loader operation.

There is an air hose available that screws onto two points on the air system. It locks like a very custom connector with a standard air fitting on the other end.