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Got the 215 home, need thumb, will travel

C

curtkeiser

Member
Joined
Nov 7, 2010
Messages
15
Location
SE South Dakota
Occupation
Farming
My son and grandson made a trip across Iowa and into Illinois to pick up a 215 excavator we got. The Freightliner is an 82 and the "kitty" is an 88 with Cat 3304 4 cylinder. 1100 mile round trip went good, with a lot of fog/drizzle this morning by Des Moines.
Need to find a hydraulic thumb. Been watching eBay and Craigslist. Anyone have an idea where to find a used one? I see there is a lot of after market new manufacturers. Are any of those OK?
 

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J

jimson

Well-Known Member
Joined
Nov 17, 2010
Messages
76
Location
Iowa
Nice looking 215. Dont rule out a stiff thumb if you are on a budget. Here are some pics of my 215 and thumb. I have had it on the machine for about 1500 hours and its holding up great. I got it new from usa attachments at the time it was about $1300 and shipping but i think they have gone up. You get good at folding it in and out and its not that bad.
 

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C

curtkeiser

Member
Joined
Nov 7, 2010
Messages
15
Location
SE South Dakota
Occupation
Farming
It is plumbed for for a hydraulic thumb so I suppose it makes more sense to get a hydraulic thumb. Have you used both and is hydraulic with it? Thanks
 
G

Greg

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 28, 2008
Messages
1,175
Location
Wi
Occupation
Excavating Contractor
look on machinerytrader.com. Lots of good stuff there.
 
P

pinesd3400

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 11, 2009
Messages
136
Location
no. dighton, mass
Occupation
anything to bay the bills
215 Cat

Yea I know I have mine up for $15,000 nothing wrong with it I cant give it
away absolutly no work around here all year. 215 D LC one of the last ones.
 
J

jimson

Well-Known Member
Joined
Nov 17, 2010
Messages
76
Location
Iowa
curtkeiser said:
It is plumbed for for a hydraulic thumb so I suppose it makes more sense to get a hydraulic thumb. Have you used both and is hydraulic with it? Thanks
Click to expand...

I have little experience with hydraulic thumb. It would defiantly be more convenient.
 
M

masterwelder

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 28, 2010
Messages
147
Location
NY
If cost is not a concern- I would put a hydraulic thumb on with out a doubt. We have one machine with a hydraulic and one without. The one with the hydraulic is preferred for thumb work.

I know if you search the forum you will find some more info on the manual vs hydraulic thumb debate, along with discussion about attachment points on the machine. Wish I could remember the thread- good discussion.

If you do find a used one, keep in mind there will be a little time in cutting the thumb off the old machine (probably without destroying the stick) and prepping to go on the 215. Something to think about when considering the price of a used one vs new.
 
Big Iron

Big Iron

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Joined
Oct 16, 2006
Messages
219
Location
Oregon
Occupation
Project Manager
this is one of the best thumbs i have had its mounted on my 320B. its a WBM progressive link 3 tine. i really like the big curve on the tines, really makes it nice when pileing brush, logs, stumping ect. they also designed it to fit the teeth on 36" through 54" WBM buckets, since my machine has the WBM coupler, being able to fit different sizes of buckets is nice. that being said whatever you decide to go with the progressive link is a must
 

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H

hcinc

New Member
Joined
Mar 7, 2009
Messages
1
Location
sw ontario
I am selling a machanical thumb if you are interented it is the right size for that machine never used or installed $1500.00 canadian. I can send pics if you are interested.
 
W

Willis Bushogin

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 6, 2007
Messages
855
Location
NC
Occupation
owner
thumb

curtkeiser said:
My son and grandson made a trip across Iowa and into Illinois to pick up a 215 excavator we got. The Freightliner is an 82 and the "kitty" is an 88 with Cat 3304 4 cylinder. 1100 mile round trip went good, with a lot of fog/drizzle this morning by Des Moines.
Need to find a hydraulic thumb. Been watching eBay and Craigslist. Anyone have an idea where to find a used one? I see there is a lot of after market new manufacturers. Are any of those OK?
Click to expand...

I agree, if you have the $$$$ get a hydraulic thumb installed, seems like years ago I checked on this and the hydraulics was going to cost about $5000, plus the thumb. I could be wrong about this, but I went with a manual thumb and never was sorry. I have owned 2 machines with factory hydraulic thumbs and they worked great. I had a friend that had a new system installed on a older machine and he always had problem with it, mostly the relief valves could never be adjusted correctly. He ended up with alot of money in it.
If I was looking for a used thumb, I would call all the dealers (Cat, Deere, Komostu, etc) and see if they have a used thumb. My local Cat dealer has a salvage yard and you can get good deals sometimes and you might find a hydraulic system just for a 215, but beware, buying old hydraulic units is not always a good idea.
I have bought thumbs from dealers, that were removed from new or used machines, the buyer didnt want them. I got get deals on them.
Before you buy anything, make sure it will fit your bucket. If you buy like from USA attachments, they will match your bucket and you will have customer support. There is a little trick to installing it correctly
search eBay, there was some on there for sale
Good Luck
 
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