 | | Sandvik branded box. |  |  | | Perspex windows cover machinery parts. |  | | Underneath. |  | | Boom extended. |  | | The high cab provides a full view. |  | | Fire suppression equipment and stabilisers at the rear. |  | | Heavy boom construction. |  | | Ladder up to the cab platform. |  | | The figure is from the Sandvik set. |  | | Loading a Sandvik TH550. |
| One of Sandvik's specialisms is underground excavation machinery and one of their largest machines is the Sandvik MT720, a 135 Tonne Tunneling Roadheader. It is specifically designed for excavating in hard and abrasive rock formations.
The real machine is around 15m long including the conveyor and 4.6m high. It can cut a profile up to 6.6m high and 9.1m wide. The conveyor is rated at 400m³/h.
The model is around 40cm (16in) long and almost 10cm (4in) high.
Packaging
The box has an excellent photo of the MT720 and one side has been given over to provide technical specifications about the real machine. Inside the model is contained within black foam rubber and the review model had no defects or missing parts.
A black and white instruction sheet covers the attachment of the conveyor and the fitting of the handrails which is easy to do.
Detail
The tracks are plastic which comes as a surprise as few modern models are introduced with plastic tracks. Having said that, they look fine and are well made. The main drive sprocket is also plastic and the track frames have some detail within the castings.
The body is a complex piece of modelling with many engine and equipment components visible. The sides have perspex screens which are to replicate the anti dust screens, and there are plastic work platforms. At the rear there is some fine mesh screening, and the metal handrails and ladders look realistic. The top platform has antislip texturing and the metal cab has debris protection on the windscreen and good internal detailing. Running through the body is a fixed conveyor and there are a couple of stabiliser pads at the rear.
At the rear is a long conveyor arm which has some very good quality casting providing detail to the structure, and it has a real rubber belt.
A large spoil catcher is attached to the front and this has a pair of rotary blades attached which deposit the spoil onto the conveyor.
The boom is a heavy piece of construction and is metal. The hydraulic cylinders have jackets with an excellent colour match and the telescopic boom section has a chunky main cylinder. Along the top of the boom the protection plates double as footways and have a textured surface.
The cutting head is plastic but this has allowed some fine detail of the picks.
Features
The tracks roll very smoothly and are held in tension by spring-loaded idler wheels in the track frames.
Along the sides of the body the perspex panels can be removed, and the work platforms can also be raised and lowered.
At the rear the stabilisers can be lowered and are stiff enough to support the model.
At the front the spoil catcher can also be raised and lowered so the whole model can be set up off the tracks using the rear stabilisers as well. The rotary blades on the spoil catcher can be rotated. However the spoil catcher cannot be removed in order to reduce the width of the MT720 down to a transport load.
The conveyor is removable, and can be rotated sideways by about 30°. It can be raised upwards at the pivot point and is also hinged at the mid point and can be set in three positions. The rubber belt can be operated.
The boom can rotate sideways to about 45°, and can be raised and lowered with a very good range of movement. It can also be extended by around 1cm. The interesting aspect of the degree of movement of the boom is the way the protection plates articulate and move which is very pleasing.
The cutting head freely rotates.
Quality
As expected from Conrad the model is strongly made with just a little care being needed not to apply too much pressure to the perspex panels during handling. The paintwork and graphics are very good.
Price
This is a detailed model with many parts which accounts for its relatively high price. It is fair value however.
Overall
This is another very good model for Sandvik, and it is of an interesting machine. Some may be disappointed with the plastic tracks although from a visual point of view it is hard to know they are plastic. The features are very good and well implemented so making the MT720 highly recommended.
Footnotes
The model first appeared in August 2011.
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|  | | The parts out of the box. |  | | Fully rigged up. |  | | The cab must be good. |  | | Spoil catcher. |  | | Fierce cutting head. |  | | Work platforms allow maintenance. |  | | Really nice mesh grille. |  | | View through the conveyor. |  | | Impressive conveyor. |
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