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| Caterpillar branded
box. |
 |
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| Grilles in the
engine cover are formed and painted, but not
see-through. |
 |
| Cut angle of
the bucket is good. |
 |
| No hoses crossing the
pivot point but there are excellent small warning graphics. |
 |
| Hydraulics to
the bucket ram, but rivets in the loader arm are
obtrusive. |
 |
| Carrying sand. |
|
 Comment on this model.
The Caterpillar 950K wheel loader has an
operating weight of just over 19 tonnes
and bucket capacities of 2.5 - 9.2m³.
Packaging
The model comes in a
Caterpillar-branded box style with windows. It
is enclosed within a one-piece plastic holder that pops
open to release the model.
The review model had no missing parts but one handrail
and one light stalk were detached in the box, but were
easily re-glued.
The box includes a small card which has some
information about the real machine and a nice photo.
Detail
The underside has the rear axle
modelled and the transmission to the front axle is
truncated. Nice quality rubber tyres with
a good tread pattern are mounted on wheels with detailed
plastic exterior faces and simple inside faces.
The engine cover has
the mesh side grilles of the original machine formed by
painted indentations in the casting. The rear grille has the CAT logo
and work lights, with the other rear lights being painted.
The walkways around the cab have a non-slip texture and
the metal handrails are very good. The cab is detailed
with wipers front and back, and the mirrors and grab
rails are plastic, and there is a roof aerial.
The interior has controls and there is a CAT logo on
the seat back.
There are excellent sharp warning graphics below the cab
and at the pivot point but there are no hydraulic hoses
and the front axle drive shaft is not modelled.
The loader arm with the Z-bar linkages is modelled well
with hoses running to the ram jacket, and
decent detail in the metal parts. The rivets in the
loader arm are quite large and visible and so it is not
smooth like the real machine.
The material bucket has a smooth edge with wear plate
detailing.
Features
The wheels roll well with each pair of tyres fixed to a
common axle. The rear axle is able to oscillate
significantly and the front axle is fixed.
The model steers across the pivot point and the overall
steering angle is very good.
The loader arm lifts the bucket to a realistic
height and can hold a pose. The carrying angle
with the bucket lowered has no range of movement.
The bucket is removable. A long pin is pushed out
however it is difficult not to damage the paint on the
pin head.
Quality
As with other Tonkin Caterpillar wheel loaders it is
solid and with a high metal content.
The paint finish is generally good and the graphics are sharp.
Price
It is reasonable value.
Overall
Tonkin has set a consistent standard with its wheel
loader models and this one has just enough
to be highly recommended.
Footnotes
The model was announced in 2013 and was available from
April 2014.
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|
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|
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| Smooth edged
bucket with wear plates. |
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| Tyres and
wheels look good. |
 |
| Detail underneath. |
 |
| Cat logo on the
seat. Handrails are metal, grab rail is plastic. |
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| Profile view. |
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| At work. |
 |
| Loading a road
tipper. |
|
