HomeWelcomeReviewsEditorials/PressReferenceShopping MallLinksPhoto ArchiveSearchContact
Caterpillar MT4400D AC Mining Truck

Maker:  Tonkin
Model No:  30001
Scale:  1:50
Review Date:  October 2014


Tonkin Index
Mining Index


Cranes Etc Model Rating
Packaging   (max 10)7
Detail   (max 30)22
Features   (max 20)11
Quality   (max 25)14
Price   (max 15)9
Overall   (max 100)63%

Footnotes


 
Caterpillar MT4400D AC Mining Truck Video  [Youku Video]
Click to see large photo
Caterpillar branded box.
Click to see large photo
Tyres are good.
Click to see large photo
Detailed chassis, with plastic parts.
Click to see large photo
Mesh grille at the front is very good.
Click to see large photo
Smooth cab deck.  The equipment cabinets are plastic.
Fire hydrant adds detail.
Maximum tipping angle is shallow.
Radial grid has a nice grille.
Smooth finish to the body.
Comment on this model.

The Caterpillar MT4400D AC Mining Truck was announced at MINExpo 2012 and was a development of a Unit Rig truck acquired as part the Caterpillar purchase of Bucyrus.  s used for mining or large-scale earthmoving operations. 

The maximum gross vehicle weight is 392 tonnes, with a nominal payload of 218 tonnes.

This model is derived from a version first produced by BYMO many years ago.

Packaging

The model comes in a Caterpillar-branded box, and inside the model is enclosed within two expanded polystyrene trays. 

The model arrived missing the main driver's side mirror, which was supplied separately. 

The box includes a small collector card which has some information about the real machine and a nice photo.

Detail

The chassis looks reasonably detailed with a number of plastic elements with the colour match being good in most places.  There are some nice large rubber mud flaps between wheels.  The engine is just visible and it has some good detail including a cooling fan.

The wheels are plastic but detailed, and the inside faces look realistic. The large rubber tyres are not too shiny with a good tread pattern. 

At the front the metal hand rails are good although the plastic stairs and ladder are thick with no texturing.  The front grille is very good with a fine see-through mesh and the Cat logo is sharp. 

There is a strange looking gap in the handrails to the side of the cab, which should probably have some chains across it.  Weight load indicators are modelled on each side.  There is no texture on the cab deck but a fire hydrant adds detail.  The main cabinet is plastic with reasonable detail.  The radial grid is also plastic and it looks very good with a fine mesh on the front.

The cab is metal with a simple interior containing two seats and a painted beacon light on the roof. 

The dump body is a heavy metal casting and looks convincing.  However the lift rams are less good.  They are four-stage yellow plastic so they do not look realistic.  Very thin chains hang between the tyres as rock deflectors.  There is a chain to fix the body in the raised position during maintenance, but it is not usable.

Features

The truck rolls well.  The steering is fairly shallow in terms of angle. 

There is no suspension or movement of the wheel mountings.

The tipping mechanism extends to around 45º, so it is short of the angle on the real truck.  The rams will hold the body in most positions but this mainly because they are poorly engineered and do not remain in straight alignment.  The review model had cracks appearing in the cylinders due to the eccentric loading, and the rams seem unlikely to tolerate much use.

Quality

This is a reasonable quality model with quite a lot of plastic used. 

The paint finish is generally very good and the graphics are sharp.

Price

It is a large model but pricey overall given the quality and features.

Overall

As a large model it is impressive and some details are nice. However some aspects fall short including the incomplete handrail outside the cab and the poorly engineered body lift rams.  Tonkin really need to re-engineer the rams before producing any future runs of this model.

Footnotes

The model was available from September 2014.  It was first released by BYMO as a Terex Unit Rig model around 2008, and this Caterpillar version has a number of revisions.

 
Click to see large photo
Impressive model.
Click to see large photo
Steering angle is restricted.
Click to see large photo
Plastic engine detail is good including a fan belt.
Click to see large photo
Access stair lowered.
 
Profile view.
Gap in the handrail outside the cab.
Rams are very poor.
Being loaded by a Caterpillar 994H