A new, more robust fabricated boom combine with system changes that add lifting power in the new Case N Series loader/backhoes introduced last week.
The N Series replaces the M Series 3 machines in the Case lineup, with four models replacing the previous five. The Case 580N, 580 Super N, 580 Super N Wide Track and 590 Super N are powered by 4.5-litre turbocharged engines that range from 79 to 108 horsepower.
“Every major feature has been cranked up - the loader lift, the backhoe lift, the breakout force,” Case senior director of marketing Ion Warner said during a launch event at the company’s customer centre in Tomahawk, Wisconsin. “With a single N Series loader/backhoe you can trench, you can fill, you can haul and you can dig - two times as deep as a compact excavator.”
While there have been changes throughout the machine’s design, the backhoe itself was a key focus. Case has moved away from a cast boom to a fabricated design, done in-house rather than shipped from elsewhere. The new boom improves breakout force while maintaining the over-centre design. In addition, the company has introduced Power Lift - a feature that channels hydraulic power directly to the boom for increased lifting when it is needed. Power Lift gives the N Series equivalent lifting capacity to a five-ton excavator, the company states.
Other improvements included longer and stronger loader arms, new transmission options, a redesigned cab with greater airflow and visibility, and numerous others. The machine was built over an 18-month period and featured input from six contractors from across North America including Dennis Zentner, owner of DRZ Contracting in Delta, B.C.
Zentner said he and the other contractors were pleased with the input they were able to provide on the new machines through several visits to Case proving grounds and a month of working with a field test machine in the variable conditions around the Vancouver area.
The N Series will start shipping to customers in November.
