EQUIPMENT: Caterpillar introduces new tool for LHD buckets

[caption id="attachment_1003739556" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Bolt-on half arrow GET on underground loader bucket Credit: Caterpillar[/caption] ILLINOIS – Caterpillar has announced the launch of a heavy duty bolt-on half arrow ground engaging tool (GET) – the BOHA65 – for large underground loaders working in extreme applications. This new BOHA65 unit joins the company’s line of BOHA GETs designed for the entire line of Cat load-haul-dump machines (LHDs). The BOHA65 features an extended wear life; its parts for a Cat R2900 LHD include 35% more wear material than the BOHA50 GET for this loader. Trials in a hard-digging block cave application in Australia indicate that BOHA65 delivers an extended and more productive life that is proportional to the additional material. The entire line of the company’s BOHA GETs is designed for high abrasion applications, where the weld-on ground engaging tools experience high rates of wear. The bolt-on GETs offer more wear material, which is more abrasion-resistant than the material in standard weld-on GETs. According to Caterpillar, tests suggest an average wear life that is 40% higher for bolt-on units when compared with weld-on options. The bolt-on tool can be easily removed and replaced: after initially welding the base edge to the bucket, the BOHA is installed with two or three bolts per tip. These units take one to two hours to replace and don’t require any welding. Due to the ease of replacement, these GETs can be easily changed before the base edge is damaged. A western Canadian gold mine calculated that Cat’s BOHA GETs reduced bucket and GET costs per hour by 39% when compared with a traditional weld-on system with an operating life that was 2.5 times longer. In addition, machine availability increased due to a 75% reduction in the time it took to replace the wear components. BOHA GETs can also increase productivity as the individual segments are designed to minimize carrying weight while keeping the bucket protected, with a low-profile front edge for fast bucket loading. Built-in wear indicators provide quick, ground-level feedback on wear. Corner guards protect the sides of the units and extend the service life of the cast corners on larger loaders. The corner segments include an extended wear material. The BOHA GETs can be complemented with additional protection systems from Caterpillar, such as heel shrouds, mechanically attached wear plate system and wear bars. For more information about the GET offerings for underground, visit www.Cat.com/Underground.