Hydraulic tilt-manual rotation

by Nick Drew | Tue 01 Dec 2015

Hydraulic tilt-manual rotation

My Finnish friend Arto Turpeinen who is a plant and machinery expert and journalist in his native country has sent me some information on a rather unusual version of a tilt-rotator which is manufactured by Vahva in Finland.

Tilt-rotators are the must have product in the UK these days especially for owner operators who can see the potential the products offer, giving them the edge over firms who are not yet embracing the concept. I personally think 2016 is going to be the year of the tilt-rotator in the UK, as all the major players including Engcon, Steelwrist, Rototilt and SMP, continue to spread the word about the game changing attachments. In addition, I can report that a growing number of UK based bucket manufacturers are seeing a demand for home produced Swedish style buckets which are specifically designed to be used with tilt-rotators, another sign of the growing acceptance of the concept. Now enter stage left, a new and cheaper alternative is out there which features full hydraulic tilt, but a manual rotation system manufactured by Finnish company Vahva.

The Vahva Forti 200 however, is a mechanical rototilt designed for excavators from 13 to 20 tonnes. Like most tilt-rotators these days the bucket or attachment can be tilted hydraulically 45 degrees both ways. But it’s the rotation aspect which differs from conventional tilt-rotators, with no expensive gear drive or electrics involved in the build. The Forti 200 couples to the bucket or attachment by engaging with a conical disc, which is then tightened and locked in place by the gripper. When the operator wants to rotate his bucket to a desired position he simply loosens the grip slightly and manually pushes the bucket around before re-locking the mechanism. You can see the system in operation in this promotional video from Vahva. [youtube width="725" height="344"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLfs22XkVfA[/youtube] I personally would see this as a bit of a backward step with tilt-rotation systems, but I am sure it could appeal to those who are watching the pennies more closely and working on a tight budget maybe. The other question is would this system be considered safe on any UK site?

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