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Digger Man

Digger Man Blog

by Nick Drew  |  Tue 31 Mar 2015

More O&K archive photos

Following some requests from readers, I have delved back into the Digger Man Blog archives for this latest batch of shots, which feature some classic German O&K machines.

Back in the day before digital cameras took over, I am told that it was common place for manufacturers to send out actual photographic reprints featuring their latest machines in action. This blog post features some of those photos sent out by O&K (Orenstein & Koppel) probably in the late 1990’s early 2000’s. For a time O&K’s, just like their French counterparts Poclain, were a common sight on UK construction jobs and had a strong and loyal customer base before the company ceased manufacturing. This first shot features the 13.5 tonne MH4 PMS which was powered by a 58kw Deutz engine. Next up we have the popular RH6 model. This 20 tonne class machine was powered by a 90kw Deutz engine and was another popular O&K machine in the UK market. I spent some brief time on an earlier RH6 model which was a beast of a machine, sadly it managed to break its dipper ram after a week on it and I then moved on to an RH4 model. I always found the numbering system on O&K’s very confusing, bearing no relation to the actual weight/size of the machine. This RH9 for instance was actually a 34 tonne class machine which was powered once again by a 172kw Deutz engine. This example features the European preferred triple boom combination making it a very nice example. Finally in this batch of archive photos we have the O&K RH20, this 50 tonne class machine also featured an adjustable undercarriage and was powered by a 228kw Deutz engine. O&K will probably always be remembered best for its large mining sized excavators and shovels, the remnants of which still survive today in some of the big Cat machines. For me O&K brings back memories of visits to their yard near Watford Gap services as a youngster, happy days.  

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