Engineering with ABS
Caterpillar 6090 FS
Tipping the scales at 980 tonnes and featuring a clamshell bucket of 43 cubic meters, the Caterpillar 6090 FS is the world's largest series produced hydraulic excavator. Two diesel engines deliver some 4570 hp. Funnily enough, these powerplants do not come from the Caterpillar product range. Instead, two Cummins QSK 60s are installed.
In fact, the roots of the mining shovel range of Caterpillar are the famous O&K (Orenstein & Koppel) excavators from Dortmund, Germany. Thus, CAT's 6090 FS is in fact a repainted O&K RH 400, originally developed in 1997. O&K's mining product range has later been taken over by Terex and thus the RH 400 changed colors as well. For a short timespan, Bucyrus International was the new owner, just to be taken over themselves by Caterpillar back in 2012. Since then the standard color scheme is yellow with black. Production facilities have meanwhile been transferred from Germany to Indonesia. Not long ago, Caterpillar withdrew the 6090 FS from their product range.
My model in scale 1/28.5 is fully remote controlled. Power comes from three rechargeable Power Functions battery boxes, two of which are in the upper structure, one in the lower works. Four SBricks allow full bluetooth control via Brick Controller 2 smartphone app and gamepad of the following functions:
- Independent drive of the left and right crawler tracks, each by a Power Functions XL motor.
- Slewing of the upper structure, using two Power Functions M motors.
- Boom, stick and bucket motions as well as clamshell bucket operated pneumatically. Each of the four functions uses a Power Functions servo motor which in turn controls a corresponding pneumatic valve.
- Air compressor using two of the large pneumatic pumps (the spring-loaded type), powered by two buggy motors.
- Independent boarding ladders on the left and right side of the engine module, powered each by a Power Functions M motor.
- Spinning engine fans (2x) and oil cooler fans (4x). Each group of fans is powered by an old style 9V geared motor.
- Work lights at different positions around the upper structure, using five pairs of Power Functions LEDs in total.
Caterpillar 6090 FS
Tipping the scales at 980 tonnes and featuring a clamshell bucket of 43 cubic meters, the Caterpillar 6090 FS is the world's largest series produced hydraulic excavator. Two diesel engines deliver some 4570 hp. Funnily enough, these powerplants do not come from the Caterpillar product range. Instead, two Cummins QSK 60s are installed.
In fact, the roots of the mining shovel range of Caterpillar are the famous O&K (Orenstein & Koppel) excavators from Dortmund, Germany. Thus, CAT's 6090 FS is in fact a repainted O&K RH 400, originally developed in 1997. O&K's mining product range has later been taken over by Terex and thus the RH 400 changed colors as well. For a short timespan, Bucyrus International was the new owner, just to be taken over themselves by Caterpillar back in 2012. Since then the standard color scheme is yellow with black. Production facilities have meanwhile been transferred from Germany to Indonesia. Not long ago, Caterpillar withdrew the 6090 FS from their product range.
My model in scale 1/28.5 is fully remote controlled. Power comes from three rechargeable Power Functions battery boxes, two of which are in the upper structure, one in the lower works. Four SBricks allow full bluetooth control via Brick Controller 2 smartphone app and gamepad of the following functions:
- Independent drive of the left and right crawler tracks, each by a Power Functions XL motor.
- Slewing of the upper structure, using two Power Functions M motors.
- Boom, stick and bucket motions as well as clamshell bucket operated pneumatically. Each of the four functions uses a Power Functions servo motor which in turn controls a corresponding pneumatic valve.
- Air compressor using two of the large pneumatic pumps (the spring-loaded type), powered by two buggy motors.
- Independent boarding ladders on the left and right side of the engine module, powered each by a Power Functions M motor.
- Spinning engine fans (2x) and oil cooler fans (4x). Each group of fans is powered by an old style 9V geared motor.
- Work lights at different positions around the upper structure, using five pairs of Power Functions LEDs in total.