People in the construction industry or big vehicle fans may think that the awesome Caterpillar 994 D is the worlds biggest mining loader. They would be wrong! It is in fact the L-2350 made by Le Tourneau of Longview, Texas, USA.  The Cat 994 D did have the worlds largest tires though, So don't be too upset, Caterpillar fans out there !

The Le Tourneau L-2350 Wheel Loader

This is currently the worlds largest wheel loader

Designed to center load haul trucks with capacities of up to 400 tons, the L-2350 provide a safe normal operating payload of 160,000 pounds ( 72 tons ) a 24 foot lift height, and a 11.5 foot reach.  These dimensions are quite huge, and no other front wheel loader can match up to it.

The loader has a massive and powerful 2,300 horsepower Detroit Diesel or Cummins engine, and this power is needed when you consider the amount of aggregate that the loader will shovel and lift to deposit into a mining lorry.

We must also remember that the operational weight of this loader is 258 tons. It is one big earth mover.

A 65 litre engine! That's about 30 times larger than a standard car engine! Each cylinder of which there are 16, is over 4 liters in size. 

The images below, taken at a mine in Africa, define the size of this vehicle. You could hold a party in the shovel!

The engine compartment alone is as big as a French Citroen family car.

The shovel bucket has a very large capacity of 53 cubic yards.

This is about  80 tons (max) of material in a single scoop ! One cubic yard of earth for example weighs one ton, so the bucket holds 53 tons, but the earth, soil etc in the scoop is not flush with it so this amount is nearly doubled.

The loader is controlled and monitored by the Le Tourneau Intergrated Network Control System (LINCS).  This provides useful operational information such as maintenance, diagnostics, shovel weights and measure capacity, cycle times and other management information which includes the control of hydraulics, traction control, engine revolutions and limiters through the interactions of the master control module (MCM)

These multiple remote control modules (RCMs) use a 32-bit processor and connect directly to sensors, drive outputs, and operator controls. The MCM uses a Pentium-class microprocessor to control the entire system from the cab of the loader. The RCMs are distributed around the loader, providing the MCM with the information needed to effortlessly control and monitor the entire loader.

Fluid Capacities

The fuel tank holds 1050 gallons of diesel.

There is 325 gallons of hydraulic fluid in the hydra-tank.

130 gallons of coolant keeps the engine from overheating.

7 gallons of gearbox oil lie in its sump.

The engine crank-case and filtration units bathe in 66 gallons of oil.

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Worlds Biggest Tires EVER

In 1934 Mr. R.G. Le Tourneau and Harvey Firestone introduced the first pneumatic tire, designed specifically for earthmoving vehicles. Firestone recently developed the 70/70-57 SRG DT  tire for the L-2350. Le Tourneau and Firestone claim it is the largest tire in the world situated on the world's largest loader. The tire, fitted on a Titan rim, has an overall diameter of 4 m (13 ft), a width of 1.78 m (5.83 ft), and a total mass of nearly 7.3 t (8 tons).

At 6.8 tons each not including the weight of the rim. 

The Cat 994 D uses ' smaller ' size  58/85-57 tires, the Le Tourneau uses the 70/70-57 size tires.

Again these vehicles are beautiful statements of engineering skill and prowess, huge strong robust and as reliable if not more than a family saloon.

Each wheel on the loader is independently and electronically driven, this gives positive traction and increases the stability with shift free operation. This feature has been utilised for over 40 years by Le Tourneau. The electric drive system that manages the wheels gives a longer life span to the tires and gives more room for the driver to concentrate on operating the shovel as opposed to getting the right gear for each movement.

Le Tourneau also states that the constant speed engine gives better fuel efficiency and increases the life of the engines working hours. 

The electric-drive system consists of an engine/generator set, a solid-state Silicon Controlled Rectifier (SCR), and dc traction motors coupled with planetary drivers. There are no drive shafts or transmissions to wear out.

These loaders generally work in open cast mines where they shovel 1000's of tons of material every working day. The two images below show the Le Tourneau L-2350 earning her keep as she shovels aggregate into a large truck at a rate of about 80 tons per scoop !

The L-2350 can actually load a four hundred ton truck in just 5 passes or a 320 ton truck in only 4 passes and at this rate mining productivity is very fast, an 80 ton truck of course is filled in just 1 pass. The remarkably efficient L-2350 has advanced the speed of mining to a excellent degree.

These loaders it is appreciated work in very dusty environments and a technology that Le Tourneau utilizes is a self-purging KLENZ air filtration system that will work for 5,000 hours before the need to change the filter element.

Moisture is removed form the air through a mist eliminator panel that automatically removes dust particles. The life span of the filter is increased with a system that actually sends air back through the filter in a self cleaning mode and blows it back outside.

These wheel loaders earn their keep working in mines around the world, they have to be maintained to a very high degree as a redundant vehicle would lose money for the mining company every hour the wheel loader is not used.

The pictures below depict some good images of these tires, that are fitted with 'snow' chains. It was discovered that with the use of these 'snow' chains that more traction was possible on muddy as well as snowy ground.

Also these heavy duty chains weighing up to 5 tons each protect the tires from damage.  Replacing a damaged tire is very costly, both in man hours and direct expense, as the cost of each tire is around $62,500! that's a lot of money to replace a flat tire!

In 1995, Michelin made what was then the largest radial tire in the world, the 55/80 57 X Mine D2 for the Caterpillar 994 wheeled loader at over 5 tons each not including the weight of the rim !

The drivers of these loaders inspect the fitting of the snow/protection chain on the huge tires.

Fitting these chains to  the tires is a mammoth task in itself, but it's worth the hassle because the tires are so expensive and productivity of the loader is seriously thwarted by a puncture or any damage to them.

  The Caterpillar 994 D  

Make no mistake, the cat 994D is a seriously big loader, alas, it's not the worlds biggest as already stated but at the time, it did employ the use of the worlds largest tires, until the Le Tourneau L-2350 came along and spoilt it !

The cat 994D has a V16 diesel engine that delivers 1500 hp, which is more than adequate for the work that it undertakes.  It is equipped with a 4 exhaust stack system and each tailpipe is dedicated to the removal of exhaust from 4 cylinders, and this causes the engine to behave more like four engines operating in tandem.

Every single part of the engine apart from a few solenoids, is painted in thick heavy duty industrial paint for added protection from the elements of the environment that these loaders work in.

A Cat 994 series below, fitted with tire chains.  These chains add a fair few extra ton of weight to the loader, but with the amount of protection that they supply to the tires, its worth all the extra fuel that is used to drive it.

 Those wheels have a serious business look about them !

The Cat 994F is also a Giant amongst giants...

To see the huge WA1200-3 wheel loader.

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