Komatsu’s newest and largest skid-steer loader has been designed with features to improve performance in heavy lift-and-carry applications as well as routine excavating work. Keeping those goals foremost in mind led Komatsu engineers to equip the SK1026-5 skid steer with a host of powerful features, including a fuel-efficient, high-horsepower engine, HydrauMind hydraulic control system, Automatic Power Control system, a wide machine stance and a Super Flow auxiliary hydraulic system.
Up front, the SK1026-5 features a vertical-lift loader arm design, which keeps the load steady through the lifting cycle and allows maximum forward bucket reach at the linkage’s full dump height. “This makes this skid steer ideal for truck loading and handling palletized materials,” notes Bob Lessner, product manager. “It also improves the machine’s stability in load-and-carry applications since the bucket remains close to the machine and moves in a vertical path.” To further increase the SK1026-5’s front-end effectiveness, Lessner says Komatsu designers gave the skid steer a 40-degree dump angle and 28-degree rollback angle to allow for faster dump cycles and better load retention in rough terrain.
two-speed power train improves load-and-carry times
Because simultaneous machine operations are vital for productivity, Lessner says Komatsu also opted to take its HydrauMind technology from its hydraulic excavator line and offer it as standard equipment on the SK1026-5. HydrauMind optimizes a machine’s hydraulic system to ensure priority flow in simultaneous functions, such as combined loader-arm and bucket movements, without sacrificing speed, engine power or overall hydraulic performance.
The unit’s standard hydraulic system features an auxiliary hydraulic circuit with a flow of 21 gallons per minute. An additional “Super Flow” auxiliary circuit can be spec’d with a maximum flow of 34 gpm. Both systems operate at a maximum pressure of 3,045 pounds per square inch.
Komatsu’s Closed Load Sensing System is also standard. A complement to the machine’s HydruaMind system, CLSS ensures maximum control during both single and simultaneous bucket movements and gives operators an advantage in grading, loading and digging applications where precise control is mandatory.
“Komatsu’s exclusive two-speed travel powertrain is also standard on this machine,” Lessner adds. “It allows low impact shift-on-the-go speed changes between the machine’s 6.5 mph work range and 10 mph travel range for improved load-and-carry times and travel times around the jobsite.”
Also boosting the SK1026-5’s jobsite performance is its Automatic Power Control (APC) system. This is Komatsu’s patented anti-stall hydraulic system. It allows you to work with full engine power in tough field conditions without worrying about engine stall. The system will automatically compensate hydraulic flow to the powertrain to offset changing power demands, like when the machine enters into a stockpile, for example. A wide 45.7-inch wheelbase gives a more stable ride while providing a better platform for operating high-flow attachments.
The spacious cab features Komatsu’s Proportional Pressure Control joystick levers, with a choice of three control patterns. All instrumentation is located on the operator restraint bar for easy viewing, and all controls and switches are ergonomically-located for easy reach by the operator.
