I've lost count of the rush orders I've handled—but I know the number is over 200. I'm the guy who gets the call when someone's skid steer is down three days before a job starts, or when a rental mini excavator needs to be delivered by morning. Look, I'm not a sales guy. I'm the logistics and emergency response guy.
People ask the same questions over and over about Bobcat equipment, especially when they're new to it or in a pinch. So here's a real-world FAQ—answers based on what I've actually seen go right, and wrong.
What's the difference between a Bobcat skid steer loader and a compact track loader?
Simple version: tires vs. tracks. A skid steer loader (usually) has wheels. A compact track loader (CTL) has tracks, like a mini tank. But the question isn't just mechanical—it's about where you're using it.
In my role coordinating rentals for construction and landscaping clients, I've seen people rent the wrong one and pay the price. Literally.
Skid steer loader (e.g., Bobcat S650): Great for hard surfaces. Concrete, asphalt, gravel yards. They're nimble, faster on flat ground, and cheaper to maintain. But put them on mud or soft soil? You'll be digging them out.
Compact track loader (e.g., Bobcat T590): These are for soft ground, mud, snow. Lower ground pressure means they don't sink. But the tracks wear faster on pavement, and they're slower. Also, replacing a set of tracks can cost $2,000-$4,000 per side.
Here's the thing: If you're working on a mix of ground conditions, the choice is a trade-off. I've had clients try to save $150 by renting a skid steer for a wet job site. They spent three hours stuck. The total cost of that rental? Way more than the track loader would've been.
Bobcat mini excavator vs. skid steer: which do I actually need?
I get this question a lot (especially from folks in Little Rock calling about Bobcat excavators). The honest answer is they do different things, but there's overlap.
A mini excavator (like a Bobcat E42) is for digging—trenches, footings, pools. It can reach down and dig straight, unlike a skid steer loader. The arm is perfect for precise work.
A skid steer loader is more of a multi-tool. Attachments turn it into a forklift, a broom, a grader, a stump grinder. But digging with a skid steer? It's not great. The breakout force is lower.
Real talk: If you're digging a foundation, get the excavator. If you need to move dirt, grade a lot, or do 12 different tasks, get the skid steer. If you need both? Rent both. I've seen people try to use a skid steer with a backhoe attachment for digging—works in a pinch, but it's slow.
For example: In March 2024, a landscaper in Little Rock called needing a machine to dig drainage trenches and then move a pile of topsoil. We set him up with the mini excavator for the digging, and a skid steer for the moving. He finished in one day instead of three. The total rental cost was $400 more than a single machine, but he billed the job at $1,800. Worth it.
Where can I find Bobcat excavators for rent in Little Rock?
Picking up a Bobcat mini excavator in Little Rock isn't hard. The bigger question is who you're renting from.
I've seen people rent from the cheapest guy and show up to a machine that's been sitting in a lot for two years. The battery is dead. The hydraulics leak. It's coughed out for the last 20 hours. The $250/day rental turned into $400/day with lost time and frustration.
What I'd recommend:
- Check the machine's hour meter. Anything over 3,000 hours on a compact excavator is getting tired.
- Ask about the last service date. Oil changes every 50 hours on these machines.
- Look at the tracks. Cracked or over-worn tracks mean problems.
- Rent from a dealer that has a service truck. If it breaks down, you want someone who can fix it today.
I've personally dealt with three different rental yards in the Little Rock area. The two that have a dedicated service guy are always the ones our clients rebook with. The one without? We've had to call them at 6 AM to bring a replacement machine. They showed up at 3 PM. The client lost a full day.
Can a bucket hat protect you on a job site?
This is one of those questions that sounds funny but is dead serious.
A bucket hat (with a wide brim, like 3-4 inches) is useful for sun protection. In a construction or landscaping environment, if you're outside all day, a hard hat is mandatory in most cases. But under that hard hat, a bucket hat won't fit.
However, for people working in forestry, tree care, or even landscaping in extreme sun, a full-brim hard hat is what you want. It protects from falling objects and sun. The standard cap-style hard hat leaves the neck and ears exposed. I've seen guys with sunburned ears so bad they couldn't sleep for two days.
The bucket hat itself? Great for casual wear, or for non-regulated work. But on a proper job site with a hard hat requirement? You're better off with a full-brim hard hat or a sun shield that clips onto the hard hat. I keep one in my truck. It's saved me more than once.
Per USPS regulations (the post office has some of the most detailed sun safety rules), the recommendation is at least a 3-inch brim. But that's their uniform—not construction. For us, the rule is: hard hat first, sun protection second. If you can get both in one unit, do it.
Is a Milwaukee air compressor good for running a jackhammer?
Here we get into tool territory. Milwaukee makes great tools, but the air compressor question is about CFM (cubic feet per minute) and PSI, not just brand.
A small 1-gallon or 2-gallon Milwaukee air compressor (like the M18 compact inflator) is for inflating tires and blowing dust. That's it. You can't run a impact wrench on it for more than a few seconds.
To run a jackhammer (a pavement breaker) you need a big compressor. Think 20+ CFM at 90 PSI. That means a tow-behind compressor, or a massive 60-gallon vertical tank. The average handheld jackhammer needs about 15-20 CFM. A lightweight demo hammer might run on 5-7 CFM, but it won't be fast.
If you've ever tried to run an air tool off a pancake compressor, you know the pain. The tool runs for 10 seconds, then stalls for 30 seconds while the tank refills. That's not productivity. That's frustration.
My advice? If you're renting a skid steer or excavator, rent a hydraulic breaker attachment for it. It'll cost more per day, but it'll break pavement 10x faster than an air hammer running off a portable compressor. I've seen this comparison play out: a crew with a skid steer and hydraulic breaker finished 500 feet of concrete removal in 4 hours. Another crew with an air compressor and jackhammer took 3 days.
How do you properly use an air compressor for running tools?
Let's say you have a good compressor (not a pancake—a real one). Here's how I see people mess this up:
1. Ignoring the CFM requirements. Check the tool's spec. If it requires 10 CFM at 90 PSI, and your compressor outputs 8 CFM at 90 PSI, you will have a bad time. The tool will underperform. You'll keep stopping.
2. Not using a filter/regulator/lubricator (FRL). Moisture in the air line kills tools. A $50 FRL setup will save you hundreds in tool repairs. In our shop, we had a $600 impact wrench die after two weeks because no one put a filter on it. The moisture and grit from the air line destroyed the internal seals.
3. Using the wrong hose. A ¼-inch hose might be fine for a paint sprayer, but for a high-consumption tool like a die grinder or impact wrench, you need ⅜-inch or ½-inch hose. The smaller the hose, the higher the pressure drop over distance. That means less power at the tool.
4. Not draining the tank. Water accumulates in the bottom of the tank. If you don't drain it, the tank rusts from the inside. I've seen a 60-gallon tank blow a pinhole leak because of rust. The fix? Tanks are $400+. The habit? Drain it every day. Takes 30 seconds.
Here's a quick checklist I use:
- CFM of tool vs. CFM of compressor (tool needs less than compressor delivers)
- Hose ID (⅜-inch for general use, ½-inch for heavy tools)
- FRL installed (yes/no)
- Tank drained (after each use)
The question isn't just "how to use." It's "how to use without breaking things." In my first year coordinating equipment, I didn't drain a tank for two months. The inside looked like a rusty soup can. Lost that compressor. Cost me a $700 replacement.
Which Bobcat skid steer loader model is best for a beginner?
If you're new to operating, the Bobcat S70 is a good starting point. It's small, maneuverable, easy to see around, and cheap to rent or buy used. The operating capacity is lower (like 700 lbs), but for basic tasks—grading dirt, moving gravel, snow removal—it's great.
But the question is about best, and that depends on what you're doing. I've seen beginners rent an S650 (a big machine) and struggle because it's powerful and unwieldy. They oversteer, they dig a hole instead of a trench, they dent the grille.
If you're planning to do serious work, the Bobcat T590 (compact track loader) or S590 (skid steer) are the sweet spot for most medium-duty jobs. They're not too big, not too small, and parts are everywhere.
Last quarter alone, we processed 47 rush orders for attachments—buckets, augers, grapple buckets—and the S590/T590 class accounted for over half. They're workhorses. If you can learn on one of those, you can run any machine in the lineup.
Quick summary: What I'd tell my younger self
On skid steers vs. track loaders: Tires for pavement, tracks for everything else. Tracks cost more but save time on mud.
On excavators vs. skid steers: Digging = excavator. Multi-tool = skid steer. Rent both if you need both.
On air compressors: Bigger is better, CFM matters more than brand, and for real breaking work—go hydraulic.
On bucket hats: Good for sun. Bad under hard hats. Get a full-brim hard hat instead.
On total cost: The cheapest rental or purchase is rarely the cheapest outcome. Factor in lost time, repairs, and frustration. A $500 mistake feels worse than a $650 decision that works.
I went back and forth on writing this—whether people really needed an FAQ like this. But after 200+ rush orders and dozens of calls fixing problems that could've been avoided, I figured it was worth putting out there. Hope it saves you a headache.
