Excavator vs. Backhoe Comparison

excavator for quite a while. In fact, one of the first pieces of equipment I bought was a tractor loader backhoe or known as a TLB. And the reason I bought that is I thought it would be more versatile. Without ever really knowing the difference between an excavator and a TLB, I imagined that a tractor loader backhoe with that bucket on the front and then the boom arm on the back would give me more opportunities to do a variety of jobs. But what I learned was after I finally bought an excavator, I would never go back to a TLB. Now, I still do own a few different TLBs because they have their applications, but as a versatile allaround machine, an excavator absolutely dominates and gives you more flexibility to get into different situations. It gives you more stability. It allows you to do more things than a TLB could ever do. Now, the primary difference between an excavator and a TLB is that boom arm that you're looking at right there. A tractor loader backhoe has a very limited swing radius. And that limited swing radius makes a big impact in overall efficiency. Plus, stability is a big factor. You can take an excavator in places on hillsides and doing jobs that a tractor loader backhole with its topheavy design just isn't very comfortable to be in.