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Caterpillar 583 Pipelayer - Spiecapag

Maker:  Conrad
Model No:  2875/01
Scale:  1:50
Review Date:  April 2012


Conrad Index
Historic Equipment Index


Cranes Etc Model Rating
Packaging   (max 10)7
Detail   (max 30)18
Features   (max 20)15
Quality   (max 25)20
Price   (max 15)6
Overall   (max 100)66%

Footnotes


Caterpillar 583 Pipelayer - Spiecapag Video
Spiecapag branded box.
Basic seat and controls.
Chunky tracks.
Side boom is a simple design.
Track frames have no working rollers.
This is a very unusual model by Conrad produced exclusively for the VINCI webshop.  It is a pipelayer and is made from an original casting first used by Conrad around 20 years ago.  The original model was a Caterpillar D9G dozer and it was then produced in a pipelayer version as a Caterpillar 594 with rubber tracks.  It was next released as a Caterpillar 583 with metal tracks, probably around 1997.  

The VINCI company Spiecapag is a specialist in pipeline construction owning 200 Caterpillar pipelayers, and to represent their activities they commissioned this pipelayer model from Conrad.

Packaging

It comes in a Spiecapag branded box and interestingly there is no indication of the type of the machine on the box.  The model is contained within polystyrene trays and the review model had no defects or missing parts.

There is no assembly required.

Detail

Underneath, the chassis detail is plain with a couple of large silver screws.  The model is marked as number 2874 indicating the heritage of the casting.

The metal tracks are of heavy construction and the design means that the inside of the track links is not painted.  They are mounted on track frames which look good, although the drive sprocket and idler wheel are simple plastic items and there are no working rollers.

The body is a heavy metal casting with the radiator grille at the front represented by graphics, and the engine is metal.  There is a hole at the front where the connections for dozer blade cylinders were originally made.  The operator's area consists of a simple seat and control stick.

There are no indications on the model that this is a Caterpillar machine possibly for licensing reasons, and all the applied graphics are of Spiecapag.

The sideboom is a simple metal structure and it is partly fixed to tractor with a silver screw which would have been better painted.  The single pulley hook is ready reeved with a single fall of rope.  The luffing rope has three falls and the tiny pulleys appear to be metal. 

The counterweight and winch assembly is metal and the counterweight slabs are delineated.

Features

The tracks are very smooth rolling.  The track frames pivot a little relative to each other so can be posed on an uneven surface.

The sideboom angle can be adjusted using a working winch and there is enough friction to hold any pose.  The hook can also be raised and lowered. 

To provide balance the counterweight can move out on a couple of stiff hydraulic cylinders.

Quality

This is a very solid model.  It has a high metal content and is well finished in terms of paint work and graphics.

Price

This is a rare and unusual model and it is expensive probably as a result of the limited numbers in the run.

Overall

VINCI has commissioned this model from Conrad and it is unusual because of its history, and that it is not marked with the Caterpillar designation.  The detail level is lower than on more modern models but the features are good.  It is recommended to anyone wanting something different and can afford the price.

Footnotes

This version of the model first appeared in 2011 and was made in a run of 250.

 
Radiator grille is represented by graphics.
View underneath.  The model is marked as number 2874.
Counterweight provides balance.
The hole at the front of the engine is for the connection of the blade cylinder in the original D9G version of the model.
Hook is reeved as a single line.