Heavyweight arrival

Scotland's first JCB 420X is making a big impression for longstanding JCB customer AMD Contract Services. Loading blasted rock into a crusher in the Scottish Highlands is no place for a machine that cannot pull its weight.

For AMD Contract Services Ltd, the demanding application provided the perfect proving ground for the latest addition to its 150-strong fleet - the first JCB 420X tracked excavator to be sold in Scotland.

Working at a hard-stone borrow pit near Fort William, the new 40-tonne class machine is being used to load blasted material for crushing, producing stone for use on forest trails and timber haul roads.

And after almost 50 years operating excavators himself, AMD Managing Director Fraser Dykes knows exactly what he expects from a machine.

Beefed up in all the right places

The new 420X takes JCB's X Series into the 40-tonne class and has been developed for demanding applications including aggregate production, contract crushing, demolition, earthmoving and quarrying.

For Fraser, its strength and stability have made an immediate impression.

He said: “My background is as a digger driver; I drove them for nearly fifty years and I can say that the new model is a proper machine. The 420X has been beefed up in all the right places. The new undercarriage and the stability that it creates is fantastic.”

Powered by a 240kW (321hp) Stage V diesel engine producing up to 1,526Nm of torque, the 420X's standard Earthmoving Pro Pack includes a 2.6m³ heavy-duty bucket, delivering 10% more capacity than the 370X.

A larger undercarriage provides an 11% improvement in over-the-side lifting capability compared with the 370X, while larger boom cylinders increase lifting performance. Heavy-duty reinforced boom and arm construction further equip the machine for demanding applications.

For AMD, those capabilities are being put straight to work loading its crusher and helping maintain an efficient flow of material through the operation.

The view from the cab

The new machine is also winning praise from the person spending his working day behind the controls.

AMD operator Kyle McDonald has more than ten years' experience operating a wide range of machinery and had already clocked up almost 140 hours in the 420X when he gave his verdict.

He said: “My first impression is this is an absolutely brilliant machine to sit in, so comfortable and for its weight class very quick and powerful. It feels as nimble as a 30-tonner but with fantastic production performance of a 40-tonner.

“The joystick controls feel smooth and precise which help to dig, load or tidy up the work area quickly and in my opinion they are simply a joy to use.

“The X Series cab is just phenomenal. Working in a big forestry borrow pit you can soon rack up some long days and the comfort of this cab makes a massive difference on how you feel at the end of a long shift and also makes my job much more enjoyable.”

That operator environment includes JCB's CommandPlus cab and latest JCB UX user interface, incorporating a 10-inch full colour touchscreen monitor and customisable controls. A high-definition 360° camera system is also fitted as standard.

Making a big impression

More than half a century after the Dykes family bought its first JCB, AMD's latest investment represents quite a leap from the 3C Mark II Fraser travelled to Glasgow to collect as a ten-year-old.

Today the first JCB 420X in Scotland sits at the top of a substantial JCB fleet and is already earning the approval of both the experienced operator in its cab and the lifelong excavator driver running the business.

After more than 50 years together, Scotland's first 420X marks another heavyweight chapter in the AMD and JCB story.