Your Doosan DX85R-7

Common jobs for the Doosan DX85

The Doosan DX85 is an 8.5-tonne machine that suits contractors with mixed work. On Swedish jobs it goes from pipe trenches and cable digging to lighter demolition, a midi machine that is not locked to one type of job. It is heavy enough for deep trenches yet nimble enough to move between sites during the week.

On a utility job the DX85 digs pipe trenches and lays services, on a demolition it pulls apart a smaller structure and loads the debris. On groundwork it grades and lays cable. You avoid changing machine when the job shifts from digging to demolition in the same week, which makes it flexible for a smaller firm.

On the S45 hitch it drives medium breakers, grapples and digging buckets with margin. At 8.5 tonnes the machine carries heavier attachments steadily, even a fair way out from the tracks. That makes the DX85 a good base to build an attachment set around for someone with mixed jobs.

Buckets and attachments that fit the DX85

For an 8.5-tonne machine you choose a toothed bucket for excavation and pipe trench, a wide grading bucket for levelling and reinstatement, and a narrow cable bucket for tight trenches. On utility and groundwork jobs the narrow and wide bucket combination is what you use most.

A sorting grapple belongs on the DX85 in demolition and material handling. It loads stone, pulls apart and sorts spoil. At 8.5 tonnes the machine carries the grapple steadily even a fair way out, which makes it effective when you clear up after demolition.

All attachments run on the S45 hitch, the standard for the midi class. With the same hitch you swap quickly between bucket, grapple and breaker, which is exactly what makes the DX85 good on mixed jobs where you switch tasks often.

Hydraulic breaker and heavy attachments for the DX85

An 8.5-tonne machine drives a medium hydraulic breaker for rock, concrete and frost. On mixed jobs the breaker is often the attachment that gets you through rock in the pipe trench or lets you demolish a concrete structure without hiring in a bigger machine.

Check the oil flow against the breaker spec before you buy. The DX85 has the flow for a medium breaker, but it has to be matched to your machine hydraulics to hit right and last over time.

An auger drive is useful on the DX85 for post holes, footing piles and planting pits. The drive rotates and the auger bit is the part that sits in it, and you choose the size by the hole. On a midi machine it takes coarser holes without trouble.

S45 quick hitch and fit

The Doosan DX85 runs an S45 hitch, the standard coupler for the midi class. Check the attachments are listed for S45 before you buy. With a common hitch you build a set of attachments that all fit and that you swap quickly between tasks.

A tiltrotator can be fitted to the DX85 and gives the bucket more movement, which is worth it on mixed groundwork where you work near services, edge and facade. On pure trenching the money may do more on extra buckets and a good breaker.