Page 285 - Peterson 85 Years and Going Strong

PETERSON’S SPECIALIZED CUSTOM BUCKETS
THE CALIFORNIA BUCKET:
California’s earthmoving market uses trucks and trailers with narrower tops than the rest of the country. In the 1960s, Cat’s standard buckets (134–145-inch) were too wide for California use and caused spillage. Instead, Peterson designed a 112-inch bucket that matches up beauti- fully with a truck. As customer demand grew, Caterpillar recognized the emerging market potential. In 2007, Cat came out with their own 112-inch top-loading bucket, marketed as the “California Loading Bucket.” Today, Peterson continues to customize these buckets to specific customer needs.
THE V-DITCH BUCKET:
In 2007, Peterson built a 9-cubic-yard V-ditch bucket for a customer’s Cat 385 excavator with a 58-ft reach. It measured 12-ft wide by 9-ft high, weighed six tons and was 40% larger than any other bucket on the market. The specialty bucket measured 143-inch at the top and narrowed to 24-inch at the bottom, with a 34° angle, and was connected to the excavator stick by a quick-coupler. The V-shape concept was a safety design to create a sloped ditch so workers wouldn’t get buried if the ditch collapsed.
THE ROCK BUCKET:
In 2008, Peterson built a custom 8.5-cubic-yard bucket for a customer’s 385B excavator. They had gone through two standard rock buckets within three months and were looking for something more substantial. The Peterson bucket went a year and a half before needing any reconditioning.
THE DEMOLITION BUCKET:
Peterson sold its first demolition bucket—built for a Cat 955 Traxcavator—to Bayshore Excavating back in 1958. In 1969, Buster patented his design and contin- ued to build them as customers saw their versatility and merit. Since then, Peterson’s fab shops have built over two thousand custom attachments, per custom- er request. The majority have been buckets, many
of which are based on Buster’s demolition bucket prototype.
CHAPTER 17 | 283