Which 3 Tonne Telehandler Should You Hire? Dieci, Merlo, Magni, JCB, Manitou and What We Run

Six brands turn up on nearly every Sydney telehandler enquiry: Dieci, Merlo, Magni, JCB, Manitou and LGMG. They all build a fixed-boom rough-terrain machine around 3 tonne capacity and 6 to 7 metres of lift. If you are hiring rather than buying, the differences that decide your job are narrower than the marketing suggests.

What genuinely separates them

Set the badges aside and there are five real axes.

• Load chart at your reach. Not headline capacity. A 3 tonne machine is 3 tonne close in and far less at full extension. This is the one that decides jobs.
• Width and turning circle. On a residential block or a basement ramp, 100 mm of width or a metre of turning radius matters more than a tonne of capacity you will never use.
• Steering and frame tilt. Four-wheel steer and crab steer get a loaded machine along a boundary. Frame tilt levels the load on a slope. Not every machine in this class has both.
• Attachments. Forks are universal; jibs, buckets, rotators and work platforms are not, and they are not interchangeable between brands.
• Who is actually delivering it, and when. The best machine in the world is no use if it is cross-hired from a third yard and turns up a day late.

Brand by brand, honestly

We hire one telehandler and we are not going to pretend to have load charts for machines we do not own. What we can tell you is where each brand sits.

• Dieci. Italian, very broad fixed-boom range, common on residential and commercial builds here. Ranges are wide, a spec that just says “Dieci” tells you almost nothing until you get the model.
• Merlo. Italian, known for the single side-boom layout and a strong rotating range. Well regarded in civil and agricultural work.
• Magni. Best known for rotating telehandlers and big reach. If a Magni is specified for a fixed-boom job, ask whether rotation is genuinely needed, see Fixed or Rotating Telehandler? for the one question that settles it.
• JCB. The most recognised name in the class and a very large Australian dealer network. Model numbers like 531-70 end up in specifications as shorthand for the class itself.
• Manitou. The other big network. Long history in telehandlers and a deep attachment range.
• LGMG. Chinese manufacturer with an Australian arm at Ingleburn, NSW. Best known here for access equipment; the telehandler line uses a Kubota engine and conventional hydraulics.

All six will lift a pallet to 6 metres. None of them is a bad machine. Choose on the chart and the logistics.

What we run, and why we recommend it

Equip Hire owns and hires the LGMG H730. Its published figures, transcribed from the manufacturer sheet we hold:

• 3,000 kg maximum lift capacity
• 6.9 m maximum lift height, 4 m horizontal outreach
• Four-wheel drive and four-wheel steer, 4 m minimum turning radius
• ±5 degrees of frame tilt to level the load on a slope
• Kubota 54.6 kW (73.2 hp) diesel, 24.9 km/h in second gear, 45% gradeability unladen
• Multiple-disc oil-bath brakes on both axles, 6,900 kg operating weight
• Rough-terrain load chart: 3,000 · 2,500 · 2,000 · 1,500 · 1,200 · 950 kg as the boom goes out and up

Three honest reasons we would put it on your job:

1. It covers the class the specifications are written around. 3 tonne, 7 metres, 4 m outreach. If the scope says Dieci, Merlo, Magni, JCB or Manitou at this size, the H730 works in the same envelope, check your point on the chart above and it either clears or it does not.
2. We own it. It is not cross-hired, so the rate has no third-party margin in it and the delivery date is ours to commit to, out of Berkshire Park.
3. The figures are published, not implied. Every number above is on the product page with the manufacturer sheet behind it. Compare it against whatever you have been quoted elsewhere.

Where we would tell you to go elsewhere: if the job genuinely needs rotation, more than 3 tonne, more than 7 metres, or a specific attachment we do not carry. We would rather say so than send the wrong machine.

Before you enquire, have three numbers ready

• The heaviest load, the height it has to reach, and the distance out from the machine.
• The narrowest access the machine must pass, and what the ground is.
• Whether anyone needs to be lifted: that needs an approved work platform attachment and the matching licence, never forks and a pallet.

Send those and we will check the load chart for you and confirm in writing whether the H730 covers the lift. If it does not, we will say so.

The telehandler we hire

Telehandlers

Dieci Apollo 25.6 Telehandler

Working height

5.78 m

Power

Diesel

Terrain

Rough terrain / 4WD

Why it may suit: 2.5 tonne telehandler with a 5.78 m lift height and 3.25 m forward reach. A compact fixed boom machine for residential and fit-out sites.

Worth checking: Read the load chart at the reach and height being used, not the headline 2,500 kg. The diesel engine means outdoor and well ventilated use only.

Matched on verified fields: Working height, Power, Terrain. Site access, ground conditions and dates still need checking against your job.

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Telehandlers

LGMG H1440 Telehandler

Working height

13.6 m

Power

Diesel

Terrain

Rough terrain / 4WD

Matched on verified fields: Working height, Power, Terrain. Site access, ground conditions and dates still need checking against your job.

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Telehandlers

LGMG H625 Telehandler

Working height

5.94 m

Power

Diesel

Terrain

Rough terrain / 4WD

Matched on verified fields: Working height, Power, Terrain. Site access, ground conditions and dates still need checking against your job.

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Suitability is subject to site access, ground conditions and availability. We confirm the machine against your job before hire.