Leeboy’s 8520 asphalt paver was designed with operator feedback. Operators said they wanted more productivity and power than the company’s 8515 paver.

“We’re putting more horsepower and a little more steel into the machine and making it more of a beast,” said LeeBoy general sales manager Bryce Davis.

Greater Maneuverability

Davis describes the product as ideal for highway median paving, especially for areas such as turning lanes and offramps.

“Our machine is a little more maneuverable to get in, out, and around those areas, which makes the contractor more productive,” Davis said, adding that LeeBoy pavers are used in city, county, and state fleets for a variety of paving projects. “If they want to do patchwork, overlays, or new asphalt laying down for developing a new road, this can pretty much do it all. It’s a very versatile machine.”

Horsepower Boost

LeeBoy increased the Kubota engine’s horsepower from 74 to 106. Brian Hall, LeeBoy territory manager, said the company also optimized the hydraulic system with an extra pump to handle more hydraulic flow. The machine’s augers, conveyors, and generator are now running on separate circuits, allowing the operator to run multiple functions at one time.

In the past, if a user was operating a non-optimized system to pave at 10 feet wide and then extended it out a couple feet farther, that might have robbed hydraulic power from the augers, conveyors, or other components.

“This is a hydrostatic machine, so for your augers, your chains, and your vibrators on the screed, everything is controlled hydrostatically,” Hall said. “It just gives them better flow for all those functions and longer life.”

Higher Hopper Capacity

LeeBoy also increased the paver’s hopper capacity from 7.5 to 9 tons. Davis explained that the machine features slow-moving wide conveyors, so when the user dumps material into the hopper of the 8520, the entire load comes back through the paver at close to the same size, which results in longer-lasting parts.

“You don’t even have to use your augers unless you’re paving wider than 8 or 9 feet, so it saves wear and tear on your chains, your augers, and your whole machine because you’re not feeding really fast,” Davis said. A new heavy-duty generator with new S-curve elements in the screed allows the screed to heat faster and more uniformly, “so it gets you ready to be on the hot asphalt a lot faster.”

The machine’s compact size means fleets can transport more equipment at once.

“With our sized machine, they can put a paver, roller, and a skid steer probably on the same trailer and haul it out to the job. It makes it more efficient,” Davis said. n