Norba Ki-8 'Alligator'     With both residential and mid-range rear loaders on the market, Norba made their most ambitious move yet, attempting to tap into the growing market for large-capacity, heavy-duty rear loaders which could handle containers of up to 8 cubic meters. The result was the 1974 Ki-8, a completely new and unique design created by Norba. It would also turn out to be one the few "mis-steps" made by the company as they rose to prominence as a leading manufacturer of refuse trucks.     Norba's ambitions were practical; a successful in-house design would be far more profitable than licensing established models such as the Leach 2-R Packmaster and Heil Mark V. The Ki-8 started with the reciprocating slide plate, already an industry standard by 1974, but used a pair of jaws, operating perpendicular to the slide, to crush and hold each charge of refuse as the slide dragged it into the body. The action of the Ki-8 jaws earned it the moniker Alligator by which it was known in England.     Four body sizes, ranging from 14-19 cubic meters were offered. The smaller sizes seem to indicate Norba's commitment to the design serving as their residential rear loader for the future, as well as a bulk refuse workhorse. However, the Ki-8 never lived up to its ambitions; The un-orthodox jaw packer had to compete with established designs, which had far less restrictive slide-sweep packers. The pre-crushing action of models like the Ki-8 take longer to digest refuse, and exact a terrible toll on the superstructure. According to Timothy Byrne, only a handful of Alligators were sold in England, while the totals worldwide were probably not what Norba had hoped for. In 1977, Norba changed hands again as the Finnish manufacturing giant Partek took control, and by 1979, an all-new rear loader would make its debut. The jaws of Alligator: Click here to start a slide show of the Ki-8 in action (You may return to this page at any time from the slide show) KI-8 on Volvo chassis couples with a large container Container is hoisted while "jaws" go to work on the contents This Volvo has a front-mounted pump to deliver constant power to the Ki-8 SELECTED PATENTS Patent # Description Inventor Assignee Date US4016988A Apparatus for introducing waste or... Dahlin Norba Dec. 1, 1975 10/13/19 © 2019 All Rights Reserved Logos shown are the trademarks of respective manufacturers Photos from factory brochures/trade advertisements except as noted