School me on Mini Excavators

skegpro

skegpro

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What does one need to know about these little rigs?

Must have features?

What to stay away from?

What to watch for when buying used?

Thx
 
Clode

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this style is very quiet and easy on fuel, and hole depth is limited, sunscreen is a must have option

f2d8eec83b92f6d26be73df93d9696a5.jpg
 
niner

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We have this hitachi 40. Been a great hoe. Digs 10’ deep. Goes through frost. Has 5000 hrs and still feels like new.
 

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thump

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I have been looking also, have looked at a few and been to a few dealers in Edmonton. A couple things the salesman told me to look for was to have the bucket up off of the ground and then go over to the end of the boom and try to push the boom side to side to check for slew ring play. When your in the machine and swinging pay attention to how it stops when you let go of the control will tell you how good the swing brake is. I had tested an older Kubota and when i let go of the control the unit didnt slow down at all! Check all of the pivot points for excessive wear on the boom and bucket, may need new bushings and or pins. Look for oil leaks everywhere, cylinder rebuilds can be pricy. I was told If the unit has been heavily used with a pavement breaker or a dirt tamper, stay away from it, i guess it puts extra strain and wear on the slewring bearing. Apparently a thumb is very handy$ and so is a 4 way blade$. 12 and 24 inch digging bucket and a 30 or 36 inch cleanup bucket. If you buy used from a dealer I would ask for a hydraulic pump pressure test. Myself,I have been aiming towards a Kubota or Deere in the 3.5 ton size.
 
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C

Cyle

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thump said:
I have been looking also, have looked at a few and been to a few dealers in Edmonton. A couple things the salesman told me to look for was to have the bucket up off of the ground and then go over to the end of the boom and try to push the boom side to side to check for slew ring play. When your in the machine and swinging pay attention to how it stops when you let go of the control will tell you how good the swing brake is. I had tested an older Kubota and when i let go of the control the unit didnt slow down at all! Check all of the pivot points for excessive wear on the boom and bucket, may need new bushings and or pins. Look for oil leaks everywhere, cylinder rebuilds can be pricy. I was told If the unit has been heavily used with a pavement breaker or a dirt tamper, stay away from it, i guess it puts extra strain and wear on the slewring bearing. Apparently a thumb is very handy$ and so is a 4 way blade$. 12 and 24 inch digging bucket and a 30 or 36 inch cleanup bucket. If you buy used from a dealer I would ask for a hydraulic pump pressure test. Myself,I have been aiming towards a Kubota or Deere in the 3.5 ton size.
Click to expand...

Checking slew bearing is a must, there will be movement in any machine the key is that it's not a huge amount like 1'. A thumb is huge. A 4-way blade is a waste of money. They are backfill blades, and you shouldn't be using them as a dozer. They are slow doing it, will wear the drives and tracks much faster. A hoe pack and hammer is hard on pins for sure and in general shakes the machine around, but specially the slew bearing? Never heard anyone say that, or how it would be. Cylinder rebuilds aren't bad, if you buy the machine factoring it in. Pins and bushings can be $$ if a lot of joints need them. Wouldn't recommend a john deere mini hoe, they don't have a good reputation like their big ones.
 
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Rotax_Kid

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Cyle said:
Checking slew bearing is a must, there will be movement in any machine the key is that it's not a huge amount like 1'. A thumb is huge. A 4-way blade is a waste of money. They are backfill blades, and you shouldn't be using them as a dozer. They are slow doing it, will wear the drives and tracks much faster. A hoe pack and hammer is hard on pins for sure and in general shakes the machine around, but specially the slew bearing? Never heard anyone say that, or how it would be. Cylinder rebuilds aren't bad, if you buy the machine factoring it in. Pins and bushings can be $$ if a lot of joints need them. Wouldn't recommend a john deere mini hoe, they don't have a good reputation like their big ones.
Click to expand...

Won't argue with you as you have a lot of experience from some other posts I've read in the past.

We work underground in both soft and hard rock. Little different environment, but pretty hard on things. Rarely have issues with slew drives - boom pins are pounded out long before the slew drive has issues. We've tried almost every machine out there in the 6-8.5 ton ranges and they all end up costing us the same per hour to operate and maintain. Biggest thing for us has been parts availability. Seems like the smaller the machine, the harder it is to find parts for it. We had a couple of Takechui's in the 10 ton size and they were nice machines, but finding parts was challenging. As of late, we've settled on Deere's after trying both Kubota's and Cat's. Parts for the Deere's were slightly cheaper and were as easy as a Cat to get. Kubota's were hit and miss with parts. My neighbour bought a 3-4 ton hoe at an auction a few months back. Has 2000 hours and drive motor is gone. Machine is a late 90's hoe - motor is obsolete and they are having a heck of a time trying to find something to adapt or match up.
 
250mark1

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something to keep in mind is the resale on machines like kubota's is not as good as deer or hitachi
deer and hitachi are the same machine different color
friend just bought a brand new hitachi 50 it was over 5k cheaper than the same Deer model
 
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nathan#19

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How about bobcat?
I just started running a brand new E35. It's nice. Good lazer leveling options also.
 
skegpro

skegpro

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250mark1 said:
something to keep in mind is the resale on machines like kubota's is not as good as deer or hitachi
deer and hitachi are the same machine different color
friend just bought a brand new hitachi 50 it was over 5k cheaper than the same Deer model
Click to expand...
Perfect if your in the market for a used Kubota :)
 
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Rotax_Kid

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lilduke said:
Looks kinda mickey mouse, you should probably get this one

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/..._FUz4ezhOGuf1-aytvK8cdRxsSJVb9_eoOPPaMPlD_UQI
Click to expand...

On a side note...I go to Vegas every 4 years for a Mining Show called MinExpo. Everyone brings the biggest and the baddest pieces of gear there. I was chatting with a Hitachi rep once and we were talking about some of the larger shovel Hitachi makes. Jaw dropped when he told me the biggest Hitachi shovel needs 15-17,000L of Hydraulic fluid!
 
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