I am thinking of buying an old Dinosaur excavator to work in the sandpit.I will be digging 20 feet deep and piling it up on dry ground it does not have to be real fast but fairly cheap to run. I have a little less than $10,000 to spend. I found an old American 35 which I think is a good size for my project. Does anyone have experience running these, and what weak points should I look for? What would one that looks decent sell for? Are there any other models I might look for with 30 foot reach that would fit my needs? Thanks Hyperpack
Not sure about that macine but would suggest be carefull of cheap. What seems cheap and affordable today may end up being expensive and broke tomorrow. I'd also do a search{some of the folks here can probably help} on parts for that machine. Won't do much could if something breaks and can't be fixed????
From what I understand, American 35s use "generic" parts such as Detroit Diesels and the like. Never having seen one I'll refer you to a website I go to very often, it's very informative and also extremely interesting for those that love older iron! Go to http://www.vannattabros.com/iron12.html and http://www.vannattabros.com/iron18.html for all kinds of great info on the American 35 and35A models. He's got all kinds of other cool stuff too so you'll be busy for a while...
I almost went that way with an American 45 that was listed for $10k. Kinda glad I didn't go for something quite that old and obscure for a working machine. If I get my post count up so I can start a new thread, I'll post about the Case 175B I bought yesterday for $10k. There seem to be quite a few older but usable machines selling for relatively cheap money in today's economy. Still happy with the $16k Kobelco I bought two years ago, but this Case is in better shape. Where are you located?
I spent a year on an American Hoist digger many years ago.From memory it was about 50 ton,and ran a 6 cyl detroit.Would this be made by the same company ?.Wasn't a bad machine 20 yrs ago,if you could keep the fan belts up to it