Hi Guys, I will be going to an auction to try and get a small mini ex for use in my resort here in indonesia (laying pipes, digging pond / swimming pool, septic tanks, cutting into the hill at the back and making a nature trail). I'm basically looking for something as cheap as possible that can do as much as possible The unit that has got my interest at the moment is an IHI IS7GX, its one of those tiny child sized ones. I cant find any spec details online, does anyone know of a good resource? The max digging depth is about 5 feet which im ok with, but what i want to know is can i put a bigger bucket on there than the one supplied as standard? I'd like at least a 24" bucket for grading and clearing off the topsoil. Also i cant really tell from the photo, does this unit have auxillary hydraulics? i'll b inspecting later this week The next option is a Hitachi ex 20 u which is a bit bigger and as such will require an alternate path cutting though the jungle to be able to move it around ( = more fun for me). There is also an airman in the lot, which has a breaker and some other bits, but im not too sure about that brand. Does anyone have any experience with them? The unit will be used on mainly topsoil, once you get about 5 feet down it turns into a compacted sedimentary rock. Would either of these units be able to cope with the rockier substrate? (Can provide photos of a cut through that we did by hand as an example). Once im done with my projects, the ex would be used for lifting boat engines and dragging boats around and maintaining the compost heap Thanks for any input
I would not buy any mini smaller then 8,000 lbs. tree stumps take way to long the smaller the machine gets.
Airman builds the deere/hitachi machines under 6 ton. Bigger is better when dealing with rock. Considering your larger projects, septic, pool, pond, i would be looking for at least a 7 ton machine.
To me it seems for jobs like you describe I want about the biggest machine I can still maneuver around the site. So as long as it will fit, bigger is better.
Hey Scuba, I agree with the others...get as big a machine as you can afford and a thumb for messing with rocks, jungle etc.. Watch out for those machines with new paint at the auction. Sometimes they look great but underneath the paint you have grief. Also make sure what you buy has a parts source nearby. Good Luck
Agreed... Bigger is better. If you go small to save money it will cost you more in the long run. "Time is Money"
yanmar vio-30 7000lb great machine for around 10000.00 they run 4 ever,and parts no problem good luck