im fairly new to equipment but i have been looking for a mini excavator for a while now. im having a hard time pinning down a list of certain areas to check on a machine. i know things are going to vary depending on make and model also, which adds to the trouble of getting a good list going. we cant afford anything new so i've been put in charge of hunting for a new to us, used machine. we're looking for about a 7,000 lb-12,000 lb size machine, that would compliment the current concrete business my father owns. what are the main wear points to look at on say a pc35/50, a john deere 35/50d, and other comparable models if you have knowledge. thanks in advance for any help you can give a newbie:usa
CaT1029, when I look at a small excavator like this, I look at the hours, engine compartment for leaks , condition of the cab and seat, boom and stick pins and bushings for movement, undercarriage wear, general condition of the machine. On some of the smaller machines attachments like a swing boom, rubber tracks, auxillary hydraulics to operate a hammer, etc. The online auctions have good inspections of the machines they are selling, you could see what items they are looking at. OC (outside cat)
I'm assuming you are talking about a swing boom machine as opposed to an articulating boom. The pivot point at the bottom of the boom and the boom foot are the two worst places. The vertical pins get sloppy like you see on a loader backhoe. Most of these pins are retained by a couple of bolts in the top. The holes for them are slotted to allow for some back and forth movement. As long as the bolts are still there you are OK for awhile. The boom foot just gets sloppy back forth. To check it stretch the stick out and set it all on the ground. Then push up and down a little at a time to see the slack. I've seen about 3/8" back and forth before the bushings are worn through. Once you have worn through the bushings its a weld and rebore repair. Good Luck!?
excavator This may not help, make sure you buy the right size for what you want to do. A friend of mine bought a used mini and it looked great, but it wouldnt hardly dig a trench in soft dirt. It ended up the pump was going bad. He wasnt able to test it before he bought it. Most mini excavators get over worked. low hours and good looks, are not always the true condition. Did I say make sure you get a machine that is big enough to do your work
thanks for the input, this is exactly the kind of feedback im looking for keep it coming. right now the machine that has caught my eye is a 2005 deere 50d with cab/air, aux. hydraulics, quick coupler, and 1800 hours. is there any things i should check on it that are machine specific to the deere 50d's? so far im getting a pretty good list going: check all pins for slop, boom swing pin, check cab for abuse, check for play in the main pin under the cab, look for leaks....etc. what would you guys think is a fair price for this kind of machine if its in good shape? :beatsme
well i got to run the deere 50d for a short time today. i wasn't able to dig since they did not have a bucket on the machine at the time. i was able to cycle all the controls, just not while digging. they also allowed me to do the same things on a 50d with only 300 hrs to let me compare the more used machine to a new one. everything seemed to check out decent except for the drive on the left side track(if your sitting in the cab) at fist it would only go backwards and not forwards then it eventually started slowly moving forward. could something have been frozen up or is this a sign of a more serious problem? the machine has been sitting outside for about a week and its been down to the single digits overnight lately, what do y'all think? they also informed me that they had a bobcat in a comparable size to the 50d in stock, what is everyones thoughts on bobcat vs. deere? thanks again for the help, its hard to make a 25k-35k dollar decision without getting other opinions on the machines.
does anyone know of a website thats free to verify cat equipment year and manufature thanks
excavator Tracks do freeze up, did the 300 hr machine have frozen tracks? That may not be a good test, because the 300 hr machine may have real clean tracks and more unlikely to freeze up. Just a thought any warranty on the machine you were looking at? I dont have any experience with the price on these small machines, but $25,000 seems a bit high on a small used machine, in this economy.
not sure were in the "north east" you are located but this company has some nice machines. I have bought from them before http://www.brooksideequipment.com/inventory.htm
the 50d with 300 hrs did not have frozen tracks but that one had not been sitting outside as long, it was just in the shop getting a fluid analysis and check over for someone earlier that day. they are asking $29,750 for the 05 deere 50d with 1779 hrs. for the bobcat they want $35,500 but it only has 611 hrs, a thumb and cab. i do not know a lot about the bobcat because it is at one of their stores a few hours away but they are willing to haul it here for me to look at.
From machinery trader - Deere 50D Bobcat 435 If you go to the top of the page there is a tab "View High Low Average". This will give you the prices for both auction and for sale machines. Looks like they are in the ballpark for what they are asking, although it does leave the door open for negotiation. As far as Bobcat mini's, I have a 2001 334D that I bought new. It has 2K or so hours on it and the only thing I have done is put a set of tracks on it. I don't know about the newer models but I have been happy with mine. It's as handy as a shirt pocket.
You say you'll be using it in concrete projects so I suggest taking a good look at the undercarriage for advanced wear on any of the components: Sprockets, Rollers, etc. - The continuous shock & vibration puts a burden on these areas, and they're not always easy to notice.
Have them put a bucket on that 50D you were looking at. i would not buy it if I couldn't try it out. You should even be able to demo it (put it to work for a couple of days. This should allow you to see how it will work in real world conditions. This is NOT an unusual request. I have never bought a machine that I didn't demo first. BTW I have heard that the Deere/Hitachi minis (35 & 50) are not very strong and have over heating issues. Be sure to put one to the test before you buy (no matter which brand).
I will not comment here on the 435. If you want more info search the mini excavator forum. There you will find my opinion and others' as well. Good luck.
when it comes to mini excavators , there are many good brands out there and there are alot of deals out there right now, one thing I would highly recomend is getting one with a hyd thumb or having one put on after you get a machine,if you purchase a machine without thumb and get a machine with a swing boom, you can steal the hydraulics from the swing boom and with a couple quick couplers and use the swing valve to operate thumb, a little inconvient but a easy cheap way to have a thumb, only downfall is not having swing use when using thumb, but in concrete tearouts a thumb is a must
i have a bobcat 331 which is right around 7k and it has ben a great machine, i would definitely say to make them put a bucket on the machine you are looking at, it only takes me a couple minutes to swap the bucket on my bobcat so it sounds a little shady to me that didnt for you
its not that the dealer wouldnt put a bucket on it for me, they gladly offered to but i didnt have the time that day to take it out back and dig with it. i will deffinately demo whatever machine peaks my interest. so far there has been another machine thrown into the mix, a 2007 yanmar vio 45 with 12 hrs on it. the machine obviously isn't as cheap as the other ones ive been looking at but it has a year left on warranty and the only hours on it have been from people just test riding it, not even digging with it, just spinning around on it for fun pretty much. i havent heard many bad things at all about yanmars, the drawback is the price though, its significantly more than the other machines especially after you add the cost of a thumb. is the change in price worth the trade off in hours?
I dont know anything about this machine, but Im just wondering why the people that tested it, didnt buy it (price, machine, bad rumors, etc) I still say that you should look for a older and bigger machine. I dont know what your price range is and what you intend to do with it after your projects, but to bounce around all day on those little machines is not good. I admit the small machines has their place, but it sounds like you have some big projects. As always the warranty is a good thing, but you are paying for it, its just hid in the price. You can find a older machine and get someone that knows what to look for and save a bunch of money But this is just my 2 cents worth Good Luck
With the information you have provided, or rather lack there of, it is not possible to determine if the lower hours is worth the additional cost. As a nuetral party I am a little concerned about your last post. It sounds as though you want a newer machine but, you said in your first post, that you don't have the $ for a new machine. The newer Yanmar you are now concidering is probably going to cost near the same (after you add up all the payments) as a new machine due to the higher financing rate of a used machine vs the incentive based rates of new (assuming that you will finance to term). If you are truly going to look at used it will cost you much less to find a unit that is equipped how you want it. Finding a used machine (even if it's a good deal) that you have to add components to (like a thumb) will greatly reduce the value found by buying used in the first place. In other words you would be MUCH better off if you bought a used mini with a thumb than buying a used mini and adding a thumb. My concern is that you are now muddying the waters with all the possible options. When you get to this point it is easy to lose sight of your original plan and let the dealer talk you into something other than what you really started out to buy. I would recommend that you go back to your basics. Determine (from your business model) which machine (and how to equip it) that you need, and the amount of money that you have to spend. Then go find the best unit that you can get that fits the perameters that you have laid out. Best of luck.