The mini excavator thread

[rockota]

This….. There are decent looking machines that fit right in your budget. Look for a 35D

Deere makes a really nice mini.

I have a 26. Just a tad too small often. Agree that the 35 is a great target size.

 

[Wades_76_cj7]

Buddy has a Takeuchi TB138FR that's got about 3k hours on it. he bought it used and hasn't used it much yet. It's got a thumb and what little I have used it it runs well. I believe it's a 8300# machine. it's the one with the hinged mount for the main boom so you can move it from one side to the other if you need to trench next to a building or something.

 

[Mr.Ratbastard]

I just got this little one (Bobcat 418)yesterday. I bought it to use then flip.

 

[Steve300xcw]

whats with the cut in half push blade?

 

[Wades_76_cj7]

whats with the cut in half push blade?

if you can't afford the entire blade you buy it in sections.

 

[Blacksheep10]

I read 8000 lb machine, then I read, "expand my pond".
No
Edit: if its a koi pond in the backyard, OK

 

[2big bronco]

Bobcat 331s are pretty solid budget machines. Ive seen a few in absolutely horrible beat to shit condition that just keep taking it.

Any of the cat .5 machines are super impressive for the non budget crowds

2000s erra takeuchis are a solid machine also.

Komatsus seem to be built the strongest. Pc50s are damn impressive if you dont mind hauling that kind of weight.


Sub 3000lb machines do better then you would think because they are built and sized appropriately for what they are. A tb016 will bury a 10" bucket just like a large machine will bury a 16" bucket.

3-6000# machines seem kinda odd. Not enough weight behind them for the power or weight of the boom. Most have almost 0 copacity all the way out.

6000#s is the minumum to feel efficient and like you have a real piece of machinary.

10k# machines are where things get real.

 

[larboc]

I read 8000 lb machine, then I read, "expand my pond".
No
Edit: if its a koi pond in the backyard, OK

Guessing it's in koi territory or slightly larger given the HOAesk background in OP's pic. Something 25' diameter and 10' deep would certainly be in the range of an 8k machine, just take a while and you'd want something to haul the spoils away so you're not moving the same dirt 2x+ times

 

[larboc]

I just got this little one (Bobcat 418)yesterday. I bought it to use then flip.

Is that one of those 10hp briggs powered alibaba specials that fit's on a standard pallet?

 

[Mr.Ratbastard]

Is that one of those 10hp briggs powered alibaba specials that fit's on a standard pallet?

Nope, it's a Bobcat 418, it has a whopping 10hp but it's a Kubota diesel. It has retractable tracks to fit through gates a tight spaces.

 

[Mr.Ratbastard]

whats with the cut in half push blade?

I am not sure, I thought that was weird too. It looks like it came that way.

 

[Bigstic]

We run a lot of the CAT 303 and 305. I prefer a 305. Just picked up a 2016 Takeuchi TB216 with 956 hours for $25,000. Good machine for the size and with the retracting tracks we can get it through a single door rough opening.

As for what you are saying you would use it for, I would be looking for a bigger machine. JD 120 or CAT 312 size machine. Maybe even jump into the 200 size machines. I helped a friend dig footings for his house with a new rental 305 and I would have taken a 20 year old 312 in a heart beat. My BIL has a '92 CAT 330L on his farm and I love that machine. Easy to work on and just surprisingly very versatile.

 

[larboc]

We run a lot of the CAT 303 and 305. I prefer a 305. Just picked up a 2016 Takeuchi TB216 with 956 hours for $25,000. Good machine for the size and with the retracting tracks we can get it through a single door rough opening.

As for what you are saying you would use it for, I would be looking for a bigger machine. JD 120 or CAT 312 size machine. Maybe even jump into the 200 size machines. I helped a friend dig footings for his house with a new rental 305 and I would have taken a 20 year old 312 in a heart beat. My BIL has a '92 CAT 330L on his farm and I love that machine. Easy to work on and just surprisingly very versatile.

Now we're talking. OP clearly needs a 30 ton machine, low boy, and semi to pull it all around with.

 

[Steve300xcw]

140 is a nice size. those 308's an smaller just beat the hell out of you

 

[Bigstic]

I am not sure, I thought that was weird too. It looks like it came that way.

The 418 has retractable tracks. You can narrow the width to fit through doors. Just like there should be some pins you can pull on the blade to widen it out to full width. Good little machine for getting inside buildings.

 

[Bigstic]

Now we're talking. OP clearly needs a 30 ton machine, low boy, and semi to pull it all around with.

I mean if he has a farm with a pond, shouldn't he have already bought a semi with a low boy

 

[Wades_76_cj7]

I mean if he has a farm with a pond, shouldn't he have already bought a semi with a low boy

WaterH can haul it for him.

 

[Wilson]

The 418 has retractable tracks. You can narrow the width to fit through doors. Just like there should be some pins you can pull on the blade to widen it out to full width. Good little machine for getting inside buildings.

I use them to fit through gates on smaller properties as well.

 

[Krackle959]

Now we're talking. OP clearly needs a 30 ton machine, low boy, and semi to pull it all around with.

And don’t forget a 100 gal fuel transfer tank, and something bigger to get it out when he gets it stuck like a D8.

 

[YotaAtieToo]

I work in commercial excavation, so take that for what you will. But the Kubotas I have seen are garbage compared to nicer machines. Komatsu are much better.

Same here, but they are not garbage. We run them because it's the only dealer for miles and they are dead nuts reliable. They are not as fast or as strong feeling as a real machine, but they are very reliable.

As fot the op, it's like anything. Look at condition.

Chances are those cheap machines will need money thrown at them and you wind up in the $25-30k range real quick. Although every now and then you get lucky.


Also, do you absolutely have to haul it yourself or can you use a bigger machine? Often times the minis are expensive because everyone is "going to do side jobs" with it. If you get into a larger machine that can live at your property, you get a lot more for your money.

 

[Wilson]

For your uses, I would go with the largest machine that you can get (10kish), understanding that it will most likely have thousands of hours and be well used. Don’t be tempted or try to justify a smaller machine with lower hours, or better condition. When you are working with mini’s using a smaller machine doesn’t mean that the job will just take longer; there are actual limits to what undersized machines can do.

Older bobcats, kubotas or cat should have decent local support, almost anywhere.

 

[Steve300xcw]

Just hit up ritchie bros and get a deal on a mini with high hours. Make sure to get the one with fresh paint

 

[Tmackcj5]

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That the kubota? Looks like an ex rental that the thumb was taken off to run a breaker.
Check it over, seems like a decent deal

That is the one.

I read 8000 lb machine, then I read, "expand my pond".
No
Edit: if its a koi pond in the backyard, OK

Not a koi pond. Am I that out of touch thinking I could expand a small stock pond with an 8 K machine? I wouldn't expect it to be exceptionally fast, but that is part of the point in buying vs renting. I have plenty of time.

Besides the pond, my intended uses are septic install, maybe footings, trench for plumbing, trench for electrical.

My excavation experience is minimal. I can run a machine, but i'm no operator. My dad is decent on a machine so he'd be giving me a hand on the pond. That way one of us could dig and the other could move dirt with the skid steer.

Pond pictures:
*will be expending in the direction of the skid steer.

Standing in future expanded pond.

 

[Dethmachinefab]

You need reach for pond work.

 

[AKnate]

The 418 has retractable tracks. You can narrow the width to fit through doors. Just like there should be some pins you can pull on the blade to widen it out to full width. Good little machine for getting inside buildings.

Id be washing the dishes and folding clothes with that little thing!

 

[Tmackcj5]

We run a lot of the CAT 303 and 305. I prefer a 305. Just picked up a 2016 Takeuchi TB216 with 956 hours for $25,000. Good machine for the size and with the retracting tracks we can get it through a single door rough opening.

As for what you are saying you would use it for, I would be looking for a bigger machine. JD 120 or CAT 312 size machine. Maybe even jump into the 200 size machines. I helped a friend dig footings for his house with a new rental 305 and I would have taken a 20 year old 312 in a heart beat. My BIL has a '92 CAT 330L on his farm and I love that machine. Easy to work on and just surprisingly very versatile.

You need reach for pond work.

I get a larger machine would be better, but while my Toyota Highlander could pull the extra weight just fine, i'm afraid to load more than about 8K on my harbor freight trailer without damaging it.

Machines like that KX71-3 list a dig depth of about 10' so I figured I would dig in 2 to 3 full "passes".

 

[rockota]

I get a larger machine would be better, but while my Toyota Highlander could pull the extra weight just fine, i'm afraid to load more than about 8K on my harbor freight trailer without damaging it.

Machines like that KX71-3 list a dig depth of about 10' so I figured I would dig in 2 to 3 full "passes".

you'll burn more in diesel running 8 hours a day/7 days a week/getting pissed off at lack of progress..... than you would pay renting the right size machine for that job.


EDIT: that 10' reach, IIRC, is from the pivot point... not the ground. So subtrack 18" there (re depth). I also believe that reach means the tip of the bucket - so subtract from that as well...

 

[Bigstic]

you'll burn more in diesel running 8 hours a day/7 days a week/getting pissed off at lack of progress..... than you would pay renting the right size machine for that job.

I agree with this. The rest of the tasks you talk about an 8000lb machine would be ok. But for the pond, I would rent a big machine. Or use it as an excuse to buy a D6/8 dozer

 

[Dethmachinefab]

I get a larger machine would be better, but while my Toyota Highlander could pull the extra weight just fine, i'm afraid to load more than about 8K on my harbor freight trailer without damaging it.

Machines like that KX71-3 list a dig depth of about 10' so I figured I would dig in 2 to 3 full "passes".

It's more about distance from shoreline and slope.

 

[Wilson]

The pond project is waaay to much for a mini and a skid. We started my dad’s pond with two skids and a loader with a 1 yard bucket…… two days of work and you could barely tell. The next year he hired it out and the contractor used a large ex, dozer and small paddle wheel.