Which excavator?

Hanzcock

Member
Location
Wiltshire
Hyundai 140-9 has been absolutely faultless for me. Bought with 4000hrs on and going well.
5AEE0844-07F6-4B6C-A633-8217B914EEF4.jpeg
 

Greenasgrass

Member
Location
N Ireland
Zero tail swing ,,PITA ,,the developers here not long bought a new 14tn Volvo ,,heavier track frame to compensate the shorter counterbalance ,,no cab space ,terribly unstable ,,they lifted a 6ft concrete ring and it lurched over ,,they hate it

Zero tail have their place! Not really needed on a farm but are invaluable on sites where space is always at a premium. When an operator is used to them they are a great machine. All our 14t excavators are zero tail - would not consider anything else for site work.
 

Dukes Fit

Member
Location
Aberdeenshire
As above, the doosan 13 tonner is an odd one.. some people love them, but when we have hired new ones they are so sharp and shakey in the controls that we have near given up trying to grade with it. Strangely the bigger one we tried seemed smooth enough. Plenty of dpf trouble too with them conking out On a daily basis at one point. Can’t understand people avoiding the cat diggers.. they are the John Deere of the digger world. Good quality with great backup, in our experience anyway. Only letdown is the paint..

Cat are expensive to own/run and since they started doing their own proprietary hydraulic fittings they became a bit of a ticking bomb.

I can fully agree with you on Doosan 14 tonners. A friend of ours runs around 40 excavators of various marques and he dropped one back in the dealers yard after 6 months. Completely uncontrollable hydraulics, stupidly fast and unpredictable. The same happened with a 6 tonner too.
 

BobGreen

Member
Location
Lancs
Probably give you a tour of his steam engines as well. Probably give you a tour of his steam engines as well. Found him a genuinely nice chap. Just wish he'd let me have the digger as he wouldn't have known it was gone [emoji23]
Oh he would know !!
Left school could hardly read and write and has built a multi million business. Invoices still come hand written
He has a great memory. Knows where every machine is and what it has with it
His fitters says they wish he’d stop buying and sell some. I’ll get a picture of one yard next time I’m there. There is everything from 1 ton to 70 ton. I would be happy if I just owned the mountain of buckets !
 
To highjack a little as the old man is thinking about one how about a new Carter

There’s a new 8 tonner local to us.
Had a quick shot on it.
Seems a simple and well laid out machine, and a hell of a lot cheaper than other makes. The owner himself said it wouldn’t be a machine to spend all day every day in, but suited his needs.
Time will tell what they will be like long term.
 

40 series

Member
Oh he would know !!
Left school could hardly read and write and has built a multi million business. Invoices still come hand written
He has a great memory. Knows where every machine is and what it has with it
His fitters says they wish he’d stop buying and sell some. I’ll get a picture of one yard next time I’m there. There is everything from 1 ton to 70 ton. I would be happy if I just owned the mountain of buckets !
Who is this guy
 

Fendtbro

Member
Cat are expensive to own/run and since they started doing their own proprietary hydraulic fittings they became a bit of a ticking bomb.

I can fully agree with you on Doosan 14 tonners. A friend of ours runs around 40 excavators of various marques and he dropped one back in the dealers yard after 6 months. Completely uncontrollable hydraulics, stupidly fast and unpredictable. The same happened with a 6 tonner too.
We have run 20 ton cat excavators from 16k hours to 20k hours twice. Cost buttons to run. And still worked well. Still worth money to sell on. Cat 312 must be the smoothest digger ever made. Anybody could grade with it. Glad we’re not the only ones that can’t get on with doosan..
 

Fendtbro

Member
Zero tail have their place! Not really needed on a farm but are invaluable on sites where space is always at a premium. When an operator is used to them they are a great machine. All our 14t excavators are zero tail - would not consider anything else for site work.
This is correct. They do need the right operator. but when others have to step down to an 8 tonner to get in The 13zts can often work on. Very safe on site to. Heavy lifting is done in line with tracks if possible. We sold the 13 tonner years ago and replaced with a 20.5 ton zts kobelco. We’ve never looked back!!
 

ILovebaling

Member
Location
Co Durham
Who is this guy
Trading since 1981 based in Hambleton near Blackpool A company based on recommendation We currently hold in excess of 230 items of plant for hire ranging from Tracked Dumpers 1.2T to 12T Wheeled Dumpers 3T to 14T, Excavators 1.5T to 35T, Longreach Excavators 13T to 30T,Telehandlers,Rollers,Dozers, Dump Trucks, All Ancillary Equipment inc Breakers,Bowsers etc. A medium company with extensive experience in the civil engineering and construction industry. Call our friendly and helpful staff for all your plant /construction needs.

I remember when I went he had a load of little cherry pickers, pretty much bought a hundred from Japan to sell on and a load of tracked things as well from Japan. Got a tour of his steam engines, the steam lorry wasn't there though as was out on hire to pinewood studios or something. Actually held on to the digger for me for around a month just till I had time to go look at it. There was a jcb 13 tonner that was just being left to rot and was a 2007 or maybe even newer.
 

Dukes Fit

Member
Location
Aberdeenshire
We have run 20 ton cat excavators from 16k hours to 20k hours twice. Cost buttons to run. And still worked well. Still worth money to sell on. Cat 312 must be the smoothest digger ever made. Anybody could grade with it. Glad we’re not the only ones that can’t get on with doosan..

We ran 5 312c’s. Brilliant machine to sit in but not one was the same. My one tracked strong and wouldn’t give up and was strong in the hydraulics. Other 4 weren't near as strong in the tracks and one would barely pull itself up a hill. One of the lads didn’t like my one as he reckoned it had a “bounce” in the hydraulics. His was admittedly very smooth but lacked power. The window split was in a bloody stupid place, right in your line of sight.
The do run forever and nothing would top a 325.
They did command a premium price though and when they started using their own connections on the hose ends that was what made them a bit of a ticking bomb because at the time if you burst a hose you could only get one from Cat. I assume hose manufacturers are now stocking the Cat connections fairly common.
 

mar

Member
Trading since 1981 based in Hambleton near Blackpool A company based on recommendation We currently hold in excess of 230 items of plant for hire ranging from Tracked Dumpers 1.2T to 12T Wheeled Dumpers 3T to 14T, Excavators 1.5T to 35T, Longreach Excavators 13T to 30T,Telehandlers,Rollers,Dozers, Dump Trucks, All Ancillary Equipment inc Breakers,Bowsers etc. A medium company with extensive experience in the civil engineering and construction industry. Call our friendly and helpful staff for all your plant /construction needs.

I remember when I went he had a load of little cherry pickers, pretty much bought a hundred from Japan to sell on and a load of tracked things as well from Japan. Got a tour of his steam engines, the steam lorry wasn't there though as was out on hire to pinewood studios or something. Actually held on to the digger for me for around a month just till I had time to go look at it. There was a jcb 13 tonner that was just being left to rot and was a 2007 or maybe even newer.

What is the name of this guy or what name does he trade under, has he a website
 

Fendtbro

Member
We ran 5 312c’s. Brilliant machine to sit in but not one was the same. My one tracked strong and wouldn’t give up and was strong in the hydraulics. Other 4 weren't near as strong in the tracks and one would barely pull itself up a hill. One of the lads didn’t like my one as he reckoned it had a “bounce” in the hydraulics. His was admittedly very smooth but lacked power. The window split was in a bloody stupid place, right in your line of sight.
The do run forever and nothing would top a 325.
They did command a premium price though and when they started using their own connections on the hose ends that was what made them a bit of a ticking bomb because at the time if you burst a hose you could only get one from Cat. I assume hose manufacturers are now stocking the Cat connections fairly common.
Yes, I get the tails locally and crimp them on. We find the slew rings stay tight, unlike Jcb, nodding donkeys.. I am hearing that cat have improved their paint. But so many people put off now and gone elsewhere.. why cheap out on the last bit and end up with scruffy rusty junk.
 

Oscar

Member
Livestock Farmer
Anybody know what that Volvo posted above at Kellands is going for ?? A bit early for me but looking for a excavator with a tilty hitch for a big HLS scheme that looks like its going to happen . Loads of work for a few years including a 3 ac pond.
 

Phil P

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
North West
Found a couple of Hitachi’s for sale locally (close enough to pick up myself) choice of 2 but quite high hours so need to go and have a good look over. Ones 8,000h and ones nearly 10,000h but I think I could get one for decent money.
Any opinions? Worth having a look or to many hours ?

CA7E6177-7888-4E9B-9DAC-10ED6CE858DA.jpeg
 

Joe S

Member
Location
Orkney
Found a couple of Hitachi’s for sale locally (close enough to pick up myself) choice of 2 but quite high hours so need to go and have a good look over. Ones 8,000h and ones nearly 10,000h but I think I could get one for decent money.
Any opinions? Worth having a look or to many hours ?

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Hours wouldn't bother be too too much just check everything's tight no play in the pins might be worth checking all the nipples take grease check he slew for play, check the slew motors oil level and colour often forgotten, same goes for the tracking motors but not so easy checked just check there not weak expensive to replace.
Be good for the same again if its been looked too be good for africa if its not been:X3:
 

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