Importing and modifying a new mini excavator from China

[dfkrug]

Just bought a Diggit em15 mini ex from Richie Bros. Sacramento Auction. $4,750. ($5,600) out the door. there were 4 or 5 of them and they all went for the same price.

How far did you have to drive when you picked it up?

The canopy tops catch the wind, and the thinner ones will likely be destroyed in transit, unless you are only going a few miles. My recommendation is to fold the ROPS in transit, or otherwise protect it. Even folded, metal fatigue may still tear the thin steel.

I did find out that my XN08 ROPS canopy is 2x the thickness of the much cheesier one on the mini from Ouke (the black Whitney unit above). One of the Ouke minis suffered a 2-foot long tear in the ROPS canopy, due to the wind in transit only 100 miles or so.

As well as the many improvements noted above, you have to immediately discover what you have, including if bolts are tight and RV pressure set to spec. Other "features" can be corrected, or just accommodated.

 

[knmwhite]

How far did you have to drive when you picked it up?

The canopy tops catch the wind, and the thinner ones will likely be destroyed in transit, unless you are only going a few miles. My recommendation is to fold the ROPS in transit, or otherwise protect it. Even folded, metal fatigue may still tear the thin steel.

I did find out that my XN08 ROPS canopy is 2x the thickness of the much cheesier one on the mini from Ouke (the black Whitney unit above). One of the Ouke minis suffered a 2-foot long tear in the ROPS canopy, due to the wind in transit only 100 miles or so.

As well as the many improvements noted above, you have to immediately discover what you have, including if bolts are tight and RV pressure set to spec. Other "features" can be corrected, or just accommodated.

The roof blew off after about 100 miles. Most likely won't replace it. I'll try to find out how to check RV pressure. 400 mile trip.

 

[knmwhite]

Just bought a Diggit em15 but mistakenly put in gas into the hydraulic tank. Now I got to drain the tank and put in new hydraulic oil. Anyone know what kind of hydraulic oil it takes? Thanks

OMG. I did the same thing on my Diggit 15. Glad I'm not the only one. lol.

 

[Agitator]

Interesting. Did you get the unit from La Puente, CA, for $8500 on eBay?

I would ask a lot of Qs of the seller. If they list another 1.5T unit, I will ask. Maybe they will name the factory in Shandong, or tell you the status of your machine's oil cooling and filtration. Maybe not.

I asked further of the seller and got a resolution... he said they shipped 3 of their one-ton units and my 1.5 ton unit on the same day, and the guy in the warehouse forgot to change the weight. That actually makes a lot of sense, since they did sell a bunch of their smaller ones in the past few days. The seller said he confirmed the correct unit was shipped to me and invited me to confirm the weight on arrival, so I'm feeling much better about it.

 

[dfkrug]

For you new owners, check the track size to see if you are getting the most common chassis found on these 1-ton-ish minis. 180x72x37

That is not the smallest track size out there, but nearly so. Used on a lot of minis made by Yanmar, Kobelco, IHI, etc.

I suspect the Diggit EM15 is slightly bigger, but I did not see the stamp on the tracks when I was last looking at my friend's machine.

 

[D'oh]

Yes, the JF/FF-12 Industrials run 180x72x37.

Just bought a Skeleton Bucket for a Vicsec Part # O01-45, hoping they are the same 25mm pins, does anyone know off hand? Bucket PN O01-45

 

[Mldsr5]

For you new owners, check the track size to see if you are getting the most common chassis found on these 1-ton-ish minis. 180x72x37

That is not the smallest track size out there, but nearly so. Used on a lot of minis made by Yanmar, Kobelco, IHI, etc.

I suspect the Diggit EM15 is slightly bigger, but I did not see the stamp on the tracks when I was last looking at my friend's machine.

The Diggit EM15 has 180x72x41 tracks.

 

[dfkrug]

I thought the EM15 was a bit longer than mine. 4 more links, so the OAL
track length is just an inch or so longer than my XN08.

BTW, the sizes are
180MM (width) X 72MM (pitch) X 37 (links)

 

[Mldsr5]

I’ve got some juicy details on the Diggit em15. This appears to be the manufacturers website.

Mini Excavator-KV13Plus-Shandong LeKing Machinery

As one of the professional KV13Plus mini excavator manufacturers and suppliers in China, we feature high-quality products and customized services, and the complete hydraulic system adopts international famous brands to meet the needs of customers in different countries and regions.

leking.net

 

[D'oh]

So, has anyone upgrade their Pump yet? I figure there is room for more flow.

18L/m @ 2300 PSI only requires around 4.7hp, where a 23L/m pump from say a 1600 machine is only 6hp. And it shows with the likes of a Diggit 15, still running the same 13.5hp B&S