Mini Excavator Questions

[mike69440]

With HD reaching in from China, I've a new Sany dealer in MN. Anybody know anything about their 8 ton excavator?

http://www.sanyglobal.com/handbook/SY35U.pdf

Here is their company demo vid.

7.5 ton Small Excavator | SY75C9I4R(US) Small Excavator | SANY
About Average Spec.
If reliable and cheap, new machine less than used name brand.

 

[Code54]

My concern would be parts and service now and in the future. If they don't take off here who knows if parts will be available. I also would think resale would be far lower than a name brand. Everyone knows Case, Cat, Kubota, Bobcat, etc... Sany ??????

 

[PILOON]

Locally we had a rental shop that had a Nissan 450, about a 20" bucket c/w blade.
I did all my excavation for my present home in 2 days and later did all excavation needed for raising a house plus dynamiting tons of bedrock underneath. I was even able to move and place those heavy blasting rugs.
They later offered it to me for $10,000 and to this day I regret not buying it. It was steel tracked, which INMHO is the better way to go.
With a front blade mounted a nice finished project is easy to accomplish.
Always figured that a tracked digger could out perform even the biggest tired backhoe except transportation becomes the issue.

 

[yellowdogsvc]

I've got a Bobcat 335. It's a 10k lb machine with cab and thumb. It will easily handle the stumps you put in the pics. It'll dig over 11' and can lift over 3k. It's a 40 hp machine. That class 4.2 - 5 ton seems to fit the needs of most.

 

[Steppenwolfe]

Looking for a replacement for a BH77 backhoe on a Kubota L3901 tractor. I let my brother use the L3901 to move snow this winter since his old tractor broke down. I'll probably end up giving him the tractor and BH77 so I won't have a backhoe anymore. I've been using the backhoe to mainly dig up stumps after cutting down pine trees on my heavily forested 10 acres. The largest stumps are probably 15" in diameter or so but most are smaller.

I think it used to take me over an hour with the BH77 to dig up the larger stumps using a 16" bucket. I'm thinking of getting a mini excavator to replace the backhoe. I really want to be able to put the excavator in my shop which has a garage door opening that is 96.5" high so the choices become limited. The Kubota KX71-3S and KX91-3S2 are right at 96" high according to their specs so if the specs are accurate, either should fit. The KX71 with cab is supposed to be a half inch shorter but I prefer an open station. Would either one of these excavators be good for removing stumps and would they should be able to get a pine stump out significantly faster than the BH77? What kind of performance difference would there be between the KX71 and KX91?

Thanks!

View attachment 498575

I have the kx 71. Looked real hard at the 91, but couldn't justify the extra dollars for my private use. The 71 is a great machine, very powerful, and sips diesel. Get a ripper tooth for stumps, it makes all of the difference in the world.

 

[oldafretired]

I've got a Bobcat 335. It's a 10k lb machine with cab and thumb. It will easily handle the stumps you put in the pics. It'll dig over 11' and can lift over 3k. It's a 40 hp machine. That class 4.2 - 5 ton seems to fit the needs of most.

Thanks for the info. It sure would be great to find a mini like yours.

View attachment 498575

I have the kx 71. Looked real hard at the 91, but couldn't justify the extra dollars for my private use. The 71 is a great machine, very powerful, and sips diesel. Get a ripper tooth for stumps, it makes all of the difference in the world.

Yeah, I think a KX71 would do a much better job with stumps than a BH77 or even a BH92. And the prices for these excavators sure are high. Makes tractors seem cheap.

 

[Code54]

Your right there - they are not cheap. They make a tractor backhoe look like a shovel but you sure do have to pay for the luxury.

 

[Snobdds]

I bought my cat excavator because of one reason. Cat has a huge repair facility about 20 minutes from me. Plus one of lead mechanics rents from me and was there with me when I bought it. He does the maintenance and runs it when he can. Here he is having fun.

 

[joecoin]

How far is too far to drive a mini to get to a work site?

Say you have an 80 acre square parcel. Would you need to trailer the mini to the far corners or just drive it?

 

[Snobdds]

It's slow going, but I've driven mine at least 2 miles before. After that distance, it might be quicker to load it on a trailer.

 

[kthompson]

How far is too far to drive a mini to get to a work site?

Say you have an 80 acre square parcel. Would you need to trailer the mini to the far corners or just drive it?

How fast will it run, the spec is there. If the truck and trailer were handy to load and haul it would do for much less than 2 miles. Not sure if it is low or high speed on mine that is 2.5 mph...I can load and unload in 10 minutes easy if off road and no tie downs needed. Of course how rough the ground is makes a huge difference

 

[Steppenwolfe]

How far is too far to drive a mini to get to a work site?

Say you have an 80 acre square parcel. Would you need to trailer the mini to the far corners or just drive it?

My property is 90+ acres. I drive it to where I want it, leave it there overnight if need be, and it is really no big deal. I just plan my work in a certain area, then move on.

 

[oldafretired]

Well, just went and ordered a U55 angle blade open station mini ex today. Got the Kubota ripper too. Wasn't in stock at the dealer so should be here in a few weeks. My checking account sure did shrink a lot. LOL They had a angle blade KX057 in stock that they would have sold me at a really great deal but I wanted the U55 for the greater stick breakout force for digging up stumps.

 

[Snobdds]

Well, just went and ordered a U55 angle blade open station mini ex today. Got the Kubota ripper too. Wasn't in stock at the dealer so should be here in a few weeks. My checking account sure did shrink a lot. LOL They had a angle blade KX057 in stock that they would have sold me at a really great deal but I wanted the U55 for the greater stick breakout force for digging up stumps.

You will not be disappointed. I almost got the U55, but the owner of our Kubota dealer and i do not see eye to eye on things...So I bought a Cat instead. If your digging up stumps a lot, here's a trick. Rip the roots on one side of the stump. Then on that same side, use the blade like a dozer and try and push the stump over. The roots on the far side should act like a lever and hinge and the it should pop out. At least they do with the spruce, lodge pole pine and mountain firs.

 

[oldafretired]

You will not be disappointed. I almost got the U55, but the owner of our Kubota dealer and i do not see eye to eye on things...So I bought a Cat instead. If your digging up stumps a lot, here's a trick. Rip the roots on one side of the stump. Then on that same side, use the blade like a dozer and try and push the stump over. The roots on the far side should act like a lever and hinge and the it should pop out. At least they do with the spruce, lodge pole pine and mountain firs.

I'll try that out when the mini ex gets here. I've seen videos where they rip out two sides but never knew you could just do one.

 

[oldafretired]

Is there an attachment that replaces the bucket and looks like a grapple lid which would oppose the thumb. Which company would make something like that? Seems like it would be better than a bucket to grab logs and rocks.

 

[kevin37b]

Yes there are grapples for hoes .You best setup is a 12" bucket and hydraulic thumb . A manual thumb is better than nothing but every time you need it , the next pass it is in your way .

 

[millsan1]

I searched long and hard for a good used mini ex. After about a year, a great deal came along on a Takeuchi TB035. 7500 lb machine, and about 20 years old. Looks rough, but works great and cost me less than $7K.

I am of the opinion that once you own and use a mini ex, a backhoe will never do. Since i purchased Dirk (the Takeuchi), the backhoe has not even been on Britney (my BX).

It has gotten to the point that I just purchased a new Mahindra and will be selling the BX, since I only use my tractor for tractor work now, any digging is handled by the mini ex.

 

[oldafretired]

I was thinking of something like this one at the link below. Anyone use one?

Excavator Rake for Machines 11, to 18, lbs. SLS-SGR-1 | Equipmentland

 

[downsizingnow48]

That excavator rake looks like a good bet for debris and demolition. I couldn't find one for my B21 so made something similar. Together with a hydraulic thumb, it works much better than a standard bucket for clean up chores. I would not hesitate to buy the one in your link.