What to look for when buying Used Excavator!!!

Sharing some tips on what to look for if you are in the market for a used machine!

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[goucho]

Hands down, the best excavator inspection video I have seen.
Thats coming from a guy that spent many years working for one of the biggest Caterpillar dealers in the world!
I will add 1 more point, run the serial number, seen many sellers passing off a machine for a newer year than it actually is!
I always remember the advice of my Italian fisherman friend - "if you got it for free, you might have paid too much!"

[Unclejake]

When I was in High School I worked in the lumber yard of my uncles company, my jobs were greasing machines, touching up paint, painting scaffold, he always wanted his equipment looking good at construction sites, heck I painted the chain link fence silver with a brush one summer. I really enjoyed that job...paid good too for a high school kid.

[jaaten]

I've been working for a heavy equipment distributor in my area for a little under two years and seeing things like the last few minutes of this video will always make my inner 6 year old smile. Glad the Komatsu is still going strong (more or less) and great to see some attachments I deal with ordering every day in action.

[ralphjaneheywood]

Here in New Zealand we quite often fit a receiver socket on the top of the blade so that we can tow a trailer with our project materials onboard

[DJDAVEDREAM]

Matt my dad used to use little disk magnets over the grease fittings to keep the dirt out very cheap solution to a common problem ( neodymium )

[gutsngorrrr]

Regarding dried up grease in a grease zerk, if you have the problem, try heating it up, as long as there are no seals in the section that has a problem, heat will soften the grease enough to use a grease gun.

[greener]

I’m late to the party, but great advice. For a man 1/2 my age, you’ve got a lot of sage advice and common sense not seen in so many today. 👍👍

[TheUserid]

Also need to look at how you plan to fuel it and how much fuel it will use every day as individual 5 gallon cans will get to be a pain fast.

[markdoby]

Dealer support goes so far. Not just who's closest, but who will take time to help you.

[christhompson]

Excellent job. It’s good to see someone who knows and understands equipment, unlike so many others running their mouths and obviously don’t know what they’re talking about. Nothing wrong with buying used equipment, so many people are more conserved with shiny looks than the mechanical condition.
I’m a used equipment dealer the buyers out there today know very little about equipment let alone their business. Most manufacturers build good products, however it really comes down to dealer support - parts and service.
Keep up the good work!

[MrNosajwhitey]

watching you work on these second hand machines makes me feel I could buy and repair machines of my own easily if I can make enough money with said machine

[MrElliebeli]

Very informative. Just bought my first excavator for working my land. 4 days solid use so far & invested in a good grease gun as a couple of pretty dry pins. Trouble is once you have it you need the rest of the kit. Now on the look out for a dumper and possibly roller as I need to lay in a new road!

[oldridersteve]

I know this is an older video, but a very good one indeed. I told a a former boss years ago that a machine or truck is only as good as it's product support. Many sellers list machines with 80% undercarriage when in fact it's like 20. Good info on what to look for.

[NICK-uynl]

The main things is, PRESSURE WASH the machine after every job, that way you can quickly spot oil leaks and broken parts and replace them, washing also stops mud getting packed into bushings and bearings, the mud turns very abrasive after it dries up and starts eating into parts.

[stevebeck]

Great advice thanks, when you said watch out for poorly greased machines, also watch out for well greased ones that appear tight until you run them for 30 mins and then go all sloppy

[sstocker]

Great video covering what to look at when buying a machine. The only thing I could add is if your looking at a machine at an auction, look up high in the nooks and crannys of the engine bay for signs of mud or flood marks....could have been buried in the mud deep at some point and the electrics don't like that at all.

[phatboizbackyardkustomz]

Last one I bought was a Hitachi 50 4800 hrs , I bought it sight unseen from another state. The guy told me it was overheating he delivered it to me. I lucked out all it need was a radiator and some work on the throttle other than that no other issues. It was a good little machine I kept it for 6 years but really wasn't big enough for what I wanted to do with it, I need a 60 to 100 size machine. I'm like you I don't like the backhoe swing or a offset boom options to many wear points, but they are great for plumbers and people that need those options. I add a manual thumb to mine. Great tutorial on what to look for when buying one. I was lucky to grow up with a dad that owned a construction company so I learned early on what to look for when buying a machine. I have run and hauled machines from the smallest to the 1200s over the years

[markmiller]

Matt, all your videos are informative and entertaining. Always look forward to all your videos no matter what the content is. Continue the good work.

[anthonybanks]

sounds to me like you know your machine, and you should keep her . pointing out the grease and its life thats good stuff ! Love the videos !

[TutorialPanda]

Thank you so much for being religious with grease. I've ran backhoes, trackhoes, dozers, ect for a few years. A grease gun is a MUST! I always keep one in the cab with me along with a fresh tube. Grease when done with work at the end of the day. You can never over grease equipment.