strott
Senior Member
- Joined
- Jan 10, 2009
- Messages
- 425
- Location
- Swindon, United Kingdom
- Occupation
- Mini Excavator and dumper operator
I know most of you guys run larger equipment but wondered if this would be of interest to anybody looking into buying a new/used mini or midi excavator in the near future.
Base machine: Kubota KX41-3S
Year of manufacture: 2009
Current hour meter reading: 1062
Factory fitted items
Full cab
Kubota Anti-theft plus Immoboliser
Radio/CD player
Kubota (Miller) ‘scoop’ dedicated quick hitch and buckets
Retro fitted items
3rd line auxillary hydraulic return
950mm short dipper arm
Performance
I find this excavator to be very smooth and precise whilst still allowing fast cycle times when required, the ability to carry out simultaneous movements at once is a great help whether it be slewing, dipper raising and bucket tipping or tracking in a straight line whilst moving the upper structure and emptying the bucket, it can all be done without any reduction in speed or loss of power.
The machine has never left me feeling that I need more power (even with the standard longer dipper arm) it just pushes and pushes, Where I work is mainly solid yellow clay and the excavator has no problem pushing a 600mm wide digging bucket through the ground even during a dry summer. Flint doesn’t last very long against the machine either even when trenching to depths of 1.5 metres into the rock. The lifting power is also scary!! which allows some pretty big tree stumps to be pulled out and then moved around, however the lifting power is really shown when running my soil screening bucket which can weigh approx 250kg when fully loaded but the machine will lift it up with the dipper arm fully extended – no grumbling, no noise, no slow movements!!
The tracks have more than enough power and don’t ‘stall’ whilst trying to turn on some ground like my previous excavator did, the normal tracking speed is more than adequate for making progress around site but the 2nd speed really shifts the machine if required.
Reliability
Other than the routine servicing (250 hours) and greasing the only thing I have had to do is top up the hydraulic oil which was due to either the attachment leaking or the quick couplers leaking!! Not missed a beat otherwise.
Fuel consumption
Obviously there are many varying factors with regards to consumption but in a worst case scenario when running at full throttle using the heavy soil screening bucket the engine uses 1.65 litres an hour.
Comfort
The cab is spacious and bright, there is plenty of adjustment in the suspended seat and foot/floor room is good – the auxillary and offset pedals are on the floor but when not in use the pedals fold flat to allow them to be used as footrests. The servo controls are a nice shape which are easy to hold and do not require too much movement to fully engage full flow to any function. I usually spend 7 plus hours a day in the seat and certainly don’t wake up dreading another day in the seat, no numb body parts or back ache plus the cab helps keep the weather out Obviously the main downside of a cab is the reduced visibility but this machine isn’t too bad, there is a lot of glass the only place which really suffers with poor visibility is the lower left hand side below the sliding window where the heater sits. This is only an issue when using the boom offset to the left as you can’t see the bucket clearly without bending over and looking out of the window, In general though visibility over the side(s) is quite good. The wing mirrors show you what you is going on beside you and to the side of the counterweight
Functionality/ease of servicing
All controls are in easy reach, the 2 speed tracking button is on the dozer blade lever so ideal for use when backfilling – it can be set to permantly ‘on’ so you do not have to keep the button depressed when tracking long distances like on some other makes.
Routine servicing is simple to do, every thing is in easy reach under the rear bonnet, access to the side of the radiator is the main issue here – it is near impossible to get between the counterweight and the radiator to clear away sucked in debris.
Greasing is very easy thanks to the grease nipples being situated in very easy to reach positions, you can see every nipple straight on – no need for a flexi-tube on the end of the grease gun.
The beacon holder fitted to the top of the cab allows a lamp to be securely fitted without running cables everywhere, a switch on the dashboard allows you to turn this on/off as required. A 12 v socket under the right control console is handy for charging your phone e.t.c
The quick hitch is very compact, light and easy to use – likewise the buckets are very strong.
Fit and finish
The excavator is very well put together, the very thick counterweight is curved which is helpful for working tight up to obstacles the only downside of the curved shape is that you do not feel it when you touch something like a lump of concrete whilst slewing, leading to me finding a go faster stripe around the back of the machine that I’d rather not have The plastic bonnet is capable of absorbing bumps rather than cracking under impact so the engine compartment stays protected even after damage has occurred. So far there is very little wear on the pins and bushes, they all seem tight like new including the boom pin and dipper pin, although there is approx 3mm of movement between the tipping/bucket linkages (see pics). The most play has developed between the quick hitch and the end of the dipper arm where there is approx a 3-4mm of movement, obviously leading to a slight amount of side to side bucket movement - I plan to take this slack up with some shims.
Sorry its a long one but thanks for reading.
Some pics of the machine:
Base machine: Kubota KX41-3S
Year of manufacture: 2009
Current hour meter reading: 1062
Factory fitted items
Full cab
Kubota Anti-theft plus Immoboliser
Radio/CD player
Kubota (Miller) ‘scoop’ dedicated quick hitch and buckets
Retro fitted items
3rd line auxillary hydraulic return
950mm short dipper arm
Performance
I find this excavator to be very smooth and precise whilst still allowing fast cycle times when required, the ability to carry out simultaneous movements at once is a great help whether it be slewing, dipper raising and bucket tipping or tracking in a straight line whilst moving the upper structure and emptying the bucket, it can all be done without any reduction in speed or loss of power.
The machine has never left me feeling that I need more power (even with the standard longer dipper arm) it just pushes and pushes, Where I work is mainly solid yellow clay and the excavator has no problem pushing a 600mm wide digging bucket through the ground even during a dry summer. Flint doesn’t last very long against the machine either even when trenching to depths of 1.5 metres into the rock. The lifting power is also scary!! which allows some pretty big tree stumps to be pulled out and then moved around, however the lifting power is really shown when running my soil screening bucket which can weigh approx 250kg when fully loaded but the machine will lift it up with the dipper arm fully extended – no grumbling, no noise, no slow movements!!
The tracks have more than enough power and don’t ‘stall’ whilst trying to turn on some ground like my previous excavator did, the normal tracking speed is more than adequate for making progress around site but the 2nd speed really shifts the machine if required.
Reliability
Other than the routine servicing (250 hours) and greasing the only thing I have had to do is top up the hydraulic oil which was due to either the attachment leaking or the quick couplers leaking!! Not missed a beat otherwise.
Fuel consumption
Obviously there are many varying factors with regards to consumption but in a worst case scenario when running at full throttle using the heavy soil screening bucket the engine uses 1.65 litres an hour.
Comfort
The cab is spacious and bright, there is plenty of adjustment in the suspended seat and foot/floor room is good – the auxillary and offset pedals are on the floor but when not in use the pedals fold flat to allow them to be used as footrests. The servo controls are a nice shape which are easy to hold and do not require too much movement to fully engage full flow to any function. I usually spend 7 plus hours a day in the seat and certainly don’t wake up dreading another day in the seat, no numb body parts or back ache plus the cab helps keep the weather out Obviously the main downside of a cab is the reduced visibility but this machine isn’t too bad, there is a lot of glass the only place which really suffers with poor visibility is the lower left hand side below the sliding window where the heater sits. This is only an issue when using the boom offset to the left as you can’t see the bucket clearly without bending over and looking out of the window, In general though visibility over the side(s) is quite good. The wing mirrors show you what you is going on beside you and to the side of the counterweight
Functionality/ease of servicing
All controls are in easy reach, the 2 speed tracking button is on the dozer blade lever so ideal for use when backfilling – it can be set to permantly ‘on’ so you do not have to keep the button depressed when tracking long distances like on some other makes.
Routine servicing is simple to do, every thing is in easy reach under the rear bonnet, access to the side of the radiator is the main issue here – it is near impossible to get between the counterweight and the radiator to clear away sucked in debris.
Greasing is very easy thanks to the grease nipples being situated in very easy to reach positions, you can see every nipple straight on – no need for a flexi-tube on the end of the grease gun.
The beacon holder fitted to the top of the cab allows a lamp to be securely fitted without running cables everywhere, a switch on the dashboard allows you to turn this on/off as required. A 12 v socket under the right control console is handy for charging your phone e.t.c
The quick hitch is very compact, light and easy to use – likewise the buckets are very strong.
Fit and finish
The excavator is very well put together, the very thick counterweight is curved which is helpful for working tight up to obstacles the only downside of the curved shape is that you do not feel it when you touch something like a lump of concrete whilst slewing, leading to me finding a go faster stripe around the back of the machine that I’d rather not have The plastic bonnet is capable of absorbing bumps rather than cracking under impact so the engine compartment stays protected even after damage has occurred. So far there is very little wear on the pins and bushes, they all seem tight like new including the boom pin and dipper pin, although there is approx 3mm of movement between the tipping/bucket linkages (see pics). The most play has developed between the quick hitch and the end of the dipper arm where there is approx a 3-4mm of movement, obviously leading to a slight amount of side to side bucket movement - I plan to take this slack up with some shims.
Sorry its a long one but thanks for reading.
Some pics of the machine:
Attachments
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