advice for new machine

Hello everyone,
I have recently begun digging ditches for geothermal ground loops in the Pacific Northwest where we have almost every imaginable soil configuration, clay, rock, sandy loam (seems like always lots of sticky clay is the biggest problem. The company I ahve been working for is very particular about the quality of the dig, typically a 5' wide by 5' deep trench which has to have a clean and level bottom. My question is this; I currently have a Takeheuchi(spelling?) B145 with a 48 inch muck bucket that I have been using. This is a great little machine but just not up to what I am doing. I want something which can easily uses a 60" bucket and not be underpowered. I am thinking along the lines of JD120, cat 312, or similar. Also ahve used Kobelco in the past and liked them. Am i looking at the right size machines or do I need to go bigger? The local Kobelco dealer also sells Dosan machines which are fairly inexpensive even new. Any thoughts on those? (I can just about imagine that most will be negative!). I need something that can be hauled by a regular 4 axle dump truck without too much trouble. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks in advance for your help!
Karl

Thanks for the response but I am going to stick to a tracked machine. A lot of this work is done in very wet conditions and I don't think a wheeled machine is an option. Also, due to their lack of popularity here I think it could be a white elephant at sale time. Thanks for the response though!

Great! I will look at these, not sure who services them here but I am sure there is a dealer in the area (I am in the Portland Oregon area.) I believe these are around the weight class I am looking at. Would this hande the 60" bucket? I want to be able to dig my loop trenches with just one bucket width as this is (IMHO) the eaiest and most efficient way to do it. Thanks SeaMac!

Wow! I really appreciate your help! I will call them and see what they can do for me, they are a pretty well known name around here. I want the bucket to be as heavy duty as possible but it has to have a smooth edge so I guess it would be more like a "maintenance" bucket. I always prefere to go with the heaviest attachments I can as they seem to last the longest. I will talk to the dealer as well as some of the other ones around here but I have a feeling Komatsu may well be a little easier on the pocket book then JD or Cat! Thanks again for the help!

Thanks again!

I have to say I've never been a fan of Komatsu excavators. I spent over 10,000hrs on a new (at the time) 270LC. It was not as well made as the Volvo's and Hitachi's and the controls/hydros were not nearly as accurate. The ergonomics were poor as well.

Realistically all newer machines are easy to operate compared to the old ones and if you stay on one machine you'll get used to it. I got moved around from one new machine to another and really got to know each and everyone. I have my favourites but the old Komatsu didn't make the cut.

Just my opinion.

I don't know much about Komatsu machines, they do seem to be at the lower end of the price spectrum. Never ran a Volvo but do like Hitachi and John Deere quite a lot. Would like to go with one of them if I can find the right deal but all the low hour machines I have looked at are priced at almost new prices or, they have a lot of hours and are more of a risk. I don't want to buy new but don't want a used machine with a new machine price! There must be some midle ground there somewhere. I am also trying to decide if the 120 size will be adequate or if I need to be closer to a 160. transporting and access to jobs get to be a problem with anything much bigger then that.

There is a place in Sandy right off of 26, called buzzards. They always have equipment parked out along the road. I picked up my ex120 from them. So far its been a great machine, minus one leaky hydro line.

That place is about 3 minutes away from where I live (off of Shorties Corner) and I am actually looking at one of their trucks, a nice T800KW dump truck. I have always wondered about their machines but they sure do turn a lot of equipment so they must be doing something right! Can I ask what you had to give for your 120 and what kind of hours it had? I may see if they can start looking for a machine for me as well as hitting everybody up on Columbia Blvd. Great to hear from someone in our neck of the woods! How has business been for you? THings have been picking up pretty well for me this spring.
Thanks
Karl

I dropped you a PM kyoshi.

kyoshidog said:

Great! I will look at these, not sure who services them here but I am sure there is a dealer in the area (I am in the Portland Oregon area.) I believe these are around the weight class I am looking at. Would this hande the 60" bucket? I want to be able to dig my loop trenches with just one bucket width as this is (IMHO) the eaiest and most efficient way to do it. Thanks SeaMac!

Click to expand...

Modern Machinery is the local Komatsu dealer. i just rented a 315 CAT and will say it is a very nice machine, it weighs about 36,000 and is less than 10' wide so it is haul-able with a tilt trailer behind a dump truck in the PNW. although i don't care for them i think for what you are doing the reduced/zero tail swing machine would work well for you

doosan 140 or hitachi zaxis 130

or sumitomo 120

13bnos thanks for the info about Buzzards, I am always a little leary about non mainstream dealers and will see what happens with the truck deal!
Big Iron, what don,t you like about the Cat 315? I have not been a fan of 0 clearance machines myself as they seem too tippy. I have thought more about a 312 or 320, any thoughts on those?
I am also curious about the Doosans, anybody have any comments on the quality, reliablity of the machine? Thanks for all the advice!

From my experience owning two 315's and putting several thousand hours between the two of them, you can't go wrong with one in good shape. Depending on your local weight laws it's the largest sized excavator you can pull on a tag behind a dump. They are good on fuel, responsive, strong for it's size and dependable. The next excavator I buy in that weight class will be a 315CL.

Never ran doosan, but I have put a lot of time in hyundai, pretty close to doosan price wise. 7,000 hours on a 160 working in 60% solid rock and zero major repairs. Machine is still very tight. Digging with a 60" bucket on anything less than a 160 will be slow going depending on the ground. If you go smaller I would consider a hydraulic quick change so you can dig with a 3-3.5' digging bucket and use the big bucket for easy digging, and clean up.