• Thank you for visiting HeavyEquipmentForums.com! Our objective is to provide industry professionals a place to gather to exchange questions, answers and ideas. We welcome you to register using the "Register" icon at the top of the page. We'd appreciate any help you can offer in spreading the word of our new site. The more members that join, the bigger resource for all to enjoy. Thank you!

This will be an interesting thread moving forward......

CM1995

Administrator
Joined
Jan 21, 2007
Messages
13,250
Location
Alabama
Occupation
Running what I brung and taking what I win
My $.035 adjusted for massive inflation is get as much of their money as you can but don't let them get ahead of you on invoicing.

With the coming recession this type of horrible mis-management isn't going to survive.
 
Last edited:

Welder Dave

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 11, 2014
Messages
12,260
Location
Canada
Is that fuel filter with Japanese? writing the original from the factory too?

Edit: It's black so maybe they didn't notice it. Somebody in the shop probably found some black plastic thing and didn't know what it was for so chucked it.
 
Last edited:

suladas

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 30, 2016
Messages
1,731
Location
Canada
Is that fuel filter with Japanese? writing the original from the factory too?

Edit: It's black so maybe they didn't notice it. Somebody in the shop probably found some black plastic thing and didn't know what it was for so chucked it.

Yep. That's the way the filters come from the dealer on my Takeuchi with Yanmar engine.
 

suladas

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 30, 2016
Messages
1,731
Location
Canada
This was a nice find this morning............
View attachment 262462
I opened the compartment to check it for hours on the filters and the air filter lid is nowhere to be found. The filter was close to falling out :eek:...........no telling how much dirt this engine has ingested.

On another note, they have a newer Hitachi excavator rented from the Deere dealer here. I don't know how long they have had it rented but it currently has 1818 hours, and the fuel filters are marked at 787 hours. Water seperator light was lit on the dash panel and the machine was struggling to run when I got there. I was asked to put fuel filters on it because the dealer had nobody available to come service this. I waited all week for a Deere service tech to ET their newer 700K dozer.........with no results and no calls. I am in the process of getting the company set up with another Deere dealer in OKC because this one isn't making the grade.

It looks like a Yanmar engine, those things are tough as hell. When I bought mine there was no inner air filter and the fuel water separator drain was clogged with sand. 2000 hours later and 5000 hours total on it it runs as good as new. Everyone says even not looked after great the motors will long outlive the excavator going at least 10,000 hours so at least there's that!

I think i'd be more concerned about the filter falling out because of the missing cover, not the dirt from lack of cover though.
 

John C.

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 11, 2007
Messages
12,865
Location
Northwest
Occupation
Machinery & Equipment Appraiser
The point of the photo is that no one even bothered to do a minimum of a check out before starting the machine before each shift. Who gets the blame for that? Operator, site boss, job manager, owner? At least the free air filter isn't a safety issue. But then again, how many unsafe practices are happening that are like a bear traps waiting for someone to step into?
 

kshansen

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 11, 2012
Messages
11,129
Location
Central New York, USA
Occupation
Retired Mechanic in Stone Quarry
It always gets me how people whos livelihood depends on a piece of equipment being able to do a job will misuse that equipment. This goes for everyone from the seat warmer/operator to the people in the main office.

Not saying they need to wash and polish the equipment everyday after using it but just a quick walk around opening access doors to look for damage.

And how can someone replace a radiator with that damage and not question what caused it!
 

Truck Shop

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 7, 2015
Messages
16,556
Location
WWW.
It always gets me how people whos livelihood depends on a piece of equipment being able to do a job will misuse that equipment. This goes for everyone from the seat warmer/operator to the people in the main office.

We have 61 drivers-51 of them are capable of tearing up a anvil. The other 10 are capable of eating it.
 

DMiller

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 21, 2010
Messages
16,432
Location
Hermann, Missouri
Occupation
Cheap "old" Geezer
We had mostly reasonably responsible drivers at the yard I recently left, looked over the equipment, aided in service work, performed excellent inspections every day Before and After runs, was but two wrenches in the shop and if did not account to a Emergency on their part was ignored. Owner wanted machines kept safe and functional as able to pass DOT Inspections but wanted repairs done only AS NECESSARY and at minimal expense as all owners do. Led to a lot of disagreements and disenchanted operators vs wrenches.
 

kshansen

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 11, 2012
Messages
11,129
Location
Central New York, USA
Occupation
Retired Mechanic in Stone Quarry
We have 61 drivers-51 of them are capable of tearing up a anvil. The other 10 are capable of eating it.
I think some of them either came east to work at the quarry or maybe they left the quarry to move west! And they could be locked neck'ed in a padded cell and the anvil would be just a pile of dust by the end of the shift! If you said anything they would say "It was like that when I started the shift!". Maybe so but the dust would be a finer powder when they left for the day!
 

suladas

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 30, 2016
Messages
1,731
Location
Canada
The point of the photo is that no one even bothered to do a minimum of a check out before starting the machine before each shift. Who gets the blame for that? Operator, site boss, job manager, owner? At least the free air filter isn't a safety issue. But then again, how many unsafe practices are happening that are like a bear traps waiting for someone to step into?

Absolutely. Without knowing how long it's been off it's really on the operator. If it's recent and not in need of service because no one said anything, it's no one else's fault. You can tell someone 100x to check a machine in the morning before using it, but with most of them it's in one ear out the other and if you want to be in business you have to employ people like that sadly.
 

suladas

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 30, 2016
Messages
1,731
Location
Canada
It always gets me how people whos livelihood depends on a piece of equipment being able to do a job will misuse that equipment. This goes for everyone from the seat warmer/operator to the people in the main office.

Not saying they need to wash and polish the equipment everyday after using it but just a quick walk around opening access doors to look for damage.

And how can someone replace a radiator with that damage and not question what caused it!

Yea it is really bad. I compare the shape of my stuff that is 99% run by me only compared to my brothers who has around 15 employees, it's night and day. One complained about running skidsteer without door glass or rear glass, but funny enough added 2 more skidsteers and neither lasted the summer without broken glass either. You'd think when you have to run one in the rain and have a garbage bag on your legs you'd think "maybe I should be more careful and not break the glass next time" but nope. One of them borrowed mine and it took TEN minutes to shatter the front window, yes TEN minutes to break a $400 door. They also borrowed my skid steer forks, managed to bend them up too somehow. I don't understand it and don't have the patience for it. I would either fire virtually all of them, or i'd be in jail, there is no way I could put up with the stupidity. I mean if they were making me an insane amount of money maybe just maybe, but that's not possible with how hard on stuff so many are and slow.

We were talking about it the other day and he mentioned how he is likely planning to downside to around 5-8 guys, said he's not making anymore money with 16 guys it's just more stress, and can keep the better guys and fire the rest, and bonus sell equipment when it's high. If you break it down to per hour invested, we make about the same money and I don't have the stress of any employees. There is perks of employees like if something has to be done on a saturday you can send someone where I have to do it myself, but there's also a lot of stress and if jobs aren't paying or whatnot you can lose a lot of money quick with that kind of money going out.
 

suladas

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 30, 2016
Messages
1,731
Location
Canada
Here it IS a legality as one signs off the machine Has no faults on a Inspection sheet or column.

Speaking of just equipment, unless it's government or really big companies no one here does written inspection reports on equipment, only trucks. And so many don't care, long time ago I worked a summer for the utility company you had to do written inspections but no one looked at chit. In the summer I was there I could probably count on one hand the number of times I saw someone pop a hood and check fluids.
 

DMiller

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 21, 2010
Messages
16,432
Location
Hermann, Missouri
Occupation
Cheap "old" Geezer
Here an Accident occurs and Insurance wants to see the Historic Records of Inspection or they WILL NOT Pay. That I saw with my own eyes and heard with my own Hearing Aids. Machine lost a Hydraulic hose, sprayed down a laborer Hot Oil, Inspections were Signed off and hose determined Instant Catastrophic fail, Insurer Paid.
 

CM1995

Administrator
Joined
Jan 21, 2007
Messages
13,250
Location
Alabama
Occupation
Running what I brung and taking what I win
Here an Accident occurs and Insurance wants to see the Historic Records of Inspection or they WILL NOT Pay. That I saw with my own eyes and heard with my own Hearing Aids. Machine lost a Hydraulic hose, sprayed down a laborer Hot Oil, Inspections were Signed off and hose determined Instant Catastrophic fail, Insurer Paid.

Unfortunately it's not like that here so we pay higher insurance premiums because the other insured morons have claims.
 

kshansen

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 11, 2012
Messages
11,129
Location
Central New York, USA
Occupation
Retired Mechanic in Stone Quarry
I recall looking at pre-op check lists where the person just drew a line straight down the page in the OK column. These were generic check lists so there were some items that plane did not apply things like, ladders, they got the mark even if it was a small skid steer!
 
Top