Son wants to by excavator, advise please...

[KeithG]

This is the most helpful message board I have found to get advise on equipment and I don't know where else to ask my questions.... My son is interested in buying a used excavator with the following details:

Make: Caterpillar 315CL
Year: 2004
Hours: 9,957
Features: Thumb ready (only needs lines to boom and thumb??)
Price: $42,950

I apologize for it not being Kubota.

He bought 65 acres of land and wants to use this machine to put in the road, dig his foundation hole, leach field, septic tank, etc.. In addition he wants to clear some of the land and maybe do some farming.

Between his job as a police officer and military duties (he is the commander of the 237th MP Co.) he does not have time to hire/oversee anyone that could do this kind of work so he is willing to do the work over the next two years and then finally build his house.

My questions are:
1) Is this machine the right machine to do what he wants?
2) Is over 9,000 hours a lot for this type of machine?
3) What should be looked for in terms of wear and tear (i.e. was the machine abused)?
4) What to look for in terms of problem areas?
5) How do you check the drive system (i.e. tracks, gears, etc)?
6) How do you check the hydraulics/pins/controls?
7) How much would it cost to add the thumb and lines?
8) Is this a good price?

Anything else the equipment gods of this message board can offer would be greatly appreciated...

If there is some penance I must serve for asking a non-Kubota equipment question just let me know...

Thanks,
-Keith

 

[85Hokie]

That there is a MaChIne!!!!

I had the chance to "operate" one.......note- I was not an operator - just a dude at the joysticks, what a fantastic machine!!

The onsite operator could, this is no lie, take the top of a coke bottle IF you could hold the bottle still.

As for the hours - if I was buying it, I would want to see a lot of paper work as to what has been done on this machine, like what maintenance has been done...etc.

I cannot help you in the price nor the look over - there are those on this board that can and they will chime in quickly.

As for being a non kubota.....ALL of us would like to own ONE!! even if yellow!

 

[spacemanspiff]

It's a roll of the dice. I would only buy it if I could afford to replace a pump or some other expensive item.

I had a kobelco 210 a few years back. It took me 10 hours to learn the controls(operated backhoe since birth). I had it a little over a year and was glad to see it go. It was too big for any thing I wanted to do. I will never own one that size again, but I might rent one if I had a big job.

 

[torch]

A quick look at machinerytrader.com suggests that's a pretty good price for the hours and the hours are middle of the road compared to others on offer.

That's all the help I can offer. Is it really a good deal, or does it need some expensive work? At that price point, it might be worth paying a heavy equipment mechanic to perform a pre-purchase inspection to help you with your decision.

 

[beckmurph]

You might check this forum out:http://www.heavyequipmentforums.com/

You will need to sign up, but there is a lot of info,
similar to your needs and questions.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[PaulL]

If he's buying it to get the work done, then I'd strongly consider hiring the job out. I know it sounds harder, but a competent operator will do an enormously better job than an amateur, and do it in half or less the time. The savings on fuel and maintenance will pay for the operator.

If he's doing it to have fun whilst the work gets done, and to have a machine left over at the end of it, then all I can say is that I'm jealous.

 

[100 td]

Whilst I'd love one as well, the bigger the machine, the bigger equipment required to work on them, the bigger repair bill if ANYTHING goes wrong. As previously noted, consider getting a dozer and/or excavator on site to do the initial roughing in of roads, ground clearing and dams etc. then buy a smaller tractor or machine that will suit the property needs after all the initial bigger/rough work is done.

 

[KeithG]

Whilst I'd love one as well, the bigger the machine, the bigger equipment required to work on them, the bigger repair bill if ANYTHING goes wrong. As previously noted, consider getting a dozer and/or excavator on site to do the initial roughing in of roads, ground clearing and dams etc. then buy a smaller tractor or machine that will suit the property needs after all the initial bigger/rough work is done.

Well the machine he was looking at ended up having some work done that was suspicious (i.e. boom was welded back together after a complete break, the bucket and pins were replaced) so it is hard to tell exactly if the machine was beaten on/abused or not. So he has decided to not get that machine.

Regarding getting a smaller machine he is already assuming ownership of my B2710 and even my grandson asks him "Daddy, why is your tractor parked over pappys house?". He know he does not get it until he inherits it...

I think he wants to do the initial site work and then work on the rest of his 65 acres at his leisure. Wish I had the opportunity to get a machine like that when I was younger, but my folks could not borrow money from their 401K. Maybe I am nuts to do it, but I could use a machine like that on my land for a bit also...

 

[torch]

Regarding getting a smaller machine he is already assuming ownership of my B2710 and even my grandson asks him "Daddy, why is your tractor parked over pappys house?".

ROFLMAO!

My son has certainly been getting my money's worth out of the tractor. My grandson came up to me with a sly smile a couple of months ago to tell me "Hey Poppa, I was driving your tractor. Dad showed me how to work it."

 

[8upbowhunter]

FWIW - I bought 68 wooded acres last year with a small overgrown pond on it. This April I hired a contractor with a dozer and excavator to make roads, 5 food plots, clean and enlarge the pond from 1/4 acre to .65 acres, clear 1 acre for a camp and another 1/2 acre on side of the pond, install 4 culverts for drainage and take out several large stumps and unwanted trees. Total cost was $5,300.00 for everything. If I purchased the equipment I would probably still be trying to get the work done where they knocked it out in 50 hours. That was a whole lot cheaper than buying an expensive piece of used equipment to try to do it myself. Everything else I needed was done with my tractor.

 

[BravoXray]

If your son doesn’t have the time to hire a contractor then he won’t have time to do all of the work you have listed. Buying a scalpel doesn’t make you a surgeon, and while anyone can dig a hole there needs to be some precision when you’re putting in a foundation and septic system. Most pro excavators these days use lasers, although you can use a transit if you have two people. For putting in roads you would find a skid steer much more efficient. Again, most pros will bring out multiple machines for the work that you described. Buying a used track vehicle is tricky, rebuilding the undercarriage is an expensive project. I think he would get a lot more use long term out of a skid steer or a larger tractor with a loader and box blade, and hire out the larger portions of the work, or rent an excavator when he needs it.

Good luck,

Jerry

 

[KeithG]

Well my son finally settled on getting a John Deere 690ELC excavator. It is a private sale and includes a second bucket and a grapple. Just thought I would update this thread with the final results.

The land he bought was purchased with his best friend who owns a landscaping company and operates heavy equipment so the machine will definitely be used to clear their land. Who knows maybe I will even spend some time in the cab...