Mini diggers, tips and advice on use

[LGP Eddie]

This is obviously an interesting thread for myself, and I'd say most are on the right lines.

 

My own take on the Blade debate is there really isn't any right or wrong, you simply place it where is best for the specific task in hand.

 

If someone pinned me down to a specific answer then the Blade should be at the front with the Travel motors at the rear wherever possible?

The main factors are Safety, it is intuitive to push or pull the levers in the direction you wish to travel, but also should that bit of roundwood you are moving come crashing through the front window and pin against the levers, it will actually reverse you off, not drive you onto it.

There have been some really serious accidents caused this way.

Travel motors should always be to the rear with idlers at front wherever possible when tracking the machine, you get less track wear this way.

 

However real world! Blade to the front when working on slopes to level yourself up a little, and also when digging on surfaces that may drag you towards the trench.

If the blade cuts in during such instances, always reverse the machine a little when lifting the blade, or you will flip an ugly clod of material over every time.

 

Blade to the rear when trenching if possible, it gives you better down the hole vision, and by sighting a reference point on the blade against a marked line or point in the distance it will help you keep straight when moving for the next pull.

Blade to the rear will give you maximum downward force for digging hard ground also.

 

Just one tip to try with the blade, if you wish to put a camber on a track or even just get an angle on the bucket, put the blade in front and raise the machine a decent distance off the ground. It's quite handy the amount of camber you can form this way.

 

With regard to surface damage, the biggest mistake is the Train Drivers as I call them! 10 Acre field and 100 times up and down the same track marks!

Simply stagger your track marks wherever possible over usually 3 runs, and keep tracking any little windrows back in to keep thing level.

If you need to turn with no damage, the multiple turn is the best way given room to allow it.

Just track and turn very gently at the same time in long runs, and don't allow the machine to turn at all whilst standing.

I have to take my machine on a Premiership football team training pitch and complete these manoeuvres with the LGP pads, and trust me it can be done with great care, but one slip and the turf will roll up like a carpet!

 

Lifting yourself around when turning is always a good policy, I think it's easier on everything really and shows you care.

 

If conditions require it, any simple form of ply boards, matting, brash etc can help, but if you know it's top of the tracks time, use 3 or 4 sleepers to walk the machine around on.

It's surprising how little effort this takes with practice to pick up the sleeper with the bucket and slew it around to place in front of yourself to move forward, and this will keep you safe and afloat in some trick going.

 

All I can say is I've been in the seat now over 25 years, and every day is a School Day! You learn best from being around other Operators and taking note how they do things, but there is one simple fact, you can only learn in the Seat!

 

 

Eddie.

[Mountain man]

This is obviously an interesting thread for myself, and I'd say most are on the right lines.

 

My own take on the Blade debate is there really isn't any right or wrong, you simply place it where is best for the specific task in hand.

 

If someone pinned me down to a specific answer then the Blade should be at the front with the Travel motors at the rear wherever possible?

The main factors are Safety, it is intuitive to push or pull the levers in the direction you wish to travel, but also should that bit of roundwood you are moving come crashing through the front window and pin against the levers, it will actually reverse you off, not drive you onto it.

There have been some really serious accidents caused this way.

Travel motors should always be to the rear with idlers at front wherever possible when tracking the machine, you get less track wear this way.

 

However real world! Blade to the front when working on slopes to level yourself up a little, and also when digging on surfaces that may drag you towards the trench.

If the blade cuts in during such instances, always reverse the machine a little when lifting the blade, or you will flip an ugly clod of material over every time.

 

Blade to the rear when trenching if possible, it gives you better down the hole vision, and by sighting a reference point on the blade against a marked line or point in the distance it will help you keep straight when moving for the next pull.

Blade to the rear will give you maximum downward force for digging hard ground also.

 

Just one tip to try with the blade, if you wish to put a camber on a track or even just get an angle on the bucket, put the blade in front and raise the machine a decent distance off the ground. It's quite handy the amount of camber you can form this way.

 

With regard to surface damage, the biggest mistake is the Train Drivers as I call them! 10 Acre field and 100 times up and down the same track marks!

Simply stagger your track marks wherever possible over usually 3 runs, and keep tracking any little windrows back in to keep thing level.

If you need to turn with no damage, the multiple turn is the best way given room to allow it.

Just track and turn very gently at the same time in long runs, and don't allow the machine to turn at all whilst standing.

I have to take my machine on a Premiership football team training pitch and complete these manoeuvres with the LGP pads, and trust me it can be done with great care, but one slip and the turf will roll up like a carpet!

 

Lifting yourself around when turning is always a good policy, I think it's easier on everything really and shows you care.

 

If conditions require it, any simple form of ply boards, matting, brash etc can help, but if you know it's top of the tracks time, use 3 or 4 sleepers to walk the machine around on.

It's surprising how little effort this takes with practice to pick up the sleeper with the bucket and slew it around to place in front of yourself to move forward, and this will keep you safe and afloat in some trick going.

 

All I can say is I've been in the seat now over 25 years, and every day is a School Day! You learn best from being around other Operators and taking note how they do things, but there is one simple fact, you can only learn in the Seat!

 

 

Eddie.

 

Good stuff Eddie, thanks

[sandy2210]

eddie just said all I was about to say and more another reason for blade at back when digging prevents the bucket from hitting the blade when working close in but disagree about bucket at rear on hard digging surely blade at the front stops you getting "pulled into the hole"

and yes there was a digger with 2 blades front and rear it was a purpose build for highland council grave diggers they can travel the paths on the very hilly/undulating graveyards and use whatever blade to level themselves while digging cross carriage without screwing round on the grass

[LGP Eddie]

eddie just said all I was about to say and more another reason for blade at back when digging prevents the bucket from hitting the blade when working close in but disagree about bucket at rear on hard digging surely blade at the front stops you getting "pulled into the hole"

and yes there was a digger with 2 blades front and rear it was a purpose build for highland council grave diggers they can travel the paths on the very hilly/undulating graveyards and use whatever blade to level themselves while digging cross carriage without screwing round on the grass

 

Simple fact on hard digging with a mini, the maximum breakout you can extract from it is forcing the boom down as hard as she'll have it within reason with the dipper extended and then crowding the bucket to scrape the teeth into the material.

The blade being at the rear extends the pivot point of the machine considerably as it's trying to lift itself, hence extracting the maximum.

 

Test it yourself? Blade out in front on a hard surface, apply downward pressure and you'll lift the machine up easily, spin around and now try to lift it with the blade at the rear. This will make it cough and some models with long blades simply won't lift?

This is what keeps them bucket teeth tips forced down into the material, and utilising just the action of the powerful crowd ram, you're giving all it's got to whatever the hard obstacle is in the trench.

 

Most assume wedge themselves in with the blade and pull at it, but the dipper is long and won't produce anywhere near as much force as the rough arsed method someone told me about above!

 

If the going is really rough, generally it ends up a combination of the two methods to first loosen material and then dig it out.

 

 

Eddie.

Edited February 25, 2015 by LGP Eddie

[LGP Eddie]

Forgot to add the last post was spot on with the 'Twin Blade'!

 

Graveyard shift for Volvo EC20C | Construction Digger Blog | The Construction Index

 

 

Eddie.

[sandy2210]

point taken. as you say a lot depends on the job

[sandy2210]

seen it around a few times had to ask first time. they try to dig all the graves in any new plot then fill them in again so they are easy dug when needed never know what they will find first time

[Matthew Storrs]

I wouldn't mind a twin blade myself- I use my digger with a post knocker a lot and have to use the blade to level the machine and hence drive the post straight- if I had a blade front and back I wouldn't have to spin the machine around when the slope changed.