Hawaii Excavator Parts - Excavators are important machines that are used in a variety of industries. These machines are capable of moving heavy dirt loads much faster in comparison to manual labor. These machines are used in landscaping, agricultural applications, road work and bridge work along with the construction industry. Excavators go by many names including diggers, mechanical shovels, 360-degree excavators and tracked models are often called trackhoes. There are many ways to utilize excavators and their associated attachments including:
• Material handling
• Construction
• Forestry
• Digging foundations, holes and trenches
• River dredging
• Mulching for forestry
• Brush cutting with a mower and hydraulic saw attachments
• Open pit and regular mining
• Snow removal with a snow blower and snowplow attachments
• Working with a pile driver for driving piles
• Landscaping and grading
• Drilling for rock blasting and footings with hydraulic drill or auger attachment
• Demolition with breaker, cutter and hydraulic claw attachments
An excavator is a popular kind of heavy construction equipment made up of particular parts. The dipper, boom, cab and bucket are situated on top of a rotating platform called the house. The house is situated on top of an undercarriage that has tracks or wheels. Excavators have evolved from steam shovels of yesteryear. The hydraulic excavating models rely on hydraulic fluid to finish all movement and functions. The linear actuation on the hydraulic cylinders makes them differ from cable-operated excavators that rely on winches or steel ropes.
Excavator Models
Hydraulic excavators come in a variety of different models and sizes. Tiny and compact models weigh approximately 2k lbs. while the largest models weigh in around 2m lbs.
Modern hydraulic excavators rely on engine power to operate three hydraulic pumps as opposed to mechanical drivetrain operations. Two pumps deliver high-pressure oil for the accessories, swing motor, track motors and arms. A low-pressure third pump delivers power to pilot the spool valves. This design offers less required physical effort for operating the controls. The three excavator pumps typically consist of a gear pump and two variable displacement piston pumps. These three pumps can be found in the excavator in numerous configurations depending on different manufacturer models.
The House and the Undercarriage
The two main aspects of the machine are made by the undercarriage and the house. The undercarriage is comprised of the tracks, track frame, the gears and the hydraulic motor that operates the blade tracks. The house consists of the operator cab, the counterweight, hydraulic oil tanks, fuel and the engine. A center pin connects the undercarriage to the house. A hydraulic swivel located at the pin axis supplies high-pressure oils to the hydraulic motors’ tracks. This design allows the excavator to move freely in 360 degrees.
The house is attached to the main boom and various configurations are available. The most common type of booms are the mono booms. This kind of boom offers zero movement other than up and down motions A knuckle boom is another option which allows it to move right and left in line with the machine. Typically an option on compact excavators, the booms’ base has a hinge option that enables it to pivot one-hundred and eighty degrees independently to the house. Triple articulated booms are also on the market.
A dipper arm is attached to the end of the boom. This apparatus provides the required digging force to drag the bucket through the ground. The length of the stick is optional depending on whether breakout power or reach is necessary. Shorter stick models are often utilized for breakout power jobs while longer stick models are used to complete extensive reach situations. A bucket is typically attached to the end of the stick. A mud bucket refers to a wide bucket that has a straight cutting edge for cleanup applications and leveling and where teeth are not required. General purpose buckets are usually stronger and smaller with hardened teeth and side cutters to break up rocks and difficult ground. There are different buckets available in numerous sizes for a variety of applications. There are many attachments used for crushing, boring, cutting, lifting, ripping and more.
Prior to the ‘90s, all excavating equipment came with a conventional counterweight that was suspended off of the back of the machine. This design enabled the machine to conquer more digging force and lifting capacity. As one can imagine, this became cumbersome when working within confined spaces. Today’s machines have been designed with the counterweight to stay in the width of the tracks for a much more user-friendly design.
In excavators, there are two main kinds of control configuration to operate the bucket and the boom called the ISO and the SAE. These types of control configuration disperse the four top digging controls between two different x-y joysticks, enabling an experienced operator to have simultaneous control of all four functions. Certain excavators have switches to allow the operator to decide on which configuration they want to use during operation.
Regular excavation and bucket jobs have been surpassed by hydraulic excavators. There are many hydraulic-powered excavator attachments including a breaker, a grapple and an auger. There are models that offer a quick coupler feature to simplify attachment mounting and increase efficiency. Excavators often work beside loaders and bulldozers. The majority of medium and compact sized wheeled models have a dozer blade or a backfill blade. The horizontal dozer blade attaches to the machines’ undercarriage. It is commonly employed for leveling and pushing items into a hole.
8 Main Excavator Types
There are eight main kinds of excavators including the dragline, long reach, crawler, bucket wheel, backhoe, steam shovel, skid steer and suction.
Steam Shovel
Steam shovels are one of the original types of excavators. They relied on steam energy while today’s models use electric or diesel motors. Steam shovels are similar to backhoes with the bucket or shovel facing away from the machine instead of facing it. This design allows the operator to push dirt away from the unit instead of pulling the earth towards it. Steam shovels are used for digging around objects that may interfere with a typical backhoe.
Backhoe
Backhoes are one of the most popular kinds of excavators. Backhoes contain a large bucket that extends from a boom or an arm and a wheeled track base. The bucket faces the operator cab and enables the operator to scoop earth toward the equipment. There are many kinds of excavators and sizes including heavy-duty applications such as dredging water and bridge construction to compact residential models ideal for backyard landscaping. The more compact units are ideal for accessing smaller spaces and this offers a 200-degree swiveling range for digging close to the machine.
Dragline Excavator
A dragline excavator resembles a backhoe and includes various cables and lines to facilitate the bucket pulling motion. The dragline allows operators to reach farther and dig deeper in comparison to a regular backhoe. The boom and cables allow users to work over unstable or wet ground and where a traditional backhoe would not work.
Skid Steer Excavators
Skid steers are designed with their booms and buckets facing away from the operator. This design allows attachments to reach over the cab as opposed to around it. This design makes skid steers useful for negotiating tight turns and narrow locations. These machines often complete residential jobs such a digging pools, site cleaning and working in limited surroundings while removing debris.
Suction Excavator
The suction excavator looks similar to a dump truck and relies on vacuum technology and a large hose to suck earth and rocks out of the ground. The material is transferred back to the truck. This machine makes it safer to dig around underground pipes and equipment compared to regular backhoes.
Crawler Excavators
Crawlers run on two tracks and not wheels. They are popular in the mining and construction industries. Also called compact excavators, these machines rely on hydraulic power components to lift heavy soil and debris. The chain wheel configuration allows the machine to traverse down hills with less risk, making them an ideal candidate for hilly locations and tricky terrain. Crawlers are slower in speed compared to other models but offer superior balance, flexibility and stability.
Long Reach Excavators
The long reach excavator showcases lengthier boom and arm components. They are ideal for hard-to-reach areas. This machine offers over one hundred feet of horizontal reach. These excavators are used in demolition applications and working over a body of water. Various attachments can be fixed to the arm to complete jobs such as cutting, crushing and shearing.
Bucket Wheel Excavator
These machines consist of a large front wheel that has built-in buckets and shovels. As the wheel rotates, rocks and dirt are scooped up in the buckets. Items are transferred onto a conveyor belt that functions as an important part of the machine. The belt transports the material into a bin that depending on the model, could be a part of the machine or separate.