Excavator Parts Arizona - Excavators are important machines that are used in a variety of industries. They are extremely efficient in moving and transporting heavy loads within minutes. This industrial equipment is used in many industries including road work, bridge building, landscaping, construction and architecture. Also called diggers, 360-degree excavators and mechanical shovels, tracked models are sometimes referred to as trackhoes. Excavators can be equipped with numerous attachments to facilitate a range of jobs including grading and landscaping, demolition with a cutter, breaker and hydraulic saw attachments, material handling, river dredging, forestry, construction, open-pit mining, regular mining, driving piles when working with a pile driver, digging holes, foundations and trenches, snow removal with snowplow and snowblower attachments, drilling for rock blasting and footings with hydraulic auger attachment or drill, mulching for forestry and more.
An excavator is a type of heavy construction equipment that is comprised of specific parts. The dipper, boom, cab and bucket are situated on top of a rotating platform called the house. The house is located on top of an undercarriage that features either wheels or tracks. The steam shovels of yesterday have transformed into today’s excavators. Today’s hydraulic excavating models use hydraulic fluid to complete all functions and movement. The hydraulic cylinders feature linear actuation making them different from excavators that are cable-operated, relying on steel ropes and winches instead.
Excavator Models
There are numerous sizes and models when it comes to hydraulic excavators. Compact and tiny models weigh in around two thousand pounds. The largest models conversely fall into the two million pound category.
Modern hydraulic excavators rely on engine power to operate three hydraulic pumps as opposed to mechanical drivetrain operations. Two of the pumps supply high-pressure oil for the track motors, swing motor, arms and accessories. 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 pumps that are in an excavator are often the two variable displacement piston pumps and the gear pump. These three pumps can be found in the excavator in numerous configurations depending on different manufacturer models.
The House and the Undercarriage
The house and the undercarriage make up the two main portions of the machine. The final drives with a hydraulic motor and subsequent gears to individual tracks the blade, track frame and tracks are considered undercarriage components. The house features the engine, hydraulic oil tanks fuel, counterweight and the operator cab. The house and the undercarriage are connected via a pin. A hydraulic swivel located at the pin axis supplies high-pressure oils to the hydraulic motors’ tracks. This setup enables the machine to traverse 360 degrees freely.
The house is attached to the main boom and various configurations are available. Mono booms are among the most common. This type features zero movement besides straight up and down. A knuckle boom is another option which allows it to move right and left in line with the machine. There is a hinge option located at the booms’ base to let it pivot up to 180 degrees independently to the house, usually on available on compact excavators. There are triple articulated booms available on specific machines.
At the end of the boom, the stick or dipper arm is located. This arm creates the necessary digging force to drag the bucket through the ground. The stick length is optional depending on if reach or breakout power is needed. Shorter stick models are often utilized for breakout power jobs while longer stick models are used to complete extensive reach situations. At the end of the stick, the bucket is attached. A mud bucket describes a large, wide capacity bucket that has a straight cutting edge used for leveling and cleanup or wherever teeth are not needed. General-purpose bucket designs commonly are used to break up hard ground and difficult rocks, with their side cutters and hardened teeth that are typically smaller and stronger. There are different buckets available in numerous sizes for a variety of applications. Numerous attachments can be used for ripping, lifting, cutting, boring, crushing, and more.
Before the 1990s, the excavating machines were outfitted with a conventional counterweight that was located at the back of the equipment. This design enabled the machine to conquer more digging force and lifting capacity. This design was not ideal for working in confined locations. Today’s machines have been designed with the counterweight to stay in the width of the tracks for a much more user-friendly design.
The SAE and the ISO are the two types of control configuration used to operate the boom and the bucket. 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.
Hydraulic excavator jobs have surpassed bucket and excavation tasks. Many attachments including an auger, a grapple or a breaker have become common hydraulic powered attachments. Some models come with a quick coupler feature to increase efficiency while simplifying the attachment mounting process. Excavators commonly work alongside bulldozers and loaders. Most of the compact-sized excavator models have wheels and a backfill or dozer blade. This horizontal blade attaches to the undercarriage. It is used for pushing and leveling material back into a hole.
8 Main Excavator Types
• Long Reach
• Backhoe
• Suction
• Steam Shovel
• Bucket Wheel
• Skid Steer
• Dragline
• Crawler
Steam Shovel
Steam shovels are one of the original types of excavators. They utilized steam energy back in the day, while current models rely on diesel or electric motors. Steam shovels resemble backhoes with the shovel or bucket facing away from the machine as opposed to towards the unit. This enables the operator to shove dirt away from the machine instead of pulling earth towards it. Steam shovels are popular for digging around objects that might interfere with a regular 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. These machines come in multiple sizes including compact residential models suitable for backyard applications up to heavy-duty versions used in bridge building and dredging waterways. 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
Dragline excavators are designed similarly to a backhoe and include numerous lines and cables to support the bucket pulling motion. The dragline design enables operators to obtain a longer reach while digging deeper compared to a traditional backhoe. The cable and booms let users work over wet or unstable ground and in difficult locations unattainable by regular models.
Skid Steer Excavators
Skid steers have buckets and booms that face away from the operator. This engineering enables attachments to reach over the cab instead of around the cab. Skid steers are excellent in narrow areas and can easily negotiate tight turns thanks to this specific design. These machines often complete residential jobs such a digging pools, site cleaning and working in limited surroundings while removing debris.
Suction Excavator
Resembling a modern dump truck, these special excavators enable operators to use a large hose and vacuum technology to suck rocks and earth out of the ground. The material is transferred back to the truck. The suction excavator ensures a safer environment for digging around equipment and underground pipes compared to typical backhoes.
Crawler Excavators
Crawlers run on two tracks and not wheels. They are popular in the mining and construction industries. Crawlers are also known as compact excavators. They lift heavy debris and soil by using hydraulic power components. The machine can travel down hills thanks to the chain wheel configuration that makes these machines excellent for difficult and hilly 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. Long reach excavators are excellent for hard-to-reach locations. The extendable arm offers more than 100 feet of horizontal reach. These excavators are used in demolition applications and working over a body of water. Numerous attachments can be attached to the arm to complete jobs including shearing, crushing and cutting.
Bucket Wheel Excavator
These excavators function with a large front wheel with built-in buckets and shovels. Dirt and rocks are scooped up within the buckets as the wheel rotates. Materials are transferred onto a conveyor belt that makes up a portion of the machine. The belt transfers the material into a bin that may be separate from the model or a part of the machine.