Big Rig Improvements Made On Mini Excavator

Big Rig Improvements Made On Mini Excavator Dale Gunn sees no reason his mini excavator can’t be as comfortable as larger units with cabs. He designed a cab structure that’s easy to enclose and just as easy to open when the weather is nice. “The windscreen is laminated glass, but above that I used Plexiglas, curved to shape with a blowtorch,” says Gunn. “Below the windscreen, I used 10 mm Plexiglas with shaped footwells to allow pedal movement.” The metal roof is made from the side panel of an old Fisher & Paykel washing machine. Gunn used 4 mm wall pipe for the rear of the frame because it’s the most structurally critical part of the cab. “I mounted two lifting points on the rear of the cab, with a third on the boom, should I need to lift it with a helicopter,” says Gunn. The pipes at the front of the cab, extending down to the base, are only 2.5 mm thick, as Gunn hoped to save weight. This was also intended to make the structure easier to lift by helicopter to a remote site. Gunn used vinyl for the sides and back, with clips that let him fasten it in place or lift it out of the way, depending on the weather. He added a windscreen wiper, a cooling fan and headlights, including one on the boom. “I also added a couple of 12-volt heaters and a 2,500-watt inverter,” says Gunn. “The heaters keep me toasty warm on a cold day, and the inverter will boil water no problem. I even have an FM CB in there and a speaker so I can stream music from my phone via Bluetooth.” Gunn also improved the mini’s working end. He added hardened edges to the bucket and fabricated a thumb. “I used flat bar that I curved and strengthened for the thumb,” says Gunn. “At the tips, I used grouser bar to withstand rocks.” Gunn shaved some costs on the thumb by using a cylinder from AliExpress. Its $60 price was more than offset by the cost of three new hydraulic hoses. Two were for the newly added cylinder, and the third was for the transmission. “The hoses were locally made for $940,” says Gunn. “I later found the same hoses made in China for 95% less.” Another improvement Gunn made to the excavator was the addition of foot pedal controls for steering. He used flat steel for bell cranks, shafts from a surplus socket set extension, and bosses for them, made from drilled round bar. “The crank rods were merely threaded rod with tie rod ends,” says Gunn. “I connected them to the OEM hand levers. It’s really handy when you have to lift the tracks to turn or travel a distance. You can just sit back and let your toes steer instead of hunching over the controls.” Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, D.S. Gunn, 351 Tanglefern Row, Virgin Flat, Westport 7825, New Zealand (dale.s.gunn@gmail.com).

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