I was gifted one of these with only 33 hours on it. It defently just needed some tuning and some love. Im going to be using it to install small recreational ponds.
For your next oil change, grab one of those thin flexible plastic cutting boards, like 12"x14", from the kitchen and maneuver it into a position to act as a funnel into your collection pan. You can bend and roll them all sorts of ways. You could add an extension to the drain tube but you'll still need something to guide that oil into your pan.
Looks like if you ran the the opposite track from the oil drain plug up on a couple 2x6's, 3" of tilt would make that oil change a bit less problematic.
I would unbolt the motor and slide in some rubber to reduces friction and reduce vibrations .The plastic pieces are for hose clamping. I would modify the rear cover to be easier to remove with out tools.
I love this series from you. Anything on these mini excavators, and if they're worth it (I think they possibly are, for a small property/farm. Don't have to get a 5-ton machine)!! Great job! I'm saving pennies, in hopes of getting one someday (I hate digging with a shovel!!)! Love watching what they can do and how they operate. LOL Have a great weekend. Cheers, -- J.Andre. / Old Iron Acres
Awesome! I glad it helps. If there is anything you want to know, just ask. Also if you do end up getting one, feel free to ask anything about your new toy… tool… toy…. Whatever it is! Haha
I bought one based on what other users in a Facebook group said worked. It did not. It was too small a diameter. I have a new one I think will fit now, just need to change the oil again.
I have a new HT10BZ if you want to compare. The core looks identical. My counter weight has the same holes, my engine is on a slant, and I have a hydraulic oil cooler in the same place. The only thing I see different is the control group is configured slightly differently. I am happy to compare if you like. Thanks for the great video. I haven't taken my back off yet, I have been dreading it.
Yes! I see the control panel is different but the rest? They seem the same. I would love to know about the pumps and valves. Are they the same? I’d have to take them apart and put them on a bench. Thanks! I’m glad it is helpful. I have been trying to make some videos that I would have liked to watch to learn more about my machine. I searched around and couldn’t find videos on what I wanted. So I have been making them. lol Don’t worry about taking it apart. It’s really not scary as they built a very simplistic machine that comes apart with simple hand tools. So far, everything I have encountered on this is easy, besides getting somewhere fast and not being tippy. Haha
@@OurLifeInTrees I am getting ready to take mine apart to do some upgrades (weather permitting). I am putting together some videos and I am happy to share and collaborate. The more I watch your videos the more I am convinced they are the same machine just rebranded. And I love mine.
I have a Miva VA13 which I assume is made by Hightop and looks identical to yours but I don't have the counter weight, oil cooler or B&S engine. Purchased new at a local action for $5100 with auction fees and taxes, including a 32" tilting bucket and hydraulic thumb.
I would like to see a side by side comparison of your excavator and a sub compact tractor with a backhoe ( jd 1025r maybe). These machines are close to the cost of a backhoe attachment. Also I think it would be nice if they designed the counterweight so you could bolt one or two more onto the existing one for more ballast
I can share that with the mini excavator you a 360 degree pivot. If you get one with a side swing boom then you can get closer to walls as well as by swinging boom just a little you can see the bucket better. With a tractor loader you move dirt and other stuff faster as mini excavators are VERY slow moving. You can always cheat and and buy both LOL
@@chrisreibold1634 I had a small Kubota tractor with a backhoe (sold it 20 years ago, don't remember the model) but it had the little 3 banger engine. More recently, I bought a U-25 mini X Kubota, same engine! That thing could outwork the tractor many times over, nothing beats the ability to swing 360 degrees, plus it just had more hydraulic power.
Nice run through vid. Thanks. Few notes. Yours is exactly same configuration as the Groundhog BH14G-2. You dont need to disassemble the entire back to change oil. Just remove rear screen. Its a bit more tedious but works none-the-less. Your tool box had more stuff that the groundhog tool box. The zero clearance zerc fitting, while a nice idea, are a pain to use with their cheap needle grease point. I used SAE 30 WT made for Briggs and statton rather than auto oil. Not sure it matters though. Nice touch painting the counter weight. Probably paint mine black. The only thing I dont like about my groundhog is it gets UBER HOT. That cant be good for the Briggs and statton. We'll see. I have 10 hrs on mine now and just changed the oil. Was clear with no metal so happy about that. .
@@OurLifeInTrees Yea, its got the cooling fan -I would say identical to yours but maybe slight detail differences if we sat them side by side. Even with the fan, the outer frame/cover gets really really hot. Manufacturer needs to install a bigger fan. I cant figure why it gets so hot because we all have riding mowers with the air cooled B&S's and they dont seem to get nearly as hot. What am I missing here? Also, I went out and got myself a nice set of the LockNlube grease gun/fittings along with their pressure relief valve adder. Keep up the good work!
@@autodog618 I agree, they get very hot. Do you have room to add another fan so that you can setup a push/pull setup to get more air flow? I bought a couple fans and they didn’t fit, I never reordered a fan that fit.
Okie here as well, east side okc area, looks like your in the tulsa area, or eastern side of the state, . I have a mms 13 c, myself. But looks identical to yours , other than it's not a kymron, couldn't afford one of those
Nice. Not familiar with that model. So many are just the same. I live in Norman near Lake Thunderbird, but we have property east of Talihina in SE OK. So I have videos from both places. SE Oklahoma is a much nicer backdrop! Haha
I bought a Miva brand of similar build. I understand most of the maintenance required, but am curious about the undercarriage. Do the three non powered wheels need grease? Or is it all sealed bearings?
At 4:53 - "I bought an extension tube for that - to make future oil changes"... not messy. Got it. So at 6:13 when it would be Easy to install the extension tube so that future oil changes are not messy - you don't bother. Ok. Another mess coming up in the future.
Nice catch. I bought the wrong size. I ordered one that another Chinese mini excavator owner bought assuming it would be the same size It was not. Sigh…. Yes, another mess is coming. I have the correct size tube now.
@@OurLifeInTrees Thank you for the explanation. I am in the process of purchasing direct from China - a mini excavator. From various YT - I thought all parts were mostly the same...
They are not all created equally. I hear many cheap ones have fake Briggs & Stratton engines as well. I have not personally verified that though. Like the cheap auction skid steers have issues with the tracks falling off and failing bearings. The ones a little more expensive from the manufacturer usually don’t have those basic issues.
I just got one recently and the hydraulic for the elbow all the sudden seem to lose a lot of power. There's no fluid leaking anywhere trying to figure out what's going on
Great video. Just got my H12. My complaint is that when going forward or reverse, it is extremely jumpy and almost violent. The Briggs & Stratton is a 13.5. Not sure, but yours didn't seem to exhibit my unit's symptom. I noticed that your hydraulic fluid window appears to be about 1/2 up from the bottom. My question or inquiry relates to mine being full to the top of the window. Do you or anyone else think that it is overfull and could be the cause of the jerky track movements? Other than that, I am impressed with everything else. Again, thanks for the video.
I have an H12 aswell and have done tons with it. Evens lowered under a house to dig out with my bigger 50z3 by wacker..Thing is a beast has crazy power..I run mine at Half throttle has plenty of power ..full throttle they get crazy fast so if you know how to run them and use more than one function at a time it helps to take power to all functions..I can dig a 6ft hole in 15-20 minutes..unbelievable machine..recently got all the attachments including a 40" hydraulic tilt ditching bucket .Auger , jackhammer and other buckets and ripper..They are made very well..I got mine from auction buddy for 5500 Don't regret one bit as iv used it on over 200,000 worth of jobs I couldn't complete without or a shit ton of shovel work I didn't wana do.
window is for level mine is full and not jerky unless you jerk controls..Move both at sametime or move them slowly at half throttle..Absolutely no reason for full throttle on these machines as you'll most likely hurt yourself!
How many hours were on that oil before you decided to finally change it? Luckily replacement motors are fairly cheap at hobo freight. A 20 dollar drain hose is a useful permanent addition as are an 18 dollar set of 4 latches for the rear panel.
25 hours on the oil. I bought a drain hose based on a link in a Chinese digger Facebook group and it was completely the wrong size for my machine. My rear cover is behind the weight, so I’m not sure about the latches on this. Mind you, 5 12mm bolts I can get with my power ratchet, one 13mm bolt with a gear wrench, and two 27mm bolts, I can have the back panel off in about 2-3 minutes.
@@OurLifeInTrees Next time you have the drain plug out slip metric open end wrenches over the threads. The one that fits the closest will tell you your metric thread size so you can order the correct size hose
Nice video. Helpfull. I have a machine ordered but haven't got it yet. I have watched a ton of videos, these seem really loud. Any thoughts or ideas on a really quiet muffler modification?
I don't have one, but have been daydreaming about having one the past week or 2 and was thinking that I'd likely be listening to a book/podcast/video/music while working and my pixel buds with noise cancelling would likely be perfect.
Rob Mitchell, what's wrong with a "mower" that can dig? If it digs and is cheap it works for basic home digging. Now if you're in the digging business get a $30,000 machine. I've learned that people with cheaper equipment and tools are usually the ones that actually have a 401k own real estate have cash, investments... and the people who talk trash on cheaper equipment usually can't even afford the cheap model anyway.
@@robmitchell3633 I’m happy with mine. Did one hurt you? Strange to keep coming back to a video to comment about how much you hate something if you don’t have personal experience with one. Sorry it hurt you.
