Equipment and Machinery Articles

Excavation equipment guides: excavator sizes and weights, mini excavators, skid steers, backhoes, attachments, costs, and brand comparisons.
Bulldozer Blades and Dozing Technique

November 11, 2026 | Matt

Bulldozer Blades and Dozing Technique

How bulldozer blades and dozing technique decide production: blade families, tilt and pitch, slot and side-by-side dozing, traction limits, and the correction factors behind a dozer production estimate.

Storing Heavy Equipment for the Off-Season

November 08, 2026 | Matt

Storing Heavy Equipment for the Off-Season

An idle machine degrades faster than a working one, so off-season storage is a sequence: clean and inspect, stabilize the fluids, protect the rods and batteries, block the load, and check it every month.

Wheel Loader Basics

November 04, 2026 | Matt

Wheel Loader Basics

A practical guide to wheel loaders: what the machine is built for, how articulation, linkage, and bucket capacity decide production, and the loading and stockpile habits that cut cycle time.

Tiltrotator Attachments

November 03, 2026 | Matt

Tiltrotator Attachments

A tiltrotator gives an excavator tilt and continuous rotation at the end of the stick, which changes grading, ditching, and tight-access work, at a real cost in weight, height, and hydraulic complexity.

Motor Grader Basics

November 02, 2026 | Matt

Motor Grader Basics

A practical guide to motor grader basics: how the moldboard, circle, and articulation work, how blade angle and wheel lean affect the grade, and the operating habits that prevent washboarding.

Loading Trucks with an Excavator

October 31, 2026 | Matt

Loading Trucks with an Excavator

Loading is where an excavator's productivity is won or lost: how to spot trucks, match bucket passes to payload, load the bed evenly, and keep the face safe.

Choosing an Equipment Trailer

October 30, 2026 | Matt

Choosing an Equipment Trailer

How to size an equipment trailer to the machine and the truck: GVWR and payload math, deck length and loading angle, axle and brake ratings, securement limits, and what to inspect before buying.

Articulated vs. Rigid Haul Trucks

October 29, 2026 | Matt

Articulated vs. Rigid Haul Trucks

A practical comparison of articulated dump trucks and rigid haul trucks for earthwork: how haul road quality, grade, distance, and site geometry decide which machine moves material at the lowest cost per ton.

Excavator Hydraulic System Problems

October 25, 2026 | Matt

Excavator Hydraulic System Problems

How to diagnose the most common excavator hydraulic problems - slow cycles, weak digging, drift, overheating, aeration and leaks - before they cost you a pump.

Lifting with an Excavator

October 17, 2026 | Matt

Lifting with an Excavator

A practical guide to lifting with an excavator: reading the lift chart, rigging the load, accounting for sling angles and attachment weight, setting up on stable ground, and keeping the machine and crew out of the tip-over zone.

Diesel Aftertreatment and DEF

October 16, 2026 | Matt

Diesel Aftertreatment and DEF

A plain-English guide to Tier 4 Final aftertreatment on heavy equipment: what DEF is, how SCR and DPF work, regeneration, storage and quality rules, and how to avoid derates.

Working on Slopes with an Excavator

October 12, 2026 | Matt

Working on Slopes with an Excavator

Safe excavator slope work comes down to tracking up and down the fall line, benching a level platform, and keeping the bucket low.