Howzit, undercarriage warriors. Ralph in Benoni and Justin in Cato Ridge here. Between us we’ve measured more than 1 200 sets of 20–45 tonne undercarriages in the last eight years, and we’ve got bad news and good news. Bad news: the average South African 40-tonner is throwing away R800 000–R1.4 million on undercarriage every 6 000–8 000 hours because of lazy habits and dealer scare tactics. Good news: the top 10 % of operators in this country are getting 11 000–15 000+ hours

If someone has ever handed you a R280 000 + VAT quote for a brand-new main hydraulic pump and told you “it’s the only safe option”, then congratulations: you’ve just been sold the most expensive myth in South African earthmoving. My name is Ralph – I run the Benoni yard in Gauteng and I’ve got a Komatsu K3V180 pump sitting on the bench right now that we pulled out of a PC400-6 two weeks ago. It’s cleaned, resealed, photographed from every angle and priced at R36 500 ex-VAT. T

Sawubona, mfowethu! If you’ve ever stood next to a 40-tonne excavator that’s been sitting dead for three weeks waiting for a R280 000 hydraulic pump from Japan, then this 3 000-word deep-dive is written specifically for you. My name is Ralph – I’m one of the guys at Vikfin who actually turns the spanners, drives the forklift, and argues with customs officials so your parts land in Kitwe or Walvis Bay without drama. Today I’m pulling back the curtain on exactly how Vikfin has

Sawubona, boet! The Vikfin yard in Benoni is looking like a Komatsu Christmas tree right now. We’ve just put the finishing touches on stripping a proper high-hour Komatsu PC400-6, and the result is one of the fullest 40-tonne parts spreads we’ve had all year. The engine walked out the door within 48 hours (R128 000, thank you very much), and the main valve bank went to a mine in Mokopane yesterday, but literally everything else is still here, steam-cleaned, photographed, pric