The Complete Guide to Rebuilding an Excavator with Used Parts

(AKA: How to Bring That Beaten-Up Beast Back to Life Without Selling Your Soul)

Let’s face it: buying a new excavator is like buying a Lamborghini—awesome, but ruinously expensive. Even fixing a newer machine with fresh-out-the-box OEM parts can feel like taking a second mortgage on your sanity.

But rebuilding an old excavator with used parts? That’s a damn art form. It's part puzzle, part treasure hunt, and part therapy for frustrated mechanics.

You can save a fortune, extend the life of your machine, and flex your DIY muscles (or at least your budget muscles). But—and this is a big BUT—only if you do it right.

This blog is your no-nonsense, grease-stained, slightly unhinged guide to rebuilding an excavator using quality used parts without turning it into an expensive garden ornament.

1. Know Your Why (Don’t Rebuild Just to Feel Something)

First things first: why are you rebuilding this excavator?

• Sentimental value? (You weirdo.)

• You scored a solid machine for cheap and want to bring it back to life?

• You’re running a tight ship and need machines that work, not look pretty?

• You love pain?

Whatever the reason, make sure it’s worth the time and cost. If the frame is cracked, the engine is toast, and the undercarriage looks like it lost a knife fight—maybe it’s time to let it go.

But if the bones are good, and it’s just tired and worn? Perfect candidate for a rebirth.

2. Make a Battle Plan (This Ain’t a Freestyle Job)

Rebuilding an excavator is not a “we’ll see how it goes” project. You need a plan of attack.

Start with:

• Full machine inspection – Identify what works, what’s borderline, and what’s totally screwed.

• Create a parts list – Be specific. Final drive, swing motor, hydraulic pump, hoses, boom pins, cabin glass… write it all down.

• Prioritise – Tackle the big-ticket items first. No point putting new glass in a machine that won’t swing or dig.

Pro Tip: Take photos, make diagrams, label everything. Future You will thank Present You.

3. Set a Budget (Then Add 20% Because Sh*t Happens)

Used parts save money, yes. But this ain’t a R50 weekend project.

Set a realistic budget based on:

• Used part prices

• Labour (yours or someone else’s)

• Fluids, seals, gaskets, filters

• Tools you’ll inevitably have to buy or replace

And then, when you’ve got that number, add a bit extra. Because something always surprises you halfway through.

4. Choose the Right Parts Supplier (Hint: It's Probably Us)

Now comes the fun (and slightly dangerous) part: sourcing your used parts.

You want:

• Tested parts

• Known history

• Decent warranty

• Human beings on the other end of the phone who know what they’re talking about

You don’t want:

• Rusty crap from someone’s backyard

• “Universal fit” parts (spoiler: they fit nothing universally)

• Mystery eBay imports with instructions in Klingon

That’s where Vikfin comes in. We stock, test, and stand behind high-quality used excavator parts—because we’ve rebuilt a few machines ourselves and know what matters.

5. Don’t Mix Crap with Gold (Quality Control is Life)

One of the biggest mistakes we see? Guys go all-out on certain parts—brand new hydraulic pump, fancy bucket cylinder—but then bolt on a worn-out final drive held together with duct tape and dreams.

Consistency matters.

You don’t want your perfectly rebuilt swing motor grinding to a halt because the travel motor came from a prehistoric Komatsu that last ran during the Bush administration.

Golden Rule: If one system gets rebuilt, rebuild the whole system. Not just the shiny bits.

6. Document EVERYTHING (Seriously, Label Those Damn Hoses)

Once you start tearing it down, the chaos begins.

Take photos at every stage. Use tags. Use zip ties. Write on the frame with a Sharpie if you have to.

If you think you’ll remember which hose connects where after two weeks and five beers—you’re wrong.

Trust us.

7. Go System by System (Eat the Elephant One Bite at a Time)

Rebuilding an excavator feels overwhelming until you break it into chunks.

Here’s a good order to follow:

A. Undercarriage

Check sprockets, idlers, track chains, rollers. Replace what’s worn—because all the power in the world means nothing if you can’t move.

B. Swing System

Swing motor, gearbox, bearing. Check for slop, leaks, weird noises. Rebuilding here isn’t fun, but ignoring it is worse.

C. Final Drives

These bad boys are expensive, but buying used (and tested) units can save you thousands. Check seals and gear play.

D. Hydraulics

Pump, main control valve, hoses, cylinders. Rebuild or replace seals as needed. Clean everything thoroughly—hydraulic systems hate dirt more than a cat hates baths.

E. Boom & Arm

Pins and bushings often need replacement. Don’t forget to check for hairline cracks and stress marks.

F. Engine

Used engines are tricky—only buy tested, low-hour units from trusted suppliers. Replace belts, filters, fluids, glow plugs, and do a compression test.

G. Cab & Controls

You don’t need a comfy seat, but try operating 10 hours a day in a cracked bucket chair and tell us how that feels.

8. Cleanliness is Next to Godliness (Especially for Hydraulics)

You want your rebuilt machine to live a long life?

KEEP IT CLEAN.

Flush the hydraulic system. Clean out old debris. Use lint-free rags. Plug hoses when disconnected. Dirt kills systems faster than abuse.

9. Test as You Go (Don’t Wait for the Big Boom)

As you rebuild each system, test it.

Don’t wait until the whole machine is together before firing it up. That’s how you blow a line, crack a piston, or realize your swing motor runs in reverse.

Go slow. One test at a time.

10. Paint Last, Not First (No Lipstick on a Pig)

We get it. You want the machine to look good. But painting too early is a rookie mistake.

Wait until everything’s done, tested, sealed, and you’re sure you’re not removing that panel again.

Otherwise, you’ll repaint that same spot four times, and the only thing shinier than your cab will be your bald spot from stress.

11. Replace All Consumables (Filters, Fluids, Seals, Hoses)

It doesn’t matter how nice your used hydraulic pump is if you’re running it with 15-year-old fluid and a clogged filter.

Replace:

• All filters (fuel, oil, air, hydraulic)

• All fluids

• All seals and O-rings

• All hoses if they’re cracked or suspect

Think of it as giving your new old machine a clean slate.

12. Don’t Cheap Out on Fasteners (Yes, Really)

You’d be amazed how many rebuilds fail because someone reused stripped bolts, or grabbed some cheap hardware store replacements.

Grade 8 bolts exist for a reason. Torque specs matter. Thread lock is your friend. This is not the time for “eh, close enough.”

13. Do a Full Function Test (The Excavator Olympics)

Once you’ve rebuilt the machine, it’s time for the ultimate test.

Run it. Every function. Every movement.

• Bucket curl

• Arm and boom swing

• Tracks in both directions

• Full swing

• Load tests (if you can)

• Warm-up and cool-down cycles

Listen. Smell. Feel. Any unusual groaning, knocking, overheating? Investigate.

This is where you catch anything before it becomes a mid-jobsite disaster.

14. Keep a Maintenance Log (Your Future Self Will Applaud)

Now that your excavator is running like a champ, start a maintenance log.

Track:

• Hours

• Services done

• Parts replaced (with serial numbers)

• Fluids added

• Greasing schedule

Not only does this help with upkeep, it makes resale easier if you ever part ways with your resurrected beast.

15. Name Your Rebuild (Because You’ve Earned It)

Let’s be honest—if you’ve taken an old, busted excavator and brought it back to life, you deserve to name it.

• “Frankie” (short for Frankenstein)

• “The Diggernaut”

• “Sally the Savage”

• “The Widowmaker” (if you like drama)

Give it a name, slap on a sticker, and take a victory lap.

Final Thought: Rebuilding with Used Parts is the Smart Man’s Game

Anyone can throw money at a problem. But it takes skill, guts, and grit to rebuild a machine with used parts and make it hum like new.

Used doesn’t mean second-rate—it means smart, efficient, and resourceful. And with the right supplier (yes, that’s us again), you’ll get top-quality components that save you money without sacrificing reliability.

So go ahead. Dig in. Get dirty. Rebuild that beast. And when it’s back in action, you’ll know every bolt, every hose, and every hour was worth it.

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