The Excavator Parts That Should Never Be Bought New

There are some things in life where buying new makes perfect sense.

A new pair of shoes. A new set of tyres. A new fridge.

And then there are excavator parts.

Because when you're staring at a quotation for R180,000 for a brand-new component, there is a very important question you should ask before reaching for the purchase order:

Does this part actually need to be new?

The answer, surprisingly often, is no.

At Vikfin, we spend our days buying older excavators, stripping them down, inspecting the components and putting good OEM parts back into circulation. And we've learned something along the way:

A good used OEM component can be a far better buy than a brand-new component.

Not always.

But often enough that it is worth asking the question.

New Doesn't Automatically Mean Better

The machinery industry has a strange obsession with the word new.

New sounds safe.

New sounds reliable.

New sounds like the sensible decision.

But "new" only tells you one thing:

Nobody has used the component before.

It doesn't necessarily tell you that it is the best component for your machine, your application or your wallet.

A brand-new aftermarket final drive might be cheaper than a new OEM unit, but what do you really know about the materials, machining tolerances, bearings, seals and manufacturing quality?

Conversely, a properly inspected and refurbished OEM final drive that came out of a genuine Komatsu, Caterpillar, Volvo or Hitachi machine may have exactly the engineering pedigree you want—at a fraction of the cost.

That's the distinction we think matters.

New is a condition. OEM is a specification.

And sometimes, condition matters less than pedigree.

1. Final Drives

Let's start with one of the big ones.

A final drive isn't exactly a disposable component. These are heavily engineered pieces of machinery designed to withstand enormous loads, torque and punishment.

When a final drive fails, the temptation is to call the dealer, get a price on a new one and have a heart attack.

Then comes the aftermarket quotation.

Better—but still potentially painful.

There is a third option:

A good OEM used final drive.

If the unit has been properly inspected, stripped where necessary, measured, repaired and tested, you could potentially put a genuine OEM component back onto the machine for dramatically less money.

And if the alternative is leaving a 20- or 30-ton excavator sitting idle for three weeks while you wait for an expensive replacement, the economics become even more compelling.

2. Slew Motors

The slew motor is another component where buying used OEM can make enormous financial sense.

These things are built to work hard.

When one fails, you don't necessarily need to replace the entire thing with a shiny new component.

A properly refurbished OEM slew motor can offer an excellent combination of:

• Proven OEM engineering

• Availability

• Lower acquisition cost

• Compatibility

• And potentially much faster delivery

The important words here are properly refurbished.

Used doesn't mean "pull it out of a machine and throw it in a box."

There is a world of difference between a component that has simply been removed from a dead excavator and one that has been properly assessed by people who understand what they're looking at.

3. Hydraulic Cylinders

Here's where things get particularly interesting.

A hydraulic cylinder is essentially a mechanical tube containing a piston, rod, seals and associated components.

If the barrel is sound, the rod is good and the major components are within specification, there is often no compelling reason to replace the entire cylinder with a brand-new unit.

A good OEM cylinder can be rebuilt.

New seals.

New bushes where required.

Rod repaired or replaced if necessary.

The whole thing inspected and put back into service.

And because excavators come in all shapes and sizes, getting the correct dimensions is critical.

At Vikfin, we don't just ask:

"What excavator do you have?"

We want to know:

"What are the dimensions?"

Because sometimes the answer isn't about the badge on the bonnet. It's about barrel length, rod diameter, pin diameter, mounting dimensions and application.

That's where experience becomes valuable.

4. Valve Banks

Hydraulic valve banks are another area where the word "new" can become very expensive.

These are precision components, so obviously you don't want to take unnecessary chances.

But neither should you automatically assume that a brand-new replacement is the only sensible option.

A good OEM valve bank that has been properly inspected and refurbished can represent enormous savings.

And here's another advantage:

Older machines don't always have readily available new components.

When a machine has been working for 15 or 20 years, the manufacturer's parts department may not be the fastest or cheapest route to getting it back into production.

The used OEM market can sometimes be the difference between:

"We need a part."

and

"We need a part today."

5. Engines

Now we're getting into serious money.

If an excavator engine has suffered a catastrophic failure, there are several possible routes.

Rebuild the existing engine.

Buy a replacement engine.

Buy a new engine.

Buy a used OEM engine.

Which one makes sense depends on the circumstances.

But again, new isn't automatically the answer.

A genuine OEM engine from a machine that has been retired for reasons unrelated to the engine can be an excellent replacement.

The critical issue is knowing what you're buying.

Hours.

Condition.

Compression.

Oil pressure.

Blow-by.

Service history where available.

And, most importantly, proper inspection.

A used engine isn't necessarily a gamble.

An uninspected used engine is.

6. Radiators, Intercoolers and Oil Coolers

These aren't glamorous components.

Nobody walks around the workshop saying:

"Look at that beautiful oil cooler."

But when the cooling system fails, your excavator suddenly becomes a very expensive ornament.

Cooler packs are another area where good used OEM components can make sense.

If the unit is structurally sound and can be properly cleaned, tested and refurbished, there is no inherent reason it needs to be brand new.

And when the alternative is paying a huge premium for a new OEM assembly, the savings can be substantial.

So Should You Never Buy New?

Of course not.

That would be ridiculous.

There are components where buying new makes perfect sense.

If something is safety-critical, highly stressed, badly worn or simply uneconomical to refurbish, buy new.

If a new OEM component offers a compelling price and availability, buy it.

If the consequences of failure are enormous and the additional cost of new provides worthwhile risk reduction, buy new.

And sometimes a good-quality aftermarket component is the smartest choice.

The point isn't:

"Used is always better."

The point is:

"Don't assume new is always better."

That's a very different argument.

The Real Question Is: What Is the Best Economic Decision?

This is where we think the machinery industry needs to change its thinking.

The question shouldn't be:

"Is the part new?"

It should be:

"Will this part get my machine back to work reliably, at the lowest sensible total cost?"

Those are two completely different questions.

Imagine you've got a 20-ton excavator sitting idle.

You receive three quotations:

New OEM: R200,000New aftermarket: R100,000Refurbished OEM: R65,000

The decision isn't automatically to buy the R65,000 part.

You need to understand the risks.

What is the quality of the aftermarket unit?

What exactly has been done to the refurbished OEM unit?

What warranty is available?

How quickly can each option be supplied?

How critical is the machine?

How much is the excavator costing you every day that it isn't working?

Those are the questions that matter.

The Most Expensive Part Is Often the Part You Don't Buy

There's another side to this equation that is even more important.

Downtime.

Let's say your excavator generates R10,000 a day in revenue.

A R50,000 saving on a component sounds great.

But if you spend three extra weeks looking for the cheapest possible part, you've potentially lost R150,000 in revenue before the machine even moves.

Suddenly the "cheap" option isn't cheap anymore.

This is why parts buying isn't simply a procurement exercise.

It's a business decision.

Sometimes paying more for a part that arrives tomorrow is the smartest financial decision you'll make all month.

Sometimes spending R200,000 on a new component when a R70,000 OEM refurbished unit is sitting on a shelf is simply throwing money away.

The trick is knowing the difference.

This Is Where Vikfin Comes In

At Vikfin, we don't buy excavators simply because they're old.

We buy them because they contain valuable components that still have plenty of useful life left in them.

We strip the machines.

We identify the components worth saving.

We inspect them.

We refurbish where necessary.

And we put them back into the market.

It's essentially recycling at an industrial scale.

Except we're not just recycling metal.

We're recycling engineering.

A 20-year-old excavator might be finished as a machine, but its final drive doesn't necessarily know that.

Its slew motor doesn't know that.

Its hydraulic cylinders don't know that.

Its valve bank doesn't know that.

Its counterweight certainly doesn't care.

If the component is still fundamentally good, why throw it away simply because the machine it came from has reached the end of its working life?

The Vikfin Rule

We like to keep things simple.

Don't buy new because it's new.

Don't buy used because it's cheap.

Buy the right component.

Buy it at the right price.

Buy it from someone who knows what they're selling.

And make sure the economics make sense for the machine you're putting it into.

Sometimes that will mean new OEM.

Sometimes aftermarket.

And sometimes—and perhaps more often than the machinery industry would like to admit—it means a good used OEM component from Vikfin.

Because when you've got a machine sitting idle, you don't need a shiny new part.

You need the right part.

And you need it working.

Flexible. Fast. Friendly. Affordable.

That's Vikfin.