No Name Mini Skids?

[canadianclimber]

Hey,

Wondering if anyone has any experience with the No Name Mini skids? In my area I'm starting to see a lot more of the Alibaba mini skids getting imported, then rebranded. They all look similar and that's why I called them No Name.

Anyway, they are priced pretty affordable 9-15k Canadian. Depending on engine size and attachments. My needs don't warrant a top end machine(40k before attachments around here). They intrigue me for the price.

If anyone owns one or has had experience with them, I would be interested in the feedback.

 

[WoodCutr]

@metaspencer

 

[Treeaddict]

Yup @metaspencer has been using one for maybe a year or so. He made a YouTube video on it. He’s on this forum. Maybe he’ll chime in.

A huge downside is finding someone to service it though. May be acceptable if you’re a gear head. I don’t know how readily parts would be available.

 

[canadianclimber]

Yes, Parts is one thing I would have a concern about.

 

[WoodCutr]

Yes, Parts is one thing I would have a concern about.

I had that concern when I demo'd a Giant G1200 loader, nowhere to get parts online, gotta go to the dealer, and good luck when the dealer is Li Cheng in mainland china

that being said, they are very simple machines, the chinese have over simplified them compared to European or American machines, the odds it breaks are low and nothing will be proprietary besides sticker kits basically
for the price, I wouldnt have an issue getting one, I think some of them even have a Kubota Diesel, however id look for a good used CTX or SK machine for close to the same price

 

[SkwerI]

Hydraulics can all be sourced through your local hydraulic guy. Hoses, piston rebuilds, fittings, etc. Anything structural can be dealt with through a local welding/fabrication guy. Bearings and bushings will be your second biggest issue, your main issue will be the drive system.

IMO skid steers suck. They destroy turf by design because it is the cheapest way to build a machine. Articulating loaders do so much more with less power and no turf damage. I worked on a job with a Bobcat skid steer this week and spent half my time smoothing out his ruts so I could drive around without having to bounce over them.

 

[WoodCutr]

excavator > articulated loader > skid

ive ran all 3 extensively, in the same conditions, the excavator will do anything either machine does, lifts more and higher, reaches further, only downside is they track hella slow (still faster than my mini skid by like a lot)

but, the chinaskid is 10 grand, my excavator is 89 grand and thats without some of the fancy stuff like a 6 way blade, so its not even close to a fair comparison



Brian is right, basically everything on that machine can be sourced locally, even bearings and bushing are easy enough, measure and order on McMaster-Carr, any machine shop can make bushings easily

 

[Burnham]

I'd think the excavator would be as hard on turf as a miniskid...even worse, because it is bigger and heavier.

 

[WoodCutr]

I'd think the excavator would be as hard on turf as a miniskid...even worse, because it is bigger and heavier.

exact opposite actually, I ran on a lawn all morning today and you cant even tell it was in there, no mats or anything and its SOGGY ground lately

when you turn, you put the bucket down and lift the tracks slightly, so instead of 10ft of track turning, now its 4 or 5 inches, and in a straight line theres no damage at all, the tracks dont have to be very aggressive since the machine weighs so much

 

[Burnham]

I didn't think about lifting the machine with the bucket. That would certainly make a big difference, so long as the operator was reliably doing so.

But I still have my doubts. All day on a soggy lawn and you can't tell it was there, eh? Bet I could tell, and easily .

Whatever...carry on. I think I'd choose the articulated loader most times, as long as the grade was reasonable.

 

[SeanKroll]

When you have a heavy load with a mini, your up on the front idlers, allowing pivots, within reason, with a good operator.

 

[WoodCutr]

I didn't think about lifting the machine with the bucket. That would certainly make a big difference, so long as the operator was reliably doing so.

But I still have my doubts. All day on a soggy lawn and you can't tell it was there, eh? Bet I could tell, and easily .

Whatever...carry on. I think I'd choose the articulated loader most times, as long as the grade was reasonable.

no pictures from today but I will look for some ive taken of the lawn damage

and yes, ive heard articulated loaders and hills dont get along, my excavator is rated to work on a 36 degree hill

 

[SkwerI]

For tight areas I can see where an excavator can be great. But if you are running loads out of the back yard to the street the excavator is useless.

 

[SeanKroll]

A rotating grapple could be very useful compared to bucket and thumb.

 

[WoodCutr]

A rotating grapple could be very useful compared to bucket and thumb.

I've got one

For tight areas I can see where an excavator can be great. But if you are running loads out of the back yard to the street the excavator is useless.

I track brush out to the road with mine daily, it's not useless, if I have to track 200ft around a house and back to the trailer, I can load the trailer in about 5 minutes, or fill the chip truck in an hour

I didn't think about lifting the machine with the bucket. That would certainly make a big difference, so long as the operator was reliably doing so.

But I still have my doubts. All day on a soggy lawn and you can't tell it was there, eh? Bet I could tell, and easily .

Whatever...carry on. I think I'd choose the articulated loader most times, as long as the grade was reasonable.

Here ya go B, here's the ground damage I do with my 9800 ppind excavator while carrying 4000 pounds of brush in one trip

 

[Burnham]

I can tell it was there .

 

[WoodCutr]

I can tell it was there .

true, but not the next morning

if it was an issue, I would be out of business, im usually working on milti million dollar properties out on the lake, im known for being the guy that doesn't damage the lawn

I will agree, the excavator can do a hell of a lot of damage really, really fast if you aren't paying attention, but with a half decent operator you can do almost any maneuver damage free

big advantage to an avant or mini skid tho, we have LOTS of septic tanks here, my machine will fall right through one but the avant can drive over them all day long without an issue

 

[Kaveman]

I spent a few years as a greenskeeper at Pine Meadows Country Club. Marks like that on grass are much more significant than you think they are, and that's just from the thumbnails. Just saying.

 

[Dave Shepard]

Exactly. I'd chew your ass if you did that on a job where I was CL. Mini excavators are what we send out, but only because they are so versatile and strong. If we had GiAnt or Avant loaders, I think the minis wouldn't go out as often.

 

[WoodCutr]

did I mention when the avant flips I can stand it up and carry it to the truck?

 

[Dave Shepard]

Don't flip it...

 

[WoodCutr]

sorry about the derail @canadianclimber

Don't flip it...

we have a member or two here that could have used this advice...

I think the manual also says this lol

 

[Tree09]

The other thing with an ex is that you don't need go go back and forth as much, you move piles by reach. Pile it all up, and shuffle the pile by swinging and reaching, move, repeat. That way you're only going back and forth a few times vs doing laps, excavators are most efficient when they're sitting still and are swinging. A bit of plywood and you can easily be pretty much zero impact. When doing pipeline they would use huge mats so they wouldn't sink in the mud, insane where a good operator can get to, same principle and if you were so inclined it can move the road for itself as it goes. I got a buddy that uses them pretty much exclusively, complete with grapple saws, insane how easy he makes it look and how much time is saved. You can also use a trailer with them and basically have a crappy forwarder, if you have a blade you can simply weld a ball or a pintle on it and you're off to the races. They are designed to be a baby dozer for backfilling so pulling a trailer is nothing on the components.

 

[WoodCutr]

The other thing with an ex is that you don't need go go back and forth as much, you move piles by reach. Pile it all up, and shuffle the pile by swinging and reaching, move, repeat. That way you're only going back and forth a few times vs doing laps, excavators are most efficient when they're sitting still and are swinging. A bit of plywood and you can easily be pretty much zero impact. When doing pipeline they would use huge mats so they wouldn't sink in the mud, insane where a good operator can get to, same principle and if you were so inclined it can move the road for itself as it goes. I got a buddy that uses them pretty much exclusively, complete with grapple saws, insane how easy he makes it look and how much time is saved. You can also use a trailer with them and basically have a crappy forwarder, if you have a blade you can simply weld a ball or a pintle on it and you're off to the races. They are designed to be a baby dozer for backfilling so pulling a trailer is nothing on the components.

I did the trailer hitch, use it almost every day, and I did the "crappy forwarder" with my branch manager and dump trailer in a backyard 2 weeks ago
a even half decent operator can get an ex into some insane places, even still I look at stuff and go "no way it can get in here" and yet I surprise myself and make it fit

also I get like 17ft of side reach, meaning I can work a 30ft wide path down a yard without turning my tracks, whereas a mini skid or wheel loader has to turn to grab stuff, im planning to install an SG160 mecanil head on mine in a year or so, better log grapple + a saw head for the price of a rotobec

edit to add, the trailer was over 12000 pounds on on about an 8 degree hill with some divots and stuff, couldnt even feel it with the machine, tracking and loading all at once in a spot too tight to get a truck

 

[Kaveman]

Kyle, while I'm no expert operator, I agree 100% with everything you said. I've seen operators so good, their skill borders on dark magic. To be fair, ive had the opportunity to witness and work with a number of talented operators on a number of platforms. The number of incredibly cool, oddball things I've seen done with backhoes alone is astounding.

All that aside, no single piece of equipment is perfect at everything, that's why there's so many types of equipment, after all.

My wife and I were discussing this earlier, and let me make a disclaimer right now:
I have only fantasy and theory, it takes money to make reality! I'm getting no calls, that means I'm making no money.

Procurement requirements are as follows:
Small saw mill (Alaskan mill is cool, but no)
Portable winch (pwc4000 I think)

Then we can slowly build a nice sized "cabin" and get out of the tiny house manure. There's no volume of work to justify adding something as simple as another rope, let alone a mini skid, or mini x.

Also, I own a John Deere 1025r. I can just about shift 1500lbs with the forks. I can lift almost twice that with the backhoe. It's also about 4' wide, and about 3600lbs in her heaviest configuration right now. 4x4, lockable diff, blah blah blah, look it up if you care, cool little subcompact, honestly.

BuUUUuuuT...some minis fit easily into the bed of a truck, some can out lift my JD by a lot, as I'm only rated to 600lbs at my full height of 6 feet. Many are much narrower than my tractor. Most minis have more hydraulic capacity than me, etc, etc.

Another consideration is my terrain. The Mogollon Rim is part of the Colorado Plateau, a tectonic bloc so hard it's kind of surfing on the American Plate. What I'm saying is, ITS ROCKY! I've only seen mini skids in the home depot rental row. Most tracked skid loaders I see have some pretty chewed tracks.

As they say, your milage may vary.

I'll say that I want all the equipment. All. But I can't justify it... yet...