Chinese mini excavator first service, swing motor almost destroyed itself.

First service of the FF-13 Chinese mini excavator.
Noticed the machine was a little more “loose” than normal so I pulled the floor board and inspected the swing motor only to find the mounting bolts had rattled themselves out almost completely.
Tool I recommend is a 8mm or 5/16” ball end extended length 3/8” drive hex bit (or what ever you decide to call it).
The oil change is dead simple, I ended up using a total of 1L or 1qt whichever measuring system you you want to use both measurements are close enough for the precision lines cast into the plastic dip stick 🤣
I’m at 40hrs of machine time as I post this video, so far the little machine has been a beast 👍

[@Ronthomas-vm8li]

Great video. Thank you. I just bought one exactly like yours.

[@DiggerDaveSea]

Great video - thanks for the info. I just took delivery of a Hightop HT10BZ which appears to nearly the same bottom chassis.

[@bmexcavation957]

Awesome video

[@erics2670]

for possible issues i may have, how tall are you, im looking for one but the space im not sure my legs are gonna fit easily

[@PuskwaskaOutdoors]

I’m 6’1” with size 12 feet… if your feet are any bigger than a 13 it’s like playing Tetris to get in and out 🤣

[@337aii]

I have a problem with the swing motor on the Chinese mini-excavator, which means that when the dome turns in a certain position, it squeaks, I feel as if it is grinding on some sheet metal. What could be the problem?

[@PuskwaskaOutdoors]

That I can’t really help with, you’ll need to have someone look at everything while you are turning the machine, there are a fair number of moving pieces under the floor.

[@337aii]

Okay. I thank you@@PuskwaskaOutdoors

[@tanglewood777]

i do like the cab on it though is it warm inside in winter

[@PuskwaskaOutdoors]

I was burning brush piles with it a few weeks ago at -10c, it was for sure a lot better in the cab than out 👍😁

[@tanglewood777]

@@PuskwaskaOutdoors no smoke got through

[@PuskwaskaOutdoors]

I didn’t test it’s cab seals… stayed up wind the whole time…. I did run out of gas next to the burn pile tho and had an “oh shit” moment.

[@UniWonder]

Did the swing motor come loose again or did this fix the issue?

[@PuskwaskaOutdoors]

Seems to have fixed it…. But only 4 tanks of gas into it since tightening it up

[@UniWonder]

I tightened up my H15 swing motor bolts, added loc tite but it loosened up again. Looking into other options to keep tight

[@PuskwaskaOutdoors]

@UniWonder Got room underneath to run a longer bolt thru and put a lock washer on them?

[@UniWonder]

The hole is blind so there is no way to thru bolt. One bolt is over the slew ring so no room for a nut

[@PuskwaskaOutdoors]

@@UniWonder Google a product called Nord-Lock…. Not sure if they’ll physically fit in the space available but I’ve seen them withstand some impressive strain.

[@jtsokiehobbyandadventures6666]

Mine on the ht10b did destroyed it self. The gear came off.

[@PuskwaskaOutdoors]

Yeah it looks pretty cheesy the way they put the drive sprocket on the shaft… but all we can do is keep painting everything with lock-tight and hope god the best I guess.

[@PuskwaskaOutdoors]

*hope for the best*

[@huhcom]

I just got this exact model and it won't start. I can get it to run for a couple of seconds by spraying carburetor fluid into the carburetor.

[@PuskwaskaOutdoors]

You’ll want to take off the rear panel of the machine to access the carburetor, remove the cab mounting bolts and lift it slightly to get the rear panel off… Steve’s small engine saloon on KZbin has some good carb cleaning videos… they are very simple to work on and often don’t require much more than removing the float bowl and poking a wire up thru the main jet.

[@huhcom]

@@PuskwaskaOutdoors Thanks! I assumed since it was new that there wouldn't be any clogging in the carburetor. Yesterday I removed the panel. It was very difficult using only a 3/8" rachet. I ordered an Impact Socket Adapter Set from Amazon for the future. I did drop a socket that I can't find in the process and I'm afraid the socket will get lodged into the pivot gears at some point.

[@PuskwaskaOutdoors]

@huhcom Nah, there’s not really any way it could get to the ring gear and drive motor… plus it’s all exposed under the machine so debris can fall away from the gear…. Some people on the Chinese excavator Facebook group have reported finding some trash in the float bowl of new machines so it’s worth a look…. Of course when you remove the small bolt that holds the float bowl on you’ll lose any fuel that’s in the tank so have a container handy… Have you checked for a fuel shutoff? Mine doesn’t have one but these machines aren’t all identical.

[@headpainter1]

​@@PuskwaskaOutdoorsgood call on that fuel shutoff. Some Briggs and Stratton engine have a separate lever to cut off gas. May have to get a hand mirror and a flashlight to look for it.

[@joshmullins7631]

Check if the choke is still engaged when its pushed in mine was flooding itself out because the cable wasn’t adjusted properly

[@TheWhiteAfghan]

Why not just take the rear cover off to fill oil

[@PuskwaskaOutdoors]

It looks like I’d need to lift the cab to remove the rear cover.

[@TheWhiteAfghan]

@@PuskwaskaOutdoors guess yours is different 👍

[@cherylhagen4425]

I wonder if you took both dip sticks out if the oil in the funnel would drain faster?

[@PuskwaskaOutdoors]

@cherylhagen4425 No, the funnel tube is much smaller than the dipstick hole so it wouldn’t make any difference. It’s only 1L of oil, it really doesn’t take that long to get it in with that funnel…. I’m used to changing oil in large equipment that takes a barrel or two of oil and a good 30min with a pump to transfer it. 😓

[@headpainter1]

Very informative video. Thanks for putting this together and presenting it. I'm looking at all these different types and favor a particular one that actually has a access door to the entire motor area. They seem to be a decent machine.

[@k.r.outlaw5252]

….your going to have backlash on a gear drive.

[@PuskwaskaOutdoors]

Yeah you sure don’t want them to get too tight…. I mean… expansion from heat during high speed loading on a excavator swing gear could be catastrophic 🤣 Seriously tho… they are built with clearances in the gears that rival commercial trailer landing gear.

[@tanglewood777]

pay cheap pay twice

[@Will-tm5bj]

Nah. Off the shelf parts. Everything is made in China already. I can buy 3-5 of these for one CAT. Do I want a CAT? Yeah. But I ain't got CAT money

[@Will-tm5bj]

These little things can get some work done

[@bigcheese6652]

A friend of mine brought a bobcat for nearly £20,000 and he’s always fixing something on it, we’ve got a rhino mini digger from china £6700 had it 2 years and the only problem we’ve had is the exhaust came loose that’s it so happy days and happy digging 👍🏻👍🏻