After having reviewed excavator options and ordered the plans for the CADDigger 628, I decided that the CADDigger 628 was my best option. There were a few other options in the $3000-$5000 range available, but none of them had any reviews available, and I came to believe they were all junk that will likely break in no time.

The CADDiggers have a number of people that have built them and there are a number of forums online discussing them. Here is one that includes pictures of the build in different stages of construction.

So I started by ordering the hydraulic parts. Here is a picture of them all:

In the upper left you can see the hydraulic pump. In the upper right is the hydraulic oil filter. Below them are the control valves with the control levers and the the hydraulic oil tank to the right of that. At the bottom are the hydraulic pistons.

Just for fun, here is a chalked up layout of the digging arm:

Tomorrow, we will order the steel and hopefully begin cutting and welding in a week or two. (After the Songkran festival here in Thailand. Happy Songkran!) The idea that we might own a home-built excavator is starting to feel real. Now all we have to do is get it built and working…