Checking Equipment Before Bidding

Heavy-duty machinery often relates to the processes undertaken in the mining industry and may commonly include crushing and screening mechanisms, laboratory equipment, underground and open cut mining equipment, light vehicles, portable buildings and mine contractor equipment. In every mining equipment auctions, there are always a catch in every bid and that is the equipment itself if they are still in good shape or not

Points to check before purchasing in mining equipment auctions:

Check the fluids

Looking at a machine's fluids will give your insight into not only the current condition of the machine, but also how well it’s been maintained over time. Low or dirty fluids could be a warning flag that the previous owner hasn't kept up with a regular maintenance schedule while clues like water in the engine oil could be a sign of a much bigger problem.

Operating hours

A diesel-engine machine can last into the tens of thousands of operating hours. If you think it may be pushing the upper limits of hours, then you may want to do a quick cost/benefit calculation. This will help you to determine if the money you're saving on an older machine is going to be worth the additional maintenance cost of taking care of something that may break down more often. Keep in mind that regular maintenance is still important. A machine with 1,000 operating hours that hasn't been well maintained may be a worse buy than a machine with 15,000 hours.

Maintenance Record

The most sure-fire way to know if a machine has been maintained at regular intervals is by looking at its maintenance records. Look for clues that could indicate how the machine has been used as well as how it's been taken care of. Keep in mind that records don't always make their way from each owner to the next so an absence of records shouldn't necessarily be taken to mean that maintenance hasn't been done.

Signs of wear

Any used machine is always going to have some signs of wear so there's nothing wrong with dings and scratches. Things to look for here are hairline cracks, rust, or damage that may lead to problems in the future or reveal an accident in the machine's past. Any repairs you'll need to do down the road will mean added costs and downtime where you can’t use your machine. Keep in mind that both are expensive to replace or repair and can give you a lot of insight into how a machine has been used.

Engine exhaust

There's no better way to evaluate an engine than to turn it on and run it. Another good clue is the color of the exhaust smoke the engine produces. This can often reveal issues that you didn't know existed. Black smoke typically means the air/fuel mixture is too rich in fuel. This could be caused by a number of issues including faulty injectors or something as simple as a dirty air filter. White smoke could mean that fuel is burning incorrectly. The engine could have a faulty head gasket that lets water mix with the fuel, or there could be a compression issue. Blue smoke means the engine is burning oil. This is likely caused by a worn ring or seal but could also be something as simple as an over-fill of engine oil.

Heavy equipment can be rebuilt and remodeled so it can always present as a lucrative opportunity even if it isn’t in the best condition. Extensive inventories at mining equipment auctions provide buyers with a great amount of choice and an excellent opportunity to capitalize.