Hey, that's our tracks! (Prowler) lol Glad to see you had close to, or more than 2000 hours out of them. You still had a lot of tread life left on them it appears, so I "suspect" it may had been possible that the track could had been gouge causing a deep channel that moisture could funnel through. Once the moisture gets to those inner cords they will corrode and split/break under high torque. The continuously wrapped inner cords are wrapped in vulcanized rubber (as you can see up close in your video), however if the gouge is deep and sharp enough it can still penetrate through the hardened rubber that wraps those steel cords. Sorry to see you had the break, but extremely happy (and proud) you still purchased our Prowler Tracks. Means a lot to us! Awesome video BTW. Very well explained. Be safe out there!

There is many utube channels I have stopped watching in recent weeks. i just feel so entertained and informed by Andrews videos. so thanks mate your a champion.

Thanks so much Andrew! I threw the track on my Kobelco SK50 and the first video I saw took 2 people and long pry bars to get it back on. Then I saw how you used the bucket to guide the track back into place and that worked for me. Thanks for the tip!

Personally I prefer the track with more links. I don’t own a tractor, but I watched this video and now I’m an expert.

Andrew, maybe you should not throw out that old track just yet. I had the same type of tracks on our mini excavators ( smaller ) but I used the old track cut in two and bolted them onto the steel ramps of our trailer. It was a great aid in climbing on board, especially with steel tracks on steel ramps ! Just a thought!

I was a track & wheel tech in the Army. The three ongoing jobs were fuel filters, putting the track back on and how to get ice :)

These videos are so entertaining. I could watch these all day long

Keep up the hard work Andrew! Such an inspiration and motivation to thousands!

Lmao, I haven’t finished watching yet but @4:43 when you’re talking about the front idler getting lost in the mud, the way you said “an hour” had me in stitches lol. Thank you for being humble enough to share your knowledge, warts and all. Respect.

I watched this video a year ago. I just got a job this week clearing a road with a rental Kubota excavator. I threw a track two times and I knew how to put the track back on because of this video. Thank you Andrew.

I want to caution you to protect your back it's 1of your most valuable assets. There were many times you could have pulled up the other mini excavator to assist you. I am 52 and have been in a similar line of work all my life. Have had 2 back surgeries over the years. Love the work and am still at it but it gets tougher with age.

I'm going to buy some small used machines to do some subdividing work on my 5 acre property. I'll hire a D6 to do the clearing, but use machines like this for drainage works & fencing. Been on your channel for days now & it's helping me understand the capabilities & maintenance of these machines. Thank you very much

Thanks for sharing your work and experiences. Your videos are very educational and informative, and very well edited and engaging. Thank u so much!

As a hermit, l have struggled to replace tracks by myself. You have helped to show me to be patient , look and think . Yes the digger has been in difficult areas where flatish ground was not within reach so had to raise and block the underside so l could use the bucket. Thanks a lot. Be safe.

Everytime I watch your videos, I get more and more stunned by your wittiness with an excavator.

i still remember him from older video .. and always trying to help, nice guy.. you have a lovely dad 💚 keep up the good work 🔨🔧

Great video as usual. For the folks giggling about a fart they may have heard, I have watched Andrew accidentally put his bare hand on red hot metal and he did not break out swearing. I have never heard him swear on any video so can say with high confidence that this guy is a gentleman.

Andrew, You are an amazing young man, always teaching your viewers tricks of the trade!!

Kubota KH 35, I believe, had the threaded track tightener too, a real hassle in underground mining confined narrow drifts. Later the mine purchased Kubota KX 41 mini excavators with the grease fitting track tighteners, this was night and day in reinstalling a rubber track on the machine. Our mini excavators were mainly used for ditching to keep the water away from the railway ties, the bucket didn't have teeth, but had the two outside corners notched-out to prevent the railway spikes being pulled out when cleaning up in between the rails, it really worked good. And not a fan of pick and shovel work for cleaning out track switches, I always had a compressed air blowpipe handy for those occasions, lol.

Great work Andrew! I had to install new tracks on my excavator earlier this year. Had about the same hours on my tracks, luckily it was at my shop and had the loader to help put the tracks in place. I have that same grease gun! It’s awesome! I run my tracks a hair on the tight side seems to really help keep them on there especially on hills and such. Keep up the great work and take care! Thanks

I like how you always persevere and find a way around any problem.

Great job installing the track on your own. I've changed tracks and sprockets on a 28 ton, used a 54 Liebherr to do it on-site. I find to make the rubber tracks last longer and reduce the risk of it coming off I lift the machine with the bucket and turn the machine that way, especially on rough terrain. And if turning on ground with loads of little stones that get trapped between the rollers and the track I again lift the machine off the ground and spin the tracks to get most of the stones out, I find it damages the tracks less, possibly getting more hours out of them

That freight guy was prob like, oh my lucky day.

I not only learn, also enjoy all the detail in procedures. Thanks.

Thanks to you Andrew for watching this video prior to me popping off a track on an excavator. Me and my girlfriend were able to get the truck back on the machine using your message in this video. Like you said you don’t pop them off in the most convenient spot thank you

Never cease to be amazed by your skills and determination ,well done ,thanks for sharing.

Love the pregnant pause as you,"Gas off", classic.

Nice job. Lots of fun pushing those tracks around by yourself. I found laying down a 3/4 x4x8 ply wood down makes it easier to position the track under the drive train.

i could watch videos like this all day long..super informative!

That Yanmar is amazing! It does the work of bigger excavators and Andrew is a master at operating it...🥇💯

Lifting the excavator alot with the boom really puts wear on the "turret ring". That thing with all the teeth, where the upper part of the excavator turns on. YOu maybe want to be gently to it, as it is an expesnive part.

My favorite KZfaq channel Andrew...really like the way you work and think "outside the box." Great job my friend.

You are a one man crew. ANDREW your parents must be proud of you. I know I would be happy with you as a son . Keep up the good work. Wow's

Thanks Andrew, My track just came off, and now I am ok to go ahead and fix. Your a champion and thanks for your post

My tracks were always coming off in mud on my mini ex. I was so used to fixing it. Got it down quick. This reminded me of the good ol days making good money. That all changed in 2008

Having those grease fittings are great to keep tension on the track and as far as the metal ones i can remember having to torch out the pin and re-weld it when i was done, whatever you gotta do to keep going and get the job done👍

I've been a sub, of your channel for quite awhile now. You never cease to amaze me, such a hard worker! When most other men your age are slack offs. Was that your dad helping, he must be very proud of you. Enjoy all your videos, keep on keepin on.

man, I can barely change the tire on my bicycle without needing help and you do a whole track like that by yourself. Another cool video, thanks!

Good to know that you got 2000 hours on that old track. This summer I put a set of prowler tracks on my Komatsu.

Great video, love to see you working on and in the big machines! Have a great week. Peace and good fortune.

andrew has the job we wish we had when we were kids playing in the sandbox.

Andrew,this is a good explanation and demo of one of your jobs where you had an issue about perforated pipe: Apple Drainage,How to install perforated pipe,worth a look.,cheers ,good work,AUSSIE PAUL.

Hi Andrew great job getting that track on. I'm looking for a excavator like yours here in NC, no luck so far.

So many haters this young man is doing an excellent job self sufficient in every way. All of the sudden we have all these potheads his same age just trolling on him. I foresee this young man is going to be a millionaire by the age of 40.

Great video Andrew, as a computer SME I don't know much about excavator tracks, but logic dictates that if you have less space between the links, there is less opportunity for the track to have lateral pull/push pressure remove it from its position, but on the other hand, it should then be easier to apply contrary pressure to put it back in....but when I run multiples scenarios in my head, I can see one where that with less links, the dirt and mud with rocks have more cavities to escape or relieve pressure, technically you now have the perfect machine to answer that question, we can see that the older track has some worn on it and also a few nicks, but if your confident you can get another 400 hours out of it, you should run it and monitor when/which tracks get pulled, and then rerun that scenario on opposite side, to see if the sheering pressure has the same result on the other side.... Normally I would tell somebody else to better replace the other one before it breaks, but you ... even if it breaks in the middle of a job, you would find a way to still do the job, I have seen you have breaks over the years, I know this, breaking doesn't scare you at all!

Nice job. You made it look too easy. That track is about 500lbs or more. I've seen tracks changed or reinstalled in weird places and in strange ways. Yours was nice and straight forward. I think I would change the other track too. It looks a little rough and you can keep it covered up some where for a spare. See you in the next one.

I guess the gentleman helping you is your father. Father i'm pretty sure you are very proud of Andrew. I just wish I have a son like Andrew

Thanks, Andrew for the video on changing tracks. I don't know what it is about the excavator's but, it may be how well you operate them also. Hope to see your next video very soon.

Thanks Andrew, but it's your experience and confidence that makes it look easy, I'm sure we would take a lot lot longer to put on a new track.

Experienced heavy equipment man. Very educational. Thank you sir. Have a good day.

Thank you for sharing your story. God bless you and your family

I think excavators are one of the greatest inventions. They move so much soil so fast.

Nice work Andrew. Nothing to it when you know how to do it !

Thanks again Andrew for sharing, fighting the flu is much easier while watching your video’s 🤒 ❤️✌️

Imagine before excavators were invented... Good to hear you have plenty of projects lined up. Take care.

My, what a colorful ratchet! I concur with you on the electric grease gun. Working on farm equipment, especially balers and, oddly, tedders, not needing three hands to do the job is NECESSARY. And it saves SO much time, especially with the odd, hard-to-reach fittings poorly designed into the guts of the machine. We had one old square baler that conveniently had a gang-panel of grease fittings with tubes running to various internal parts, but that was the exception to the rule. There was another one where we actually had to climb into the chute to get two fittings.. really a pain in the butt if you had an old partial bale in there. And the design was so poor that the action of the material moving through the chute would wear down the fittings to nothing and we had to replace them almost every time we used the thing, despite them being recessed. Our tedder had 27 grease points. 27!!! And it was one of the simpler pieces of equipment! A tedder has nothing on a round-baler in terms of complexity.

This video has everything I needed to know to do this by myself if I needed to. I feel like an expert now.

nice work, looks like it be a tuff job with the other excavator

Keep up the hard work Andrew, I Love all your videos, a lot to learn from you thanks for you great work.

Super job on the track. I like your style. Just do it!

Looks like a limp crocodile, the old track :)) But man, your driving skills are awesome! Never saw an excavator actually drive on only one track!

This would be a perfect time to use that fancy hot water pressure washer. I am kind of surprised that it didn't get cleaned before installing the new track. Andrew is usually on top of cleaning and maintenance, or at least more so than I am anyway.

Just learned something new. Thanks!

I think I’ve watched all of your videos and wish you would tell us the story of how you came to own your piece of the mountain......when, where, how and how many acres? If you lived close to us, we’d keep you busy....you amaze me with your ability to operate such a variety of equipment AND maintain them.

That pressure washer you bought would have come in handy

Another informative interesting vid-thanks Andrew This is cool stuff -imo

Great video Andrew thanks.

Andrew..you are certainly not afraid of a little hard work..admire that...Take it from an old timer....NEVER pour gas down a carburetor and crank at the same time...3rd degree burns will follow.

Editing out the farts? Nah, that's just extra content for the yt-channel. :D

Wednesday 25 2019 I just watch one of your video's on track changing on one of your mini excavators the Yamaha 1990 B50 good work Andrew I like watching it's what I use to do, so I do enjoy watching So you changed it at 994 hrs good work. Had one of my first bulldozer with steel that keeps popping off if you had a sudden right turn, it was a pain back in 1980, I guess small excavators with rubber tracks were not hears of much back then.

ive seen the start of your videos years ago and you did step up the ladder alot keep it up and the best of luck.

Great job replacing the track!

Keep up the great work and take care! Thanks

man for all the hours that are probably on that machine, that thing still starts right up!

1:06 "like a wounded soldier, the mini ex drags it's limb with it to a safe place where it can begin the process of healing. Nature is just incredible..."

Respect on that track job, replacing isn’t easy work.

I’ve gotta say, you made isolation for two weeks bearable!

Hey buddy.. I really enjoy your videos.. I have learned a lot from watching them.... great work man.....

Did anyone hear that fart at 18:36 😂😂😂😂 still the best channel on youtube

You should certainly order a new track for the right side sooner than later. @ 12:32 you can see exactly where it will tear in half and fall off when you can least afford the downtime.

Thank you youtube recommended section this is what I needed.

DAMN Andrew! I had to pop back on plenty of tracks of a mini, but never seen one sheered like that before. 2k hours seems like it got some good use though.

I am surprised you don't keep a log of what repairs and what servicing you do at what hours for each machine. Love your videos. David in Spain.

andrew you are a jack of all trades!!!

Andrew I just found you and have been binging on your videos. You are doing one hell of a job so keep it up. P.S. those tracks are basic tire tread construction designed for that purpose. A word of advice. If you have not done so look into business insurance. Keep track of what you earn. You can bet IRS is watching.

I know a guy who used to do a lot of lake dredging remember hearing about the joys of walking about in knee deep mud looking for the ideler in the lake bed

Nice tricks, now I want to buy an excavator and play in my yard.

I would change the old track and use the same size on both sides.

Take your pressure washer and blast all that dirt out so you'll have a clean area and do a service grease all the roller fittings. A Clean machine is a happy machine! When I worked at a rental yard we kept them spotless then you can see if something is going to break.

By the way.. old rubber track when its laid out flat works great as traction mat for soft areas.. you may have to drive across many times. so its worth rolling up and sticking it back on the pallet and saving it for that exact time you need it. it can also be used to protect the concrete floor if you run a steel tracked machine into the shop..

can not wait to see the other jobs, thanks

Greetings to you from Finland, and thanks for your great videos, Andrew! Keep going!

Great Job Andrew, Cheers!

I replaced both tracks on my 4.5 tonne Hitachi on my own having never done anything like that before… it still beats me how I did it as I didn’t release very much tension so I had to “roll” the tracks on using the sprockets. I only wish I’d checked and replaced the rollers as I now have a job to replace all the bottom ones at the very least. I also wish I’d known to check the final drive oil as one of them recently expired with a horrendous crunching sound and that will be costly to replace… in 8 years of occasional use I have never checked the final drive oil on my now 29 year old machine: big mistake!

Great videos mate

I like shadow effect of you and camera!

Respect brother....you are in reality an one man army...

Remember that there is a specification on the tension you put on the track when pumping grease back in. It is a measurement of the distance the track drops of the bottom rollers when the track is off the ground.

I used to work at a ski resort and we had snow groomers that use the same track tension design.

Looks like the other track not long for this world too