Hey Matt, The safest and easiest way to get the stick cylinder off is to attach a chain to the bucket end and then attach a come a long to the base of the excavator and drag the bucket towards the machine until the load comes off the cylinder. No jacks or props to deal with and if you pull the bucket close enough the arm will almost support itself. You may need to throw something down to keep the thumb or bucket from digging in to the soil though. Good luck

Why Matt only has 56k subscribers is beyond me...excellent content...superb editing (and that is ridiculously time consuming)... He is at LEAST quadrupling the value of his equipment with his sweat equity...and he doesn't need receipts...he has videos...

Cylinder repair is one of the toughest jobs there is. There's a U-tuber channel, CCEA, Cutting Edge Engineering Austrailia. Great channel to watch to learn about cylinder repairs among other things too. Matt, just be very careful moving the cylinders and wear a back brace for added support, You don't want to end up like me with a bad back.

Matt, you are one hard working dude. Thank you for sharing your experiences.

Matt, your candour is refreshing. Please don't apologise for mistakes, it's your project, our humility.

Matt, to get the stick cylinder off, I would build wooden cribbing up at the boom/dipper joint, then use a 30 ton jack to lift it up enough to take the pressure off the pins and remove them. While it is up, remove the bottom thumb pin and cylinder too. then lower the boom/dipper back down on the cribbing until it is time to re-assemble it all. Good Luck, I can't wait for the next installment.

Cutting Edge Engineering would have a hay day rebuilding those cylinders!

Consistently the fastest viewing content on KZfaq. 40 minutes goes by like 10 and you just want more.

Matt I still say that you are incredible for taking this project on, I've never seen anyone single person do what you are doing to this machine by himself without anybody else's help, again you are incredible, my love to the family and a big hug to Charlie.

Been watching your channel for ever (even before the CAT rebuild came into the picture). Admire your work and that you can do this all outside of a full-time office job (in the rain and in the dark!). I know nothing about any of this equipment and have very little mechanical knowledge but yours has to be one of the best KZfaq channels. I love your thoroughness and how nothing seems to phase you. Keep up the great work. It surprises me that you don't have more subscribers.

You are "super" man. Soooooooooo much work. I am sure that it is getting expensive. I hope that it will be worth all of your hard work. Well it looks like you have a lot of the main things off and being repaired. You have a lot of followers and they have faith in you. I just hope that you do not get hurt. Great job on the video. May the force be with you.

No problem sleeping after that workout! Really clever using the woodsplinter

Dude, my back hurts just watching this... Hang in there. Appreciate your content as always.

Remember you can put a limiting strap on the cylinder then blow air in to the hydraulic input to easily extract the piston.

Cutting Edge Engineering out of Australia has some great videos detailing the rebuild process for hydraulic cylinders. He does a lot of Hitachis. Great video. Thanks for sharing!

Thanks, Matt. Your patience is paying off, I like how you are taking your time and making sure you don't hurt yourself ... nobody said it would be easy, but it is doable, and you're getting there. Nicely done, from a fellow Washingtonian. 👍

One man Army...and doing very well 💪

"Where there’s a will, there’s a way" could have been written for you Matt. You're an inspiration.

Mat, I worked rebuilding hydraulic cylinders as part of my job thru the years, I have to tell you young man, for the equipment / tools and experience you have, I think you are doing an exceptional job of getting them tore down, even with proper tools and equipment they can be stinkers getting them taken apart sometimes. Nice job sir, enjoyed the video.

This a delightful channel to binge on. An endearing blend of curious ingenuity and farcical stupidity, all while displaying a rare level of determination. Love it!

It amazes me just how much you achieve with relatively basic facilities. Your ingenuity , patience and good temper are great to see.

Matt, I had to fix a hydraulic line on my big backhoe. I cut three trees, maybe 15 foot long, set up a tripod (tied the trees together with holes thru the top with a chain). Placed the tripod over the joint, attached a chain hoist (like you have) and lifted and supported the (hinge), it worked well and I felt super safe working around it. Good luck!

You surprise me every video with the project depth of difficulty you're willing to tackle. I love watching your problem solving skills in action. It would be awesome to have you around come the apocalypse. :-) Thanks for your time and effort.

Fascinating watching the Rube Goldberg of all Hillbilly Mechanics. Great video.

This is going to be so excellent when finished! I want to suggest you dig a hole for an in ground pool, so you can relax in it. Until your next project! 😂 🤩🥰

Love your narratives!!! "Ugggh! "Ouch", "Awggg", "Umph!" "Yea, I got it!" "There we go..." (I wouldn't suggest anything different - it's real!) (Water in there....water in there....water in there..."

I'm always impressed on how you DON'T give up! 👍

I continue to be super impressed with your energy and determination to work on that massive project. Keep up the good work and content.

All those grunts at 16:00 makes you sound like a pro tennis player Matt🎾🎾

CEEA is a great channel. There’s also snowball engineering that’s not to bad with his small shop fixes.

Boy, that Mongo impact wrench is the real deal! You're definitely getting your cardio on this project Matt!

Nice episode Matt. Really enjoyed watching you taking old excavation equipment and completely restoring them. Your attention to detail is outstanding. Almost like you're working on an aircraft. Can't wait for the next episode.

hey matt, the struggle was real, and there was some real grunting happening here. that said, you continue to impress with your macgyver attack of the jobs presented to you.

Another great video. You are a go to it learner, Matt. I spent 36 years in large machine design. Those cylinders and rods, from what I could see, are in workable condition. You're the one there, tho. You were right in buying the better kits. You have a lot of time in it, and you don't want to have to go back in. Watching for your next one. Yes, "Cutting Edge Engineering" is one of the best machining sites.

Hey Matt, just a suggestion in the future if you use that hydraulic rig on the front of you're tractor maybe instead of pinching the top of the cylinder between those plates to secure it you might be able to weld up a piece of pipe to insert into cylinders end fitting that would hold rod in place much as it would be if left on the excavator. Thereby using the hydraulic cylinder on the tractor to hold it in place, sort of like a stationary breaker bar to counter the air wrench. I think this would be more secure in all axis than using the webbing and come along or pinching it like a vise.

Cool, some hill billy action 😀👋🇬🇧

You are doing pretty good work 👍don't hurt your self to working alone

I've seen hydraulic shops modify engine hones by welding 4 feet of steel rod onto the hone so u can get it in the barrell of the cylinder. It works great

Back your dozer up to it and run a 2 part line with a snatch block under excavator and use winch to pull stick in and boom up. Might need to pick up bucket first and lay a log(s) so bucket teeth don't dig in (winch or timber lever) A couple feet should be enough to get both cylinders. Secure with heavy chain. You've done waay sketchier.

You are a very hard worker. Good job.

Matt you are doing great work,Hard heavy all on your own, i love 💕 watching you do this, keep it coming

We used a 10 foot pipe and a bench mounted chain vice to remove piston nuts. (Cunningham mfg. Seattle Wa. 1994-96) You my friend, are a MAD man!

I had a good laugh when you complained about the breaker bar pin shearing off with a 10-foot cheater bar on the end of it. Thanks for taking the time to make your videos!

I, for one, would never guess those cylinders are quite so heavy. Exhausting work. You used some clever work arounds. One thing you learn from watching videos like this is that you can never have too big a wrench or tool when working of big, heavy machines. Those nuts are so tight for a good reason. Very nice job Matt.

One of the most interesting channels I watch ! Lots of guys work , not many as hard as you do.

I love your content. How meticulously you handle the problems. Also I can't imagine you benefitting from buying a newer machine with less hours as your standard of repair is pretty much get it like new, and a less older machine probably has the same problems only in a lesser state of wear. When you're done with this machine I'd love to see a calculation how much everything has cost, like you made with your previous projects. Your channel needs to grow. The level of repair you do is amongst the best on youtube, given that you're in a basement and not a professional workshop (like CEE etc who do this for customers, for a living. Their level of knowledge and possibilities in a big shop is of course on another level)

I could not wait 😁

You are an intelligent, hard working young man. God bless you and keep you safe.

Everybody is correct Matt , anyone who wants to know the best and easiest way to strip down a cylinder just watch CEE Australia even the experts could learn a thing or two from this channel good luck mate

love that breaker bar... and your adaptability

The breaker bar antics at 22:00 is the best stuff. tenacious.

Prop the knuckle up with a fence post. Your tractor should be able to take the weight off it. Lower it onto the fence post , the stick ram will be able to be undone as you did the other three. The boom rams are a large size for a bloke at home to manage. I reckon you achieved some better results than many other men might do? I wait tirelessly for your next video each time. Rusty cylinders often need a new one made up. I'm not sure you want to reassemble them yourself when repaired? They can be very difficult. Keep at it. We'll all keep supporting your channel!

If you want to get the stick cyl. out, support the boom at the pivot. Weld some 3/4 x 2 strap steel to the sides , to lock the hinge. Something you can remove carefully later. I would also have a 3/4 pipe hardline from the compressor to a connection by the door. Good work so far, you are ambitious!

It is nice to put an anchor point on the floor in a convenient spot in your garage. All you do is put a piece of plywood under the cylinder then with the one end anchored you pull on the other end with the tractor. Easy peasy!

Use railway ties stacked up and then put a hydraulic jack on top to lift it up some to take the weight. Then use a couple of more blocks to support it and lower the arm on to the blocks and remove the jack. Same system they use for lifting houses....

Matt, why not build a tripod to hold the boom off the ground then hire a local Towing company to come out with a light duty wrecker to do the heavy lifting? If we were closer I'd help you accomplish that feat. Once you finish the machine you can reassemble the hydraulic cylinders back on the machine.. hope this idea helps.😊

Wish I'd liveded close to you, I'd defenetly swing by and give you a hand on these operations. Thanks for sharing your work.

Take care of yourself my friend. Looking forward to many years of your shared content. 👍👍

Nice and Harbor Freight are words that should never be used in the same sentence. 😂

Good on yer Matt. Thank you for taking the time and effort to share your experiences with us.

Matt you keep telling us you don’t know what you are doing - nonsense you are an excellent allrounder 👏👏👏🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Great job.... Thank heavens for ratchet straps. The one area I thought Matt may struggle with more, was removal of the lower pins for the twin boom cylinders. However that system of retaining spring rings and their small locking pins offered no resistance, maybe they were kept lubricated by the hydraulic fluid leaking down the boom for several years :) Hope the shop can hone those cylinders for you.

I find the rebuild so interesting! I almost bought an old 30ton excavator that would have needed some work as well.. ended up getting a brand new 6 ton excavator with thumb, blade and rubber tracks. Hopefully I can get enough work with it to pay for it but it can be transported easily and is ready to go (but the monthly payments are no fun). Still wouldn't mind having a 15-30 t someday.

Well done Matt, I’m always amazed at your ingenuity. For a one man band you certainly think outside the box in moving the heavy equipment around, well done, D minus.

Could a couple of screw jacks under the elbow elevate the boom enough to remove the thumb cylinder , and take the load to allow you to remove upper cylinder too . By the way , hats off for your attempt at world cheater bar record.

i loved the logspliter vice idear genius

So I bought a cylinder hone and fastened it a chimney brush fiberglass pole, worked great 👍

Starke Leistung. Mit deinen Mitteln die du zu Verfügung hast. Alle Möglichkeiten ausgeschöpft. Wow. Not macht erfinderisch. Weiter so. Freu mich auf das nächste Video.

Hey Matt, in your spare time😊, make a flat plate for your log splitter. A 1/2 inch plate against your wedge and 2, 1/2 in flats along the side and weld her up. drill a hole through the flats and the wedge and put a pin in and you will have a very useful shop press. I built one for my log splitter and have used it a lot. Great video series Matt, I enjoy watching.

Awesome content as always, And I know the struggle to get things done when your alone. Keep up the good work Matt, yet another very cool project which will result in a super nice excavator when your done. I would say as good a new if you do your thing.

Just keep on keeping on. I admire your tenacity, Matt.😝 I bet at times it gets to you but no matter what keep on keeping on!

I just love it when that cheap little red engine crane comes out, that little crane never gives up. You could use it to get off the boom cylinder 😀

So many reasons to like you vids.

Thanks Matt, interesting video and great videography.

Matt, your ability to solve problems with what's available is amazing. I've been with you since you got the old D4-7U dozer and enjoyed every episode. Thanks

Tall screw jacks may be used to support the boom , make sure to place some heavy shoring down or steel plate to support the weight and check for settling while the cylinder is removed . Long time viewer , enjoying the content .

What is certain is that the machine will work as well as the dozer, and it is quite fantastic to see someone who is not in the trade doing heavy lifting on construction equipment. But for some we could have done other jobs.

Matt, I was running 110% just watching you, well done that man.

Brilliant work!! On your own too.

Nothing but respect for you! You're doing yeoman's work without help and doing it well. Thanks for doing this series, really enjoying it!

Awesome content. Please keep em coming 🙏

Another satisfying long video, wishing that they were longer. Thank you, Your patience is paying off, I like how you are taking your time and making sure you don't hurt yourself.

You are one tough guy. Total respect!

You are the epitome of work with what you got. I love it

Great job Matt love what your doing

Hey Matt, a quick note to help in future. If you have a nut that is seized, use two hammers, one 6 lb. and one 3lb. Use the 6 as a back up and hammer each face with the 3 lb, it stretches the metal just enough to allow removal. You can use hammer for bolts as well but not guaranteed to work as well as on nuts. Simply strike the top of the bolt head several times, the impacts jar the threads and cracks any corrosion so it breaks loose easier.

It's amazing how much your hydraulic workbench resembles a log splitter...lol!

Great vid Matt. Love the progress.

Great story!

Another great one Matt where you struggled yet still moved forward - Just know, we are all rooting for you.

Real Nice.

Hey Matt,you asked for suggestions.. What about building or welding an A-frame brace to support the main boom?? 3'long at base by 3' wide at top made from pipe would be ample support...💯👍👍👍

Well Mat you will become a hyd cyl expert. Good video. Thank for your time.

For really torqued on nuts, you should look into getting a good quality second hand torque multiplier, they are a little pricey but will really help with what you're doing

Perseverance, you sure have it. I find your videos very inspiring.

Suggestion to secure cylinder for disassembly. Bolt the pin end to the drawbar of your tractor using a large bolt. You can then apply a lot of torque without it moving. Great job using what you got.

Great Work!

It annoys me when tennis players grunt when they play a shot. Now you have started doing the same when undoing nuts on the cylinders. 😄 I do understand and have often done the same, Just couldn't resist. Don't stop grunting, keep making videos please.

Cut you some wood cribbing square. Stack them under the main arm . Use a 20 ton bottle jack to lift the main boom . Then release the pins on the cylinder. Or skytrack to lift it . Then remove the cylinder

Good progress Matt.