Welcome to Evans & Reid Ltd and the ‘MiniExcavatorCentre.com’

This is our website covering plant attachments and aftermarket spare parts for excavators ranging from 0.5 through to 25 Tonnes – operating from our manufacturing facility and extensive warehouse in Neath, South Wales, UK.

We are Europe’s largest supplier of quality aftermarket parts for excavators including:

  • Pins and bushes – from the dipper arm to the kingpost
  • Tipping Links
  • Undercarriage – Sprockets, Top Rollers, Bottom Rollers & Idlers
  • Rubber & Steel Tracks
  • Drive Motors
  • Engine Parts – Solenoids, Fuel Pumps, Alternators, Water Pumps
  • Seal Kits
  • Bucket Teeth, Replacement Cutting Edge
  • Cab Glass
  • >And much, much more

We hold an unrivalled parts database covering the all manufactures and machines, with most parts being available for immediate collection or next day delivery. If not held in stock, we can get almost any part quickly through our extensive network of suppliers.

We design and manufacture high quality attachments covering the full range of:

  • Digging & Ditching Buckets
  • Riddle Buckets
  • Trapazoidal ‘V’ Buckets
  • Tile Drain Buckets
  • Tilting Ditching Buckets
  • 4-in-1 Buckets
  • Quick Hitches
  • Ripper Teeth
  • >Hammer Tops
  • Land Rakes
  • Grading Beams
  • Grapples & Thumbs
  • Log Splitters

We also specialise in custom application and one-off designs – from solutions for canal clearance to excavator mounted bee-hive carriers!

Established in 1992 – Celebrating over 30 Years Experience & Expertise.

A (very) Brief History of Mini Excavators

Through the 1950’s and 60’s several manufacturers worked to design smaller hydraulically operated and self-propelled excavators to provide increased versatility compared to earlier cranes and loaders. While all firsts are too numerous to mention here , some notable milestones include:

  • Liebherr’s L300 hydraulic 3-wheeled excavator in 1960
  • The Smalley 360 walking excavator launched at Lincoln Show (UK) in 1962. Diggers have been sold throughout the world including over 100 machines to Japan

  • Kobelco’s TV45 hydraulic 3-wheeled excavator in 1963
  • JCB’s aptly named JCB 7 in 1964, its first hydraulic excavator
  • Hitachi’s UH03 in 1965, using full domestic technology (Japan Historic first)
  • Yanmar’s YNB300 in 1968, a self-propelled wheeled mini-digger

The step-change to the first fully hydraulic 360-degree rotating tracked mini excavator as recognisable today is arguably Takeuchi’s TB1000 launched in 1971, followed by Kubota’s KH1 launching in 1974. Several other companies established similar mini excavators with these machines beginning to enter the UK and Europe from the late 1970’s and rapidly gained market share over initial European offerings. By comparison it wasn’t until 1989, that JCB would launch their first compact, the 801 model, some 25 years after their JCB 7 excavator.

Mini excavators have continually been developed over the following decades:

  • 1980’s – Canopy to Cabin. Growth of European & North American Brands
  • 1990’s – Interchangeable rubber tracks, servo control, knuckle booms, Extending dippers, Zero-tail swing becomes common
  • 2000’s – Increased product lines, Offset booms, Attachment range
  • 2010’s – Tier 4 Emissions, Field serviceability
  • 2020’s – Introduction of hybrid, lithium battery & hydrogen technologies.

There are currently around 100 brands of min-excavator on the market, expanding to almost 200 when accounting for re-branded and location specific specialised or modified machine brands. Due to their reliability and low running costs, machines are rarely scrapped, with very early models being restored and even 30-year-old models found in use.