What is an excavator swing boom?

Release Time :

2025-01-22

Single Boom (Standard Boom): This is what we call a standard setup – it provides a good reach and a good range of bucket sizes and is by far the most popular setup. Some customers use a high-capacity digging setup, which is a shorter arm and a shorter stick. They choose this because they can fit a larger bucket on it. For example, on our 42-ton Volvo 380E excavator, you can choose a 20-foot-4-inch (6.2-meter) high-capacity digging arm and an 8-foot-4-inch stick, which allows you to fit a larger bucket and move more material. It’s also faster because you don’t need to swing as far. It’s one of the most efficient setups, but it can be limited by its reach.

Two-Piece Boom: A two-piece excavator boom is very versatile and can actually be lifted closer to the machine than a one-piece boom. However, a one-piece boom has a greater reach and lifts more than a two-piece boom when fully extended. A two-piece boom allows you to change the flex of the excavator boom to lower its working height, which is great for digging under bridges or inside buildings. The price difference between a one-piece boom and a two-piece boom isn’t huge, allowing you to choose the configuration that best suits the job at hand.

Long Boom: Long-reach excavator arms are ideal for clearing ponds and canals – jobs that require digging in water and require extra reach. Boom lengths vary by manufacturer and machine model. For example, the long-arm version of the Volvo EC380 excavator is 27 feet 11 inches (8.5 meters), while the standard boom is 21 feet 2 inches (6.45 meters), the arm is 16 feet 5 inches (5 meters), and the maximum reach is 48 feet 5 inches (14.75 meters).

This is a good reminder of the machine nomenclature. The “L” in the EC380EL indicates that it has a long undercarriage – the “LR” in our EC380ELR stands for long reach.

Two-piece offset boom: A two-piece offset excavator boom is another option on some models. Two-piece offset booms bend to the right or left. For example, if you are working in a narrow alley with limited swing, you can bend the boom so it follows a track next to a building to dig. Note that on larger machines this will reduce your lifting capacity because you have a bend and cylinder in the boom, so you are adding weight to the front of the machine. Two-piece offset booms are more expensive and may require additional maintenance. This excavator boom configuration is popular in cities where workspaces are extremely tight.

Generally speaking, a large portion of customers choose a two-piece boom for wheeled excavators and a standard single-piece boom for crawler excavators.


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