excavator to do it. "If what you're trying to do can be done with a smaller machine, then use it," he says. With this concept in mind, mid-size (midi) compact excavators, weighing roughly 10,000 ...

Machine size has the largest influence on these variables. But it is a balancing act. "You should look at the job and determine how fast you need to get the trenching part done," says Brent Bolay ...