The reason I bought these machines was because I have some very steep properties that are a natural 2:1 slope. Some parts are a lot steeper and some aren't quite so steep. A conventional excavator or rubber tired hoe would not do it and the spider excavator is perfect for very steep terrain. They are capable of working on a 100% slope or a 1:1 slope ratio and in 5 feet of water without any assistance. They are the ultimate all terrain excavator, and they are also known as walking excavators, spider hoe, and super hoe. Shaeff sold out to Terrex a couple years ago and they quit building the HS41M and the HS41MM. Now they sell the Kaiser S1 and S2 and they seem to be pretty good machines, but they are expensive. Menzi Much also has some walking excavators that they sell but I don't know that much about them. Euromach is another manufacturer of the Spider Excavator and they seem to have a lot more variety in sizes. They have a couple of mini Walking Excavators but I haven't had the chance to run any of them yet.
