Your Hitachi ZX55U-6

Common jobs for the Hitachi ZX55

The Hitachi ZX55 is a 5.4-tonne machine that handles residential digging, drainage and fine grading. On Swedish jobs it runs plots, smaller groundwork and service jobs where the hydraulics are smooth enough for careful work near services. It suits the firm that digs where cable, fibre and pipe already lie in the ground and precision matters.

On a residential plot the ZX55 digs for foundation and drainage near existing services without tearing them, on a service job it exposes pipe and cable with a fine touch. It grades ground ahead of paving and asphalt. It is a machine for careful groundwork where you do not want a jerky machine.

At this weight you want a digging bucket, a grading bucket and a sorting grapple on the S40 hitch, plus a light breaker when rock or old concrete turns up. At 5.4 tonnes the machine carries everyday attachments steadily, but think about weight when you reach out far with a heavy load.

Buckets and attachments that fit the ZX55

For a 5.4-tonne machine you choose a digging bucket for excavation, a wide grading bucket for levelling and slopes, and a narrow cable bucket for drainage and services. On careful groundwork it is often the cable bucket and grading bucket you swap between, since much of the job is exposing and reinstating.

A sorting grapple belongs on the ZX55 when you load stone, pull apart and sort spoil. At 5.4 tonnes the machine carries the grapple steadily as long as you do not reach out far with a heavy load. The smooth hydraulics let you handle material under control without jerks.

All attachments run on the S40 hitch, the standard for mini excavators. With the same hitch you swap quickly between bucket, grapple and breaker without leaving the cab, and you get more out of the machine day.

Hydraulic breaker and heavy attachments for the ZX55

A 5.4-tonne machine drives a light hydraulic breaker for concrete and stone. On groundwork the breaker is good to have when you hit rock in the drainage trench or have to take out an old concrete edge. At this weight you stick to a light breaker the machine can manage at full reach.

Check the oil flow against the breaker spec before you buy. On a machine this size it is the flow and not the weight that decides which breaker it handles. The smooth hydraulics on the ZX55 suit careful work, but the breaker still has to be matched to the machine to hit right.

An auger drive is useful on the ZX55 for post holes, footing piles and planting pits. The auger bit is the part in the drive, and you choose the size by the hole. On a light machine keep the attachment weight down and do not auger at full reach.

S40 quick hitch and fit

The Hitachi ZX55 runs an S40 hitch, the standard coupler for mini excavators. Check the attachments are listed for S40 before you buy. With a common hitch you build a set of attachments that all fit and that you swap quickly between tasks.

On a 5.4-tonne machine the attachment weight still matters a lot. The main thing is to stick to attachments the machine can lift at full reach, since one that is too heavy far out makes even a stable 5-tonne machine unstable. That is the most common mistake in this class.