A 22,000-pound machine capable of acting like both an excavator and a skid steer gives Grind Hard Plumbing Co. plenty to be excited about, and that enthusiasm drives nearly every minute here. The newly delivered Mechalac 10MCR immediately distinguishes itself through an articulated boom, compact dimensions, quick attachment changes, surprising travel speed, and the ability to carry a large skid-steer-style bucket. Rather than treating the machine as another piece of construction equipment, the group approaches it like an exotic vehicle, inspecting everything from its counterweight and service access to its controls before putting it to work.
The best material comes once those unusual features are demonstrated rather than merely admired. The boom can be tucked tightly against the machine or extended to reach across obstacles, attachments can be installed facing forward or backward, and buckets can be changed from the cab. A particularly effective comparison involves moving material across a small creek: a skid steer could carry the same large load but would need to drive around, while a conventional excavator could reach across but would require many more smaller bucket loads. The 10MCR's combination of reach and capacity makes the claimed productivity advantage easy to understand.
Several demonstrations also give the praise more substance. The operators describe the machine as unusually stable on steep terrain, note how little ground they disturb while grading, and repeatedly exploit its ability to reposition the boom instead of the entire tracked undercarriage. Later, switching from a bucket to pallet forks illustrates why the attachment system could save meaningful time during routine work around their property. Even the explanation of coupled and uncoupled boom modes provides useful insight into how the extra articulation changes operation instead of simply declaring the machine futuristic.
That said, nearly all of the evaluation comes from delighted first impressions. Mechalac has loaned the machine to the channel indefinitely, and a dealer representative is present for portions of the demonstration, so the relentlessly positive tone should be understood in that context. The hosts acknowledge that the machine is brand new and that their digging occurs largely in soft dirt, but there is no sustained testing of fuel use, maintenance, difficult material, long-term durability, operating costs, or situations where a conventional excavator or skid steer might remain preferable. Assertions that it is the most capable machine of its size or dramatically superior to competing equipment therefore remain enthusiastic judgments rather than conclusions established by comparative testing.
The presentation is also unmistakably entertainment first. Mechalac puns, La Croix celebrations, jokes about carrying a Changli, and a dusty run in a 1970s tracked ATV keep a lengthy equipment showcase energetic, while the group's genuine fascination makes even technical explanations approachable. Some sequences linger on everyone separately marveling at how impressive the machine is, however, producing repetition that could have been replaced with additional measured comparisons. The brief Onshape sponsorship, centered on creating a configurable dirt-bike sprocket feature with an AI-assisted workflow, is clearly separated enough to understand but interrupts the otherwise coherent machinery focus.
By the end, the 10MCR has proven itself unusually versatile for the specific jobs shown: trail building, grading, moving dirt, reaching across obstacles, handling pallets, and working in tight areas. The strongest argument for it is not the repeated claim that conventional skid steers suddenly feel obsolete, but the visible reduction in repositioning and attachment-change effort during actual tasks. The promotional relationship and limited test conditions prevent this from functioning as an independent equipment review, yet as an enthusiastic introduction to an uncommon machine and the practical possibilities created by its unusual architecture, it is informative, visually demonstrative, and consistently entertaining.
Pros
- Demonstrates the articulated boom, reversible attachments, quick-change system, travel speed, grading ability, and compact working envelope through real tasks rather than relying entirely on descriptions.
- Comparisons with conventional skid-steer and excavator workflows make the machine's hybrid advantages easy to understand.
- Explains coupled and uncoupled control modes clearly enough to show how the unusual boom changes operation.
- Genuine enthusiasm and playful experimentation keep a technically focused heavy-equipment showcase accessible and entertaining.
Cons
- The machine is being supplied by Mechalac, and the overwhelmingly enthusiastic presentation offers little critical evaluation of the product or competing approaches.
- Broad claims about unmatched capability and superiority over conventional equipment are not supported by controlled comparative testing.
- A brand-new machine working largely in favorable conditions cannot reveal long-term durability, maintenance demands, operating costs, or performance under harder workloads.
- Repeated reactions to how impressive the machine feels become redundant, while the Onshape sponsorship temporarily diverts attention from the central subject.
Grind Hard Plumbing Co. makes an unusually versatile piece of heavy equipment genuinely fascinating by showing how its strange design changes familiar jobs in practice. The demonstrations provide convincing evidence of flexibility and clever engineering within the conditions shown, although the promotional relationship and absence of rigorous comparisons make the more sweeping superiority claims harder to accept. As an enthusiastic first-look showcase rather than an independent equipment review, it succeeds remarkably well.
