On my homemade excavator I used the back axle cut-off from a 3/4 ton chevy pickup, and mounted the house platform to it an built up from that. The back axle is hollow so hoses for outriggers go down thru there and then out to cylinders.
I used the chevy 3/4 ton axle because it's what I had available at the time when I made mine.
ALL of the parts of mine came from the scrap pile. The only thing I bought was welding rods.


"A machine you build yourself is a vote for a different way of life. There are things you have to earn with your hands."