The grading standard · version 1.0
How we grade a machine
A grade is worthless if it is an opinion. Ours is tied to two measurable quantities, so two different inspectors on two different days reach the same letter. That repeatability is the entire product.
01 · Calibration
The five grades
| Grade | Meaning | Worst major system | Deferred cost | What it means to you |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | Near-new | over 80% life | under 2% | Work-ready. Nothing deferred. |
| B | Sound | over 50% life | 2–5% | Minor wear only. Budget nothing for a year. |
| C | Serviceable | 30–50% life | 5–15% | Works now; needs investment inside 12 months. Negotiate the deferred cost off the price. |
| D | Worn | under 30% life | 15–30% | A major system is near end of life. Only buy at a price that funds the rebuild. |
| E | Rebuild required | Failure or structural defect | over 30% | Parts donor, or a rebuild project. Not a working purchase. |
02 · The rule
The overall grade is the worst system, never the average
The overall grade may not exceed the lowest grade of any major system. A machine with an A engine, A hydraulics and a D undercarriage is a D — not a B.
Averaging is how dishonest reports get written without anyone intending dishonesty. It flatters the machine, it pleases the seller, and it is the single easiest way to produce the one false report that ends a business like this. So we do not do it, and the rule is published here rather than buried where nobody will look.
It also means our grades will sometimes look harsh next to someone else’s. That is the intended behaviour, not a flaw.
Major systems — these cap the grade
- Engine & cooling
- Hydraulics
- Undercarriage
- Structure & welds
- Swing & slew
Graded and reported — but do not cap
- Cab
- Electricals
- Documentation
A broken air conditioner is not a broken machine.
| System | Finding | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Engine & cooling | Clean start, no blowby, no dilution | A |
| Hydraulics | Cycle times within 6% of spec, drift within limit | A |
| Undercarriage | Chains 22% remaining, sprockets hooked, idler flange worn | D |
| Structure & welds | No repair found, pin play within tolerance | B |
| Swing & slew | Slight backlash, no bearing noise | B |
| Overall | The worst system carries the machine. An average would have called this a B and cost the buyer the price of an undercarriage. | D |
03 · Stop conditions
Three findings that override the grade entirely
Some findings do not get averaged, weighted or graded past. They become the headline of the report, and the rest of the document is read in their light.
Concealed structural repair
Grinding marks and fresh paint at a high-stress weld. We report it, we do not grade past it, and we recommend NDT before purchase — no matter how good everything else is.
Hour-meter inconsistency
If the wear pattern does not match the claimed hours, that finding becomes the headline. Every other number in the report is then unreliable, and you are told exactly that.
Title or lien defect
Chassis number mismatch, unreleased hypothecation, no financier NOC available. Mechanical condition is irrelevant if the machine cannot legally transfer.
04 · The number
The letter is what you remember. The percentage is what you negotiate with.
A machine at 5.2% deferred cost and a machine at 14.8% are both grade C. They are not remotely the same purchase. One needs filters and a set of teeth; the other needs an undercarriage inside the year.
So every report gives the percentage as well as the letter, and says where in the band the machine sits. If it is a C that is nearly a D, the report says so in those words.
Deferred cost is the money the machine already needs but has not yet had spent on it — the itemised total of parts and labour due within roughly twelve months, expressed against what the machine is worth. That last step is what makes it comparable between a ₹12 lakh backhoe and a ₹40 lakh excavator.
What we never do
- Certify. We inspect and grade. Certification implies an accredited body and a liability nobody in this trade actually carries.
- Advise the purchase. We state condition and cost. Whether to buy is your decision and it must stay yours.
- Forecast. “It will last another five thousand hours” becomes a promise the moment something fails.
- Write “no problems found”. The report says “no defects observed within the limits stated”. Absence of observation is not absence of defect, and the difference matters.
- Soften a grade. Not for a seller, not for a buyer, not for ourselves. A grade that can be moved is worth nothing to the next person who reads one.
Have a machine in mind?
Send six photographs and we will give you the grade band for nothing.