difference between Track hoe and excavator

[CsaUpstateNY]

Excavators the bucket points (and digs) towards the cab whereas a shovel's bucket points (and digs) away from the cab.
Large shovels are still used in open pit mining, they operate on the mine floor where the forces when scooping upwards above the floor are offset by the tracks.
Excavator conversely are designed to dig below the floor of the machine where the forces are properly resisted by the tracks as well.

 

[Bob Rooks]

A trackhoe is a track loader with a backhoe on the rear. Operates very much like a backhoe only can traverse steep hills etc. The boom only swings left and right 90 degrees like a backhoe. An excavator is on tracks and has a house that swings plus a boom that swings as well and no bucket on the front. You don't see too many trackhoes anymore but a lot of excavators.

Nailed it! :thumbsup: But some people will still call them whatever they want to, whether they are correct or not. Same thing with track loaders and tracked skid steer machines.

 

[paulharvey]

Track hoe is a tracked machine with a hoe, typically no loader bucket, but some times a push blade on 12 ton and smaller models. Back hoe term can be used for a rubber tired hoe/tlb/combination as well as for a track hoe; the "back" hoe term refers to the way it digs, back towards the machine. Excavator is typically used as a term for a track hoe, but isn't limited to a specific type. There are some odd machines out there, such as a crawler type tracked dozer with a rear mounted hoe, JCB I believe made/makes an articulated front end loader with a hoe. There are "Gradalls" that could technically be called an excavator or even a back hoe, but would normally be called a gradall. There are also "spyder" excavators, heck I think there was a jeep with a hoe at one time.

Power shovels dig up and away from the machine, typically used in a pit, digging at the walls as in a mine.

 

[Xfaxman]

Track hoe is a tracked machine with a hoe, typically no loader bucket, but some times a push blade on 12 ton and smaller models. Back hoe term can be used for a rubber tired hoe/tlb/combination as well as for a track hoe; the "back" hoe term refers to the way it digs, back towards the machine. Excavator is typically used as a term for a track hoe, but isn't limited to a specific type. There are some odd machines out there, such as a crawler type tracked dozer with a rear mounted hoe, JCB I believe made/makes an articulated front end loader with a hoe. There are "Gradalls" that could technically be called an excavator or even a back hoe, but would normally be called a gradall. There are also "spyder" excavators, heck I think there was a jeep with a hoe at one time.

Power shovels dig up and away from the machine, typically used in a pit, digging at the walls as in a mine.

Yep, there was.