Watch Bizarre Soviet 'Walking Excavator' Stretch Its Legs

There is nothing like a Soviet "walking" excavator to make you wonder whether you're living inside a steampunk movie. Or if you're a movie enthusiast, it could be easily Howl's Moving "Excavator", too. 

This video uploaded in 2017 by Romeo Rum shows an ancient titan going for a very slow daytime stroll. Named ЭШ 6,5/45, this machine was made in the former Soviet Union around 1969. As you'll see in the video, it walks extremely slowly due to the fact that it weighs 617,294 pounds (280 tonnes).

You might be thinking why this super huge and heavy excavator walks rather than being on conventional tracks. The answer goes back to the early 20th century, per The Drive. Innovation was needed after dragline excavators, which are pieces of heavy equipment used in civil engineering and surface mining, became too heavy. Making them walk made sure they exerted less pressure on the ground, and thus, they were less likely to sink. Pretty interesting stuff!