You asked, and I delivered! Vanilla Excavators is a shovel alternative to Vanilla Hammers.
This mod was designed on top of Vanilla Hammers. All mechanics are very similar, so they have identical configuration systems and materials.
Compatibility:
DynaGear can be used to add new Excavators based on custom materials.
Nether Things has 3 new Excavator materials based on their content!
License:
Vanilla Excavators is GPLv3. You are free to use it as you wish.
Credits:
Thanks to Yoghurt4C for the textures, and thanks to everyone who helped improve the original Vanilla Hammers.