Bulldozer

   / Bulldozer #1  
J

jshbryan

Bronze Member
Joined
Apr 3, 2007
Messages
51
Location
Texas
Tractor
Branson 3820i
I have the chance to buy a 1957 Cat D6 from a local farmer. He has owned it for about 7 years and has used it to clean all of his pastures.

He is wanting $5000 for it where it sits. I went and looked at it over the weekend and everything is in working order. There are no hydraulic leaks that I could find. The only leak that does exist is in the fuel tank itself. It leaks about a gallon every couple weeks according to the owner. Judging by the small area on the ground, I believe he is being truthful.

The dozer has been sitting since Thanksgiving weekend. When he started it, it just took a small shot of either and it fired right up.

I guess my question is this dozer worth 5k? I am thinking of buying it to clear some of my land and re-sell it in a couple of months.

Thoughts?
 
   / Bulldozer #2  
I have a 1964 D6 B, I gave 12k for. So 5K looks like a steal but.....You need to know lots more info then just starting. Track cond., rollers/pins, final drives clutch, etc. best advise I can give: take someone who knows ALOT about dozers to look at it with you. even if you have to pay a dozer mech. $200 for a couple of hours its money well spent. I did'nt and got to spend $5000 more soon after buying mine. That having been said , since you ar'nt going to be In the dozer business it need not be perfect, just not going to cost 5-10k more before you knock over your first tree. Don't know where in Tx. you are, but if its N/E Tx., P.M. me and I can steer you toward someone who can loook at it with you.
Jack
 
   / Bulldozer #3  
It actually sounds kind of cheap to me for that sized dozer. Being 50 years old is gonna be a big factor in it, but Cat is probably most famous for supporting there equipment, so parts won't be a problem.

I looked at allot of Cat dozers in that size range from the 60's that were all selling for the high teens to low twenty thousand dollar range. All of them had there issues and I figured I's spend more time wrenching on them, then running them.

When did they put hydraulics on dozers?

Does it have a pony motor to start the diesel?

Before you buy it, post pictures of the undercairage. Be sure to focus on the sprocket, rails, pins and idlers. More then likely, the pins have already been turned and are probably worn out on both sides. This is where it gets expensive. The rails also wear out over time and there's no way to fix them except replace them. The sprocket is easy and fairly cheap to replace if it's the five piece design. If it's a one piece unit, then it becomes a big job.

A dozer is basically three things to worry about. Engine, transmission and tracks. Everything else is pretty simple and straight forward. Any of those three things dont work, and it's expensive and dificult to fix.

Check around to see what a dozer of that size and age is going for. I think he's selling it too cheap, and that's sending off warning flags to me. Might be that he knows somethings wrong with it and wants to get rid of it quick.

Eddie
 
   / Bulldozer
  • Thread Starter
#4  
I know the guy pretty well. He lives a couple of miles away from me and buys all of his calves from us. I trust the guy quite a bit and he tells me there is nothing that he knows of that needs fixing at this point. My father in law has traded with him for 30 years.

Since he has had it he has only put about 100 hours on it and about 90 of those were by his ranch hand. He purchased the dozer from Parker County and has all of their maintenance documents and the bill of sale from him buying it.

It does have a pony motor on it. However, he has added a starter, battery and key switch to make things easier. He claims that set up cost him around $700.

I will try and get some pics posted here in a bit. I willhave to run out there and take some.
 
   / Bulldozer
  • Thread Starter
#5  
   / Bulldozer #6  
Check ALL the fluid levels...It may not have a leak cause there ain't nothin' in it to leak....just jokin'.. Actually the track/rollers don't look too bad. The sprocket is worn some, but I think still usable for what you need. PONY MOTOR: Have the guy start it and let it run for a minute or two...That is a very expensive item!! Then have him start the unit with the pony motor as the clutching and engine "hook up" is primary to running the unit. As weel as I remember even on warm days, it could take 15 seconds of pony time to have the engine catch on and run. When I used to run a D7 in a rock quarry (40 years ago now...) the 7 was probably about the same vintage (that was in '68 and the unit was about 10 or so years old..). It had very good blade control and hydro drive...I'm assuming this is also. If its got a clutch and manual gear trans, beware....PS: I like the cage over the operators station! Talk about a neet project to restore, especially as the tin work looks pretty straight. CAT will have all the parts/filters you will need. Oh, have your mech. pay good attention to the injector pump--they ain't cheep either...BobG in VA
 
   / Bulldozer
  • Thread Starter
#7  
BobG_in_VA said:
PONY MOTOR: Have the guy start it and let it run for a minute or two...That is a very expensive item!! Then have him start the unit with the pony motor as the clutching and engine "hook up" is primary to running the unit. As weel as I remember even on warm days, it could take 15 seconds of pony time to have the engine catch on and run.
Click to expand...

Bob,

We did not even start the Pony Motor. It now has a starter, battery and key switch to make things easier. The diesel engine fired and ran after about three seconds and has not been started since Thanksgiving.


All I need this machine to do is hold together for 39 acres of work. With my schedule, I figue I can get it done in a month or so. At that point I will turn right back around and sell it.

Here is my theory. The cheapest quote I got from a guy to come out to my place and clean it the way I wanted was $250 per acre which is $9750. I can buy this machine for $5k. Let's say I get done and it blows up. It still cost me $4750 less to do it myself. Now, when I am done, hopefully I can get at least 2/3 of what I paid for it and have my place cleaned the way I want it.

My wife says I am crazy. I just don't see a losing situation here.
 
   / Bulldozer #9  
Looks like a steal to me. Plus you can run it, listen, drive it around, etc. Another quick test is to put the blade up on a huge tree (object is to not push the tree over, use something else), with the dozer stopped the tracks should never stop turning. this tests the steering clutches, another large cost to fix. If it doesn't slip (loud ear cracking noise), then I think you are fine.

Just remember, the bigger they are, the more to fix. You should also be able to handle yourself around a nice toolbox, for repairs, big and large. Also ig you get it don't go out and try and bang out a 36" oak on the first day. It's old so only take a half bite, etc. Be kind to it!! :)

Also this big they are a lot harder to move around because of the weight. It probably goes 40,000 pounds or so.

Good Luck.
 
   / Bulldozer
  • Thread Starter
#10  
MossRoad said:
Let's say you get on it the second day and it blows up.


See it now?
Click to expand...

I hear ya. But I'm a "glass is half full" kinda guy. The ranch hand that runs this for the guy is a close friend of mine that I have known since the eigth grade. He also has his own (Case 450G) dozer. He say's it a h*** of a machine and wouldn't think twice about it.

Besides, if it does, I bet I could get near half my money back parting it out, albeit time consuming. So, I have paid 12k for the 10k job, which was the lowest. Had two around 16k to clear it.
 
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