Friend is getting a D8!

Sonny580 · Jan 2, 2018

The hoe is the way to go, and yes you can level ground just as good with them as a dozer! ---I have done it when helping a friend with a new deere 450.---The first few hours get interesting, but after that it's just plain boring!
D-8 is a baby!!! NOTHING to be afraid of!--Learn the controls and pratice a few hours before getting radical with them and your good to go.
I have an IH 250-c series lll and it is the 4-1 loader. The guy that hauled it said he weighed it at a certified scales and it weighs 60,000 pounds.---I have been in some nasty areas with it and you can't see a thing from the seat,--only the back of the bucket! ---run one for a few hours and getting the feel of your own machine will give good results.

This is my 250 thanks; sonny580

BobG_in_VA · Jan 8, 2018

Back in the late '60s, I ran a D7 hydraulic (hydrostatic trans) and we had a D8 with the cable winch that raised and lowered the blade...a number of things come to mind...1: really important....never get one without GREAT hearing protection..(not so much going forward, but in reverse the tracks going back over the drive wheel will be so loud you won't believe it..) second, the D8 is a 6 cyl engine..the D7 was 4. both at the time, each had gasoline 2 cly. pony motors to start them as a regular "electric" starter motor wouldn't even turn it over once...once you get in the seat of a D8 you'll wonder how anyone can ever learn to run one correctly..the hood looks like its 15 feet long! (and is **** near it..). the "clutches" are the levers in front of you, pull the right one and the right track disengages, you will slowly turn to the right as the left track takes over...the right brake will hasten the turn after the clutch is pulled.. as far as the "throttle" is concerned (lever in the center between the clutches), once started/warmed up, goes as far forward as it will go (ie. wide open)...the third foot thingy (besides the 2 brake pedals) is the "decellerator".. when you want to come to a stop, push it, the engine will go to idle, change gears (do this to back up), let off the pedal and the engine is wide open again. NOW: MY ADVICE would be to never run this unit...the slightest mistake could cost you thousands of dollars...by the way you wouldn't even want to pay for the CAT guy to come out with his truck to even figure out what's wrong...pay your neighbor to do the work...you won't be sorry.. Good luck.. BobGinVA

N80 · Jan 8, 2018

Thanks for the info. So far no dozer has showed up at his place yet. This one (D8K) does not have a pony motor. I'm still kinda hoping the deal will fall through and he'll get something smaller.

yanmars · Jan 8, 2018

As BobG mentioned: I have a brother that had a smaller dozer. Often said I could use it. I have so much brush, rocks, hills I just passed on it. Felt I would damage it in some manner. Hired a pro several times, money well spent. Knew what he was doing and did it quickly.

BrokenTrack · Jan 13, 2018

It takes some getting used to, but a bulldozer is the fastest way to clear land. That is because it does it all, getting the stump out of the ground, and smoothing the soil after. The bigger the dozer the better because it makes the field flatter across, just like a long hand plane makes a board smooth because it is rides over the bumps and planes off the high spots. Same thing on a big bulldozer.

To stump, you will want a 4 way blade; 6 ways blades are weaker and unneeded, angling the blade just makes them slip to one side anyway. So to remove a stump, tilt your blade to the right, (my preferred side, but I am right handed), then drop the blade about 6-5 feet before the stump. That lets the blade rip into the roots and get kind of gets under the stump. Think of it like a plate of glass with water, it is not so much the roots that hold the stump to the ground but rather a type of suction, break that suction and the stump rolls right out.

To do that, as the stump starts to nudge its way out of the ground, drive forward, but tilt the blade back the other way so that traction and hydraulics aid in removing the stump. Once it is kind of out of the ground, back up, get another push on it, and go at it again. To keep soil from going with the stump, lift the blade about a foot off the ground which lets the soil drop off on your way to the edge of the field. After about a 1000 stumps you will get the hang of it!

By the way:: I got my user name while land clearing on a mountainside last year. As I was putting it in reverse to make another push, my track snapped in half and I watched it zipper right past the cab piling up on my blade. It was only a John Deere 700, but still took some effort to put back on and fix!

N80 · Jan 13, 2018

yanmars said:
As BobG mentioned: I have a brother that had a smaller dozer. Often said I could use it. I have so much brush, rocks, hills I just passed on it. Felt I would damage it in some manner. Hired a pro several times, money well spent. Knew what he was doing and did it quickly.

That is what I have done in the past for critical work....site prep for the cabin, main driveway, etc. The work I need to do now is much less critical...knock down some small trees and stumps, put 'em in piles. The rest I'll do with my little tractor. But I get what you're saying. I don't like messing with other people's expensive stuff. Don't want to be "that" guy that breaks something. However, I have been called many times by folks in this family to operate their farm equipment (all of much bigger than my tractor) when they have needed help in a pinch....although I've never been asked to run the bailer or the hay cutter. They have also used my tractor when they needed something smaller than what they have. Anyway, all of that is to say that if, for whatever reason, I did run this machine it would not be like the brother-in-law putz from the city breaks the bulldozer....even though that's what it would look like on paper. ;-)

Again, for the small job I need doing, I'd get the owner to do it and pay for the fuel.

N80 · Jan 13, 2018

BrokenTrack said:
It takes some getting used to, but a bulldozer is the fastest way to clear land. That is because it does it all, getting the stump out of the ground, and smoothing the soil after. The bigger the dozer the better because it makes the field flatter across, just like a long hand plane makes a board smooth because it is rides over the bumps and planes off the high spots. Same thing on a big bulldozer.

To stump, you will want a 4 way blade; 6 ways blades are weaker and unneeded, angling the blade just makes them slip to one side anyway. So to remove a stump, tilt your blade to the right, (my preferred side, but I am right handed), then drop the blade about 6-5 feet before the stump. That lets the blade rip into the roots and get kind of gets under the stump. Think of it like a plate of glass with water, it is not so much the roots that hold the stump to the ground but rather a type of suction, break that suction and the stump rolls right out.

To do that, as the stump starts to nudge its way out of the ground, drive forward, but tilt the blade back the other way so that traction and hydraulics aid in removing the stump. Once it is kind of out of the ground, back up, get another push on it, and go at it again. To keep soil from going with the stump, lift the blade about a foot off the ground which lets the soil drop off on your way to the edge of the field. After about a 1000 stumps you will get the hang of it!

By the way:: I got my user name while land clearing on a mountainside last year. As I was putting it in reverse to make another push, my track snapped in half and I watched it zipper right past the cab piling up on my blade. It was only a John Deere 700, but still took some effort to put back on and fix!

Good advice, thanks. Still no dozer has showed up on the property so far.

N80 · Feb 20, 2018

He got the dozer. It is a D8H and not a D8K. It is old and looks old. Most of the dials don't work. Seat is all torn up. But, the treads and sprockets look good and he says it cranks and runs great. He has been learning to use it and has already done a fair amount of clearing with it. He says it is hard to operate well and you're working both arms and legs the whole time. Steep learning curve. He says it handles even the large stumps fine but it is a slow process and requires backing up at least once. He says it is a problem with the stumps taking a lot of soil with them but it is wet and sticky right now and will probably not be as much of a problem when it is dryer. He says he will eventually need a root rake for it. Can't imagine how much that must cost.

He says he wants me to come drive it (it is just across the road from my place) and I'll take him up on it just for kicks.

fried1765 · Feb 20, 2018

N80 said:
He got the dozer. It is a D8H and not a D8K. It is old and looks old. Most of the dials don't work. Seat is all torn up. But, the treads and sprockets look good and he says it cranks and runs great. He has been learning to use it and has already done a fair amount of clearing with it. He says it is hard to operate well and you're working both arms and legs the whole time. Steep learning curve. He says it handles even the large stumps fine but it is a slow process and requires backing up at least once. He says it is a problem with the stumps taking a lot of soil with them but it is wet and sticky right now and will probably not be as much of a problem when it is dryer. He says he will eventually need a root rake for it. Can't imagine how much that must cost.

He says he wants me to come drive it (it is just across the road from my place) and I'll take him up on it just for kicks.

View attachment 540920 View attachment 540921

Oh...the poor guy !
Wait until something major breaks.....and it will!
Major wallet fracture !

N80 · Feb 20, 2018

fried1765 said:
Wait until something major breaks.....and it will!
Major wallet fracture !

No doubt.

Oh...the poor guy !

I wouldn't say that. This is an extremely shrewd and calculating young man (who is an officer on a heavy lift salvage and recovery ship. I suspect he has looked at all the possibilities and has taken them into consideration. And, as mentioned before, his uncle (who is my B-I-L) has a large shop less than a mile down the road in which he has restored a WWII half-track, maintains and repairs all his large ag tractors and has done major repairs on a previous dozer and a large articulated front end loader. He also has a mobile welding truck at his disposal.

Time will tell. Even the best laid plans can go belly up.