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1996 cat 311

EKBLLC ยท 2015-03-19 20:17

Hi I am looking to buy a 1996 Cat 311 with 7775 hrs that has a hammer on it. It was one of the machines built in Japan. it has the 3064 diesel. Any comments or concerns from anyone that knows about these machines would be great. A guy I know told me to stay away from the Cats manufactured over seas, He said they are "black market"? and very hard to get parts for? The price is right and it will do what I need it to. I would just like to hear some opinions form people who know what they are talking about. Thanks

Replies7
  1. #1EKBLLC2015-03-20 20:27

    i found out today that it is a "Gray Market" machine. The parts guy at Cat said that they are not to hard to get parts for? Any opinions?

  2. #2lantraxco2015-03-20 20:56

    If it's a true gray market machine, which simply means it's a model or serial number prefix that was not intended to be sold in the US, then manuals are available through CAT, most likely in the language of the country it was sold in. Get the parts book, once you have part numbers you have access to CAT's global parts network. Most parts will be used in many models so readily available, the odd bits will ship from Germany or Singapore if I recall correctly. I worked for a CAT dealer on the parts counter from like '96 to '02, there was never anything we couldn't get it was just a matter of air shipping. What's the serial number start with?

  3. #3EKBLLC2015-03-20 21:01

    Thanks, 5PK

  4. #4lantraxco2015-03-20 21:44

    Yep, as you were informed, Japanese machine for the Asian market. Looks like they built lots of them so it should be fairly easy to keep running. I wouldn't be afraid of it myself.

  5. #5big ben2015-03-21 02:38

    Yes and no. There is a difference. A lot of Cat HEX are made overseas. Japan makes new Cat machines for the US market every day. For example all new 320E's are made in Japan. The big HEX are made in Belgium. Don't be afraid of Cats made over seas be aware of "gray market"

  6. #6EKBLLC2015-03-21 06:43

    Thanks for the info. It is very helpful. I will look into it a bit more.

  7. #7EKBLLC2015-04-06 11:25

    Hi. I bought the machine and have some questions on servicing other parts of the machine like the final drives, turntable motor, and hydraulic system. I am assuming that the engine is similar to a backhoe/loader etc. Any guidance would be great. Just ordered a maintenance manual but it's out 2-4 weeks. Thanks