977K Loaders
Guys: what is the general consensus of the 977K model loaders? how do they operate? are they pedal steer or lever? I'd love to see a pic of one up close so that I can see detail. what is the operating specs? and HP? I know this seems like a lot of questions, please bear with me I'm only a rookie here. :usa:beatsme
I've heard that the 977 loaders were great machines...never operated them but I see them occasionally. Googled some pics... http://images.google.com/images?q=C...F-8&sourceid=ie7&rlz=1I7GGLR&um=1&sa=N&tab=wi
We have a 977L with a m/s ripper. It is a very good tractor and has tons of power and it very good ripper tractor for its size. We use it in our shale pit ripping and loading trucks, detention basin and road building.
The 977 is a good tractor havn't ran one in years, but they steer with your feet, throttle and F-R are controlled by your hands. I think the last version ( before the 973 ) was an X designation you could tell by the pedals hanging from the dash ( all the earlyer versions the pedals came up through the floor) they seemed to be a little smoother to operate. Roger
The 977K is a very dependable machine, from what several of my customers have told me. It's a machine that's used extensively in Demo, more specifically, with 4 in 1 buckets. Parts availability, through both Cat and the Aftermarket, is very good.
hey thanks for the pics!!! I sure do appreciate the help!!!
equippartsdir: I'm thinking maybe in additon to a working unit, maybe a 977K restoration may be fun to do, I'll add your link to the desktop for future ref.
the 977 is about the most awesome demolition machine ever. it is sheer power, i know most of you guys do demo with a track loader, but the sheer power of a 977 driving thru and old house or building is just amazing. you get the feeling of crashing and crunching all around you and can really experience the power of demolition. just love em 977s. it's a real mean wrecking machine.
We used 977's for years dragging piling around jobsites to cranes. they were the most dependable machine on the job for your grunt work. They were not real practicle to be moving welders...exc...as they're general purpose was heavy movements of dirt, demo....I believe there were 977k models and 977L models. Only difference was the top track rollers were frame mounted on one and track mounted on the other...can't remember which was which. Very durable. very strong. Loved to use the hand throttle in tune with the floor pedals for turning. Better have earplugs!!!.
977's are great machines, if a little difficult to operate if you have not previously had experience with foot steering. Each one I ever ran had a different personality. Some were real brutes in breakout force, others were very good loading ten-wheeler dumps, one was an exceptional blue-top machine when backfilling and landscaping around new homes and apartments. All the ones I ever used were open ROPS, which increased the visability a good deal.
new post to a n old thred i just picked up a 69 977k to clear some land because my d6 needs repair all i can say is wow what a power house i cleared 2 acres in no time it needs a little work like the gagues dont work and the left tilt cylinder needs a seal kit but i will be keeping this one.thats for sure
land clearing did you get to knock down trees with the 977? How big were the trees? What else did you push over with the clearing job? Sounds prett awesome. You were impressed.
977k i have a serious back problem right now so i could only stay in the machine for 15 min at a time while on my meds and go real slow so as not to bounce around but once it arrived i could not help myself but to try it the firse thing i did was move a little dirt then i angled the bucket so the teeth would skim just below the surface and headed for the trees the biggest ones were the pines apx 18" or so and some 18" cherrys but for them i had to rase the bucket up levle with the machine and pushed them right over i was also impressed while skimming the ground the stumps just poped right up along with some very large rocks by large i mean you could not put them in a pickup. so yes i am very impressed next time i go up state i will take pictures and maby video as i am scheduled to get shots in my back and i am praying that they work so i can use the machine full bore.
installing a 4way bucket Would anyone here know the steps to setting the 977k up with a 4way bucket and the price range it would cost
land clearing wolf thred 13 was for u and to make it short i never would have bought the old d6 if i had tried the 977k first don't get me wrong the d6 has it's place and has paid for it's self and when i fix her she will do more work but i would have saved more money and bought a newer 977 in better condition if i had known the machine was this good.
Well - don't forget that you haven't run it long enough to look in that fuel tank yet.... 977's drink it, man. You might get some use out of the D6 yet, on the smaller jobs.
977 fuel usage wolf yes i heard they were hard on fuel but i can see why they are hard workers and at the going rate of appx $5000.00 for a cleared and graded acre it will pay for its self in no time plus a small pond is also appx $5000.00 seems to be the going rate for any job around here and i plan on at least a one acre pond as i will be planting an orchard and landscaping trees as a sup income i hope. eta to retirement 6 years and counting god willing if my back gets better.:drinkup if not no retiremnt for me. ointhead
WE had 3 977L's & 2 older 977H model we used for demo work before the excavator's took over. We used them hard, never had any problems out of them.
What kind of demolition did you do with the 977Ls. Do you have any pics or good stories about the demo jobs. Love demo and love to hear more about it. They are great machines.
Sorry don't have any pics 25 yrs ago. we had a 50 ton amer. crane & a 5000lb we used to beats headacke ball we used to beat down the tall building's & a cutting tourch. you can rip a lot of concrete with a 977, good old days,
The hydraulic control valve for a 4 in 1 bucket has three spools, cost would be prohibitive to change over.
eireog68 - check out this auction, deal of the century for any 977 owner. This is NOT your average attachment! Read carefully. http://cgi.ebay.com/Peterson-Demoli...trkparms=65:12|66:2|39:1|72:1205|293:1|294:50
977K aux hydraulics the easiest way is to swop the hyd tank(has valve body inside)with a 3-valve setup.The hyd flow rate is around 80GPM,requires 1.5"hoses betw the pump and valves for full flow.You could intercept the hyd flow and install a valve betw the pump outlet and standard Cat valve and tank,but be careful you can have pressure doubling and surge pressure can fracture pumps and hoses.I've seen some setups with outboard valve bodies,it can be done,but do be aware that the fittings to plumb the 80+gpm main flow are very pricey($100+/each fitting)plus an outboard valve with 1.5"ports are hard to find. The bucket mast arms have hardlines (to run the bucket/clamp/etc) that run down the mast from swivel unions just in front of the control panel.You'll need to add the swivel unions+hardlines as well from the hydraulic tank to the machine as well.I guess you could use rubber hyd hose to go to the bucket but its a pretty tight fit between the tracks,frame and engine compartment when the mast is down.Best of luck with this if you attempt it..easiest way is to get ALL the parts from a 'donor' machine being parted out.My guess is you'll have over $1500 just to do this,plus the bucket.
we currently are running a 977h with the 4in one bucket and a single barrel ripper .......all i have to say ,is for a machine of its size this thing has way to much power ......it can push just about anything and for its weight it can pull through some pretty hard rock .but we use it mainly as a clean up machine when we do road work . here are some pics
great wrecking machine!!! long live cat 977L
I been around several of them, and IMO they are too damn slow. yeah they are big but why truck and track around 24 ton when a 16 ton 953C will do more work in a day. and burn 1/3 the fuel. And as far as the third valve, instead of all that crap why cant a guy just put a flow diverter on say....the tilt lines to run a 4 in 1, but where in the world would a guy find a reasonably priced 4in1 that damn big Pj
Right here, bro..... http://www.machinerytrader.com/list...413&Mdltxt=977&mdlx=Contains&btnSearch=Search
I just purchased my first machine a 977L, worked on it all summer. It is an awesome machine
Kinda the same experiance A few of my buddy's have had with thiers. lol I know what ya ment tho Not too many of us MO folks on here :usa Pj
Yeah, I have had a lot of fun with it, been over every square inch of it, which I needed to familiarize myself with it, painted it and it now looks brand new, runs good, operates good, Im pleased
Any pictures? Love a 977. If I could possibly justify one I would have it. The newer electronic engines just don't sound like that.
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Wow - that's a nice looking machine. Check your attachments tommorow - probably downloaded those pics 500 times each....:drinkup
great looking machine bro. LOTS OF POWER.
any one still using the 977 loaders for demolition work? They are awesome wrecking machines.
the 977 is a pwerhorse of a machine the K is pedal steer and powershift. back in the day they were the cadillac of equipment. I have gotten the opertunity to run one on a few jobs. It think they got 300 horse but not exactly sure. We use ours for everything almost. it pushes like a dozer and loads like a loader and will keep going threw anything you put it threw. (except mud)
Sweet. Do you ever use them for demolition?
for special tool. this old man quit trying to justify any thing any more. d75s loader, 655 backhoe, if it doesnt interfere with my every day life, financial, food or beer. loader use 2-3 times a year, backhoe mite be used once a week for 1 hr. or 2. all of it would be cheaper to pay someone else. but just me and my decisions.
i have ran 4 or 5 '77's doing demo. they are a real popular machine here in chicago, although steadily being replaced by '73's. a 77 with a balderson biter/demo bucket, a wrecking pole, and a clean up beam is a pretty unbeatable set up. it would boggle your mind the power in one of those pigs.
What kind of,stuff did you demo.with the 77 and curious. How you used the wrecking pole. Any pictures? Where was the demo? 2
We always used the 977 for caisson work with 4 in 1 bucket. Made it a all in all around machine. old dirt
Used one in the late 1970s, found them to be a great machine to operate.
did you use is with a demo bucket or what?
Used a standard bucket, worked it in a quarry or loading tippers on road work.
Good machines!
Are you still doing demo? What kind of jobs do you have going? Any good pictures to post of demo or your equipment in action?
977L had 190 hp. they weighed around 50K w/0 ripper. I watched a couple of these tear up an 8" thick parking lot one time while loading it all on dump trailers, and was amazed at how easily they could destroy stuff. I believe they used the D6 transmission/finals? some guys around here replace the bucket with a 12' dozer blades and put on single grouser pads for conservation work. I don't think the soft converter likes a long push duty cycle but they get a lot of work done.
