I've got a couple dozers I'm looking at and was wanting to get some feed back from folks that have had experience with these machines. I am really leaning towards either the John Deere 450-550 G or H model and the other is a case 450c. It will be used for brush and clean up work around our farm so I don't plan to go out and make a living with it. My question (s) is other than normal wear items on any of them what do you guys like and dislike about the two John Deeree models. My understanding is that the H models pretty much have a pump and two hyd. drive motors as opposed to the power shift type transmission of the G Which would you all recommend and why? I really tend to like the hystat because the ease of operation but I've heard the G models are very durable and last a long time and are really good except some say they are hard to work on. Thoughts! Thanks in advance for your input, have a safe and happy Thanksgiving, Trackshoe
keep in mind that a JD 450 is closer to equal to a Case 850 than a Case 450
deere dozers before the g series were built much like a farm tractor with tracks, to get to anything important they had to be split. That being said, from the c's on they were a good little dozer. When the g came along they updated the designs so the trans could slide out the back for service. Another thing to keep in mind with a deere g series is that 90% are direct drive instead of having a torque converter in the loop, only the "TC" models have torque converters. That being said, they are a pushing s.o.b. compared to a simular class dozer with a hydro or torque converter trans. I know several guys that have 550 g lpg's with 10' blades and standard width track pads and the machine handels the 10' just fine, reg. blade is 8'6" btw. Mitch is right, to get to a 550g deere level your at case 850d level, not a 450...
Sounds like the G series may be the way to lean. I have run earlier Komatsu 31 dozers with the direct drive transmission and I know what you mean about being able to push. I was just wondering which do you guys think would hold up longer the G series designed trans. or the Hystat design of the H / J series I've seen both out there for sale with a good many hours on them so you know they will run for a long time but what you don't really know is how many repairs were done during the course of those hours. Please keep the comments comming. Trackshoe
I have owned a 450d, 450g 450h and currently own a 550J LGP and have had excellent results with all of them. The G series is head & shoulders above the earlier models. That being said I have found the hydros ( H models and later ) to be much more productive than the gear models
Thanks NWH,when you say more productive do you mean more manuverable and faster or do they just push harder. what would you all consider too many hour?In other words what would be the point at which you would say " that's too many hours and you're going to start haveing to rebuild too much on it to make it worth your wild"
I've got a 94 450g lgp with 7xxx hours and have no complaints at all. Great all around dozer. Starts any any weather and great on fuel. Can't say much about the h series.
My friend who works with me has a 450G LGP TC that has about 5000 hrs. on it and it has been and still is a very good machine I sold my 450 H LT that had about 4500 hrs because another friend worried me almost to death to by it and it also was a very good machine. Once you run a hydrostat it is hard to go back to a gear drive machine. The 450h and 450G have very similar power but the 550JLGP I now own is much stronger than a 550G
My 550g has 8,250 on it, a friends 550g has 13k something... still runs it daily. With dozers its maintence not hours. I'd like to have been able to get a h or newer machine but finding a machine with a full forestry package inc. winch for less than 40k is hard, and I paid 1/2 that for my g. Maybe in a couple of years we will go up to a 700 with all the toys...
Should get 15 tonne digger, can do everything and more than a dozer.
I can only reply so i am trying to find out what is a jd 450g worth i have an opportunity to buy one for 12k machine sprockets pins etc look in very good cond but i am having trouble finding someone that can tell me what the machine is worth can anyone help?
stumpjumper83 can u tell me how much a jd 450 g dozer is worth approximately?