What a great forum we've got here! So I thought I'd share some of my experiences. This was my favourite machine when I was working at a mineral sands mine north of Perth, Western Australia. I've noticed very little mention of D series scrapers in the other threads here. Anyone else used one?
I both operated and maintained or repaired 637D's starting with first production. Coming off a large fleet of 637C's, I was not impressed nor was the company owner. We found that the D models were very slow and clumsy getting out of the cut and you had to be careful in the fill as the engines were just so slow coming back up to speed. Once on the haulroad the D's scooted right along. We had a lot of engine trouble with the early D's 3408's. In later years, I've seen a lot of D models converted into water wagons, and they were still slow and clumsy.
Seen a few 637D auger machines in Arizona back in the late eighties. Never got to run one:beatsme I believe the D models had the 7 speed rock truck trans in them. Have to say, Cat made quite a few 637D models. Do not know how many were with the auger?
Ah damn! I had a nice big reply but lost it! Firstly, 8 speed box like the rest. Can't see how the truck box would fit up, totally different configuration. The contractor I worked for did all the earthmoving at this mine. It had its own digger's and haul trucks for the main over burden removal. But it hired all the scrapers from another company. That company was buying pretty much any D model they could get their hands on. One machine came from Saudi Arabia and had french labels on it! They'd get them going and send them to our mine because we were closest to Perth. Nothing like putting them to work to find all the issues. So it was a pretty varied looking fleet of mostly 633's, a couple of 639's and this 637. All self loading notice. We did topsoil strip/stockpiling, and later rehabilitation. But the main job was bulk hauling from an open pit, up a ramp and dump into a big hopper we drove over. 24/7, rain, hail or shine. That auger was probably the youngest scraper there and had been looked after pretty well. Everything worked well. The engines had been tweaked too. It could get up the ramp with the rear engine only faster than some of the 633's. And could load faster than the 639's which can only load as fast as the elevator could lift the dirt. In fact it was the only machine there that could self load in 2nd gear. In the photo I had a cruisey solo job hauling that overburden sand to an area that was being rehabilitated, just before topsoil went on to it. Yeah, sure was easy digging. Neat huh? In another job I used a 657E. Nice. And after that I was on a 637E. It didn't seem as good as the D. But then again, maybe it was after I'd been on the '57.
I worked for Midland Brick afew years ago, when Boral lost the contract at Cooljarloo we accually puchesed two 637D augers from there, might well have been this machine!
That would be pretty likely.
I'll gety some pic's of them, one got a rebuild and 180k spend on it even a paint job, the other one got the tyres pumped up and sent to work and it shifted more dirt than the "rebuilt" one until the rear engine died only drama was the place who rebuilt the "good" one got the CAT yellow abit to yellow and earn the nickname "Daisy"
Daisy, and her first job since the rebuild starting a new claypit her ugly sister, yet to be given a birthday but still pulling dirt.. sometimes