Does anyone know when Caterpillar quit making dozers with cables to raise and lower the blade and switched to hydraulics?
It is my understanding that cables were still available years after the advent of hydraulics. Kind of like power shift vs direct drive dozers. I could be wrong, but that was told to me years ago by a cat salesman.
That's a good question, I think the 8's and 9's were available with hydraulics in late 50's early 60's. Trashman is correct, cable was still available at the same time
I think it was about the time they quit making the D7E which was 1969ish.
Pretty sure you could get hydraulics on the D9E in 59' 60' and the early 8H's
I found it, knew I read it somewhere
I hear Cat is building the D7E again Don. Later Bob
They are, but it's a tad bit different than the old one.
Todays operators think the cable dozer was a horrible contraption actually they had some +'s if everything was in good shape. No hoses to tear off in the woods, they would go down indefinately if you had long enough cable insted of rodding out, you could detach the dozer and pull a scraper with the same machine if equiped w/ drawbar & rear cable control. Naturally there were -'s also and they out weighed the +'s leading to todays machines but a cable dozer & ccu is not evil if maintained, just don't spill fuel on the brake band , overtighten the clutch, give to much slack in the cable, loose a wedge, overgrease the pressure plate, get a fishook from the cable in your hand, bugger the brake band adjustment bolt with hammer and screwdriver tring to adjust, leave your cable cutter, pinch bar or hammer on the track and run them over or loose them. I did all that stuff that's how I know
I guess the cables would be cheaper to repair than the hydraulics for sure. Here's a video of an old D8 CAT with cables pushing mud. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCw-mW4Xihk&list=UUXKLPELFBDPr9s15VqC-W5w&index=86
The difference can be a bit Shocking if you are working on them. Need special clothes and tools to prevent getting blasted. The reason Hyd was not an overnight sucess was slow reaction time. There was a lot of resistance to it untill the quick drop valves where developed. Later Bob
Yeah, let's see the cable blade on it. I thought you could still get cable up until about 1970? I know that you could get hydraulics back in '48 on some dozers. The OP asked when they stopped offering cable.
I think you could get a cable blade into the 70s, maybe even late 70s? Was not a popular option by that time, but still an option. I also thought that pony moters were still an option into the mid 70s. I have a 1981 Fiat Allis HD16B, and the book I have for it is slightly older (still shows Allis Chalmers on the decals), but it shows cable blades as an option.
Many operators resisted the New Hyd blades. Cable was a lot faster to respond. Starting engines could be an easy fit on any D342 or D353 while the D8K and D9H where in production. I saw a fleet of D7E's The real ones not the new battery operated D7Electric ones that where built for a pipeline project in Alaska that fell through. They had starting engines and glow plugs. The small Buzz Bomb starting engine on the D330 and D333 wouldn't fit the C versions I think. Later Bob
So the answer to the original question is?? I don't think there is one unless you know when the last cable control or hardnose sheave block was produced. My guess would be hydraulics held the greater percentage of new dozers by the early 60's
What we have here Pete is a Kernumderin all wrapped up in an Inigma Just before the Snowmobile crashes through the thin River Ice. Later Bob
Yeah that happens LOL, shows what a good question it was.
D8 Steering Stuck on year 1950 any Advice how we can get Steering Working ?? THANK Y A Good Guy PAUL (75) has a D8 year 1950 Motor Runs Good, the Steering Cables are STUCK any advice how I can Help him get the STEERING Working again???