This is my first post here. I'm interested in buying a dozer for misc work around my property. We're planning to build a few houses here over the next 5-6 years and I think it would be good to get a dozer for some of the site prep work. So not intending it to be a full time runner. I used to have an old Case 450 that I sold. I'm looking for something in that class of machine. At the moment I have my eyes on a 1995 Komatsu D31E-20 that I found for sale. I plan to go look at it Monday. Like most everyone in my shoes I guess I hope to find a machine that isn't a money/time pit. This machine I'm considering has 5903 hours on it. The undercarriage looks pretty good. The grousers appear to be worn to about half but the sprockets look good and from the photo he posted the chains look good. I've been reading all I can find on these machines. Looks like this machine has a planetary transmission. One thing that probably worries me the most is getting a machine with a bad transmission. From what I read the engine is a cousin of the Cummins 4BT. There's no history with the machine. It's at a small equipment dealer. He's asking $21,500 for it. I think that's a little high but the machine really looks clean so maybe not. I did find where he bought the machine at a Richie Bros auction recently for $15,000. Ironically I was bidding on some stuff at this same auction but wasn't looking for a dozer at the time so didn't bid on this. This sticks in my craw a little but as I look around I don't see anything better for the price. Anyway, this is more hours that I'd like but my budget is about $20k and this from a distance looks about as good as I've seen. The owner says I can come give it a going over including pushing with it some. I know there's no real knowing what little problems it might have until I own it and use it but I just thought I'd post here to see what others thought about it.
This will be the best way to tell without paying for oil samples and a professional "going over"
I’ve got one, it’s a ‘92, handy little dozer but some of them have steering issues. obviously drive it around and check steering in forward and reverse in all gears. Check blade response , mine is quite slow which makes grading difficult. I only use mine lightly around the farm, no commercial work but I haven’t had any problems with it Other than steering left is weak.
A little premature but i found shop and operating manuals ( downloaded) for it and looked them over. It looks like steering clutches and brake band replacement isn’t a horrible job on these. I suppise getting linkages adjusted is probably tricky. My biggest fear is having transmission issues. I’m not really planning any production work with it, kind of a farm dozer for me too so not super concerned about speed. One question, i understand these don’t have a torque converter. So that means when they’re in gear they’re going and won’t stop until taken out of gear, tracks slip, or engine stalls. Correct? Probably just make sure it’ll either stall the engine or spin the tracks in 1st and 2nd? I guess typically you wouldn’t be pushing much in 3rd? Hoping to go check it out tomorrow.
Well i bought it. Hope i didn’t screw up. It seems to run good, pushes in first gear till the tracks spin, pushes good in 2nd, trams good in 3rd, turns sharply, brakes work well, blade’s tight. I expected it to have a 4 cylinder engine with turbo but it has a naturally aspirated straight six.
I saw the ad, looks like a nice dozer, you’ve got a different engine than I do, I definitely have a 4 cylinder, so you might have a different trans as well, mine does not have a TC. if you are gonna be working in those W Va woods I’d recommend building yourself a set of screens, I did and wouldn’t go in the woods without them.
Yes I was thinking that (on the screens) and sweeps too. I think it's the same transmission. No torque converter on this one either. I was surprised to see the straight 6. Mine hase the 6d95L-1 engine. Something I saw last night poking around on the net, maybe a post here, can't remember, it seems that they changed from the 4 to the 6 which seems odd. Whatever, I sort-of like the straight 6 with no turbo.
Edit to post 7 above... Looking at the repair manual now, the 4 cyl with turbo (s4d102-1 engine) came with serial number 42714 (d31E-20) Prior serial numbers had the 6 cyl naturally aspirated engine (6d95L-1)