Hey guys, I am looking at buying a 2000 Cat D6R XL VPAT machine. The serial tag on the blade says it was made by Bateman Mfg out of Canada. Is this an aftermarket moldboard/assembly or did Caterpillar deliver new machines with Bateman dozers?? It looks like a quality blade but I don't know if it will pass muster. The owner thinks the blade could be original to the machine since it was built in 1999 and has a "Cat Number" 156-4546... any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks!
Why not just give Bateman a call? they are still in business: http://www.batemanmanufacturing.com/contact/index.html
Cat often outsources components or assemblies, not sure about this particular blade. That part number is good and in the parts book though, so.... All the elevating scrapers we had, the can had a "Johnson Manufacturing" serial plate on them for instance, Mother CAT just built the tractor section.
I know the early VPAT blades for the D-6R had troubles. They have the angle cylinders mounted wrong, and they end up with too much leverage against them so the cylinders, as well as the center pivot ball and socket take a beating. You can identify these as the lift cylinders point straight up and down like a standard SU blade machine. The later ones were updated with the angle cylinders mounted straight forward and back, resulting in the lower lift cylinder mount moving towards the center a bit. These machines have a distinctive angle on the lift cylinders. They are the more desireable ones to have if you are contemplating anything more than light duty work.