My D39P-1 is sitting at a construction company's yard in Hickory, NC. I contracted with a freight brokerage company last Friday to make the shipping arrangements from there to here (central Texas) and they had it listed as a full load. No takers, so now it's a partial load (which I thought was the plan from the beginning.) The broker is confident they will get it dispatched in a day or two. I need my dozer!
The excitement makes us impatient. Once you get it and think back it'll seem like a flash.
Congrats on the purchase John. I sent you a private message with some contacts I recommend.
PM sent - thanks very much for the recommendations!
Makes two of us,i'm still waiting on my lowboy trailer !!!!!!!!!:usa
Hey if your in a hurry and want if fast well turn loose of the cash.
Ironplanet Item # 185827 I bought a Lowboy from Ironplanet on 11/06/08 and as of today 3/2/10 still no title. Thats around 16 months later if your keeping score.
What's the scoop on that? Details please.
Why are you waiting.Some States you have so many days to get the title.Then you can file on them.We had a guy put in jail because of that.He sure found that title quick.
Ironplanet Item #185827 I really can't talk about it because as of 3/1/10 this turned into a legal issue. I will say that this was first brought to their attention around 1/30/09 or 2/2/09 with a request for my title or my money back. If anyone has any questions on this issue or is thinking about doing business with them call Ironplanet at 888-433-5426 and ask to see proof of delivery on the title for Item #185827 that Rodney O'Brien purchased on 11/06/08. I'm sure they would be Happy to talk to you about it.
Where is the problem - IronPlanet has the title and won't pass it along, or they never received it from the seller? Who exactly is responsible for delivering a good title? What do IronPlanet's terms and conditions (their fine print) specify?
John didn't mean to sidetrack your thread.If your looking for a another place for freight quote here is one. www.freightquote.com They have been on top of things from day one along with another.Which are almost worded a like,so don't get them comfused! www.fastfreightquote.com which by the way was giving to me by a member on here.Thanks! both have been good to deal with. I think freightquote.com is who i will end of with,just finalizing things.Hopefully trailer will be picked up tomorrow,unless i run into a snag:beatsme Rod they had title for the trailer in hand and is being sent. It has been a learning experience,but i'm older so anytime you get out of your "Comfort Zone" it can get a little stressful.Will let you know how things went.:usa
Sure - no problem on thread drift... Money has already changed hands between between myself and the freight broker, so I'll just hang in there. I've been around a few years and don't get unpleasantly surprised very often unlike when I was a youngster, but it still happens once in a great while. I have learned to always do a good job of due diligence when spending money, but sometimes you can't anticipate everything. A long time ago I won a judgment in small claims court about a totally botched repair job on a car we had (engine had a bad cam) for $1200. Shortly after the judgment, the sole proprietor declared bankruptcy and I was left holding the bag. $1200 was a fortune to us and it really put a crimp in our finances since we had to pay another shop to do the repair all over again. Things happen. Best of luck in getting your situation squared away.
Ironplanet Item #185827 Well I I'm really not a Rookie when it comes to dealing with Ironplanet. I first registered around 05 or 06. I think I done 10 transactions with them in 08 and 09 including buying two trackhoes and four dozers. Notice nothing in 2010.:ban We got a sayin down here in Arkansas: You can only Cram so much SXXt in a Quart Jar. Well mines full when it comes to Ironplanet. BTW, Sorry to sidetrack your thread
Shipping update Talked to the broker this morning - they have a guy lined up with a step trailer to load today but can't get an RGN or trailer with ramps. The seller said they have a retaining wall or something like that that can be used to load the dozer. Broker asked me if I could possibly find a way to unload it - pile of dirt available or something like that. Nope, but since I need to redo my road anyway (a dozer project), I ordered three tandem axle truck loads of 3/4" road base that I can use to build a ramp to the deck (about 3' high.) So, we'll see if it actually gets loaded today...
Not loaded today - they're yanking my chain Unbelievable. I told the "International Sales Director" of this freight brokerage company right off the bat what the load was, no ramp available either end, bla, bla. No problem - we'll get you loaded in a couple of days. They listed it as a full load. No takers. Changed to a partial load. Then it was oversize (no, it's 8'6" wide), changed to not oversize. "We're getting a lot of calls on this load..." Bla, bla, bla... Then it was going to be loaded today. No the guy changed his mind. Bla, bla bla. We left messages with several truckers.. Bla, bla, bla.. Told the underling if it wasn't on a trailer headed to Texas tomorrow, I want my money back. I then called the "International Sales Director" and told him I wasn't a happy camper and he suggested they should wire my money back tomorrow. Yup - THAT'S A GOOD PLAN . Send my money back. I'm done with you people. How in the heck do you stay in business?? Called another business which was so kindly referred/provided in a PM from a HE forum member. Okay - we'll get you loaded Monday - will that work? Heck yes!! Once the dust settles and I get my money back, I can identify the white hats and the black hats in this scenario. Hopefully my trauma will be of benefit to others. --John
Was this an Ironplanet "Partner"?
You guessed it!
Is that Dustin?
No - not Dustin. Thank goodness I'm dealing directly with the trucking firm and not a middleman.
John, sorry to read about your run around, puts a bit of a downer on the otherwise exciting event of getting a new toy. I sure hope its sorted for you sooner rather then later. Ive recieved some excellent advice on transport and shipping on my thread to which im very grateful to those blokes who posted it. From what ive seen of this excellent site there will be always someone come along to help out. After following your thread i think a lot of us will be just as excitted as you when your dozer turns up :laugh Cheers Dave
Thanks Dave. I think we're in good shape about getting the dozer picked up. I really have my concerns about trying to get my money back from the broker. Supposedly they wired the money to my account this afternoon (this was supposedly a couple of hours ago) - I have a terrible feeling they are yanking my chain yet again. If I don't have my money back by Monday, I will start making as much noise as possible. Cheers mate.
Though I've never had an issue like this before, from my past experiences with IronPlanet, they are a honest company that really cares about their reputation. I have a feeling if you let your IronPlanet rep know the troubles you're having, they'll get to the bottom of it.
Even if the money isn't in your account, your bank can track it on the fed wire. Just ask they will know how to do it. Around here if a wire goes out before 2 P.M. it will land the same day. Good Luck.
This is just too weird... They apparently were not truthful again to me saying they wired the money this afternoon. I checked my account several times today and it 'ain't' there. I gave the broker an email ultimatum of end of business Monday to have the money wired back to me. They are good about reading their email, so I am confident the message got through. Also discovered freight brokers have to be licensed and bonded - the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is the licensing authority. If I don't get my money back, Iron Planet will get a paper letter describing the situation, the FMCSA will get a complaint, and I will call the Minnesota Department of Commerce (ah-ha - a clue as to the broker's identity.) If I have to engage a Minnesota attorney for $1,000 to get my $2500 back, that's what I'll do.
You know I wouldnt mind hauling that machine for you if you keep having such a hard time....How much does it weigh?
If that's not enough... It's a Komatsu D39-P1 - about 19,000 pounds, and thank you for such a kind offer! I'll spill the beans as to who is picking up the load - Owen-Kennedy is lined up to haul the dozer (at least that's what I think :tong ) - they are picking it up Monday. If all this wasn't enough, we had Schwab Bank overnight us a cashier's check to give the Owen-Kennedy driver a check when he delivers the dozer Wednesday. UPS delivered the envelope after lunch and when I opened the envelope and looked at the check, it wasn't ours! :Banghead Somebody at Schwab mixed up our check with somebody else's check! There goes another 30 minutes on the phone with Schwab. Another cashier's check will be delivered Monday.
I have all ways hated to deal with brokers.A lot of them are CROOKS.One will post your load then soon three more has the same load posted but cheaper hoping some fool will haul it for nothing.Thats more money in their pocket because you still pay the same.
Hey the penny has just dropped :idea Your first qoute was from a freight forwarder not a transport co right? Dont know if there are many dishonest people in the States but we have a few too many here Downunder :lmao A fav with forwarders here is to qoute you 2500k plus a % for them to arrange the carrier but then put the load out there to transport co's for 2k and pocket another 500 bucks on top of their % most transport co's wont touch it as it is then too cheap a rate, BUT if they wait long enough some poor bugger who is going broke will take the load, but it could take a while for him too come along, imagine people being that dishonest :lmao
Ha 2stick you beat me to it you posted while i was writing ah well ive always been a tad slow of the mark :lmao
Right! Those kind of people are unfortunately everywhere - I suspect there is a mathematical constant for the ratio of crooks/bums to decent and honest folk that honors no national boundaries.
Next time, ask around and find someone who can truck it for you. Thats what i did. Get the neighbour to do it. He brought two machines all the way across the continent and then waited 30 days to get paid, plus he did it very reasonable. "Education is expensive no matter how you get it"
Hey I know about being slow but I have a brain fart some times.
I think the ratio is slightly hight in a few areas mainly the district of columbia...
True :falldownlaugh
You must be referring to all of the elected government officials that reside in the District of Columbia, right, stumpjumper. That's who you mean, right?
Getting back on track here... Just got a call from the Owen-Kennedy dispatcher - the dozer is scheduled to be picked up tomorrow about 10 am and will be the third load on the trailer. Two loads for Houston, and then me - yipee!
Great news!!!! Post some pics when you get it..
You betcha! You bet that is :woohoo Might even get the wife (or me if the driver can unload it) to shoot some video. Still pix for sure. Next hurdle is to get my money wired back from the original freight broker. Gave then a deadline of tomorrow end-of-business. They have not delivered on any commitment to date, so I have my doubts.
Gettin closer :lmao, if the first forwarder was an IronPlanet partner i would sure let them know of the hassle's you've had. If you dont get your money back maybe a little prompting from IronPlanet may help.
that just stinks. hope you get your toy soon so you can enjoy it. maybe have the drive stop by the other brokers place and have him drive it up to the front door and see if that gets their attention. maybe they will pay the driver for you.
Where in Texas are you located?
We are about 75 miles NW of San Antonio, 30 miles west of Fredericksburg, 25 miles NW of Kerrville out here in the Hill Country. Closest little town is called Harper. Should have the new toy Wednesday afternoon. I have three loads of 3/4" road base being delivered tomorrow so A) I can build a ramp to the step-deck for unloading the dozer and B) I'll have some stuff to push around and play with
Yea! The dozer is loaded (and exactly when the Owen-Kennedy dispatcher said it would be loaded.) Feelin' good about this. The original freight broker is still trying to play games with the return of my money - just got an email from him saying "you should have had your money back Friday..." Yeah - right. He must think I'm incredibly naive, stupid or maybe both. Maybe he thinks if he repeats something often enough, it will become true or believable. Like we say in Texas, "this isn't my first rodeo..." John
They screwed with the wrong person Didn't get my money back from Island Freight (or IFB Freight) by end of business today. Iron Planet is involved. Tomorrow and the next few days lots more people will become involved. It could have been so easy for them and me. Their choice.
you go boy.............i hate businesses that work that way..
bastards eh?
Just in case you need it. http://minnesota.bbb.org/
A few days ago I discovered that freight brokers have to be licensed and bonded through Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. I'll be calling them first thing today. Rochester BBB is on the list as well as the Minnesota Department of Commerce and of course a paper complaint letter to Iron Planet. If necessary, I will engage a Rochester attorney. Iron Planet has gone to bat for me with Island Freight and I believe they will ultimately have the necessary leverage with Island Freight so they will return my money. Through this shipping nightmare, I still feel really, really good about doing business with Iron Planet.
Hooray!! I have my money Island Freight decided to give my money back - apparently it was wired yesterday afternoon :drinkup. IFB kept insisting it was wired Friday but they couldn't produce a Fed wire number yesterday so I could track the transfer (supposedly due to the financial person being off work yesterday - how convenient.) I would be remiss if I didn't mention the very slim possibility the IFB broker was actually telling me the truth and they did try to wire the money Friday. I find this highly improbable though. This is the same guy that told me last Friday in an email (after we both agreed the day before to sever the relationship) that my dozer had been picked up and I'll have it Wednesday. A phone call to the seller confirmed nobody was there to load and it hadn't been loaded. Told the lady not to let anybody load it except Owen-Kennedy. So the broker was having some trouble distinguishing reality from fantasy which is why I can't believe anything IFB says. The view from 50,000 feet - things happen sometimes no matter how careful you are. Once in a while things get ugly where money is involved, but persistence has produced good results in this situation. I think Iron Planet would have continued to work with IFB on my behalf to get my money back. Now.. fingers crossed the dozer will be everything I think it is when I see it and hear it run.
Hahaha, yeah. I've got my fingers crossed too.
Problems with Ironplanet You will probably have to file with the BBB where the trucking company is located. Also I wouldn't get real excited about that bond. I think it is only $10,000.00 for brokers which goes pretty fast moving equipment. The next time you have Ironplanet on the phone ask them what percentage of your payment for trucking they was going to get? If they are going to be making money off of these "Transportation Partners" they should also chin it up when there is a situtation like yours IMO. I have also never been one to pat someone on the back for solving a problem that they created.
Sounds good. You replied while I was typing
So....Is it there yet? Heck, after your experience, my fingers are crossed too!
Just talked to the dispatcher and the truck is still in Houston - the receiving party didn't have a forklift big enough to offload the equipment (whatever the load is.) Should have it offloaded in an hour or two. We're about 300 miles from downtown Houston, and it's Interstate all the way. Traffic is always bad in San Antonio, so I hope he doesn't hit SA at rush hour. We might be unloading at dusk the way things are going. If it is too dark, the driver might want to wait until tomorrow morning - we'll just wait and see. I need some light since I have to build a ramp to his deck.
300 miles to go and counting...
Yeah - the longest 300 miles - at least it's in Texas. Found out that Scott the dispatcher had a chance to operate my dozer while the trailer was in their yard before heading west - they had to reposition it to get the axle weights within the limit (20k pounds per axle max I think.) I asked him what he thought and he was very positive about it - he wanted to know what I paid. On the off-chance the seller (it is a construction company) had a shop manual and/or operator manual they would be willing to locate and send with the dozer, I asked the shipping contact lady about the possibility. She said she would ask the mechanic - thought nothing would ever come of that, but surprise, surprise - the manual was sent with the machine! I think she said it was the shop manual. Whoo-hoo! I have my little Kubota loader ready with a bucket full of base...
Just got off the phone with the driver - he didn't get away from Houston until 5 PM. I think he said he was 100 miles out from Houston. He exclaimed, "I'm whooped.." I can imagine. Told him about a picnic area a few miles east of our exit where he can probably spend the night or I invited him to spent the night here at the ranch - we have plenty of parking space. He'll spend the night somewhere along I-10 I suspect. He said he has had to move the dozer back and forth on the trailer - I suggested he could give me lessons. Guess who will unload the dozer? One more day to wait...
We want to see plenty of pics.
Ya. Picks and a video would be cool also.
Yup - the Sony cam is all charged up...
Yea - it's here! Danny the Owen-Kennedy driver spent the night at a nearby picnic area off I-10 and he was at our front gate at 8 AM :scool Took about an hour or so to move a bunch of base to build a ramp - my Kubota loader only has a 1/4 yard bucket so I was a busy operator. Dozer looks good, of course it was repainted so I'm sure it was no beauty queen before the paint job. The UC looks really, really good - just like the Iron Planet pictures. Danny said it started up right away when he picked it up in North Carolina in cold weather. Took a video of the off-loading and the wife took a bunch of still pix. I'll get them posted when time permits. I also have the parts manual and the operator manual - what a deal!
Cool!!!! Keep the pics and video coming.
Congratulation on finally getting your new toy home. I've been following this discussion since it began. hope you have fun on her, be safe and takes lots and lots of pictures and vids for all of your friends here on HEF.
Pictures - ya, we got pictures.. We needed to make a Costco run (an hour away in San Antonio) after the dozer was unloaded, but I couldn't help myself - had to play for a couple of minutes on the new toy before we left. Start 'er up, throttle a little above idle, park brake off, push the joystick forward - wow - it moved forward :cool2. Joystick pulled back, it went in reverse (at a nice slow speed for the new guy.) Things are going well. Let's get brave and try to make a left turn and then a right turn - okay so far. Then somehow I got it oscillating forward and backward so violently I was hitting my head on the large rear-view mirror under the roof ointlaugh. After I managed to do something that stopped the head-bashing, I sort of had a good laugh at my first five minutes of dozer school - could we say the school of hard knocks? Sorry - couldn't resist. I was driving back from SA a little above the speed limit - anxious to get back to the new love in my life so I could play. Unloaded the car then headed for the dozer. (Oh - Danny lost the key for the dozer - it is somewhere in his tractor cab - so we went first to the Komatsu dealer to get a couple of new keys) It all pretty much came together after a few minutes of operating the dozer - I was proficient enough to where I wasn't going to beat my head against the mirror any longer. Got brave enough for full throttle and third gear - wow - we're smoking and making beautiful clacking track noises. This is way cool. I headed for a fence line that was a bit rocky and hard to drive over, so might as well do some practice dozing and try to smooth it up a bit. Did fairly good at keeping the blade at the right height and since I was in rocks, didn't angle the blade (which I read was hard on a 6-way blade.) With my loader I was used to always looking at the bucket position, so this came naturally in the dozer. Going forward and turning right or left wasn't a real big deal, backing up and actually going in the direction I intended was a bit more difficult. Finally I realized whichever direction (left or right) the joystick was pulled in reverse was the direction the rear-end of the dozer would track. Later I was trying to finesse turns - making a slow (as in one track isn't locked) turn with both tracks moving. Then I was paying very close attention to where the blade was positioned. Apparently since this isn't a hydrostatic drive, you go whatever speed based on your gear (1-2-3) and engine RPM. I realized pushing the joystick forward meant you went forward and when you pulled it back far enough, you were in neutral. I think having an infinitely variable forward speed would be nice, but think (based on my limited experience) the three speeds of my D39 will be just fine. My little Kubota is an 8 speed (shuttle shift) and I operate it 95% of the time in 3rd and 4th gear when working. It is going to take many hours of seat time before I can really be productive and get predictable results with the dozer, but fortunately my boss is me. I will learn. I remember it took me maybe 50 hours or so of seat time before I was doing pretty good with my loader, and another 100 hours before I felt pretty competent with its operation. Many thanks to everybody on HE for your advice and encouragement. Thanks go to Iron Planet for an easy and no surprise buying process and for going to bat for me with the freight broker. As far as I can tell after looking over the D39 carefully, it is exactly what I expected based on the inspection report and pictures. I would have no problem bidding on another IP auction. Enjoy the pictures! It was a really fun day.
Couple of more pix The rest of the pix...
Thats a great looking dozer. Now its time to see about knocking some of that fresh paint off of the blade. Those are some great details of your first day with her.
Congratulations John ! Very nice looking crawler and a very interesting story to go with it. Can I ask the hours and price you gave for her. Have fun and be safe. Wear your seatbelt . Anyone that even put hours on a crawler will tell you it can and will chuck you straight from the seat when your least ready for it......... Semper Fi :usa
Nice machine John. That's one hell of a ramp too!
Hi John: Congratulations on the new Dozer. She looks mighty fine. Operate safe and have a blast…
Congrats on the purchase. Reading your account of your first day brought a smile to my face. I think most boys grow up seeing heavy equipment wishing they could drive it. Few of us do, so enjoy.
Thanks guys for the comments!! My dozer is a 1999 D39P-1 with about 1220 hours or so (working hour meter.) Starting bid price on Iron Planet was $8,000. My cap bid was going to be 16,500 but that didn't work out so I was last bidder at $20k. I felt really good about going to 20k - fortunately that's where it ended. Been working on the seat belt - I now have the lap belt tang receiver working fairly well about 80% of the time. I'll keep exercising it and it should loosen up and work okay.
Glad you got the D39 home John ,and Sassy looks happy as well .Best of luck and keep us posted on it.
John, spray a bunch of WD-40 into that seat belt receiver, and start using it; it'll get better. Congratulations................... Ahhhhhhhh... Victory, at last!!!!!!!!!!! Good for you. You've got a nice machine for 20K.
I remember when i was about 10 when i got my first dozer, an IH 500E. Its funny because i also had a corgi! Those are great dogs. Nice machine too. Good luck and congratulations.
Congrats on finally getting it home. That's a fine looking piece of iron. Enjoy. :beerchug
Jason - yeah - sprayed some silicon in the belt receiver. It'll loosen up. In reading the operator manual I discovered a slow & gradual turn with both tracks moving is hard on the steering clutches and it is discouraged. I will make hard steering changes from now on. I think there is a problem with the right brake/deceleration pedal - it does throttle back the engine, but there is no braking action. The left pedal is brake only, and it does work. To do list: -Check all fluid levels -I guess I should change some (all?) fluids due to the age of the machine and a lack of maintenance records -Operator seat and arm rests need to be recovered -Replace boots on joystick and blade controls -Cut down track pads to 18" from 24" -Fit with a ripper (maybe just a pipe dream, but the Komatsu dealer thought there were some available in the state) -Get the Komatsu service guy scheduled to look the unit over when they are in the area (they get $2.75 a mile and $95 an hour) - our dealer is in Austin, about 120 miles away! They have a customer in the general area, so I'll wait until they are out here
Glad to hear the machine was as expected. Every machine I have purchased has been that way. BTW, I have never had an issue with an IP Inspector. If anything the machine was better than reported.:notworthy I wouldn't get in a big hurry about cutting those tracks down. It's not going to help with your finals and you may find the pluses are more than the minuses. Also, if your grousers have a lot of height to them your pads are a lot harder to bend. I try to run LGP dozers and run in a lot of rock at different times. Just go slow and try to pick your way through. If it is solid glade rock we stay out of it because your not going to have anything when you get done anyway. The reason I like LGPs is in the Hills where the rocks are you can work almost 365 days a year here. That's usually when I do most of my own work, when it's to wet to do anything else. I know wet weather isn't something your going to be worried about though.:Banghead
Nice machine John. hope you get to play with it soon.
Many thanks again for the kind thoughts, gents.. roddyo - no hurry to torch the pads down to 18" and like you say I might find the 24" pads work just fine for our soil/terrain. I'll know more when I get to play with the dozer in my borrow pit - tank area. There is a clay-caliche-limestone mix at different depths, so it will be fun to play in some harder stuff. Running along my fence line with a semi-wet clay/topsoil worked out quite well but the nice yellow blade isn't all yellow any longer. The soil is a sticky gooey mess when wet/damp and the track pads have that stuff all over them. Actually we have had the coldest and wettest fall/winter in years :thumbsup - the wildflowers are supposed to be the best in a long time.
Hmmmmm, I wouldn't cut the track pads. I've never seen the need to do that, but I understand you're working in rock and that's a different animal. But, I do know that just about all Komatsu dozers suffer from decelerator/ brake bearing pedal failure. Not too pricey to fix. If memory serves me correct, there were some small needle bearings and the like that served as the fulcrum for the foot pedals. If not fixed, it'll give you headache. Parts available from your Komatsu dealer only. Pretty routine; they all give problems, especially on open ROPS units.
Thanks Jason - I have the parts book for my machine, so maybe I can figure out what might be the problem. I'll give the Komatsu guy a call this morning and run it by him and get on the list to have a service call. I would like to have Komatsu service look the machine over in any case and let me know what they think it needs. I'm a little surprised the Iron Planet inspector didn't pick up on the inop right brake, but no biggie.
Very Nice Dozer, John. And glade u got her home.
John, I have a 2000 D41P that I bought 4 years ago and have been very happy with it. This is my second dozer since I was going to wear out the Case 450B trying to clear my property. I sold it and bought the D41 and have been very happy with it and has done a very good job clearing. I too was a novice but after a few hours operating it you will get a lot more comfortable with it. Enjoy the dozer but be careful!
nice dozer man, It looks alot better than my first machine. Glad your learning the art of the blade, be patient and it will come to you.
Yea - an hour of seat time today After finishing up a necessary project at 4PM I was anxious to get back in the dozer seat. Took it out to a very rocky section of the fence line and went to work. The ground is still a little wet and after I started working, the soil (sticky clay) stuck to the pads to where it looked like they were smooth and black. Guess having the wide pads was a good thing today. My D39 has no problem pushing up the buried rocks we have around here (golf ball to the size of a 32" CRT TV.) The moist ground is probably making it an easier job, so I need to work the fence line before the ground completely dries out. I discovered the right pedal brake does work - it might need to be adjusted - no brake action until the pedal is almost all the way depressed, but that's very good news. I retract my comment about the Iron Planet inspector not picking up this 'problem.' They did a great job. Working both joysticks I discovered is a little like rubbing your tummy and patting your head at the same time - takes some time to get the hang of it. I'm getting better, but I still need to consciously think about every joystick action. After more hours, it will all come naturally without a lot of conscious brain power involved. Working the dozer is easier (well not easier right now, but it will be) than my Kubota tractor/loader - two hands do everything on the dozer - on the Kubota I have a hand on the wheel, an hand on the loader control, then a hand on the shuttle shift, a hand on the gear selector, a hand on the box blade, etc...
Enjoy your dozer. The only differance in a kid and a man, is the price of the toys. At 69 I still get excited as a kid in a candy store when I get a new piece of equipt. My wife says I am just reliving and enjoying the toys I didnt get when I was a kid.