Manuals are THE most important tool you can buy for your equipment, and yet people balk at spending a few bucks at the price of a good manual. I'm the first to admit, I did, but I learned especially on Caterpillar manuals are a tool as much as the 9/16 open end. Compared to manuals how much have you spent on those shiny winches? So might I suggest the first tools you buy for your equipment is a good set of manuals. Important manuals to start with are the OEM Maintenance and Operation Manual, Service Manual and Parts Catalog these will get you started. As questions arise other more specific manuals become important like hydraulics or fuel injection, Manuals are the life's blood of Caterpillar or any equipment for that fact. The thing about manuals they can be found anywhere in the world. I bought some out of Australasia and Europe, I've also bought some from coast to coast across America. Finding the right manual or that one off rare manual for the 1957, 955C is only half the problem, the other half is getting the manual in a respectable amount of time. When one lives at the penumbra of civilization (AKA Alaska) receiving a manual can be a daunting task in itself. Manuals have been coming for several months now and some will take as long as April 10 th . I've run into the problem of the sender thinking AK. means Arkansas or Arizona???, so back around the world it goes into some dark recesses of oblivion. How can that happen, don't we have Zip codes? I could not tell you because I don't understand it myself but I have lived with it all my life. A must have source of information for any early 933, 955 Traxcavator. The hardest one to find and the most useful is Service Information Form #3225. as per Old Magnet Caterpillar Service Magazine Articles 1932-1950 Manual, hard to find Yet another snow day, today.
I always say manuals are the cheapest part you will ever buy. The ACMOC club has come into a huge stock of hundreds of used manuals for both old and newer Cat equipment that will be available soon at very fair prices. Check the bulletin board for the full list as the cataloging is complete and being posted soon. Free delivery to Brooks if you are going. Otherwise actual postal costs for shipping.
The manuals I got are starting to show up, I'm happy and busy reading. Usually when I read a book I get a page or two in and I find myself waking up. Open a manual and I am engulfed for hours on end. Don't know if I'll remember any of it tomorrow, however, if that is the case it will be just as good as it was today. Funniest thing about the manual I revived from Australia. I started reading it and I could hardly understand anything it was saying at first; It had a thick Australian accent, "Well mate, so ya popped a bubble did'ya?"