Looking for advice on replacing bottom roller on my dozer. Done lots of work on it just never replaced lower rollers. My dozer does have rock gaurds on. I don't have shop,just be doing it outside in the yard,ya know shade tree style,LOL!!!!
Ok, funny you ask, cause last year on my Cat exc. real bad, real bad. You got to always have a plan. So I unloose track adjusters Hydraulic or manual colapse tracks, (either ex or dozer dont matter) then backed machine up on blocks, both sides, not too much, (secure machine brakes or whatever) lower blade, or boom, raise front and block machine. Now tracks are hanging way down. Usually 8 bolts on rollers that never come off. Forget weasle ****, need torch warm up roller ears, if lucky one or two will come out. If not stop dont snap it, now I burn the heads off the bolts, cleanly, then drop roller, gotta wack it. This leaves a stud which we deal with later, with heat and lots of it. Dont know about yours but Cats are threaded into the main frame. by the way rock gaurds can stay and this also done in the yard. Guess Im lucky but have lathes and such so I took the thing apart and turned bushings and drilled tapped them for grease fittings. Only one I got was kind of thin on the flange , so 1/2" square stock I welded around it. came out nicely. As where I come from' retired, day to day basically broke absoutly no work round here, house fuel killin me I got to make my own parts, so If this old man can do it, you certainly can. You will need acx oxy torch aint got then rent beg borrow or buy one. Make ya feel better TD8 is childs play compaired to pulling my stunt and yes backyard shady tree. Just trying to help ya this is good threopy. Oh forgot to add total machine time 4hrs a few new bolts, one case of beer, and the joy of smooth rollers again. sam
Rooster75 , every dozer i have worked on with rock gear, you had to remove part of it or all of it, it is a pain!.
pinesd3400, you forgot to mention how you deal with the broken off studs?
Hi swampman, as I mentioned bolts that will not budge, dont break them, just burn off the head, or all of them , then when you drop the roller, you will have about 3/4" of whats left of the bolt to work with. Then you need lots of heat ON the main frame not the bolt. Now with a vise grip or small pipe wrench it should come out. I just had two that gave me trouble, one even with head the bolt snapped flush, that I had to borrow an angle drill which didnt work, so Im good with torch so I blew that one out & tapped it. The other one, the track gaurd was in the way so at Napa I bought one of those eccentric stud remover things that goes over the bolt and turned with a 1/2" strong bar this tool works good made by KD i think more power on the strong bar or rachet the more its teeth bites the bolt, but still using a lot of heat. Then bought new bolts & locks never siezed up. Now Im not saying what I did to my rollers is proper, like I welded the worn pins & turned them on my lathe & pressed copper pipe in there for bushings, BUT, Its better than before, and I figure my Excavtor doesnt travel the miles a dozer will. So It cost me a little time & bolts, burned up shirts and stuff. Now everything fails, the last choice is to burn a hole in the frame to get your fingers in there, burn the old bolt out, then use a nut & Bolt, then weld a patch over the hole you made. "theres always a way out" hope this helps sam