So I took the little Mitsubishi BD2G out to do some work on the pond we're rebuilding today, trying to push out some more of the 4+ feet of sand that collected in the bottom since the dam collapsed a few years back. Everything was going smoothly until I got down about about three feet below ground level. Just as I noticed that the sand I was pushing seemed awfully wet, the dozer stopped moving forward. Looked down and the tracks are coated with gray much. I apparently found what used to be the bottom of the pond. Unfortunately I also found where the 2 inches of rain we got last weekend went. The front end of the dozer is buried so deep that mud is about 1" over the front of the tracks and the blade, fully raised, is sitting on the ground. The rear is in better shape. The mud is only half-way up on the tracks. We borrowed a friend's trash pump and tried to pump the water out of the hole, but the pump quit on us after about 5 minutes of use. Kept fouling the plug, so I couldn't get it to keep running. We tried pulling it out (backwards) with two tractors, a 43 horse and a 50 horse, both pulling together, but it wouldn't budge. The tracks just spin. Tried packing some logs and rocks and stuff behind the tracks, but we can't get them down far enough for the tracks to pull them under and get traction. Trying to dig out behind the tracks to get the stuff lower was an exercise in futility. The gray muck just kept oozing back into the holes as fast as we could dig it out. I don't think we'll have any success with that until we get the water out. Bringing in a larger dozer may be difficult too. I was digging perpendicular to the banks, which are rather steep, and am almost dead center between them. The pond wasn't very wide at that point so a larger dozer would have to be on about a 45 degree slope to be far enough away from where I'm stuck to avoid bogging down, but sill be close enough to pull in a straight line. Going forward would be impossible at this point. And to make matters worse, the weather forecast is predicting another 2-3 inches of rain on Tuesday. If we don't get it out before then the water will probably be up to the seat. I didn't have a chance to take pics today, too busy trying to get the dozer unstuck. Current plan is to run to the nearest Tractor Supply in the morning (40 miles away) and pick up a new trash pump, pump the water out of the hole and then see if we can't get things at least dry enough to dig out the rear sections of track and get something under them. Fortunately everything we're working in is a sand base so it drains very quickly to the lowest point, if we can get the water out. Anybody have any additional suggestions? I'm guessing once I get this thing pulled out and back to the shed I should change the oil and all the other fluids and probably drain the final drives as well, correct?
Do you know how to chain a log (or a square beam) to the tracks? That usually worked for me. For a small machine like that, an eight inch log or beam should work. Choose a log or beam about the full width of the machine (from outside of track to outside of track), or a little wider. If you want to move backwards, place the log or beam behind the track on top of the mud. Use a 16 or 20 foot long 3/8 inch Grade 70 chain with hooks on the ends. Wrap the chain around the piece of wood near each end and then hook the chain hooks onto the outer edge of the tracks. Then put the machine in reverse and see what happens. If all goes well, the machine should climb backwards out of the hole. Stop rotating the tracks before the log hits the radiator. Then repeat the procedure if necessary.
I was actually thinking about that this afternoon and wondering if it was safe. I had the log part right, at least. Had a log the width of the dozer that I was trying to get the tracks to take under. Should probably also note that this is an LGP machine with the pyramid / swamp tracks. (Leave it to me to find a swamp to test them in.) Fear of bending one of the grousers is why I decided to ask before trying the chain.
Without the pics its a bit hard but whatever plan you come up with make sure its not a half-assed arrangement. The more you fiddle around "hoping" the worse it will be. Most bogged machines are made 10 times worse by the operator panicking and trying too hard without having a good chance of success. Get off the machine, walk away, take a big breath and then assess the situation. Make a good, safe plan and extract the machine. For a good rule of thumb, if a machine is up over its tracks you will need twice the weight to extract it....so if your dozer weighs 5 tons, you'll need at least a 10 tonne machine to get it out. As opposed to "I've got my 10 tonne excavator bogged...my pick-up should pull it out" ointhead Clearing around the machine with an excavator is always a good option to reduce the drag. A winch truck or dozer is often the best option. and don't forget track mats or lumber. I dunno why, but bogged machines seem to often bring the craziest ideas out of people that have very little experience in recovery..........bogged machine = IQ reduction. Take care and good luck.
As soon as I realized I was stuck I shut it down and went to find help. Still ended up making things worse though. The back end is not in that bad of situation, but the front end is pretty deep. I think if we can pump the water out and chain a log to the tracks it will pull back far enough to get traction again.
I'm familiar with the pyramid track BD2 Mitsubishis; I owned one briefly. The pyramid tracks may not be super strong when it comes to fastening a chain to them. And you don't have flat pad ends to chain to, as with most other dozers. But it may be worth a try if you can find a way to hook the chain to the tracks. If you do try the log, make sure that you fasten the chain around the log securely near each end, so that the log can't slip out of the chain's grip. You need to wrap/tie/knot the chain around the log in such a way that the log will stay firmly anchored to the tracks. This worked very well for me a number of times with a much heavier machine. How about using a good sized excavator, if you have one in the neighborhood? An excavator should be able to yank that Mitsubishi out of the mud without difficulty. Of course, if towing or pulling, take considerable precautions in case the chain or cable breaks or comes undone. Flying chains or cables can ruin an otherwise good day.
Sounds good, might still be best to dig/clear around a bit and get a wire or chain onto another machine though before you try. An overkill recovery is better than a failed attempt.
Unfortunately, we're pretty much in the middle of nowhere. We'd probably have to hire an excavator to come in from at least 50 miles away. I don't think the county even owns an excavator. There's a ranch not to far away that may have a larger dozer, but I'm just not sure it could maneuver in close enough to do any good. What is really sad about this whole mess is that my uncle's 1944 D8 is sitting just up the hill where he parked after he bought it 5 years ago and it hasn't run since. He thought he could fix it himself and ended up totally messing up the pony engine, then burned up a bunch of the wiring trying to put that back together. :Banghead
We got a call a few years ago that the city sank their d5m at the sewage dump at the plant. this is where they haul all of the sludge out of the sewer treatment plant. I went down with the 966G and they had their 710d there we dug around the dozer to release the suction. then put about 100 feet of cable on the back of it backed the 966 up till the cable was tight then i curled the bucket back and pulled the dozer out of the mud.
fortunatly for you, you have a really small dozer stuck. You could have that d-8 stuck... Anyhow, any log skidders in the area? Their winch can be very helpfull.
Call a wrecker service BrentD! Ill bet thier is someone close by that has a wrecker.And It dosent have to be a huge one,I have pulled out dozers with my 1 ton wrecker.we offer recovery service,but it will take me 2 or 3 day's to get to texas from indiana.here are pics of my chevy 1 ton & gmc tandom.
yeah, a wrecker should do the job nicely! don't sweat it man.
My advise is also a wrecker especially considering the machine and safety being an issue thanks the BIG D
What size winch do you have on your 1-Ton? BrentD, I dont know how far you are from Franklin, but there is alot of drilling going on over there, which means alot of big winch trucks. Just an idea.:guns
Its a 20,000 lb garwood.You can see more pics of it in the truck section under "post your wrecker pictures".
I was just curious. I have a 15,000# Tulsa on a 1983 Chev. 1-ton. They will surprise you on their capabilities.
You cant beat a tulsa or garwood ,they are good winches.Is yours mechanical or hydraulic driven ? If you can keep the wrecker planted ,It will pull alot.
Its a mechanical drive. It is a 4X4 also, so you can put the transfer case in neutral, and run the winch off the 4-speed. It gives a good selection of linespeed for whatever kind of work your doing. Its not a wrecker, it has an oilfield bed with a tail roller and gin poles.
That sounds like a neet truck,you should send a pic of it.I am working on a 6 wheel drive FWD truck.I Installed a 60,000 lb garwood winch on it.Its a mechanical drive winch.Ill post pics of it in truck section under "post your wrecker pictures"
I'll post some over in the wrecker pick forum, so we dont hijack this thread.
I was thinking the same thing.I guess they will parden us.
Still no pics. The log trick almost worked, then the pins that hold the hooks to the end of the chain sheared off and it came loose. Got it moved back about 6 inches though. We're going to try again tomorrow with some hooks that weren't bought at Harbor Freight and a different attachment arrangement.
Glad to hear that it moved a bit, before the hooks let go. Grade 70 transport grade hooks (and chain) are the way to go. I've bent up or torn the cheaper Grade 30 more than once. "Logging chains" are also next to useless.
What you are doing with the log is breaking the adhesion between the mud and the bottom of your machine. That is what stops your forward progress. The log trick is a tried and true method of breaking it. What will also work is a length of cable ( A tank uses 3 inch cable) around the tracks at one end and drive it until the cable is going to contact the other end of the machine. Remove and reset and repeat. Another method is to use a winch and snatch block. The more times you reeve the cable the more pulling power you have. But, the end not in the lake must be VERY SECURE or you will pull your anchor into the lake with your dozer. Safety is a very big consideration with this method. Did this sort of thing with 120,000 LB tanks (M60 series) in the Army and a very large tank recovery vehicle (M88 series). Sometimes it took 2 or 3 or 4 M88s to get one stuck tank out. Good luck, Hal
Built a lot of those m88 recovery vehicles over 18 years of working there. If you can't get it out with an 88 just leave it! I have had good luck using the log chained to the tracks but never had swamp pads to deal with. A well planted ex that can give a little lift and pull always did the job for me. Used an 8600 ford tractor with duals also.
Well, She's out!!! And she managed largely under her own power with only a minor assist from our Montana 4340C. Chaining the log to the tracks made all the difference. Now, as promised: Pics!!!! Here's a general overview of the situation as it was around 9:00 this morning, after sitting all night. Here's a closer shot of the dozer before we worked any today: And a side-view so you can see how deep the front end was buried: A view from the front. My dad is standing behind the dozer (looking rather confused) trying to disconnect the chain that survived our aborted attempt last night: (Not sure how many links I can have in a single thread so I'm going to break this up)
We chained the log to the back of the dozer again, only this time we wrapped the chain around the pyramid grouser twice before hooking it so that the chain would be taking the force rather than the hook. Started the dozer up and it took the log under, moved back about a foot and then stalled. At that point my dad went back up to the barn and brought our Montana tractor down and hooked on to the back of the dozer. In this pic, you can see the montana hooked up to the dozer just after our first pull. By this point the log is already up to the front of the dozer and we've stopped to disconnect it. Here are a couple of pics showing how far we got on the first pull: This next one was taken before we disconnected the log before we pulled the second time.
Before we could get the log loose from teh right track I had to spin that track forward some more and raise the front of the dozer up with the blade. As I was raising the dozer up the downpressure from the blade snapped the post. The irony here is that the post we're using is the last remnant of a post I broke out from under our pole barn parking the dozer about a month or so ago. We didn't bother chaining up another log to the tracks for the final pull. Using the Montana to keep tension on the chain and keeping the dozer at full throttle she climbed right out of the hole. Here's a few pics of the aftermath: Looking from the back: From the front: From up the hill looking down: Big thanks to everyone for the suggestions and moral support.
Congratulations! It's always a great feeling to get one's machine unstuck. You can consider this as part of the initiation rites to dozer ownership.:drinkup
Hi all, I'm just a little lost about this log thing. When you say you just chain a log to the tracks you mean cut a log about as wide as the dozer, affix it to the tracks with a chain and drive over it, take it off once it comes out the back and start again Is this the idea? should the log be bigger if the dozer is bigger, mines a d5, how big a log should i use? i havent got stuck yet, but it will happen asi am about to embark on the great dam cleaning ru naround the farm, and this thread has made me feel a bit easier about getting stuck.
this one reason i like our tracked loaders for pond work, it is really helpful to walk your self out backwards with the bucket, if only we had grouser pads on it
You got the process pretty much right. In my case, there was absolutely no possible way to go forward so I was working from the rear of the dozer. The log I used was a section of 8-inch post that just happened to be a remnant from my last attempt to park the dozer under the wrong side of our pole barn (See footnote below). The chains we used were 3/8" chain and were really way too long at 15'. I think I previously mentioned that we sheared the ends off the chain on our first attempt. I initially thought that the pins holding the clevis hooks to the chains were at fault, but after recovering the hooks today I discovered that one chain just came unhooked from the track and the other chain actually broke the link that was connected to the hook. That probably happened because the other side came loose and the one that broke was taking the full force of the dozer with the log wedged up against the back of the machine. What finally worked was to wrap the chain twice around one of the grousers / pyramid plates then hook the chain. Then lay the log behind, or in front of the dozer, depending on which direction you plan to go, so it's laying a foot or so from the track and take the loose end of each chain and wrap it around the log as many times as needed to take up all the slack in the chain befor hooking the chain back to itself as tight as possible. Once the log is secured to the tracks, you start her up, put her in gear, and probably open the throttle up. I had to run near full throttle to keep it from dieing, even with the the power assist from the little 43hp 4x4 montana tractor. (For anybody that doesn't know, Montana's have one he** of a powerful creeper gear. Ours pulled better in sand than our neighbor's 65hp John Deer 2wd.) Keep an eye on the log and stop before it hits the blade arms / radiator (If the dozer is moving backward) or the rear of the machine (if you're moving forward). Some people recommend having two logs and stopping the machine when the first is at the centerline of the machine to secure the second. I guess it depends on how far you're into whatever soup you're trying to get out of. I will warn you ahead of time... You should probably have some hefty bolt cutters, a hammer and a prybar with you and be ready to sacrifice a couple of links of chain when it's time to disconnect the log(s). My dad didn't want to mess up his brand new chains any more than they already were, so we ended up hammering, prying, yelling (mostly me trying to give him instructions since he left his hearing-aids at home) and more hammering for about an hour trying to get the log unhooked without cutting the chain. We actually succeeded, though I probably would have opted for the easy way if I had been the ones to pay for the chains. I can't complain though. My parents bought the dozer specifically for me to use repairing their pond. Neither one of them knows how to drive it yet, and I doubt my mom will ever want to learn. I was thinking the other day about how much it irritated my elementary school teachers when I would spend all of my recess time digging little tunnels and holes out on the playground and using rocks to represent cars and heavy machinery. That thought came back to me a couple of weeks ago while I was out riding the dozer and I had to laugh. If they could only see me now, they'd totally understand. Footnote: (My dad wanted to park his new tractor on the side of the shed where the dozer normally sits so the afternoon sun wouldn't be shining on the tractor's paint. Unfortunately the dozer's blade is wider than the tractor and it just didn't quite fit. I hit the post and snapped it in two before I even realized I was close because I was watching the opposite edge of the blade that was not quite 2 inches from our cattle trailer.)
FROM Army FM 4-30.31 Title: RECOVERY AND BATTLE DAMAGE ASSESSMENT AND REPAIR Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited. REMOBILIZING TRACKED VEHICLES ANCHORING TRACKS 5-9. Vehicles often become bellied (high-centered) on stumps, rocks, dry ridges, or mire. When this occurs, they become immobilized due to lack of traction. 5-10. To recover a bellied vehicle, obtain a log long enough to span the width of the vehicle and of sufficient diameter to support the vehicle weight (figure 5-6). • Place the log against both tracks. • Place a tow cable so that one end of the cable goes under the log and through the tracks from the inside. • Place the other end of the tow cable underneath the log and connect the ends of the cable together with a tow hook on the outside of the track to make disconnecting easier. Figure 5-6. A log used to anchor tracks 5-11. Follow the same procedure to attach the log to the track on the opposite side of the vehicle. Take up the slack in the tow cable by gradually applying power to the tracks. This pulls the log underneath the tracks until it comes into contact with the obstacle, thereby anchoring the tracks and causing the vehicle to move. 5-4 FM 4-30.31 19 September 2006 Field Expedient Recovery CAUTION To prevent damage to the fenders and tow cables, stop the vehicle before the log reaches the fenders or the cable reaches the drive sprocket. 5-12. For a bellied disablement (other than mire), anchor the tracks by using two tow cables (figure 5-7). Connect the tow cables together with a tow hook and attach the cables to both tracks by passing the ends of the cables through the tracks from the outside and attaching them to the standing parts of the cables with tow hooks. When power is applied to the tracks, the cable will contact the obstacle and anchor the tracks. Figure 5-7. Cables used to anchor tracks Sorry, the drawings would go through with the document and it is beyone the 100k limit for a .doc file. You can PM me and I will send the file. Hal
Well done BrentD. Looks like you needed the Super-Swamp version of the BD2G! It would be a good idea to clean up the undercarriage & check for damage to track plates.Clean off the track adjuster rods,& ensure the links are not full of dry mud. Maybe clean around belly pan & alternator & also ensure your final/trans oils are all good. You gotta be a bit fussy,as spares are expensive...... Jim
Just wanted to post a picture of one of our D6R's that was stuck last year. Unfortunately this happens a lot. I sure do love a winch!
BTW, we did hook to the hook on the belly pan because we did not have a clevis.
I just wanted to post one more picture of something stuck. A buddy of mine sent this to me, and he said the operator was fired on the spot. I still haven't figured out how he got it down this bad.
Chaining a log to those Mitsubishi pyramid tracks presents more of a problem as Brent found out. With normal flat pads, it's quite easy. The grousers help hold the hooks from slipping off the pad, especially if there are two or three grousers for each pad. Just place the hook over the outer edge of the pad and use up the slack in the chain by fastening it around the log. It's a little hard to explain, but anyone with common sense should be able to figure it out. With standard flat pads, one should not damage the chain or hook doing this, unless it is a cheap, low grade chain. As with a lot of things, practice helps. Each time one has to do this, one learns a few tricks to make it easier. Even better than a round log is a square timber. When available, I've used a 10" x 10" or 12" x 12" treated timber about two feet wider than the crawler's width (one foot projecting past the track on each side). If the machine has the power to pull the timber under itself, the machine usually pops right out.
Brent, I'll bet you were more than a little relieved to get it out, I notice as the photos progress the sun seemed to disappeared and you can see the clouds coming in one of them! That would have been a bad place to be with another 2-3 inches of rain on the way! We got a little excitement ourselves yesterday, the tornado sirens went off for the first time. Spring is off to a good start! 68 and tornadoes yesterday, low 40's and maybe snow showers tonight. It's spring in Nebraska all right! alan627b
A sure sign of Spring in Nebraska.... 8 confirmed tornadoes were sighted in the eastern Nebraska/western Iowa area. One even knocked part of an empty UP coal train off the tracks, and removed someone's house pretty efficiently. An EF2, they say..not bad for March! alan627b
Thanks for all the good information on gettin unstuck. I also have a BD2F with pyramid tracks. When I get stuck, I hook my 40,000 lbs Komatsu D-58 and it comes out.
blaneyfan, I need to know.... HOW did that dozer end up in such a situation? That thing is deep in the muck haha.
Well now that it's unstuck, back to work. The blue muck is your refrence point as how deep your going to have to go to clean it out unless you've have a excavator or dragline. It may be 2 ft or 10 ft. After the blue crap is solid ground, a least in my area. I have an old pond that has dried up and the first 5 ft is good dirt, then you hit the old blue muck that was building in the pond for years. I have to go down another 7 ft to get good dirt to support my highlift. Just watch running across the good stuff on top, when it starts to do what I call pumping/spongy lookout. dennis ointhead
You mention you have a garwood winch. This may not be the right forum, but i was wondering if anyone knows if Garwwod built a pull behind scraper at one time? Hope ya got the dozer out BrentD.
GarWood also built a line of dozer blades, cable controls, and hydraulic controls. During the '50s, both Allis Chalmers and Euclid used GarWood attachments. GarWood also buiilt the Buckeye trencher line and a 3/4 ton truck crane/shovel/dragline that was very popular with state highway departments.
We were trying to get the last few acres of bedding in some low ground, and we had a couple of inches of rain the night before. We were bedding behind some D8's with k/g blades and they must have played there some because it went straight down.