Cool forum you guys got here. Hopefully one day I'll be knowledgeable enough to contribute and not just ask dumb questions. They wanted $28k/month to rent a cat385 plus another $10k for transport/setup/etc. So I took the plunge and bought 2 1990's machines. I'm just going to use them for work on our property and not be trying to make a living off them. Plus,I've got machine shop access and just bought a big hose crimper so I'm not too scared. Thats why I bought two machines, so I have a backup and can take my time and fix it myself if it breaks instead of paying a big repair bill to get it done immediately. Occasionally I'll need two machines at once, mostly to get one unstuck, but also plan on doing some heavy lifts. And i figure one will come in handy to work on the other one since they're all I got. First step: get them home. I haven't gotten a quote I can live with yet. I'm south of denver, and they are both within 600 miles. Any suggestions? I was thinking about making a couple trips myself and hauling the tracks, boom and weight, then trying to get a better quote on hauling just the house. That would be under 45k, but i don't know if the expense is the overweight permit or the oversize permit? Seems simple enough to break it down, using mostly the machine itself, I expect the boom and counterweight to be harder then the tracks to get off. Is there something I'm not thinking of? What about seperating the carbody from the house? Is that asking for trouble having to retorque the bolts on an older swing bearing? Does the house bolt directly to the bearing or is there a plate in between so I don't have to touch the actual bolts in the bearing? They are paid for, but i want to go secure them before I divulge pics, models, and more details on the WWW. Thanks in advance, I'll do my best to repay you with entertaining pics.
Welcome to the forum. Seems to me u got to much money, LOL. I'm not a 385 specialist, but my advice would be: - Take off the weight at the back. - Demount the stick and bucket. Go for the rest in one transport, if possible. Next is to take of the boom. I would not demount the upper and lower parts. Thats a big job, and u need a crane to dismount and mount it without damage. If your tracks can be demounted u could do it, but it complicates the transport. That might be an option, when u have it loaded up on the rig. A 385 is mighty big lump of iron to move. Transport home ,should have been into the deal when u made it.
Well, they aren't quite as big as a 385. I think 385's are 92 tons. I couldn't afford a 385, shoot, i couldn't afford half the machine I got if it was a CAT. I got 2 for less then the cost it would be to rent a 385 for a month. And their "insurance" wouldn't cover stuff I would do anyways. What I was thinking was to use the boom to pick up one side at a time and demount the track and block up each side like they do when they move houses. Wide enough and tall enough to straddle the truck. Then lower it on the truck the same way, or its no big deal to use jacks once the truck is under it. Seems alot easier then taking off the boom, or even the C.weight.
opcorn By the way, Welcome!
Wow you bought 2 machines to "not make a living of of"...what are you using them for? Oh yeah take lots of pics we love pics here at HEF!
Im assuming they are not 385's....what model are they exactly?
I've got to move some big rock. I figure a excavator is probably the most versatile peice of equipment. Which brings me to round 2 of entertaining questions: Why can you only get a blade on the smaller machines? Is it just because the companies that run these would rather have a dedicated machine for each job? I think mine are going to get a blade and a winch before its all said and done. Anybody make forks for excavators? Let me get them secured so some whack hopped up on meth doesn't go have a field day on them and then I'll post up lots of info and pics.
opcorn and I shall enjoy this until the big ban stick is dropped on you... or until :shf
:falldownlaugh
Is this gonna be a certain member that was just banned part 2? If so... ATCO.... come rescue me. But lets shoot some holes in this. So......in 1990 who made an 80 ton hoe?
UT-OH, you guys have trigger happy sensorship police around here? :notworthy Thats sad. What kind of stuff do they go after? Or is it more of a community lynching that you speak of? Guess I'll have to do some research so I can make some *** kissing informational posts. Hopefully that won't happen because they'd feel like heels when they find out what they are really being used for(not for me, nor just for your entertainment)
LOL join date was sept 2008...hmmm...:beatsme
Come on, don't be that way. I watched your utube, ur not like that. I'm legit, just be patient............. Try Hitachi and Komatsu. .....back to the questions please.
I'm pretty sure you could get a fab. shop to custom make a set of forks for an 80 - ton hoe. I don't think a blade is really necessary on anything other than the small hoe's as it adds balance to an already top heavy machine. Bigger ones have a lot lower center of gravity, and if you have a bucket you can grade anything out just fine with that. If you are dealing with big rocks, get a shallow rock bucket or grapple if they are really big. The winch... I guess is a good thing for steep slopes, but I don't think I'd want to be wrestling with boulders while on a slope unless I had to anyway. $10K for transport is pretty fair. an 80 ton machine is a lot to move, and no matter how far down you break one, you'll still need an oversized permit for the main house. It's just too big otherwise. I try to keep an open mind and give the benefit of the doubt, however you'll have to admit, you're giving us the impression you have little heavy equipment experience, but are purchasing two very large machines, and the one is as a "parts machine". In this economy that is a strange idea for a lot of guys on here, and is sending up all kinds of red flags. I think you'd be safe telling us if it was a Hitachi ex800, Cat 375, or something else. There's a few dozen of each for sale on machinery trader. Knowing the OEM and model could help us help you know how much has to be torn down to move, extra. Hopefully I could help with your questions a little and that all works out.
Thanks Jim thats very helpful. I watched a guy the other day move some big boulders with a 312 by pullng them against the blade. I could think of alot of other things it would be useful for. I've got a waterjet/and cnc torch in the machine shop, so I can do pretty much anything. I notice forks for the other machines usually go high, so i'll probably end up making my own. But its nice to see what other people are doing. I won't tell you how big the rocks are, that will just add to the flaming. But there are about 50 10k boulders. I would like to find a grapple for that, but again, they seem to go high. I could always build a thumb, but i can rotate them into place with a thumb. With the winch i would run multiple lines to drag the big ones, not necissarily up slopes, but just to save on the wear on the rest the machine, which couldn't push some of them anyways. I was also thinking I could run a snatch up to the boom to lift the smaller rocks if i don't find a grapple, and winchs always come in handy. Like i said, hitachi and komatsu. I wish i could have gotten two of the same model, but i didn't want to miss out on working this summer. Hopefully neither of them will be a parts machine. And your dead on about the economy, I decided its time to shift my focus off just making money. I couldn't have afforded them if the market wasn't down anyways. Ur right again. I have zero heavy equipment experience, except for the experience of being an oilfield hand for my father thru middle and highschool because the bottom fell out on the market and its the only way we could keep things going. All we had was a winch truck, workover rig and shovels. I don't think there is anything wrong with jumping in over your head as long as its on your own dime. Yep, its a shame you can't take the house down smaller. I move 20k objects around all the time in the shop with skates, skids, johnson bars and pipe, so i'm not too worried about handling the components individually. ...oh we did have a nice little ** w/ front loader. But they cut the fence and took it- hence my caution.
A demag????
i sure hope you have acces to a hyd wrench if you plan on taking the tracks off, because if taking them off is any thing like slideing them in, its not a pretty job with out one. did it once out west took a 10 foot pipe, a torque multiplyer, 2 days and alot of blood and sweat
I'm sure its like anything, coming out is a whole lot easier then lining up and going in. I was just thinking i would use the stick to pull'em out. Going in u can winch to the UC. But coming out, unless ur lifting up on them to, what would I winch to? As long as the machine runs, i don't see a problem with using the stick, then again, i'm a newb.
Ballsy to buy two machines of this size without any experience. Be careful, this stuff can kill you quick.
Not as ballsy as posting on this forum hoping for some answers :Banghead
I think Tbaytrucker, Cascadescaper, JimBruce, and MKTEF all gave serious, reasonable answers to your questions. In my opinion you would do well to consider their advice. Sorry if I left anyone out.
Most member on this forum have become skeptics. It's a necessity of the internet. Now to my first point, you ever wonder why the mob cost was almost half again as much as the rental for the month? And that was only form your local dealer to your property. 80 ton machines aren't what you would call easy to move. The bucket, stick and counter weight come off, and that still leaves you needing a really big lowboy. Just pulling the bucket and stick are gonna be hard with out a mechanic's truck. Pulling the tracks off is going to be impossible with out some really big tools. If i remember correctly a 385 has bolts/nuts the size of my fist holding the tracks frames to the swivel. So now comes the question i've really been wanting to ask. Why didn't you just by 1 much nicer 45 ton machine? A 45 tonner with a big breaker would bust up an rock into much more manageable pieces. At worst save a little money to pay a blaster to make a vist. If there is a enough room for an 800 sized machine to move the boulder around, 5-1 there isn't anything a little boom-boom would hurt. And lastly, i find it really hard to believe somebody with no experience was gonna rent out a 385 for a month. I find it even more unreasonable that he proceeded to buy an 800 sized machine, and then started asking questions, let alone 2. ointhead I'll be happy to be proven wrong, but i'm skeptical
Ok so post up some pics and what exactly you bought and put all the skeptical peoples minds at rest...
I think it's kind of funny that you ask questions and seemingly get frustrated by no answers, yet, others are asking questions of you, and you are providing no answers to them and seem to think that's fine. Perhaps if you answered some of the questions being asked of you, you'd find others more willing to cooperate.
Would this be an akward time to post that I bought a 4250-W to pull some stumps and level some pasture?:beatsme
You said in the title that its your first piece of heavy equipment, you bought two 80 ton excavators as your introduction to heavy equipment?
You said you got the 2 for less than $28k... that seems amazingly cheap. But I guess they are probably too old, big and hard to move to get many people interested. If I could get that much excavator for that sort of money I would be tempted just so I could come on here and say so Such big machines are going to be expensive to run even before you have to spring for repairs. Just out of interest I had a look at the specs for the cat 385 and it uses 60-70 L of fuel and hour and holds 1000 L of hydraulic oil. I couldn't afford it even if they never broke down! Good luck with them... your obviously the sort of guy who likes to jump in with both feet.
He said that he got them for less then $28k? That would be less then scrap price.
i could of bought a good running CAT 245 with better then 50% UC well maintained by a mine up north for "a case of beer"... its still there... trucking that to the okanagan from the NWT would cost tens of thousands of dollars... even at $300 per ton x45 ton after trucking and cutting it into little weeee pieces a man can carry its not worth it... unless you have a use for an old machine its either a boat anchor (i know a few TD25's were used as such by vanisle loggers) or a lawn ornament.... come to think of it i know in salmonarm in hunterlines old yard behind jemb diesel there is a EX800? or maybe it was a 1100? sitting on 3-4 trailers... no use for it so its in mothballs... could probably buy it for the hauling cost and a gratuity. I stripped a rad outta a D8 the other day ($265 worth of copper an brass :drinkup ) the cat is about 45min from vernon and most of it is still there and nobody is interested in hauling the steel away... Know of a HD10 about 2hr's from vernon complete but with a seized motor and i cant get anyone to haul it away even for free... gave a old TD18 away (lemme say that one again) I GAVE AWAY A FREE TD18 to kamloops scrap iron last fall and they hummed an hawed about it for a while.... scrap metal is not worth what some think... often the distance to haul exceeds any profit... and when it comes to old equipment it costs money to cut it up. *end hijack* lets see some pic's!
Well?
Nope. Those prices are perfectly realistic for lucky auction-goers. Last year, I almost bought a 1993 Hitachi EX700 for $25k. It had an ugly counterweight and a dented side panel, but it ran well and had new pumps. I'm glad I didn't get it though because the fuel bills would have killed me when doing lighter work. Right now, I'm just waiting for more funds to have more fun...
we are talking somewhere south of $19K for an 80 tonner though; 28k for rent plus 10K for mob costs. One would assume he spent less on the 2 machines than the cost to rent the 385.
Sorry guys i've been out of pocket. I'll post lots of pics as soon as i get them mobilized. Yes i do thank everyone for the answers, advice and wisdom. I just like to give everyone a hard time about giving me a hard time because it makes you give me an even a harder time and we all have fun and the forum sponsors get more clicks. So why does everyone say its such a big deal to seperate the machine from the tracks? Is it just because you have to stabilize the machine with no tracks under it? You have to unbolt them to narrow the track gauge for transport anyways. I'm still working on finding the cheapest mob option.
its a big deal to seperate the tracks from the machine, because it takes a bit more than a 1'' power bar and big pipe to turn those big bolts out, not saying it cant be done, it took 3 of us 2.5 days with a 10 foot breaker bar and a torque multiplyer just to push in the tracks,when i was out west. add days, and thousands of dollars if any of the bolts break off, i know that from experiance
So basically your saying I should try to transport them without retracting the tracks. But if I'm going to retract them, the hardest part is done, so hauling the tracks seperately is no big deal at that point. Why do you think the bolts broke, you think you could have gotten them off if you used a different technique/tool? What machine was it?
in a perfect world, you could move it with the tracks out, i dont know what your regulations/permitting is like in your neck of the woods. what i was describing what just whats in store to push in the tracks. to completely remove the track frames and tracks is even bigger of a challenge,because you then get to deal with reinstalling the lines for the drive motors (usually steel pipes) which if they have ever been tweaked, you can forget about trying to get them linged up good enough to start the fittings. and trying to line the track frames back up to start the bolts. what kind of support equipment do you have access to, you will need a big ol loader or forklift just to move the things. i dont know the exact weight, but probably in the range on 10-15 tons a side. when we did it on a older 385 the slides were so tight it took a 988 and a D9N to move them in
Maybe I'm wrong but it would seem hes only worried about getting it apart and transported and I assume will have plenty of time to get it back together later. I'm guessing broken bolts would only be a problem when putting it back together. I don't have any experience dealing with anything this big but I think breaking this down for transport will make the trucking cheaper but you will need to spend on the disassembly to do it safely. I don't think its realistic to expect to be able to be able to use the machine itself to do it all. I can't see how you are going to be able to get away from needing a reasonable size crane at some point as well as a healthy amount of other workshop equipment like jacks, stands, hydraulic bolt tensioner, porta power, rigging gear, etc. You haven't let much slip about where these machines are located but I know in australia if you are trying to do this work on someone elses premises they wouldn't let you get away with anything too dodgy. At the end of they day if someone get hurt working in their yard it may come back on them.
so no pictures?
If you're in a real hurry to get those tracks off, there's a fast and relatively easy way to do it. Scoop out a ditch about 5' deep x 6' in length. Park the machine about 20 yards away from the ditch. Park the flatbed about 30 yards away from the ditch. When set up properly you will have 50 yards between the machine and the flatbed and the ditch will be offset 5 yards from the straight line measured between the machine and trailer. Next, you'll need an assistant, axle grease, some composition B and a pair of old socks. Fill the socks with composition B then coat them with about 1/2" of grease. Climb down into the ditch with your prepared materials. (It may be helpful to conceal the ditch in some fashion). Using a cell phone, call your assistant and ask your assistant to load the machine onto the trailer. As the machine passes the concealed ditch, light the fuse on the composition b and throw it against the tracks.
My advice is to get professional help to shift those machines. I have no experience with moving equipment of that weight but is sounds like you'll need more than a little toolbox and a front end loader to break the machines into manageable chunks. I would say that potentially trying to save money by doing it yourself could end up more expensive if you make 'rookie' mistakes, like bending stuff. At least get some quotes to figure out where you're at. Then you can work out if the money you may potentially save (by doing it yourself) is worth the headache. There are just some situations where you have to realize your limits and get in pro help. Also I don't think a professional machine mover is going to tell you how to do the job step by step, that's their livelihood and if they tell every Tom, **** and Harry how to move big machines they are going to do themselves out of a job. Far as the skeptics go, I can see their point of view but don't get stressed about it. Perhaps once you finally get over your fear that posting pictures of your new 'toys' on the internet is going to make them disappear or attract vandals, you can post a few pictures of yourself in front of the beasts. Actually I don't think you have to worry about anyone stealing them given that they weigh quite a bit. Not like some low life is gonna drive em onto the back of their pick up truck Anyway your decision, best of luck with getting em home. BTW just saw that shortened name for Richard attracts stars, be a bit of a problem if your name is like that.
Douglasco I wish you luck in your venture. I have had several of these type machines. They are nothing but expensive to move, but worth it when they arrive for the work they will do. Just for reference, I had an EX 700 shipped from Huston TX to SoCal 10 years ago, and it cost $8,000 then, and came on 2 loads, counterweight and bucket on one, rest of the machine on the other. The seller had already slid the tracks in, so that was not in the cost. I would expect the same move to be over 10K now. If you are doing the work yourself, and have your own truck to haul the pieces, you may save some $$ taking it apart like you said, but if you are hiring the trucks anyway, just move it in the biggest pieces you can. In your area, Energy Transportation in WY has usually had the best pricing for stuff that size. Hope that this works out for you.
Well, I wasn't going to post any followup because I was a little disappointed by the naysayers. But my other recent thread(in skidsteers>bobcat/how to overide safetybar) has helped me realize that people around here need to be a little less scared. Recap, I bought two 80 ton excavators(actually shovels) as my first pieces of equipment. I have very very little equipment experience, but alot of common sense. However over the past 1.5 years, I also opened up a full machine shop(no machining experience) and have stocked about $500,000(msrp) in surplus hydraulics because I have realized the value of hydraulics and being able to repair and build your own ****. That is simply to say, I have recently acquired a small amount of knowledge about hydraulics and other not so gay/more useful things. But i've also been doing my real full time job in the meantime, so i still haven't had the time to get very smart. The PC650 and Ex700 were to move boulders and do minor excavating on my 3 acre property that already has a house on it, and its really only about a 1/4 acre project. But the boulders range in size up to about 100 tons. The machines weren't too hard to move. I hauled the buckets and counterweights myself and found a great heavy haul service to help me move the rest of the machines whole on 10 axles. Probably the biggest lesson was when I showed up with them and my HOA(home owners association) threw a temper tantrum. Just another lesson in stupid people. But i should have expected it, thats why i'm building a boulder wall between my property and the road. Once the big machines were here, i also bought a t300 and mounted a case 580b extend a hoe on it for the smaller work. I'm also about half way done building a smaller machine for the finish work which will be a cross between a spider crane and the mini excavator/loader units like you see more overseas. I'm currently looking for a telescopic boom to mount on the top of one of the shovels to make it into more of a Gradall/crane type machine. Something about 40ft long collapsed, hopefully 4 or 5 stages. It doesn't look like i'll find anything robust enough to handle digging forces(on a 100ton machine) so I'll probably end up building it from scratch when i run across the right material at surplus. Everyone gave me a hard time about the shovels because they have no reach, but for multipurpose work i think a standard excavator boom is also a joke, at least mine came with a (4in1 bucket ). Plus they always end up getting broken. The shovel boom maybe half the length but its usually still a little heavier- you do the math. I would like to articulate the the telescopic boom off the tip of the factory boom, so I have a very good range of motion and can reach over trees/buildings etc, and probably leave the factory arm and shovel bucket on for dozing work and as an outrigger. Before I decided to go all the way and get the shovels, I was working on plans to build a telescopic swing wheel loader out of a big farm tractor. I think I might pick that project back up. If the PC650 wasn't so heavy, i'd cut up the house a little and put some big planetaries and tires under it. But i don't think i could get away with roading it. The bobcat is great, but I think a little teleswing would be the best all around machine to have. If you don't know what i'm talking about google: ahlman tele90. Geez, there is so much bad@ss stuff in the rest of the world, that we just don't get here(USA). Genie, of all people, just came out with a new machine that would be nice to have, but i don't know if they are selling it here. I don't have the money or patience for a new machine anyways. Thanks to everyone who replied to my thread. I'll try to get some pics next time I move the big rocks. For now this will have to do. Oh, i'm also looking for a 70-120" tree spade I can put on one of the shovels if anyone knows where i can get one for closer to scrap price and rebuild. Or a good design of how to just mount spades on the arm and just push them into the ground. And some forks would be nice.
Thats the driver in the first pic back there, i'm in the White tshirt. Someone asked how old i was in a pm, i'm 29, hoping to make it to 30.
A wee bit of overkill for a 3 acre property IMO.
Great follow up post. I for one am glad you posted it. I had been wondering how it turned out. You sound like the kind of person with a "get it done" attitude, and I am sure you can make it work. Your telescoping boom idea sounds interesting, kind of a gradall on steroids. I hope you share that with us as you get it done. Sounds like some of the neighbors have no sense of humor. Good luck with that.
I would get a personalized licence plate for your vehicle that reads"go big or go home" The nieghbours give you a real hard time then park one of these in the driveway.Tell them your going to tram some gravel to your driveway.
! Holy ****, two 70+ tonners on a 3 acre lot! Hope you're having fun. You must have some massive boulders to move. I'm curious what your 100 ton boulders look like. People round where I am think my 20 tonner is huge, and I have 150 acres. I believe that as a property owner, you ought to have the right to do whatever you want with your land provided you are not actually harming anyone else. As long as you use common sense (e.g. don't crank your excavators to full throttle and activate the travel alarm at night), no homeowners association have any right to stop you from doing what you want with it. Usually people don't interfere with rock moving, but I think that most grade-changing bylaws and permits are stupid red tape to give the government more money. If its your land, than you ought to be able to dig a hole or fill a puddle in it without having to lobby the government to give you a permit for an excessive fee. Where I am in Canada, we have these "Conservation Authorities" who regulate what you can do with "wetlands". I'm all for protecting and preserving nature, and think its a good idea to protect genuine wetlands and endangered species. The problem is that these authorities tend to mark almost everything as wetland, even when it really isn't. More than half the land in my region is classified as wetland or near wetland, but only a small fraction of it is real wetland. For example, they tend to classify any forest that isn't 100% deciduous as "Provincially Significant Wetland", and they demarcate any land within 120 meters (400 feet) of it as regulated near wetland. Thus, 80% of my mostly dry, sandy farm is marked as "wetland" or near wetland, while less than 5% of it actually has standing water and wetland plants. To do any significant digging or clearing, you must get multiple permits from multiple authorities, and some of these permits can cost up to over $10,000. Yes, $10,000!!! They do allow some very minor work to be done without a permit, but it is quite restrictive. I do what I have to to abide by these unjust regulations, but I could be much more productive and profitable if these laws weren't restricting what I can do with MY OWN land.
I dont know,think someones just nuts,thats mining equipment,or big inch pipelining mainline equipment,not meant for any residential setting anywhere. The pic of the loader I posted was a leternou,the worlds largest at the time and it would load a 100 tonne boulder but not without the back wheels coming off the ground,I spent a few years running it(me in the bucket) and most of the boulders posted in the pics arent half that weight.A 100 tonne boulder would be as wide and long as a 200 tonne cat truck in the box when loaded.The reason we used a loader was because the big ph 2800 xp electric shovels couldnt get them through their bucket. I had an onboard scale and after a few months was very good at loading 250 tonne cat trucks within 3 tonnes of their payload so I will say none of those donikers where close to 100 tonnes.
You claim to be 29 going on 30 yrs old........... your age and writing style reminds me of a fellow from Canada who once posted here and in other forums. :ban
What part of Canada? The pics dont lie,he has huge mining equipment on his homestead or is posting pics from someone with way too much money. A front shovel like he posted is useless for anything but production loading big haulers. A smaller hoe would be way more productive and efficient. I wouldnt want to be his neighbour.
Every thing I have seen in those pics...I could do for 1/50th of the cost with a smaller machine. Or even less.
I followed this thread from the start and think fair play to you:drinkup:drinkup Over kill none the less, but as some one else said you have the "get it done" attitude! and you backed up what you said I would also like to see some pictures of your machine shop that you set up if you get time!
I am in absolute disbelief that this guy was actually telling the truth.
True, I didn't see anything being done in the photos that necessitates any machine near that size. Tying rocks to the bucket teeth is err... unconventional :beatsme. My $3000 old massey 165 tractor with a loader would do fine for hauling around the little rocks in the photos and with far less fuel and maintenance cost (cant complain much about 4 litres or 1 gallon) per hour. Regular excavator setups are IMHO much more versatile and useful than front shovels like these for the kind of work I see. Excavator booms aren't weak - they do fine as long as you don't stupid things like swinging into trees. My 20 tonner can move stones as big as a smaller SUV (by rolling them). If douglasco indeed has 100 tonne stones that need to be moved, then he has reason to use such beasts. I guess front shovels would push better too. But for most of the work I see, a 8-12 tonne normal excavator would be far more practical. The standard backhoe/excavator setup gives a lot more reach and makes it easier to grab and pick up stuff. It would eliminate the need for a crane/boom. Having a fleet of huge oddball mining equipment in a house lot is indeed unique. P.S. Why two machines btw? Isn't one giant mining shovel enough for a small residential lot? Good luck doing whatever you're doing douglasco, and you seem to have a great git-r-done attitude using whatever you have. I'm just sharing my thoughts on your setup, I don't want you to waste all your money on the wrong equipment. :drinkup
Most of those rocks arent even close to 30 tonne,even if they were Canadian shield rose granite(hardest in the world) they wouldnt even be close to anything a 350 Cat hoe could'nt handle with ease. With over 35 years running the big iron in the industry I can only shake my head at what I have seen here in these pics. This isnt a get er done attitude,it's a mines bigger then yours attitude. I have worked all over western Canada and the arctic,ran and am competant on the worlds largest hauler,loader,dozer and grader and the only place we used machinery that size was when the situation called for it. This is definately not even close to that and a pure waste of iron and money. Useing a tree for a boom would get you pee tested on the spot in most places in Canada. If these pics werent so original I would think someones playing the forum here,do they really let folks do that in the States? I can post pics of what a 100 tonne rock or frost chunk looks like and trust me,they are ten times bigger then anything posted here and a shovel front that size would be dwarfed by one in the bucket if it could get it in the bucket that is.
I for one think it's pretty cool. If I could afford a D8 I'd have one just to play with! Rick
Yes, this is an odd and overkill situation here, but smaller guys buying big hoes isn't as crazy as you make out. For the same price I paid for my excavator, I could have bought a fully operational EX700BE. The EX700 would pull stumps faster, dig faster, move bigger stones more easily, and pull much bigger trees than my 200. The reason I chose my 200 instead was because it is much newer, would fit in my barn, would do less damage when handling smaller stones, and had enough power to get the jobs done. So, a farmer using a big hough isn't completely crazy. As for using a tree as a boom extension on a 70 tonne mining shovel to swing a 1 tonne rock 10 feet in the air under powerlines... that is crazy... or at least entertaining.
It is entertaining to say the least.But gives some of us a bad name. Nothing wrong with a 200 hitach,a good operator can do anything with it.
Yeah, I'm pretty pleased with my JD200LC. Very smooth, fast and powerful, ready to tackle any job I throw at it. P.S. I just noticed that he's running the Komatsu PC650 without the counterweight... .
Thats probably the reason it's sitting at the angle it is! Maybe he couldnt get enough leverage on the johnson bar right to get it back on. I wonder if his arm hair stands on end when going under those power lines? Pretty close to arcing there. Those are digging machines,meant to do nothing else.
Thought I should save anymore skimmers from making fools of themselves: "But the boulders range in size up to about 100 tons. I'll try to get some pics next time I move the big rocks. For now this will have to do." Yes, the front shovels push alot harder. If I'm up against something solid, it can usually push the machine backwards, and remember the grousers are alot deeper on these then standard excavators. However, on the ex700 It seems like only one of the rams pushing the arm is doing the work. When i detached them to transport it one wouldn't move with the stick like it was suppose to, guessing its only when the capacity of the other one is surpassed, otherwise one ram is being pulled by the other. The pc650 only has one 8" ram there where the ex700 has 2 6' rams. Like i said, the clamshell is very useful. Its *almost* like having a dozer/loader too. I'm not digging any trenches. And productivity, efficiency? Come on, this isn't a utility company. As far as the counterweight, i've been climbing a grade that i'm afraid it won't make it up with the counterweight. And there is no room to tow it out. I'd like to find a big winch to put on. I see the dozer winchs go cheap, but haven't seen a hydraulic one cheap-got enough projects. But it would be nice, i could use a crane block off the boom and lift a little more weight. The komatsu although dimensionally smaller is heavier then the ex700, the planetaries are bigger, the travel motors are compact and much of the boom is cast. It can actually hold its counterweight in the bucket and extend it almost all the way out before it tips. The PC650 was $11,000. Seriously youre going to tell me to buy a smaller machine? What can i get for $11000? I'm not going from job to job. If I was, i'd still stick with it and put the tracks on quick disconnects. I think it would be easier and much smarter then taking off the boom. The real reason I have two, was because they were at the same auction I won the ex700 first but couldn't pass on the pc650, I'm not one to backout. As soon as i have the bulk of the project done the ex700 will go. I'm not Canadian. But i realize its getting harder and harder to tell the french from the rest of us. ointhead :ban From Texas, now in Colorado. Holler if youre passing thru Denver.
LOL you can always send one up here for me to play with......just don't know what I'd do with it here on the farm.... Rick
Well, Knowing the area a little, I am sure you have some pretty big stones hidden in there somewhere. And besides, you never said THOSE in the picture were 100 ton, just that you had SOME that were. I have moved boulders with a D-9L and D-9H blade to blade and the 1 rock stuck out on each side by 4 or 5 feet, and was as tall as the cab on the D-9H. Was it 100 ton? If not, it may have been more. As far as the Hitachi goes, only one cylinder is supposed to push on the stick. The other one is tied in to the bucket curl and allows the bucket to maintain position relative to the ground during the stroke of the stick. On the Komatsu, you have to manually adjust the bucket angle to do that. At least that is how I have been explained that it works. Do you have the Hitachi together as well? As far as the 70 ton machines on a residential lot, it is pretty normal in rocky hill country. I have done many lots with 700 Hitachi and 375 Cat hoes, as well as D-9L's. Does that mean I am crazy, or just productive? I am talking of custom lots in areas like he posted. but with less trees. I have seen a 992C loader and a D-10 on a 2 acre residential site near here.
Isnt it hard on it to run it without a counterweight? I'm asking this because on most big electric diggers pushing on a counterweight with a d11 or anything is a big time no no.Hard on the swing motors etc.They are designed to be balanced on the carbody. A 100 tonne rock would fit it in the bucket of that leternou loader I posted a picture of but only enough to get a bite. Another operator and I once put 2 d10n's together to push a huge rock,the friction of the blades rubbing together literally had the hardened steel on the blades melting and dripping off like welding slag.
I think you have to consider leverage, for example if you have a long stick and big full bucket at full reach, compared to a short stick and small bucket fully tucked in, i would imagine the difference is huge, similar to operating a shovel with no counterweight at all. Sure perfect ballance is best, but so is not working it at all. Its obvious these machines are not engineered to a T. Thus the reason the counterweights are the same weight for any configuration. I have had the counterweight on which is about 20k and the ex700 counterweight hanging from that for more ballast, it is about 30k iirc. The lie I have heard at the dealer as to why you can't get a machine bigger then about a 200 with a blade on it is because the slewing bearings don't like it. But i think the real reason you are not suppose to push on one with a dozer is because if not done properly you are possibly exerting force against the swing lock mechanism. I'm sure there are several "big no no's" in the biz that are really just the old geazers inflicting their will and soverign reign on the young guys. Remember I said that I can often push the whole machine backwards with the hydraulics on the shovel. and thats not only if i'm pushing down on the bucket, its when most the weight is still on the tracks. There is no difference between that and pushing on the counterweight with a dozer. Just my opinions, remember i don't know jack.
The thing with big iron is time will tell,as swing motors are made to swing the house,any undo pressure on it will probably cause early failure and thats also why you dont see any big excavators with winches on them.Same with the ring gear. Now when you have to start replacing these parts then that cheap auction price you got negates the repairs you will have to make.I dont care if you have your own cnc shop,I could do the same work with a couple john deeres with a hammer and one with a thumb and in the end,it will be much cheaper. Us Canadians arent all french either,that's a stereotype but they do own the arctic and owned it long before any Americans even knew where the Arctic is.
You said it ...
Then theres us guys with over 35 years in the biz but what do we know? We deal with greenhorns all the time,they come,they got cash,they show their lack of experience in the field.We laugh.
I agree, swing motors are the weak point on these machines. I think its an industry flaw. There should be a ram actuator for the top-end of the torque range. ...This is true. All I know is what I see on the forums and auctions, but i think Canadians are way more bad ass then us. i wouldn't use a winch off the house very often. "Then theres us guys with over 35 years in the biz but what do we know?" ....Yeah, like at Martin Materials where I got the EX700 from, they had it turned up so hot it would stall on anything less then WOT. And they just couldn't figure out why they had to throw $200,000 into it the last 2 years before they ended up selling it. Lucky for me, i basically got a new machine. I'm sure a certified dealer even made the adjustments. "I could do the same work with a couple john deeres with a hammer and one with a thumb and in the end,it will be much cheaper." I don't want to use a hammer or blast. I'm not trying to clear the lot, and i don't want gravel. The pike's peak and denver granite boulders are half the value of the property. "with a couple john deeres" ..... now ur giving deere a bad name, insinuating that they don't make any big machines. Or is that an industry slang, like saying "its probably made in mexico or china" I love you guys:drinkup
john deeres are pretty well hitachis now anyways.I think the only thing thats original deere in a JD hoe now is the engine.
This is one of the funniest things I have ever read. I would love to be douglasco's neighbor. You wouldn't have any problems giving directions to your house "just look for the two gargantuan machines in the yard parked beside the family wagon and go to the next house". I thought the thread was a hoax until the pictures, that was funny. All I have to say is "Good game, you win". Man I thought I went overkill but you have set the bar much higher than I could ever achieve.:scool:thumbsup
I'm on your side douglasco. There are no right or wrongs in your case, just get it done and have fun while doing it. opcorn Congratulations to two bargains !
Quite the entertaining thread, even with all the penis envy floating around.
LoL It is pretty funny. I'm on the front range right off I-25. If you haven't been here, at the edge of the mountains its basically flat all the way to kansas, there are no foothills. This is the only neighborhood in the mountains around. So all the contractors and delivery boys aren't use to not being able to rely on their GPS and mapquest Since I started the project, people knock on my door and say. So and so gave me directions to their house, and they told me look for the big machines and then do 'such and such' and i can't find their house, can you help.
Tell them you picked them up (house)and moved them a few miles down the road.
Love the Pc650 pics,one of my favourite jobs as an apprentice was assembling PC650SE's ,backhoe & face shovels. Bring back some good memories !
One of the contractors building a cabin down the street started a rumor that i was going to pick up my house and add another story under it. The HOA called the county on me. The county laughed when he came out. My house is 4 stories and is solid 8" reinforced concrete.
Nice...!!! Thats some big gear you've got there!!! At least on 3 acres you won't be tramming too much so the undercarriage should last for ages. Not that you look like you are, but I wouldn't worry too much about they naysayers. It looks like these machines were so cheap you can afford to try a few different things and if it doesn't come off you won't have lost much. Doing things the 'conventional' way is the safest if its your livelihood and its competitive but I think its situations like this where you are free to try new things that leads to innovation... and it look like a lot of fun. Keep us posted on how you go.
Awesome pictures douglasco!
Nice pics! Be careful around those wires.
Thanks guys. Yep worst case I think i can put a new swing bearing on it for about $5000. It would be nice to figure out how to put on some compact travel motors anyways. And i'm not to fond of the whole swing motor setup, but it going bad does probably scare me the most. Those damn wires. The ex700 wouldn't even fit under them with the boom all the way down. The bottom is phone, i hit it all the time. The middle one is neutral, i've bumped it. The top one, well that wouldn't be pretty. But I figure i might have to replace a couple pins in the arm and maybe they will raise it or bury it when they come out to see what happened. Preferably the latter. I'll post some pics of the view and you'll see why. So, if a guy wanted to make a few bucks for the fun of it. And these were the only machines he had. What would you suggest? I know, insurance, mob costs- but i got that covered. I was thinking about picking up a hoe stick and bucket for one of them. I actually thought it would be cool to get into big boulder landscaping. I've talked to the quarries around here and they don't sell many of the big ones. But when i'm done here I'll have a pretty nice show piece-I think it would be an easy sell to the big money guys.
used swing bearing for a 210 kobelco is over $10,000
Used swing for a 150 kobelco is just shy of 10,000
Things to do with a 650 shovel... Because of move costs and such, my suggestion is to buy a tract of land with perfect location and alot of nasty rocky features, then develop it. For instance say that right beside a major commercial zone is this steep, boulder strewn lot. Buy it, level it, make some boulder walls if you want, then sell it, or lease it to cabellas or something. But be careful with this economy that you don't overextend yourself. Basically you have to look at whats going on in your area and find something that your well suited for. Seeings that you have really big tools, your going to need really big projects or really tough ones. If they were mine. I'd open a shale pit up in the northern pa, and be selling it to the drillers for makin pads, and I'd lease on to the local gravel pit.
PLEASE be careful! If you hit a power line, anybody standing on the ground near the machine could be electrocuted. And whatever wire you hit, the electric or phone company will probably make you pay for repairs and possibly for the interruption of service. If there is a "call before you dig" number in your area, it wouldn't hurt to call, just in case.
You dont even have to contact power lines to get electrocuted,if it's very high voltage it will arc right to your boom.When we walked the big P and H shovels under power lines we used to dig out the road to get them low enough to not arc,just temporarily. Replacing poles with higher ones is also an option but it will be on your dime.
I agree, electric lines are no joke. Douglasco, your machine should have a window or door in top of the cab, like a sunroof, I can't tell if it's open or not because your machine has a rops or fops over the cab, anywhere near the wires I would keep that open for visibility overhead. Hope this helps.
And if you have a strike or arc whatever you do....dont get out of the machine,your safe as long as you stay in the cab.You will become the ground if you try getting off or jumping.Seen 2 grader guys electrocuted this way,once your foot hits the ground you become the shortest route for the power and the electricity will lock your muscles so you wont even be able to let go.
A used Kobelco isnt worth $10,000 lol.....jk Really tho, this thread has everything in it, from a young buck that dont own a hoe (but has pics) to a 4 story house and a 100+ ton rock....even an elecrtic safety lecture. Douglasco, I am on your side. what the heck is wrong with getting a bargain on a couple of awesome machines and getting to play with them....hell for $10k I would like to have the Komatsu to set at my dirt pile instead of a $50k wheel loader....but then again im only 29yo too and would be full of xxxx if I said i owned one lol.. Keep up the pic posting this is an interesting thread Pj Cmon, Pj. You've been around here long enough to lnow the rules.
Like i said, I am happy to be proven wrong. The shovel bit makes a lot of sense. There isn't very large market for sub-1000 class face shovels. As for a commercial use for your shovels how about digging big and/or deep basements.
basements... unless he was in solid rock with a no dynamite ordinance I don't think he could be cost competitive. Basically someone with a 30 ton hoe could come in with a lowboy, unload, dig it out, load up and do at least one basement a day. Our friend with the face shovel will spend a day moving in, 30 minutes digging, and a day moving out. also thats alot of hired heavy haul time compared to work time, but he may catch that in his 30 minute dig time.
lol, I jsut wanted to see if you was paying attention Digger Pj
Thanks for the warnings guys. I'm guessing these are the typical 1700volts found in residential? Doesn't it take a 1000 volts to arc an inch? And I can't imagine that jumping is a bad idea. The cab floor is about 9 ft off the ground, and i could probably jump 15 feet out. The rops actually completely covers the sunroof. I was thinking about cutting a hole in it w/out compromising it. I've got the heavy haul taken care of now. I can do it at cost in one trip. Like i said was thinking about getting a hoe stick. I've gotten very good at sourcing parts. I already sourced the bearings for that price, yes new. No they don't have any other models. and p.s. jack@ss, now my house is about to be 5 stories, i'm adding a glass 5th story room. But i'm not a house guy, its not the american dream its a nightmare. Be happy with what you got, and don't let your wife enslave you anymore. I bought it for different reasons. Next time i've got the camera out i'll take a pic with ur name on it. http://www.ironplanet.com/jsp/s/item/246006
Douglasco I am on your side too, but am still concerned about the electric lines. Most electric like you show is at least 4160. I would not want to be within 10 feet of them. In fact, it is federal law to keep minimum of 10 ft of clearance. Just dont' want to see you get hurt. As far as the machines go, you did good. When you get a chance, I would like to see some more pics of your work around the house. Its fun moving rock with a big hoe.
Thanks. I thought it was about 1700 volts. I'll go down and look at the xformers. Anybody have any luck/experience with getting the power company to pick up the tab for moving lines for construction? I wouldn't mind but they won't even let me dig the trench to put them in the ground. I don't always have someone handy to take pics, so i miss alot of good photo ops. But heres a few old ones.
I get scared to death seeing that without the counterweight.
The skidder isn't mine, but i saw it by where i got the machine. Think its pretty awesome. Had to rig the counterweight that way on the ex700 cuz i hauled the fall off in a box truck. Did you guys know Autocrane and nationals too(iirc) don't have steel bearings in them? They turn on plastic. Even their big 20ton models. Also thought it was neat to find out that you can get a clamshell digging attachment for many of the autocrane-equivalents in other parts of the world.
Well next time i'm gonna throw it back on i will take a picture of it holding it in the bucket almost all the way out. Now the EX700, thats another story, a stiff breeze could blow it over. Anybody made their own CW removal system? The ex700 i looked at the other day was a little newer but had it and the counterweight was a different shape then mine. Had a huge cutout to accommodate the system. But geez, i wish i had that ex1100 instead.
Have any before and after photos of what you have done? i am curious to see what those big machines can do other than just load haul trucks.
i work on a development were the buried about a 1000 ft of hi-tention powerline and it cost the developer 250,000.
" Have any before and after photos of what you have done? i am curious to see what those big machines can do other than just load haul trucks. " I'll post b4 and after pics. Grapple: The clamshell is really way to small to use as a grapple, on this size machine. I think i am going to weld some teeth or plates on both sides of the mouth(?) because I try to stick a rock in as far as it can go to get a good bite and it starts to hit the "V" opening around the perimeter of the clamshell and the wedge effect works against you and spits it out. And if you dump the bucket all the way(as you would a non clamshell bucket) so that the rock is basically sitting on the bucket then weight of it exceeds the overload and the clamshell rams won't hold it(which really surprised me). Grapple Potential: As is, I'd say its only good for about a 8-10 ton rock, if I can get it to bite better i think i might grip a 20-30tonner. It only opens about 5' so you have to have a skinny part to grip. I guess the thing to do is to configure it so that it hits the rock in three points. How else can i stick it in as many points as possible without making a full out dedicated multi/independent-tine grapple? Backdragging to fill the bucket: I probably do this more then I use it like a normal shovel. It works really good. Open the clamshell and scrape it on the ground backwards, then close the bucket, you can get about 80% of what you can by pushing it into the dirt the conventional way. Never thought of it, but I guess, its basically just using it like a hoe. Your pulling the material toward you. You can do it back and forth(push load, pull load) and not have it pile up on either end of the hole from trying to get the bucket so full that it spills over on the end of the stroke. Dozing: As I mentioned, opening the clamshell up and using the back of the bucket as a dozer works pretty well. But because of the geometry of the boom, if you actually want it smooth and level you have to use the tracks. maybe a really good operator could make it level with the boom. Finish Grading :falldownlaugh When i smooth the road out behind me I usually just set the bucket on the ground and swing it side to side as i am tracking backwards, this is the fastest and smoothest way to cover up my skid marks that i have found. Side Loading: It doesn't have as much slewing torque as i thought, so if i need to push a pile or rock sideways then i do it just like i see people hit a golf ball. I fill up the bucket if its a big pile, line it up to the right height, (make a short stroke and hit it a little to make sure it will move) then swing it back as far as i can and bam, hit it with the side of the bucket at about 20mph. Like a 60,000 lb hammer. I certainty wouldn't do that with a hoe stick. If i need to do it to a boulder i put a pile of dirt in front of it first for cushion. It sounds like rough, but its probably the smoothest operation you can do, the machine doesn't shake or jerk. Tree transplanting: I was hoping i could do 10 and 12" trees but the bucket just isn't big enough. I think 8" is doable depending on the soil. Its kind of a pita to get it dumped out without debarking the tree. I haven't really tried much. I think it would much more versatile with some forks which would be easy to mount in the bucket or for long term mount off the backplate of the clamshell.
The rest is alright, but I'd avoid doing this as it could damage the swing gear, the swing gearbox, or the swing motor. And it's not a cheap repair, trust me. It'll be too late if you break something, and it'll cost you upwards of 20 grand to fix it on a big machine like that, even with used or rebuilt parts. The front shovel boom may be strong, but the swing system is the same as any other excavator. The swing drive is perhaps the most delicate system on an excavator in the sense that it's not hard to damage it.
:iagree He is right. The swing action should be limited, or you will likely have a catastrophic failure in the swing system. If you need to move a rock sideways, track into a better position so you can push on it. Takes just a bit of time and will save lots of money and headache.
This is great advice. You have made an amazing purchase with these machines and the thought of having these beasts in the backyard would be a fantasy most of us would like to see fulfilled, don't risk having 85 tons of junk in your yard due to the swing grenading through abuse. It would probably not be cost effective to fix. Great photos BTW. Baz
Wow, those are kick ass photos. Thank You!!!
I think this is awsome! I'd do it if i had the money... great pics. Keep em coming
I think it is great...Your doing things most people can't. Opportunity Knocked, you opened the door.
dude, unreal little playground you've got there. Any chance we could see pictures of your workshop?? everyone loves a good workshop. I would love for that size machinery to be avaliable at that price here in Australia...My boss would buy one just for the fuuk of it. Might i ask what your 'day job' is?? cheers mate. Keep up the good work.
Its been a year since this thread has been bumped. Maybe douglasco will come by and give us an update.
This was a great read! I was in somewhat disbelief when I saw the pictures! That is a amazing deal. I wonder how they are doing today
Hope he didn't test his power lines?
I hope his lack of knowledge doesn't get him into trouble. Power lines aren't something to be messed with, nor is swinging the bucket into rocks (shards can break off and come at you I would have thought) not to mention the cost of a repair job if the swing motor breaks. Good luck to him though, looks like heaps of fun!
just read the whole lot... possibly one of the funniest I've read in a long while. the concept of: well I fancy a patch of gardening, two 70tonners should do. I love it. Hats off to the guy and I'll raise a glass to his success. :drinkup In a serious note, as Overworked and D11CRD and other have mentioned, I hope he is safe and well, another guy put it quite well, this gear can kill people quick.
He lives in a subdivision, added a fifth floor to his house, brings in a couple of 70 ton hoes to landscape a bit, you can bet his Christmas light display is visible from space. I'm thinking his Home Owners Association had him killed.
I don't know how, but i forgot about this thread. I think wilko has the right idea.
A truly unbelievable story ! You claimed to have very little heavy equipment experience but allot of common sense, interesting self observation ......go big or go home has taken on new meaning for me after reading this nonsense.... Carry on with your bad self my man and try not yo kill yourself or anyone else in the process.... Good Greif....
This is absolutely FANTASTIC! Thanks for bumping this one back up for us. I have to admit, my reaction was a combination of shock and jealousy. I sure hope OP is doing ok and didn't die/get bumped off by the HOA. At the same time, front shovels are my favorite kind of excavator and I would LOVE to have one that size to mess about with (apart from the power lines!!). Here I was thinking I was possibly a bit silly for wanting a piece of land over 6-7 acres so I can dig around with a Gradall and maybe a 225. Now we know you can run two 70 ton machines in a subdivision on 3 acres.... Hats off to you, OP. You definitely got a deal. I've definitely found that there is some BIG iron out there for a song IF YOU CAN MOVE IT. A partially collapsed 500 ton Manitowoc crawler just went for like 8 grand in Chile a few months ago.....but you had to move it. House and undercarriage were just fine. Fun thread!
I remember this thread as it was taking place. It's an incredible read. I was in Denver last week, it would have been fun trying to look this guy up.
DouglasCo ...Boy, sometimes I think I'm "crazy", but you are in a league by yourself!! I just finished reading this whole thread...unbelievable...oh, to be 30 again!! Great pictures, I would love to see some pics of the work you did with your "toys"...& pics of your shop. And what does your wife think of all this?? I presume you still have one...?? It certainly can't be said that you don't think "outside the box"!!! I love your spirit!!
Been over 3 yrs. since he was logged in. Would be kind of neat to see some pics.
Thanks for bumping this again Shimmy1, I had not seen it before. Common sense, or uncommon. Thought that comes to mind is that there is a reason that Swiss watch makers don't use a 5lb. hammer and cold chisel in their trade. More power to you Douglasco!
I would REALLY like to see the aftermath of this. My kinda guy. The main reason I built a 3800 sq ft home with my own two hands when I was 25 was because everyone told me I couldn't. That's what America needs more of............the "hold my beer and watch this!" kind of attitude! Hats off to you Douglasco! Git 'er dunn!!
I guess you could use a Hytorq to loosen your lug nuts... I Laughed too much at this not to bump. Im a little jealous, i really couldnt use a hoe that size with the clay here unless it was super super dry. I mean my 25 ton hoe is already overkill. Its just be super sick to own a fuel sucking pig like those. I do have to disagree with some of the more experienced on one thing. While I do agree playing "golf" is really bad for machines, that is usually because you are putting the couterweight's inertia into stress on the boom and arm. But he has no counterweight besides the house mass of course. Hes not putting 1000s of hours on it either. let him work.
I wish I could like this post twice! I was in this when it was happening, this was a fantastic summary and prediction!
So nobody has found out the outcome yet?
Best thread on this forum by far. I thought I was crazy for buying a pair of mini's and a skid steer with no experience!
I've got a 63,000 pound wheel dozer that I use around my place. Extreme overkill for anything I need to do, but I love it! No, it doesn't compare to his shovels, but similar concept. And yeah, I got it for cheap. Huge stuff is cool.
Post some pictures please.
I really wanted to figure out what became of the original guy in this thread. It did not seem like it would be too hard for someone on this forum to figure out where the property was and go over there and see what is going on.
Here are a couple poor pictures I had on my phone. It's an old Michigan 280. 8V71N for power.
Damn that is cool.
Right now I am looking for a small cheap grader to keep my driveway in shape. Something like an old Deere 570 would be perfect. However, I certainly wouldn't refuse to consider a larger machine, if one became available at a good price. I wouldn't even turn down something absurdly large like a Cat 24. I would look at it as a challenge (grading a small 2,200' driveway with a huge machine), and sort of an adventure. Sometimes a good deal can be had on something like that, simply because most other people wouldn't even consider it, and if it is an older machine, most businesses aren't interested.
A local cat skinner said those old rubber tired dozers could bury a track dozer of similar size on stock pile work, mostly because of the faster reverse speed.
And I can drive up and down my driveway without damaging it, unlike a tracked dozer. I can also head down the county road to the neighbors place if I want to. And yeah, it will go a lot faster than I am comfortable driving it. Lol
So, do trees just fall over from fear when you approach them with that dozer? If I had a dozer like that, I'd be out pushing trees over and flattening my hills.
The blade will lift up pretty high. I'd say that the cutting edge will get about 4-4.5 feet up, so yeah, when pushing that high on a tree it's easy to push over some really big ones.
The little woman has given me an assignment to remove a Douglas fir stump, and a couple of maple trees, as well as moving probably 30 yards of hard packed dirt. I could do it with my backhoe, but it would be a tall order for the old well worn machine. It should be a quick and relatively easy task for the dozer. Maybe I will get my daughter to film the operation and put it on YouTube, as long as everyone agrees that no actual dozer operators will watch it.
I just tried to find douglasco, in Douglas, CO, as I figured it'd be pretty easy to find his place, especially with 2 giant machines on the property but I didn't have any luck. 'Tis a shame, I'd also like an update. I'm pretty sure @douglasco and @Spud_Monkey , working together, could reverse the rotation of the Earth.
Did you ask any of the locals? Of course if you were talking to city folks, you would probably have to refer to him as the guy with two big "bulldozers", or big "dirt digging thingys"
Haha! Oh, no! I forgot to mention I was just on Google Maps!
Find a Gallion 503 & put a diesel in it from an IH combine like my Grandfather & dad did in 1992. Cheap & a great little grader.
I had a pretty well worn, but good running Galion T500 about 10 years ago, but I let it go when a dude offered me quite a bit more than I had in it. Even it was quite a bit bigger than what I need, but I really should have kept it.
OK, I started a thread in the dozer section with a couple of videos of the old Michigan wheel dozer. Try not to laugh at my lack of dozing skills.
Man, I can doze like a champ! ...Oh, you mean BULLdozing!
I still think this story is a little sus, the pics don't add up to the story that's told and why did he leave the counterweight off for so long and didn't answer most of the questions asked.
Google Maps Link Maybe?
There's definitely a shovel there. Looks like it still doesn't have the counterweight on.
Those pics don't add up to that house lot, the pics are dug really far down like 3-4 stories. Something does not add up. Doesn't really matter
I'm pretty confident that's it. See the matching roof in this picture of the house: He's got the machine on the road edge looking back into the property in this photo. Note the powerlines overhead which can be seen in Google Maps. I can't believe I found it so easily. I just looked up Douglas County, then looked for a subdivision with 3+ acre lots on the edge of the mountains where it would look out on the flatland like he described in his post and happened to spot the shovel in the first area I looked.
Man, quite the sleuthing! I looked for generally the same thing and couldn't find it, I think that's it too! If so he's made some progress, whatever it may be...
Good for him!!! I love it
How do explain the huge pit he's working in the pictures? That's not on the maps
Those pictures are from when he went to get the machines from the pit where he bought them. In the post he says they are old pictures. The skidder with the National crane boom was in the same pit.
Looks like a junkyard. I bet the neighbors are happy.
CM, you aren't imagining the possibilities! Maybe he's erecting a small roller coaster!
Bing Maps makes it look a bit worse:
not impossible Dragon Coaster - Hollywood Connection (West Valley City, Utah, United States) Looking for statistics on the fastest, tallest or longest roller coasters? Find it all and much more with the interactive Roller Coaster Database. rcdb.com
Yeah, @micoasters , I've seen several backyard coasters, some are pretty sweet!
Old thread I know but I think it needs to be brought to the top every year or so just for giggles. Sure would like to know what happened. Maybe someone can actually drive by this place someday and post some photos here.
I would put it at epic thread number 2. Epic thread number one is the thread that should never be mentioned.
I don't know if I know the number one thread. I love this thread though. I just went and checked for updated maps but didn't see anything new.
Great read, hope everything is going smoothly for the guy. Definitely the largest machines ive seen on a residential lot owned by the homeowner but not by much lol. Plenty of 50 to 60 ton old worn out hoe's sitting on small farms 10 acre and under around me. You can pretty much get them for the price of scrap and run them until something breaks then they're an ornament. Just buy another if you still need one as its far cheaper than repairing the broken one.
Assuming you plan to let something like that rot after you got it and used it cheap I'd think turning it to scrap with the gas axe would be better than leaving it sit in the way in the yard. Couldn't they get cut up into manageable bites with a torch? Seems like there'd be a fair amount of recycling money there, though a lot of trips to the recycle center.
In the first posted pics i thought the road where he unloaded looked like hwy 105. What did the neighbors think as he walked those beasts up into the development? I bet the second machine is somewhere in the neighborhood...
The concept of cutting up big iron for scrap is wonderful but the execution is a whole other story. For a one man show with no other equipment or much smaller equipment its just not safe or feasible to take the torch and start cutting a big giant down. Over my career developing land ive had to remove quite the number of big iron left behind by previous owners. Even with my 30 ton hoe and a few 13 ton hoes on site, the amount of rigging and securing to safely dismantle some of them actually cost me money because scrap prices are so low. As an example prices right now would bring roughly $12,000 for 60 tons of scrap. I dont know anyone that would spend weeks cutting down a 60 ton hoe and haul it in for scrap using a class 7 or under farm truck.
Yeah, that makes sense.
Ughhh - This thread. It's is like a turd that won't flush...
It's been 16 years and I'm still amazed this wasn't all a work.
Really really big turds!