I want to haul some rock in a dump trailer on my woods roads using my TD7. I will be going down 50% slopes loaded in dry conditions. How do I determine how much weight I can safely handle. Dozer weighs 14.5K lbs with so-so grousers and has a torque converter/power shift transmission. Thanks. gg
When you say 50% slope I assume you mean 45 degrees. A lot of things depend on what you are asking. Are they straight down? How long? How much tongue weight. What type of soil for tractability? I don't know of a formula but I would start with half as much as I think I could take and then go up from there a bit at a time based on how it handled it. It takes the fun out in a hurry if you are pushed out of control especially if the downhill has turns. Do you have a ROPS and a seat belt?
Start light and add a little more each load? One thing to keep in mind if you haven't done this before, as I recall the TD7 is the old mechanical steering clutch and steering brake setup? When going downhill with a heavy load pushing, as you pull say the right lever to turn right, as the steering clutch releases, the track will freewheel until the brake comes on and the machine will actually want to turn left abruptly. Same thing when you come off the brake, until the steer clutch locks up again, it will want to freewheel some. It's not instinctive but when the load is pushing you downhill it's safer to feather the opposite steer clutch and let the load push the tractor around to where you want it pointing. Apologies if you've been there, done that
That is really steep, I am working on my pond with slopes a little steeper and I slide a lot unless the ground has been packed down with my D4 LGP and that is with no trailer.
Usually 45 degrees is 100%, 1:1 rise. 50% should be if we're all on the same page, just under 30 degrees, and that's steep enough for me, anytime.
Yes by 50% I meant a 5' rise over a 10' run or 26 degrees or so. I don't have the trailer yet. I want something I can pull with my one ton to the gravel pit and then use the dozer in the woods.
No apology needed. I would rather be given to much advise than not enough. You are right on the steering scenario where the drive clutch releases first and the brake is not applied until the stick is pulled back further. On the steepest downgrades I can free wheel the outside track with the opposite stick to make a slow turn even w/o a pushing load.
I have never heard the term percent used in a slope before except in civil drawings calling for nearly flat waterflow specs in a parking lot. My brain would think that 100% would be 90 degrees or straight up and down. So is a 67 degree slope 150%. Straight up and down or 90 degrees 200%?
Percentage of slope is rise to run, so if you travel 10 feet forward (run) and the rise is also ten feet up, then that's 100%, and the slope angle is 45 degrees. I believe this is also referred to in engineering as a 1 to 1 slope. You really can't get to 90 degrees in percent because at that point you have infinite rise with zero run. I input 10,000 % into an online calculator and got 89.43 degrees. 67 degrees is 236% It's really of no use past 100% IMHO.
Just short load the trailer & load according to terrain like lantraxco mentioned earlier . Or hire some wild man with a single axil dump truck to haul in and spread for ya .
LOL! Well, at least without the trailer on you could back the front brakes off and be able to steer! That way you get to pick what you slam into! :tong
Are you putting a brake controller on the dozer? I've heard stories of jobs where the dump trucks slide down a bank loaded but that's not something I'd be comfortable with.The biggest thing to me would be going as slow as possible and still being able to stop with a comfortable safety margin. Start slow, and go faster or heavier if it stops easily.
Yeah , Not to mention I drive the truck ....... Dad ( the real wild man ) loads the truck off a stock pile where it's level . Gotta keep an eye on him . We spread allot of stone on walking trails at parks . Single axil dump works great . Generally have quarry haul in at stock pile and we load as needed depending on terrain . Some places we may only put a couple tons on if it's layin pretty side ways .