What is the typical life of a dozer undercarriage on a machine used for general purpose work ?
Legdoc, As in the other the other post I am unhappy with any thing less than 6000hrs. But we dont run in much rock either, maybe 100 hrs a year in a caliche pit. When working we push in 1st and back up in 1st, road only in second idled down to about 1750 rpm.
So then am I to understand that in a non rock environment ( dry to wet clay packed loam) 6000 hours is a reasonable expectation? Also what kind of dollars are we talking about for a complete UC from OEM for let's say a JD650 or Case 850?
Cant really help you on JD or Case but on that is what I expect on our D5h and D6r, maybe a little more than the 6000 hrs in clay or loam. I would think you should be able to get at least that with the JD or Case since they have to compete with Cat. As for the cost I have no clue as all my experience is with Cat. I have 30+ yrs experience and have run Cat all of those except for 20 hrs I put on Komatsu D65ex that was a demo.
Undercarriage life has so many variables that it would be very hard to say what to expect. I look at and measure undercarriage on all kinds of machines in many different applications and have found no hard rules that I can really latch onto. I have only a few general observations based on my experience. Small machine undercarriages do not last as long as large machine undercarriages. This is real general but from my experience most small machines, D3-5, TD7-9, Deere 450-650 only run around 1700 hours till you need to turn pins and bushings and only make around 2,800 to 3,200 till total destruction. This is in general construction, site preparation and forestry in the Northwestern US. D6 size through D8 usually run a little over 2,000 hours to turn and close to 4,000 hours to destruction. D9 and larger machines I have found to be greatly dependant on the material and use factors. Big machines working spoil tend to last a lot longer while machines working shot rock tend to not last as long. Advances in technology and material science are extending this in some applications. There are definite quality differences between manufacturers and even batches made by the same manufacturer. Some SALT tracks have a history of loosing seals before its time to turn, which kills internal wear rates. Another thread on this forum addresses tracks that are spalling and coming apart. I've seen problems in all manufacturers. I've also seen big successes in some manufacturers. There are great cost differences between manufacturers and a general statement I can make is that cost usually relates specifically to productive operating life. The cost of an undercarriage is never set in stone and many times the negotiating ability of the purchaser has as much to do with the price as anything. Undercarriage for a high drive generally costs more than for an oval track machine. What really matters is how much the stuffs costs over its operating life. There is a tutorial on the structure of undercarriage components on this site. http://www.constructioncentric.com/forum/YaBB.pl