Its getting a little nippily around here and I will be using my dozer this winter putting in a subdivision rd. I am looking for some advice on what vinyl cab enclosure to buy or not buy. My dozer is a 2003? D3GXL Thanks, doug
Wow, I'm surprised you haven't got any suggestions Doug. Surely someone out there uses a soft cab. I don't know myself, not a dozer operator. I did see a couple on Ebay, don't know if they are any good though. We have a D3-G on our lot, don't know the year. Open cab just like yours, and it has heat! Heat comes out of 4 vents on the dash, two for your feets, and the other two for your upper, and a strong blowing fan. Is your machine like that?
You gotta man up and take it!!!I don't think that they make reverse fans for that small dozer either.I used to wrap plastic sheathing around the back and sides and cut slits in the rear to peek through but that was stripping topsoil with noone else around.I wouldn't do it grading etc.As ATCO says,they do make heaters for the small dozers,I ran a JD 650H with a heater under the seat and it was a help but unless you have a cab it will be uncomfortable.There Are aftermarket canvas cabs available and a good shop can make one for you.The trouble with them is the plexiglas windows get scratched up after a while but they can be replaced.Good luck.Ron G
How about contacting someone who does canvas work on boats? A few snaps, lift-a-dots and zippers with the canvas (actually Sunbrella) and you will have a snug soft cab. Good luck, Rick
Hey RonG, I've not had access to a good number of dozers, but I've not seen many open cab dozers with heat. We have a D3G XL that looks just like the one DigDug has, and the heater is factory Cat. The fan on the heater really moves some air. I was moving it on our lot last winter with the heat going, and it felt pretty good. I was wondering if Doug had a heater like this on his machine.
The place in Atoka Oklahoma used to carry and and probably still does those soft cabs. They also had a canvas cover that goes over the grill and pushes the warm air thru a tube onto the operator. They will get ripped up in brush, but help alot to knock the chill off.
I found one , check these out. I am going to order one at my dealer. Thanks for all the suggestions , they are appreciated. Atco- Yes it has factory heat and it works damn well ! I am on a big hill and its windy as heck , so I am going to get a little help with one of these cabs. RonG. - I have been "manning up" for 30yrs , but I'm getting lazy. haha. My company logo is "when the going gets tough the tough get going".
oops , heres the link to the cabs. http://www.fremar.com/ :drinkup
Pffffftttttt! You mean, your gettin' old like the rest of us. :yup Yeah man, the D-3 we have is like yours. That's a really sweet operating machine. And the heater is off the chain for an open cab. I'd say it will be rather cozy with a soft cab on it.
vinyl cab enclosure D3G: Yes, we must stay comfy... :lmao OCR *Note: Original quote modified, for effect, by OCR... :tong OK, I'll give you a little slack... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knoxville#Climate
ATCO,that is the only dozer that I ever saw with a heater and no cab.It was not really cold enough to need it but my thinking was maybe wearing a poncho or something could direct or contain the heat enough to make you comfortable.I seldom ran anything new enough in my career to be exposed to this new technology,seems like I was a generation behind all the time.LOL. DigDug,I have run equipment outside when it was so cold the snot was freezing to my moustache and the tears in my eyes so bad I couldn't see much of the time.That is no fun but was the price to pay for being able to work outside the rest of the year when the weather was nice.................well................maybe not that nice spreading dry topsoil in 100 degree heat but hey,that is what I did for a living,right? When I finally got to run a machine with A/C I felt guilty..........does anyone else know about this??Ha ha. What is miserable is running an A/C equipped machine in the heat when the A/C does not work because there is never enough ventilation,I have seen a few of those too in my days.Good luck with it,I'll keep my cold weather suit just in case Ron G
Our 943 Cat loader also came with factory heater and no cab. When I put a cab on it a couple of years later I had to add the Cat temperature control as I couldn't stand it in the cab, just way too hot with the fan running even at 0 degrees and below.
http://burchheathouser-kabking.com/ind_heat_houser/index.htm http://onlineordering.fremar.com/Products-Caterpillar_Tractor_Cab.html Burch is well known for cabs, heat housers and related products. The Cat dealer probably has them as well. Hope this helps, winter sure sucks in an open cab! alan627b