Hi, I would be the least person here to be asked about technical inspection when buying a Used piece of iron, but have picked up a few tricks and some knowledge from shopping around in auctions and yards. I wanted to post this thread to help out begeners, and I'm one of them. And for ou experts here to pitch in. So let me start, - Go around the machine and look for leaks (engine, rams, hoses, pumps) - Check for welded parts, such as sprockets, tracks & locks, and arms. - Check the undercarriage for any damage or worn parts. - Start up and listen to the engine and see how smooth or clunky it goes, and look for the amount of smoke and color and for how long it continues to blow. - Engage it in gear and check how it responds to shifting into gear. And go forward and backwards and listen to any noises, the rollers could be worn out and would make a loud sqeeky noise - Check for any missing bolts on the tracks or even missing tracks. - Ask for any oil analysis done on the machine. Well that's what I could think of now, what do you guys think should be checked?
Good list.. only I would add to check the Pressure gauges for Oil, Transmission, and Hydraulic pump.Take along a sprocket undercarriage wear spec. tool , so to compare with the hrs meter.
if you can move the machine around a bit, check steering and sterring brakes for responsiveness. Also operate the hydraulics and note any noises.. -check for the grease in the obvious grease points, is it old or does it look new. what colour is the grease (could imply water in the joint that the grease is pushing out) maybe the zerk won't allow grease so the pin or joint is dry. check for play in any of the linkages... rod
Now that's what I'm talking about when it comes to sharing knowledge and experience, "sprocket undercarriage wear spec. tool , so to compare with the hrs meter" that is unheard of here and I wouldn't know where to start looking for one of those tools. Can you point me to a direction mate? Thanks for participating.
Track tools are dealer items. Call Cat. I have used Terex Dozers the wear gauges came from Terex.
Thanks guys
Track tool...
You can use a tape measure to see whats left on the rails compared to a newer machine.A micrometer is better.On Komatsus run your fingers over the top rollers,if their razor sharp on the outside then they are wore out and theres a good chance the rest of the undercarriage is.
Another couple of things, Check the color of all fluids. The oil condition and color can be a great indicator of components condition and what the maintenance schedule has been like. It is also a good idea to try and run a machine for at least half an hour and see if the temperatures rise abnormally and if pressures drop below acceptable limits. Look also for obvious signs of steam cleaning where the paint has more color indicating it was covered with oil. This can be a good way for a seller to mask oil leaks in the short term. Another one is check for hydraulic creep. Not always noticeable when operating, but can drive you crazy when you need stuff to stay where you left it, like rippers dragging on the ground after an hour. Baz
2nd gear tourqe stall,heat it up,see how fast it heats up and cools down but the seller might not like you doing this,if it's in good shape then it should'nt be a problem. This test will also tell if the engines got a problem.
check to make sure the duo cone seals arnt leaking raise the blade slightly and then lower to the ground slowly se how long it takes to hit resistance, so you can feel how much slack is in the pins and trunions for the blade. if it has a messenger interface then check for codes. look for hour meter readings written on filters. If your not in a hurry go buy a CAT sample kit and pull some samples, if your in a real hurry find a local place that does oil sample reports
Keep it coming guys, that's grate, Thanks all
Maybe on the obvious side but when I inspect machines just looking at the machine from a walk around tells me what I'm in for. If the glass is cracked, dash screws half missing (or too tight and plastic all cracked), metal door panels bent, mud/grease everywhere, vice grips on the heater hoses, dirt down the dipstick tube, etc. you know what this machines life has been like. Again if it looks like it just had a 5 gallon overhaul it raises questions. I know, I know not all used machines can look like new and things get hit/bent/wear and tear but you can just tell by looking at a machine sometimes if its had a hard life. I like machines that look like they match the hour meters. A little paint missing here or there, decals a little faded but not blown off from a pressure washer, pans not full of mud up to the oil pan and just generally look maintained.
If the grass in the cabin is not mowed, that's a deal breaker for me
I always try to check roller condition...both top & bottom,plus I give the sprockets & idlers a bit of a shove to check for wobble. Run the dozer in a stockpile for awhile & let it warm up,so you can check responsiveness of trans,engine,hydraulics,steering,etc.
Hi all, great thread! Two things I use. Bolts that are glued in, yes Araldite or similar, but they are actually broken ones, stuck in and painted over to make a sale, big problem and hard to find. Free play in control levers for hydraulics and brake pedals, a good indicator.
Great thread! I've been looking for a old cheap small dozer. Never owned one. I've got about 2 hours on a JD MC, 100 on a D8K with powershift and 6 on a cable lift D6. So "I KNOW NOTHING!"......I'm not in any hurry to buy and only want one as a "toy" and light farm work. Now I'm much better armed thanks you this thread! Rick
One of the most hellarious things to look out for is to make sure it does not have a "fiberglass ripper"....... yes you heard that right, I saw one in a auction yard that had a broken ripper and was patched up with some fiber glass.
excellent article on dozer inspection: http://www.scribd.com/doc/21282478/HEMM-Dozer2
Don't forget the beer cans and whiskey bottles.Make sure it's the high priced refreshments.Cheap stuff means no money for maintance.
I always look to make sure theres not any dead fish inside the machine or stuck on the radiator, or high water stains on the inside of the sheet metal. I was at a sale one time and a dozer had dead fish inside the belly and also dead fish on the inside of the radiator at the bottom they were the little minnows, I first thought it was a joke and after looking at it a while it had been in a flood and had algea growing up under the dash and there was a waterline in the cab, not very noticable but it was there so it was totally submerged above the intake on the hood and they tried to clean it up as best they could but didn't do a very good job of it. After looking closer at the fluids and dipsticks they all had a white looking slime on them somewhere so all the fluids were full of water at one time and they tried to empty them out and flush them as best as they could but its doubtfull you'll ever get it all. Over the years I've know of two tractors that went into ponds through the ice, a skid steer that went into a manure pit, a tractor that went into a manure lagoon, and several dozers that were submerged in ponds that were being built and all were bad news and the owners finally gave up and traded them off for someone else to fight with. I always reach inside panels that aren't normally taken off to see what I can wipe off on my hands to see whats not noticable from the outside or can't be reached with a pressure washer or steam cleaner. Just a suggestion for something not really thought of by most.
I thought you were kidding there when you said look out for fish....looool
check the engine condition and also check the drawbar pull also
also check the all beams also
inspection check the drawbar pull, because if problem in engine it may reduce the drawbar pull.
I normally start an inspection at the radiator check the condition of the coolant for colour strength and oil ingress. Black oil engine brown oil trans check for compression bubbling Air intake next - remove filters and check for dusting - remove turbo intake hoses and check side thrust and end float Check for excessive blowby check exhaust output under accelleration and under load Stall out the trans in each gear and note engine rpm against spec if high trans sus if low engine sus check brake holds at full rpm check hyd operation and listen to pump check gear shifting and steering function correctly check cab for dust and moisture leaks Measure track pin and bush wear measure chain height do a bung magnet check check engine oil for coolant and fuel dilution check trans oil for burning Run unit till at full operating temp and push dirt These are the basic checks you should do before you can establish what the dozer is worth and weather you should consider purchasing the unit
fresh pait Always makes me suspicious maybe have a closer look
question for mechtronic, whats a dung magnet check, maybe its just worded differently over in australia than the usa but am curious anyhow
i belive it measures the amount of body filler in the tinwork ect. I once knew a guy that filled his big scars on his skid steer with spray foam then bondo then paint. I felt bad even knowing
bung magnet is a magnetic drain plug.
dirthauler, thanks, thats what I thought it meant but never heard it put like that before.
Randy88 don't get dung and bung mixed up or you are moving into dangerous teritory Dung is camel droppings Bung is a plug A dung bung is a butt plug I think that's how you put it in the USA
When you are about to look at a used piece of equipment, it would be worthwhile to look at a simular machine that is new or a bit out of your price range (Those would typically be in good shape). That would give you an idea on what the machine you are about to look at COULD be. All the pointers in this thread are good, and here are some other thoughts: Engine Hold your hand over the exhaust and make sure all the cyilinders are running and the valves are intact. Transmission: If the machine is a powershift, shift into gear and see how fast the tourqe converter reacts. It should be relatively instantaneous. If there is any rough terrain around, crawl around it and get it working. Watch for the transmission stalling or slowing down. Steering clutches Pull both levers back to stop the crawler. now let one clutch in and see how it engages by letting it in slowly. the track should start moving with no unusual behaviour (A bit of a deep "Grinding" noise as the clutches engage is normal). Try the same test with the dozer deadheaded against somthing. the engine should drop in revs and almost stall. If it starts spinning out with full grousers, that's even better! :drinkup Tracks Dozers in the sub-10k area will almost always have worn-out chains and/or undercarriage. The chain wobbleing when you stand on it is never a good sign. Have a friend or another spotter make sure the rollers turn when the machine is moving.
#1 oil samples of every fluid on the machine, this includes engine, hydraulic, trans, finals. oil samples will tell the internal workings you can't see. even if they changed all the fluids by working the tractor you will stir up enough the bad stuff and it will show up in the samples. #2 a good mechanic (read qualified, not your best friends long lost buddy) to measure the under carriage, check all the physical operations of the machine and a good visual inspection.
mechtronic, sorry about that, dyslexia must be back again, I never noticed that even after reading it several times before posting, its either that or bad eye sight, the inability to spell, but I'm blaming the computer mostly, it should have known what I meant to type and I'm sticking with that excuse.
Hi Guys, I wonder how much $$$ a single-shank or multi-shank ripper adds to the price of a dozer. Does anyone have any idea? Thanks in advance. madozer
What size of dozer are you talking about..?
Say a D7G or a D8K... A ripper would probably be surplus to my requirements, so I just want to be sure it is not costing me a fortune when I am not really going to use it. I presume it is mostly used for tilling soil. Or could it be used to snap the horizontal roots of trees as well?
Since you are talking a used machine it is a little difficult to say a specific dollar amount. I tend to do my market research and just compare but a used machine can be anything as far as condition goes. Some people think a well used ripper indicates the machine has seen a lot of hard use while most rippers in construction machines only get used once in awhile and would indicate less shock and wear on the drive train. The one constant though is when you need the thing and you don't have it, they become priceless.
Hi John, All I need is an estimate, or a ballpark figure, say 5-10k? If I am looking at a D7G with a ripper that costs say 60k, I just want to have an idea how much of that is due to the ripper, and how much the dozer would normally cost, without the ripper. That's it really.
What I am saying is that on machines that old there is no way to estimate the difference in price because the overall condition of the machine means more than whether or not there is a ripper installed. The best you can do is look up those machines on Machinery Trader in the auction section and determine a range of all the similar machines sold within a specified time frame and work from that.