quote:

Originally posted by Oz_Shadow:
How’s the parts demand? Are many running them or restoring them? Any JD Dozer clubs?

Excellent questions. I guess I'll find out. There are one or two websites dedicated to old crawlers. Also, many of the parts are compatible with the John Deere 420/430 series of wheel tractors.

I spent a few hours on Sunday helping a buddy clean out the back yard of his late fathers house. Lots of old junk back there.
We were successful moving a 50's era Allis bulldozer (possibly an H3?) from one corner of the property to the other. Less successful trying to move a somewhat larger Oliver dozer.
Neither of these machines have run in the last 20 years. No attempt was made to start them up, or for that matter to even turn over the engine. Tracks on the Allis were locked up solid.
Yet we moved it so that a guy from Virginia can come up with a Landall trailer, drag them both on, and take them home.

My point is, there are people out there who are really into this old iron. I hope you can find the collector(s) who absolutely, positively have to have what you've got there.

quote:

Originally posted by PHPaul:
Time to run while I still have a shot at breaking even.

Sorry to hear but hopeful for at least an even break.

Not getting attached and making the right decision early +1.

quote:

Originally posted by braillediver:

Sorry to hear but hopeful for at least an even break.

Not getting attached and making the right decision early +1.

Somewhat to my surprise (considering weight and shipping costs) a feller wants the tracks, drive sprockets and rollers all of which are in usable condition.

While taking the track frames apart to get the rollers out, it became even more apparent that I made the right decision. Track frames, stone guards and all the attaching hardware were in horrible shape and the first time I tried to push anything substantial would have disintegrated. New track frames don't exist. Finding used track frames in working condition would be A) highly unlikely and/or B) horrendously expensive.

Well darn it.

At least you can make good on the parts. Can't imagine what it would be like if it decided to grenade itself and injure you or your loved ones.

[Sob]It wasn't supposed to end like this.[/Sob]

Man if you have done anything with this thread it is to thoroughly teach me what a wuss I am. I stopped changing oil in my 20s, gear packs and final drives, man its like star trek in reverse.

I know more than the average bear, but I recall my uncle being able to tear about anything to the ground and put it back together. Just didn't spend my life doing those things and kinda wish I had.

@Timdogg6 - My mechanical experience is a result of a few factors:

1. A natural bent for such things. I was running around with a screwdriver at 5 or 6 tightening up the handles on cabinet doors. I am a HUGE tool junkie. I get a lot of pleasure out of fixing stuff, whether it be a door latch or a bulldozer.

2. I was raised on a farm. I don't know that we were "poor", but paying someone to fix something was darn near unheard of. Dad was an electrician by trade, but also did all the carpentry and plumbing and tractor overhauls. About that only thing I do that I didn't learn most of by watching him is welding and machining.

3. I'm too stupid to know I can't do something. I've taught myself the basics of welding. (TIG work on aluminum has evaded me so far, unfortunately.) I bought myself a lathe and a mill and while I may never progress beyond basic, rough work I learn a little every time I attempt something. (Youtube and the Innerwebz are huge resources.)

4. I'm blessed (or cursed, depending on your point of view) with a highly visual approach to learning. If I can see it, in most cases I can figure out how it works, what is wrong and how to fix it.

Good news is, I'm waiting on a check for the tracks, rollers and drive sprockets, and have a solid bite on the final drives and dozer blade. That'll go a long way towards recouping my losses.

https://www.smokstak.com/

They do everything from steam engines to old tractors to generators. Someone there may want parts

Well, if everybody comes through on their offers, I've sold all the major stuff and recouped my losses. I'll have a lot of unlikely to sell stuff left (transmission internals and such) but the big stuff is spoken for.

One guy, who flips dozers for a living (or at least a full-time hobby) wants me to ship 1500+ pounds of dozer blade, frame and final drives to NorDakoda!

quote:

Originally posted by PHPaul:


....One guy, who flips dozers for a living (or at least a full-time hobby) wants me to ship 1500+ pounds of dozer blade, frame and final drives to NorDakoda!

That’s going to cost Thousands!

^^^

UPS has flat rate shipping.
Larger pieces can be shipped by Greyhound.
Estes can handle the rest.

Got a few parts such as subframes, seats, hard tops, transmissions, etc... shipped for surprisingly little. Having a loading dock available is a big plus.

Had a guy rent a U-Haul and drive it a few states over for an engine I had for sale, he decided he wanted the whole car and rode in a tow truck back home.

Possibly it could be done for as little as $500 or so.

quote:

Originally posted by smlsig:

That’s going to cost Thousands!

I don't have a final quote yet as I don't know exact dimensions and weight, but a good guess comes in under $400 if I deliver it to a terminal at this end and he picks it up at a terminal on his end. I located a big enough pallet and arranged to have the individual pieces strapped to it and weighed all of which should get done next week.

That's with YRC, used to be Yellow Freight.

I've got a guy coming up from somewhere in PA to pick up the tracks, sprockets and rollers and another guy working on getting the hood and grille to Cow Hampsha where he'll pick it up later. A third guy is supposed to show up tomorrow to look at the engine, pretty sure he's gonna take it.

If all of the above goes as planned, I'm slightly past the break-even point, which is better than I expected.

Sounds like my last boat. I recovered most of my investment not counting my time of course. Good luck!

At least this dozer project is going a little better...

More pics and story here

well its time to get those hens workin


they've been coasting long enough