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D6 8U bulldozer restoration project
A mate of mine based at Yeoval runs Caterpillar D6 8U’s for a living, amongst others including a D7E, traxcavator, grader etc. He is a bit of a specialist in the old Caterpillars.
This machine was originally being repaired for the owner who has since decided that it would be better if my mate bought it and did and earthworks with it that he needs, rather than try to drive it himself. Good decision!
My mate’s father still operates these machines (over 50 years worth of experience!) and this is to be restored “as new” for him to use. He bought one of these brand new back in the day (1962 I believe) and has used them ever since.
This one has had the gearbox rebuilt, the floor plates and bonnet replaced, the seat rebuilt and everything sorted out to the highest standard they can manage, to give his Dad a taste of the old days, a “brand new” D6 8U. At the moment it runs hydraulics, but it will be converted to cable blade once they get it back to the workshop.
If you’re interested I will see if I can get more progress shots at it is prettied up.
D6 8U bulldozer restoration project
A mate of mine based at Yeoval runs Caterpillar D6 8U’s for a living, amongst others including a D7E, traxcavator, grader etc. He is a bit of a specialist in the old Caterpillars.
This machine was originally being repaired for the owner who has since decided that it would be better if my mate bought it and did and earthworks with it that he needs, rather than try to drive it himself. Good decision!
My mate’s father still operates these machines (over 50 years worth of experience!) and this is to be restored “as new” for him to use. He bought one of these brand new back in the day (1962 I believe) and has used them ever since.
This one has had the gearbox rebuilt, the floor plates and bonnet replaced, the seat rebuilt and everything sorted out to the highest standard they can manage, to give his Dad a taste of the old days, a “brand new” D6 8U. At the moment it runs hydraulics, but it will be converted to cable blade once they get it back to the workshop.
If you’re interested I will see if I can get more progress shots at it is prettied up.
D6 8U bulldozer restoration project
Well, she’s a runner! Yesterday a small group of us gathered around to hear this old machine fire up for the first time in 20 years. I missed the very first firing, which was aborted when the revs climbed and climbed and climbed! They shut it down and worked out that the injector rack was seized, and that there were other problems in the governor box, which will be sorted out back at the workshop.
Barry and Darren pulled the covers off the governor box and managed to get the injector rack free, then put the covers back on and tried again.
The engine runs as sweetly as any engine you have ever seen! When you put your hand against it as it is running it almost feels alive! Sounds silly I know, but it is true!
Next move is to re-attach the blade for transport, which will require a top up of the hydraulics – shame, since they will only be removed at the workshop to be replaced with a cable system. Then chain the ripper to the blade, load the lot on to a low loader and drop it off at the workshop. Then the fun will really start!
It seems as though the thermostats are stuck, with some steam coming out of the front after a few minutes of running, but there is a new radiator waiting back at the workshop. The temperature gauge is not working, so will be replaced. It wasn’t charging the batteries, so maybe the regulator is cactus – time will tell.
So, one major step closer!
Video of it running and even moving in to the C frame to re-attach the blade:
Edit: I have just now been sent a video of the machine running with the blade attached! They don’t muck around, these boys!
ECKS-Man wrote:the rookie wrote:ECKS this is awesome ! Just watched the video and she sounds like she is running smoother then most machines today.Should start a new thread just for this project! i know im not the only one excited too see how the old dozer turns out!
Ok, will do that tomorrow when I have a computer. TB, can you maybe shuffle these posts into a new thread?
She runs really nicely, unbelievable really! This thing is getting on for 50 years old! Hopefully I can get some pics and video once it gets back to the workshop. Progress will stop for a while as the boys have to clear out some tanks (dams) near Lighting Ridge in the next week or so, but I will post what I can.
No worries ECKS, great project eh I have worked on a donkey start cable blade 6
TB
Trailboss wrote:ECKS-Man wrote:the rookie wrote:ECKS this is awesome ! Just watched the video and she sounds like she is running smoother then most machines today.Should start a new thread just for this project! i know im not the only one excited too see how the old dozer turns out!
Ok, will do that tomorrow when I have a computer. TB, can you maybe shuffle these posts into a new thread?
She runs really nicely, unbelievable really! This thing is getting on for 50 years old! Hopefully I can get some pics and video once it gets back to the workshop. Progress will stop for a while as the boys have to clear out some tanks (dams) near Lighting Ridge in the next week or so, but I will post what I can.
No worries ECKS, great project eh I have worked on a donkey start cable blade 6
TB
Thanks PTW for moving these posts and starting this thread! I’ll try to do it justice!
Yes TB, great project!
These blokes run cable blades because they do a lot of scrub clearing and when raking sticks you need the blade to move up and down quite quickly. Hydraulics, particularly on these older model Cat’s, are too slow. They also use a drawn scraper which is controlled by cables. The advantage of a scraper towed behind a bulldozer is that the bulldozer can tow a scraper with 7 – 20 yards of dirt up the batter of a dam (3:1) where a powered scraper can only manage grades of a few percent.
I’ll post up in a few minutes with pictures of a scraper project which is coming up!
LeTourneau Drawn Scraper project
Back in 1981, Darren’s father was building a dam on a property east of Wellington. He was using a Fiat Allis HD20 or HD21 bulldozer and a Letourneau drawn scraper. As he was finishing up the dam, the final drives on the dozer failed – while towing the loaded scraper. The scraper was parked where it stopped and the dozer taken away to be repaired. Bear in mind that the scraper bowl can’t be operated without power from the cable drive of the dozer – meaning it can’t be emptied.
It turned out that the dozer was a write-off. In the resultant chaos, Barry never got back to the scraper. In the meantime, he changed dozers a few times and the scraper sat where it had been left.
Time passed, trees grew in the bowl! It became a bit of a legend. Then last year Darren and I happened to be in the area and went to have a look:
Yep, that clump of trees is growing out of the bowl!
This scraper is (I think from memory) a 14-yard scraper and is best towed behind a D7 sized machine. The plan is to recover this scraper and hook it behind one of the boys’ D7’s which will have a cable control installed to run it. They have some upcoming work near Lightning Ridge sinking tanks (dams) up to about 10,000 yards. That’s a big hole in the ground!
We are hoping to get there in the next few months, cut the trees out and get it ready to move. Unfortunately, it will require one of the machines there to hook up the cables and lift the bowl then move the back of the bowl forward to empty it. The tyres are all shot and are no longer available, but an alternative has been found from underground mining boggers. The alternative tyres are a larger diameter, so the wheels will have “hungry boards” installed so that it all fits.
Once we get the trees out and hook up the dozer, we hope the cables will be strong enough that we can lift the bowl, empty it and drag the scraper on to a low loader, flat tyres and all. Then take it back to the workshop and start making it go again!
I work in the earth works industry and I have been showing the guys the trees in the scraper bowl and they are all amazed by the pics, so cool
PTW
Well, Sam the D6 is back at the yard now. There was a delay while the boys rebuilt the final drive on a D7F, an expensive and slow process. Now, they are madly running around trying to catch up on lost time (and money) so Sam is taking a bit of a back seat in the priority list for a while.
The front grille is off and next will be the hydraulic tank and associated hoses, then the nose cone. This will make room for the cable pulleys and conduits when they are installed.
Hopefully, I’ll be on hand most weekends to hand spanners and take photos, so that you can see any progress as it occurs.
At least, now that Sam is in the yard, he is handy to the workshop and small jobs don’t require a half-hour drive each way, things can happen in spare moments.
So, not a lot of progress on Sam to report, but fingers crossed things will start to change now!
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