|
|
Indiana | What is the pros and cons of a crawler loader over a dozer? using it mainly for tree work some grade work all on farm. TIA |
|
| |
|
West Central Arkansas | A dozer operator once told me that a loader is better fitted for tree removal because you can push the tree over better with the bucket up high. He also stated that typically used loaders can be purchased more economically.
The best for tree removal is a track hoe. |
|
| |
|
Southern Indiana | I have a 953c and pushing over trees and cleaning up fence rows is nice. If you can only have one machine I think a crawler loader is the way to go. As far as doing dirt with it I am not that good with it like leveling and finish work. A guy that lives close by he can do finish work with his so I know it can be done it's just that I haven't mastered that yet. Probably a couple decades of experience. |
|
| |
|
| Lots more leverage with a crawler loader, pushing on a tree the bucket can be 10 feet up. Just make sure stuff doesn't come down where you don't want it. |
|
| |
|
Iowa | I agree with the above replys. If only one machine I'd lean towards the loader also. No doubt a dozer is better suited for grading and pushing larger amounts of material per cycle but a good operator with enough time can do some fine grading. Lots and lots of building pads have been built in our area with crawler loaders. If you ever want to load trucks that is a plus also. It's also nice at times to rig and lift things with loader. Basically, Imagine what you can do with a skid steer on a larger scale. In my opinion a dozer plus an excavator is ideal but go crawler loader for just one machine. |
|
| |
|
| agree with all the replies. you can grade with one it just takes practice. i have a 953c with a 4 in 1 bucket. its amazing what the thing will lift and push. we took out a big cottonwood tree with it and laid it down in the field. it was probly 4 ft at the base. we could just barely pick up the base with the root ball attached. we left it there because it was soft thought we will drag it across the field when it dries up or freezes. went back later the the mx200 and a chain. ha ha that was a joke. cut the root ball off. still couldnt budge it. hooked a 966 in front of the mx and could barely drag it in two pieces. good grief it took two farm tractors to do half what the 953 did by itself. i would look for a rear engine type the vision is so much better also. like the difference between a skid loader and a loader tractor with a cab. happy shopping! |
|
| |
|
sw corner ia. | once you get big tree down, strip off all the limbs with bucket, sweep all that in a heap away from trunk, now go scratch off all the dirt with your bucket teeth. This is where half the weight of that tree is. now roll it over till the rest of the dirt comes off. if it is a really large tree (about double what yours was) cut the stump off so you can pile up the rest.
20 ton track loader can clear about as fast as same size dozer, but the loader will make a pile that is pretty tall and free of dirt. grading with an 8' bucket is pretty slow no matter who runs it. loader is made to carry, not push. really good for basements where you need to pack the floor as you come to grade and put all the piles clear outside where it will be needed for the backfill. excavator will remove it faster but cannot polish it off, nor move dirt over about 30'.
lot more stuff to wear out on loader linkage than a dozer blade.
cheaper in the long run to just hire it done. when the contractor leaves, the headaches will too. |
|
| |
|
Marion,ks | We have a D-8H and a old JD644 wheel loader, We use the loader a lot more it is faster to move no trailer is needed and it will do anything a D-6 will do. Most trackloaders have street pads and do not have the traction a like a reguler grouser pad will give. Try a wheel loader out I will bet you will like it, I know we sure do.It will get out trees really good we use ours for a lot of that work the tree huggars would hate to know how many thousands we have got rid of it it probaly gets the most hours of any piece of equipment we own. |
|
| |
|
| How much Grade work? Remember that a loader doesn't have any way to adjust the tilt of the bucket to the tracks, it takes a lot of experience to really be able to level with one. For terrace work and general dirt pushing, dozer any day. For tree pushing and general farm work a loader is good. You can tilt the teeth on a loader and do some root raking with it, too. We bought a dozer about a year ago. For the amount of dirt work we wanted to do, vs tree work, it seemed like the better choice. IMHO buy a dozer, and if you have a lot of big trees to take out hire an excavator to come in and push them over and you pile. |
|
| |
|
New London, Wisconsin | I bought a 450 case track loader with street pads last year. I'm using it more than I expected and it works very nicely for clearing brush and small to mid size trees. I also have some large old ditch spoil dirt piles to move so I expect it to be employed here a long time. Using the bucket with teeth down at about a 45 degree angle is the clear ticket for raking out shallow rooted smaller stuff.
Besides, it's really fun to operate.
I had thought of an excavator, as in renting or hiring one. When this machine in like new condition came up I went for it, no regrets. A slightly bigger one would push more, but I'm happy with what I got. |
|
| |
dozer vs crawler loader
