New Holland DC-80

[SangerHydro]

Hello,

Does anyone have any feedback, opinions, rumors, etc. on the New Holland DC-80?

The last dozer I used was in Alaska about 1-1/2 years ago and it was a newer JD with the Joystick control and I LOVED IT !!!

I'm currently looking at 22 acres of flood land and would like to build about a 5 acre lake and use the dirt from that to buid up atleast 2 pads if not the majority of the property. I figure if I bought a dozer I could take my time (a year or more) to do this. I realize if I were in a hurry, an excavator, dump truck, and dozer would really fit the bill. But if I could afford all that, I wouldn't be looking at flood land.

Anyway, back to my main question.... From what I've read (mostly from the manufacturer) I like the features of the DC80, but I haven't heard any opinions from REAL users.

thanks,
Todd

[Tigerotor77W]

The DC-85 is the replacement for the DC-80 -- perhaps there are users of that model as well who have comments.

[SangerHydro]

Yes, I noticed that the 80 had been replaced with the 85. But, I'm not clear why. It apears they have the same turbo Cummins rated at 84hp.

The reason I was asking about the 80 rather than the newer 85 is because a used 80 would be more in my price range. However, I would gladly welcome comments on any of the New Holland DC's


I was assuming they are better then the small Mitsubishi's or Komatsu's


Anybody??????

[JBL]

Well I just traded in a DC-80 for a Case 750K two months ago. I guess the easiest way is to give you the pros and cons of the machine.

PRO's
1. No detent for forward or reverse on the joystick makes it fast at changing directions and very agile in tight situations.
2. Machine weighs 17,000LBS and comes with 20 inch pads so it is almost as good as an LGP. You can really get in some nasty stuff and still get out.
3. I never had any major mechanical problems with the machine, broke a few hydraulic hoses(my fault) other than that change the oils and filters regularly and keep on trucking.
4. Pretty fuel effecient, I could get anywhere from 16 to 20 hours out of 50 gallons of fuel. The main factor is what you where using it to do.
5. One of the best finish dozers I have run as far as balance and stability.

Why I didn't buy another one.
1. Parts are to expensive(I neglected to check prices on wear item parts before I bought it, my mistake) If you go through New Holland for cutting edges expect to pay $1200. I starting buying after market from HeavyQuip for around $580. The case 750K cutting edges which would be equivalent to the DC-80/85 cost $400 from the dealer and are much beefier, go figure. Filters are also extremely high, the transmission and hydraulic filter cost $250 for the pair. After doing some internet searching I found the transmission filter for $30 (So don't expect to find a wix,napa or other highly available filter for this machine. The cummins engine filters you can pick up at any automotive store.
2. Parts availability is a joke. One example is I ordered a radiator overflow tank and it took 2 weeks to get it.
3. The no detent on the joystick is a pain in the butt when you are loading the blade heavy. You are constantly trying to find that perfect spot where you are applying equal power to both tracks.
4. The undercarriage on them is junk. I shouldn't say undercarriage as a whole,the sprockets,rails/pads and idlers held up well. However everytime you turned around a roller was leaking oil.

Overall the DC-80 is a very nice machine and the reason you don't see more of them out there is because there is no parts network to support them and parts prices are to high. Well that is about all I can think to tell you,I hope this helps you out.

[dirthog]

there may not be parts for the NH in Missouri but that is not the case in the east coast I work for a dealer and we stock quite a few parts for them. Also we have had very little trouble with them there was a change in the rollers a couple of years ago to fix the leaking seal problem.

[digger242j]

JBL, very nice report.

Welcome to the site! :)

[JBL]

Thanks for the welcome digger.

Dirthog, I grew up in Central PA, Dillsburg to be exact so wondering if you work for Messicks? The New Holland dealer here recently lost New Holland Construction so maybe they were on bad terms the whole time and that was the problem? Like I said the New Holland was a great machine but parts costs and parts availability were issues in my area so that turned me away from it this go around. I could also go on about how independent the cat dealer in this area is so I didn't buy a cat but that is another topic. :)

[SangerHydro]

JBL, thank you very much for the very informative post !!!

that's exactly the kinda info I was hoping to receive

thank you as well Dirthog

anybody else ????

[dirthog]

New holland is getting harder on there dealers they want them trained also to have most if not all of the special tools and keep parts in stock we were a Fiat Allis dealer for apx 65 or so years and a top 10 dealer right until they quit the const equipment line the owners of the company then picked up New Holland when it was offered and now also have a AG dealership in Our branch at Erie, Pa.

[NHDealer]

JBL; You do understand the case 750k is no different than the new NewHolland D85? New Holland builds there dozer.. it is built on the same platform except under the Case name it carries less features. If you have trouble finding parts for your 750 you can go to your local NH dealer and order them as well.

[JBL]

NHDealer I am aware that they are nearly Identical machines. Like I said before the parts cost are the #1 reason that I bought the Case this time around. I just can't see any reason to pay $1400 for a cutting edge for the NH when I can pay $400 for the Case. Machine performance and reliability were great parts pricing left alot to be desired. That was the main reason I went with the Case this time around. NHDealer can you shed some light on the reasoning between the large price variance between Case/New Holland parts?

[NHDealer]

JBL; Im at al loss as to why you would have to pay a $1,000 more for a cutting edge because it was sold through a new holland dealer. Case and New Holland are CNH (Case/NewHolland). I would look more closely at your dealer. What type of cutting edge were you buying, it may be the one dealer was trying to sale you a upgraded edge? Just thinking out loud.

As far as your question; Dealer net for parts should be similar no matter if it is a Case branded product vrs. New Holland product.

[NHDealer]

JBL; if you have any questions on pricing and cost please let me know. I may be of some help to you.

[JBL]

Thanks for the reply NHDealer. I priced the same edges at two different dealers (S&H in Missouri and Messicks in PA) and they were all within $50 of each other. Aftermarket parts from Heavyquip were about half of the dealer costs.

[Mike J]

Is the blade and cutting edge different between the two machines or could you buy the case cutting edge and put it on the NH? If they are different how hard would it be to fit the case cutting edge to the NH? Any one know how much cutting edges are for other machines like Deere Komatsu or Cat?

[JBL]

Mike, they use a different bolt pattern for the two machines. I have no idea what the edges cost for deere or Komatsu. The closest JD construction or Komatsu dealer is 2 hours from me so I never gave them any consideration. The CAT dealer in my area is very independent and hard to work with unless you are a big company and have some leverage.