cat scraper tractor-sheeps foot roller

[Dug Overburden]

Cat 657 Compactor (My California story)

Hey that thing brings back some memorys. Here's my memorys about these machines. I first saw this machine about 1973 in San Diego Ca. Robert Fulton was grading a sub divison by our house & I was about 12 years old at the time. They had one of these, stickers said it manufactured by Southwest used it in a large fill with about 15 Euclid SS40 3 axle scrapers.

I had all but forgotten about this machine untill I saw a picture of one in a Ritchie Brothers catalog for a sale in Rialto Ca. The year must have been about 1992. I checked the owners and it was a retirement sale for none other than Robert Fulton. I knew this was the same machine!

Well again I forgot about the machine, but saved the Ritchie Bros color flyer,which I still have. So a few years later a freind I were out on a Train watching excusion in Bartsow Ca & ran across the 657 compactor parked in DeLoss equipments yard. I was speachless. Luclky I had my camera and took some pictures. By now it had 651 decals on it. Had a 46M serial number prefix. I climbed in the seat and noticed that the gear selector had a lock out on high gear! It had a fill spreading blade about 14' wide. And the drums looked like 6' x 6'.

Again I forgot about the machine, then one day I was talking to Bill Signs of Signs & Pinnick Inc about 1994 & he mentioned that he built one of these in the late 70's out of an old 657A. Said it was the best compactor ever other then a Hough D500. Bill said he wished he still had one. I found the picture and showed him & said he wished he still had it. I said I had seen this two weeks ago, Bill said i was full of s**t

Well Bill Signs went and purchased the machine the next week The maintance people hated me for telling Bill about the machine, I had no idea he wanted it! The nick name of the machine was "Franken-stomper"
Machines like these are great for union contractors to have, as the can request some one from the hall to run a 657 compactor & only one person has it listed, which is the person they would like to hire.


The machine probably only worked a few hundred hours due to going through quite a few D346 90 degree engines before it was done. No one wanted to operate it due to the rough ride, I bet with not much Const work, it would not be hard to get a operator to run it

The machine was cut up for scrap in 2007 & I believe the rear section is still sitting someplace in San Diego Ca.

snapped this when i went walkabout in USA some years ago
it`s a 657 scraper front

 

[alan627b]

Here is a pic taken around 1978-79 of a LeTourneau C? pull with a sheepsfoot roller. just got a bunch of old pics put onto a CD. Quality is so-so, originally taken on a 126 Instamatic. Remember those?

 

[Deano]

snapped this when i went walkabout in USA some years ago
it`s a 657 scraper front

That would be quite the interesting modelling project, got me thinking now! Pity the picture is a little blurry....

 

[greeniron]

Sorry guys about the picture quality but my scanner is down so i used the phone camera to take a photo of a photo then blue toothed it across to the computer

 

[Texasgary]

I think the front end is from an old what they called a cable DW 21 or it is a 619 scraper the scraper was called a 619 because it was the last model before they brought out full hydraulic ram scrapers for hoist and dump. I ran them for years in the year of 1958 and up. Cat always seems to build good Iron. That front has moved dirt for 40 years and now it is still making money for the Co

 

[Texasgary]

I had to replace a hyd pump on one of those dw20 converted rollers a couple years back. that SOB was the roughest ride ever, I am talking D8K on concrete did not compete to this thing. anything over 1 st gear at idle would bounce your eyeballs and cause your eyes to water.

It's a wonder the old timers lasted as long as they did.

I am an old timer, I am 70 and I just retired last year. I use to be drunk in my younger days I ran the old DW 21 and the 6 wheel Dw 20 Them old what we called the c poles made by Letourno, that was the worst scraper ever made, you had a little nob to steer with and everything was electric. The points would quit working on the steering then you would be putting your foot into the brake and be scared xxxxless, your heart would be in your stomach. The one good thing about the c poles scrapers the had for wheel disk breaks and they stopped fast. I love this form it brings back old memorys. Work safe guys in my days there was no seat belts in my days and the odd guy would end up with hoist lever up the a;;; and that is the truth.

 

[micbare]

The first machine I got to operate on a construction job when I started out at 16 years old in the summer of 1981 was a 631B with one of those hyster rollers in place of the scraper bowl. It was a good machine to get the feel
of. Also great training tool before starting out on a scraper. And yes they will
nose over very easy.rofessor

 

[928G Boy]

I have seen one of these things in Portage la Praire Manitoba at a contractors yard. the only difference was that it had a set of Duel truck wheels on the back that were operated by hydraulic cylinder. allowing the packer drum to be picked up off the ground to cross a road or something.

I though it was a neet idea, but most contractors there still use a Dozer and pull a couple of shhepfoot packers or ahve gone to the Vibratory pad foot.

Portage eh? Musta been EF Moon's yard I'm guessing...

 

[alan627b]

It Only Took 4 Years...

...to find the pics, but here they are. Cat 621B with overhung roller.
Still has the cushion hitch too.
Old scrapers never die, they become waterwagons or rollers.

Alan

 

[CM1995]

Saw another one on a road job (I-85) outside Montgomery AL. It belongs to Newell Roadbuilders, a pretty big outfit in South Alabama.

 

[alan627b]

Talk about full circle.. the 621B unit I posted a while back has been bought by my current employer for it's tractor. Now owned by JC Excavation in Kennard, Nebraska. They bought it at an IronPlanet auction to get the tractor to repower one of our scrapers. Just an interesting little anecdote. Scraper to roller and now back to scraper again!

Alan

 

[johan7]

Hello , here is a pic of a DW21 with Hyster roller . The machine still exists and is probably the only survivor ?
It is in a barn in France . The Netherlands , johan7

 

[rare ss]

I've seen one similar to the above however it was based on a smaller 613(C) scraper, it did look more line a home build one though.. it still had all four wheels but the bowl was removed and had a grid roller wheel in place of the bowl (not a padfoot)

 

[johan7]

Hello rare ss , here is a pic of a grid roller but without tractor . I think there was a DW21 to pull it or a similar 1-axle tractor . There are still the eyes for the steering cilinders . I found this machine in a museum in France . The Netherlands , johan7

 

[Kelly]

No big deal on the roller. Southwest welding and manufacturing company in Alhambra, California has been building high speed rollers like that for years. Although, that one looks a little light compared to what Southwest builds.

Kelly

 

[C130 eng]

That was Loch construtions 621 roller from Maryville Missouri. They have been around for years until this past winter they closed up shop and put their equipment on IRON planet. Kind of a shame some friends of mine lost thier jobs.

 

[alan627b]

That has to be the one. Small world. Was it built from a scraper or was it always a roller? Just curious. Sorry to hear about the friends losing their jobs. Lot of that going around. Happened to me too.

 

[C130 eng]

Im not sure if it was a scraper or not I just assumed it was a scraper. Ill ask around. I think they had a couple of them. They used to do a lot of big dirt jobs around Mo and Ks. Hopefully you found a good job to replace the one you lost.