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Need advice on purchase CAT 973 or 983?

Welder Dave

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 11, 2014
Messages
12,257
Location
Canada
A D9L fits in the go big or go home category but at least you have 900 acres unlike the guy who bought 2 mining excavators for 5 acres or something. Any repair on a D9L is going to be expensive and I agree on the fuel use. It has a 255 gallon fuel tank which if similar to other Cat machines would give about 12 hours+- of work depending on conditions. It would really make a mess in a hurry with an inexperienced operator. If it ever got stuck you'd have a big ornament.

https://ccmodels.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/D9Lv2-Track-Type-Tractor-specs-1.pdf
 

mk1spyder

Member
Joined
May 26, 2020
Messages
22
Location
Charlotte, North Carolina
I found a 1998 Dresser TD15E near me that has been supposedly totally rebuilt, has the 8.3 cummins with again supposedly 100 hours on a new engine and undercarriage for like $20k with a bunch of spare parts. Does that sound like a good choice? Has a winch and ROPS with cage screen for the brush.
 

CM1995

Administrator
Joined
Jan 21, 2007
Messages
13,248
Location
Alabama
Occupation
Running what I brung and taking what I win
My choice would be a 953 - A,B or C model. A decent 953 can be bought in the $20-40K range in the southeast as loaders are very popular for a reason - abundant clay and heavy rain.

Bought my 953C BBX variant new in 2004. Put a new Cat UC on it last Dec at 6500 hrs. If the loader has been taken care of and you take care of it the machine will do what you want it to do and parts are more readily available. Not many 973's around compared to 953's and 963's, I don't remember the last time I even saw a 988 in person.

Dozers work great for grade work and looking at buying a new D5 soon to be D3 per Cat's re-badging. However dozers do one thing great and that's it - push. A dozer can't drag, lift or carry like a track loader. It's a slow process but I can lay storm pipe with just a track loader - can't do that with a dozer for example.
 

Welder Dave

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 11, 2014
Messages
12,257
Location
Canada
I think with anything you need have some money set aside for repairs so it's not such a shock when something needs repairs. A 953 would be a better choice than a 973 but still a risk if something in the hydrostatic trans. went wrong.
 

DMiller

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 21, 2010
Messages
16,430
Location
Hermann, Missouri
Occupation
Cheap "old" Geezer
There are dozens of threads, MANY Pages long as to what it takes to keep Older machines viable and functional. I will be the first to note in many instances is cheaper to Hire It Out if have no concept of what are doing. In the long run you have no machine to take time away, you have paid roughly the same amount of finances out without having a large Yardamentation you cannot be rid of and the project done On Time with Great Results where maintaining can be accomplished with far less costly equipment.

One old timer that gets on here has a Notation to ALL his posts: Tits Tyres and Tracks, all Cost Big Money.
 

DMiller

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 21, 2010
Messages
16,430
Location
Hermann, Missouri
Occupation
Cheap "old" Geezer
When it comes to eating or not it is about the economics. More than one of us here has been down that road buying something we should have ignored.
 
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Junkyard

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Joined
Jun 5, 2016
Messages
3,621
Location
Claremore, OK
Occupation
Field Mechanic
If it’s about the experience, accomplishment and memories find a nice D6D or similar. Simple to work on, parts are available aftermarket and they’re not bad price wise upfront. Pay Cat or a good mechanic to give it a look before you buy. A dozer will get the track roughed in then you can rent something to dress it up. Once it’s right you can probably maintain with a good size tracked skid steer.

I’ve cared for a lot of different fleet sizes and I can tell you that the big machines are money pits if not maintained. If a big track loader or dozer fall into your price range....it’s more than likely wore out. That 3412 engine would cost you way more than the purchase price if it decided to throw up. If you’ve got friends in the dirt business maybe contract them to do the work with the stipulation you get seat time. Then you can buy a nice tracked skid steer to maintain it.

I get what you want to do, everybody here does, but we’ve also seen good money thrown after bad. More than once I spent a years salary on parts to get a machine back to work that was supposed to be a “great deal”.
 

Joe Fick

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 27, 2017
Messages
104
Location
65459
No one here is trying to be negative. These machines you are dreaming or thinking of can be bought cheap because of the market and resale value, repair bills etc. I do alot of land clearing myself. A cat 963 b or c can push way more brush you can think of but they get stuck easily in the woods. Im in central Missouri n lately i been clearing with a CTL n tree shear not wanting to tear ground up. The cat 963 b or c are making a huge mess regarding of operater experience because ground is so soft. They all tell me they gotta be careful n belly out before you know it. A complete undercarriage for a 963 is about $14,000. I wouldn't be surprised a.973 or 983 be around $20,000alone. I was seriously considering getting a 973C to do la d clearing. Having a triple axle lobby and a semi truck with a pusher on it to haul it but it weighs 60,000 lbs. I personally think for land clearing n clean up a track loader is the way to go. Take your time n get all dirt out of roots etc. Small light brush pile push on the long pushes can really save transmission/hydrostatic vs a.dozer transmission can handle long heavy hard pushes. You gotta operate them what they are designed for. You can do.grade with a track loader but it takes skills n i have personally done it but you gotta know the machine. No offense you need to slow down some n run equipment for awhile before buying one n you will get the real idea whats its really like. I had a guy told me this Monday. He bought a deere 555G loader to clean up his 100 acerd farm. He regretted it n was way Cheper to hire someone to do the work in a week in a 963 vs himself in a month time
 

DMiller

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 21, 2010
Messages
16,430
Location
Hermann, Missouri
Occupation
Cheap "old" Geezer
Three whole miles, not much of a challenge to a typical grade contractor. Likely have that track cut and dressed out in two or three days if hand them a decent design layout. If just Imagineering will take days to weeks of playing and change ups where using fuel and hours on machine will not be economical in any sense.

Local grade contractor hogged and rocked the roads into our place, only a half mile worth, took less than two days total where was finished when left. Cost was less than half what I paid for a used tracked loader that I used for other projects. In the long run I needed a hobby and in extended use ended up buying a second machine for parts then spending a winter rehabbing the machine for function. Can tell you a lighter smaller machine will do more variable work and finish out less destructively where end game is I have as much in the machine as would have paid the contractors to do what I was performing. It is still a worn out Old machine and value is only as far as a buyer will pay for. That and I had been a mechanic on machines as this for over twenty years where already had much of the tooling/skills.
 

Welder Dave

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 11, 2014
Messages
12,257
Location
Canada
It is one of those jobs where an experienced crew could come in and get it done properly 10-50 times faster than you could even imagine. There are contractors that specialize in track building too and can help you lay it out based on the layout of the land. They take drainage and other factors into account. If you want a machine for clearing tree's over time is one thing where it doesn't have to be too precise but is dangerous. Building a track requires a lot more precision. You think it's neat to do it yourself but having experts come in saves so much hassle, frustration and time.
 

sealark37

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Joined
Jun 3, 2012
Messages
120
Location
Davidson, NC
Occupation
Retired pilot, old equipment mechanic
There is no substitute for real-life experience. Find yourself a power shift D-6 or D-7 with a winch. Open an account with the local (at the track) Cat dealer. Install a diesel tank and pump in the bed of your truck. You will find that a dozer will do more work moving dirt and clearing trees than a loader. Buy some good hearing protection, and pack a good lunch. After a day or two of dozing, you will have a list of the other stuff you need. You will work hard and have a blast. Regards, Clark
 

ippielb

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 30, 2014
Messages
695
Location
Saskatchewan
I own a 973c, i do land clearing and excavation. If you want to buy a big loader, find a good loader and buy it. I was going through the stages of purchasing a machine just like you and a bunch of people on here told me to give it up, buy something smaller etc.

Put in your due diligence, get oil samples, check for leaks, blow by, hydraulic strength, spin the tracks around. inspect the frame for any cracks. And take the plunge.

My machine is a higher hour unit, but it was a fleet vehicle for a company with multiple machines. I had service records, and the knowledge to operate it.

I drove 7 hours to go test it, paid them to get oil samples done, bought the machine. And haven't looked back, the diversity of a track loader is far superior to any other piece of equipment. Land clearing, excavating, grading, demolition, loading trucks, there is nothing that can compete with a track loader. The only thing i wish i could do was dig a vertical hole, without making ruts, and being able to dig in water logged areas. That is where an excavator has the advantage.

I have a thread in here as well with my experience, since i have owned it i have had a couple break downs, the drive motor output shaft seal was toast, and pressurized the final drive, and the pump pressures were WAY off, that was $10,000 bill, i blew the main hydraulic line in the middle of winter, $160 hose repair, and $200 of oil, carrier roller bearing failed $350, and now one of the tilt cylinders needs a repack. When big things go wrong, it goes wrong in spectacular fashion, but just do preventive maintenance, and DON'T procrastinate. It'll only cost you more in the end.

I have used the machine for quite a few hours on the farm, it has pretty well paid for itself, including the repairs just for the work it has done for myself, let alone the work that ive done for others.

Here's a picture of a job i did with my loader that not ONE other piece of equipment could've completed nearly as efficiently.
 

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Matthew K

Member
Joined
Feb 27, 2020
Messages
5
Location
Wildwood, Missouri
My advice would be to find a good 953B or 936B. I can definetly understand wanting to do it yourself and have that experience, and I'm betting with nearly 1000 acres, you will find plenty or work to keep the machine busy even after the track is built. A 4 in 1 bucket (pretty easy to find in your region) might be nice because you can grab stumps and logs easier. My family's companies own probably 20 track loaders, mostly 53s and 63s, and one 973. The 973 is a great machine and I do really like running it, but I don't think you need a machine that large. We've had a lot of problems getting our hystat pumps and motors on the 73 rebuilt properly. Our Cat dealer can't seem to get them right anymore, all the old guys that did it retired. There's a place in Knoxville that we've used more recently, but have had some trouble with their stuff, too. They do warranty it, though. The drive components on a 953 or 963 (A or B series) will likely last close to 20,000 hrs. if well taken care of. They are definetly more reliable and a better overall hydrostatic design than the C and newer models.
 
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