The one man show to grow

[Fastdirt]

I'm married and can't be looking at other hoes!!


The Hyundai 160 bucket is definitely heavier/thicker metal everywhere. It also has a tapered design to avoid dirt sticking in the bucket I assume. The Cat bucket is much more square in design.


I will miss these spaced out big teeth when digging but not when grading and definitely not when stripping grass. I'm more worried about losing penetration force with the seven teeth on the Cat bucket. I'll get the Hyundai bucket fixed in time. Too bad it wasn't fitted properly when I bought the machine but the 24" bucket next to them is what was on the 312 when I bought it and I had to have a bigger bucket in a hurry. I had to use the local do it all equipment yard for that. It wasn't from the lack of greasing it just wasn't fitted properly.


Well the little flat bed has been nice but it seems every load I pick up is money spent. Next will be the air compressor. Thinking of the Ingersoll 2475F13GH.


Yes I have a sleeping problem, always have . One last pic from the week. Just getting some compaction and playing around.

 

[lumberjack]

Congrats on the marriage!

 

[JNB]

That's the way to get hitched! Keeps the reception riff-raff crowd down.

As long as you keep that Tak you'll never get to experience being trapped in or out of your machine. I blew a drivemotor hydraulic hose with a brush cutter hooked to my Case...on a bank with the arms blocking the door. I had to push out the rear window to get out. PITA!

 

[Landclearer]

Hey Fastdirt,

Congrats on getting married!

I was all excited when I saw the 53 behind your truck Great machines. If you ever did buy one, I think you would be very happy with it. As for wanting to do something different everyday, keeps you from getting bored.

 

[CM1995]

Congrats on getting hitched Fastdirt!:drinkup

Now you can be as miserable as the rest of us married folks.:tong JK, I wouldn't know how to live my life without my wife, the one I love above all others.

I've got a similar model IR compressor on my service truck, expensive but it's 10 years old and still running strong. Makes a lot of air, you'll be happy with it.

 

[FSERVICE]

congrats on getting married fastdirt.. keep up the good work

 

[tylermckee]

The Hyundai 160 bucket isn't bad for a factory bucket, get some side cutters back on it and replace the wear plates with some a little beefier when they wear out. I've worn out 2 160 buckets and a 140 bucket

 

[TrentNz]

Just read all 38 pages and it was great :notworthy i too want to go out on my own and i hope to do so by about the age of 25. Im 20 at the moment and whilst i do consider myself pretty good at operating i dont quite think im ready to go it alone just yet. And i need to save for equipment. I mainly do residential, (driveways, house pads, landscaping etc) but have also done subdivision work and currently doing demolition. Its great to see you are doing well, and it gives me inspiration.

 

[JBGASH]

FD, congrats on getting hitched. A good woman is golden in this business and lifestyle, mine is always willing to help or do what she can in any circumstance with a smile.

 

[Fastdirt]

That's the way to get hitched! Keeps the reception riff-raff crowd down.

As long as you keep that Tak you'll never get to experience being trapped in or out of your machine. I blew a drivemotor hydraulic hose with a brush cutter hooked to my Case...on a bank with the arms blocking the door. I had to push out the rear window to get out. PITA!

Yep, I'm too old for a another marriage with my old friends. Luckily I was the last one of us and they were counting on the party but they'll get over it.

The whole swing door on a skid steer is not the greatest idea. That story of yours popping out your rear window sounds horrible and potentially very risky. There was a guy locally who went off in a pool on a skid steer and drowned. Don't know the details but the story came across the radio when I was working around a pool. That hit home. Plus on a nice day it's nice to slide the window up out of the way. I did have a window one fall on my head once due to shot out roller guides. Ouch!

Hey Fastdirt,

Congrats on getting married!

I was all excited when I saw the 53 behind your truck Great machines. If you ever did buy one, I think you would be very happy with it. As for wanting to do something different everyday, keeps you from getting bored.

Thank you sir!

I started out on 953's digging basements and clearing lots for various companies right before the C models came out. I was working for a company that had 20 953's all over the metro area during the huge housing boom. They got one of the first C models in the state and I was dying to get in the seat of it. At that time and for many years I was just a loader operator until getting around dozers and track hoes. It took quite some time for me to not think a track loader was the king of grading. I even had a job running a pristine 973 doing apartments. I love track loaders and will definitely get one some day.

Congrats on getting hitched Fastdirt!:drinkup

Now you can be as miserable as the rest of us married folks.:tong JK, I wouldn't know how to live my life without my wife, the one I love above all others.

I've got a similar model IR compressor on my service truck, expensive but it's 10 years old and still running strong. Makes a lot of air, you'll be happy with it.

Lol. Good words there CM. It was both our first time getting married. At 39 and 35 we were the type that never ever wanted to do what our parents did ... the D word. I couldn't do it with out her like you said. I tried once and it was bad, LOL. Yes those compressors are pricey but I'm handicapped not being able to mount wheels and don't want something that will die in a couple years.

congrats on getting married fastdirt.. keep up the good work

Much thanks!

The Hyundai 160 bucket isn't bad for a factory bucket, get some side cutters back on it and replace the wear plates with some a little beefier when they wear out. I've worn out 2 160 buckets and a 140 bucket

Yes it seems well built. I can't use side cutters for digging pools because they will gauge the walls when trimming.

Just read all 38 pages and it was great :notworthy i too want to go out on my own and i hope to do so by about the age of 25. Im 20 at the moment and whilst i do consider myself pretty good at operating i dont quite think im ready to go it alone just yet. And i need to save for equipment. I mainly do residential, (driveways, house pads, landscaping etc) but have also done subdivision work and currently doing demolition. Its great to see you are doing well, and it gives me inspiration.

Thank you. I wish I went out on my own earlier but I wouldn't of gained the experience. I have experience I will never use on my own but I have the confidence. I think it just takes the desire more than money really to go out there on your own. I said I would do it by age 35 and just barely made that goal. Set a realistic age goal and set out for it. One thing I am extremely grateful for is working for so many different grading and pipe companies. I wouldn't stick around at those companies long and always thought the grass was greener on the other side and would go to another grading company. I know several people who have 10,15, or more years with the same company. While that is admiral and great you don't learn how others do it. It's great experience learning the so many different ways that grading companies can do things. I'm guilty of going to the companies with the nicest equipment for employment though. I really wish I had taken pictures but nobody did that then.

FD, congrats on getting hitched. A good woman is golden in this business and lifestyle, mine is always willing to help or do what she can in any circumstance with a smile.

Thanks, I truly believe that about the "golden" thing. My biggest fear was what so many people I've worked for dealt with. Divorce and she owns half of the Caterpillars. I've had some bitter bosses due to that.

 

[joispoi]

Congratulations on getting married!

My wife and I did the court house thing, too.

I don't have any marital advice that you probably don't already know, but schedule your honeymoon ASAP. For me, it's nearly been 15 years and I still haven't found time to go (if you bring the kids along, it doesn't count. ) Don't wait for the senior discount. Lol

All the best. -Joi

 

[Fastdirt]

Good advice, that's funny.



Monday I went back to the pool demo lot I did a couple weeks ago to dig a new pool that was fortunately bigger and deeper which would get us in virgin ground. I had to leave the job to go look at another job. I was expecting my guys to be finished and ready to load up when I returned. On the way back around 5:00 I got a call saying the machine wouldn't start. After checking all the wires I removed the starter. It was after 6:00 and of course we couldn't finish. I was at Cat waiting for the doors to open the next morning and got back to finish the job and then 40 miles to the next one. It was another big one but we finished it somehow and stayed on schedule.


We were so close.


The next morning. I don't see how mechanics do this. It's painful a lot of the times working on these things.


It was in stock $450 and the core charge was about the same amount

 

[Fastdirt]

This was Tuesday on the next one after installing the starter



loaded up about 6 loads and piled the rest up.






Wednesday's job. It was a heck of a week and I was told by everyone it was going to rain all week. We got wet a few times I have to say and did get rained out 1/2 day here and completely on Fri.

We through out some Portland to harden up the dirt for the rains.

 

[Fastdirt]

Saturday was fun and we didn't finish but should tomorrow. I started an instagram recently to keep from posting here so much "digrig379" and even started a FB. Hope to get a new website going soon too. I'm always going to take pictures and I'm going to start doing time lapse also. A lot of times I just can't take pictures and videos but plan on keeping it going. It's actually a lot of work but it's my passion so I get into it a lot but just can't do it the way I want to because of limited help and time.


Hope to finish this one tomorrow Monday.

This was the way I did just one load to cut the grade down in the area where I really wanted the truck so I didn't have to make turns and just back up. I was running back and forth to the dump truck and running the TL150 while my guy was loading it.

 

[TrentNz]

I keep my eyes peeled for your posts fastdirt. I just commented on your latest instagram pic have a look.

 

[Landclearer]

Hey Fastdirt,

I did not realize you had that much experience with trackloaders. I can't tell you anything you already don't know. When I grew up in KY, every job had at least one on it. Around here, nobody will even think about running one except for us.

You brought up a good point, you have to give mechanics a lot of credit. They have to work in some tough places.

Work looks great as always. Is that granite fines you are putting in the one pool?

 

[Fastdirt]

Hey Fastdirt,

I did not realize you had that much experience with trackloaders. I can't tell you anything you already don't know. When I grew up in KY, every job had at least one on it. Around here, nobody will even think about running one except for us.

You brought up a good point, you have to give mechanics a lot of credit. They have to work in some tough places.

Work looks great as always. Is that granite fines you are putting in the one pool?

Oh I hope I don't come off as a know it all. Grading and riding dirt bikes are about my only strong points in life. I don't really claim any other skills and those skills don't amount to much in reality. Track loaders are just my roots in grading and I spent years on them day in and day and will always have a place in my heart for them. I don't have the best social skills I will say though. This line of work and the way I was taught has left me with a pretty intense personality and the funny thing is I don't really like being around intense people. Hmmm. I am actually pretty humble in person.... and laid back when not working. It's all I got man LOL!! Just kidding

Track loaders are huge around here for residential grading and every commercial crew has at least one on site. If I had to pick one machine to take with me to a private island it'd be a track loader with a monster winch of course just incase. I do wish I had one for this monster basement I've found myself doing today.


Mechanics definitely have my respect. It's mentally tough to troubleshoot and then bend your arm and body over and in between burning hot or freezing steel to get to the problem. It takes the right person for that job and I don't have it that way but I can fix a lot of things just not the serious stuff.

Thanks again As far as the fines, I hear it referred to as Portland mainly. I usually don't get involved in that, the pool builder employees usually do it but if asked I guess I have to do it. I guess it could be granite fines. I believe it's just fine quikcrete or mortar. It will actually harden from the moisture in the dirt and hold the walls a bit if it rains. If you're using it then usually a rain is coming and the dirt will have enough moisture to activate it. A rain can cause the walls to cave off if it's bad dirt. We also do gravel floors a lot in the rainy winter months.

Brian:thumbsup

 

[Landclearer]

Oh I hope I don't come off as a know it all. Grading and riding dirt bikes are about my only strong points in life. I don't really claim any other skills and those skills don't amount to much in reality. Track loaders are just my roots in grading and I spent years on them day in and day and will always have a place in my heart for them. I don't have the best social skills I will say though. This line of work and the way I was taught has left me with a pretty intense personality and the funny thing is I don't really like being around intense people. Hmmm. I am actually pretty humble in person.... and laid back when not working. It's all I got man LOL!! Just kidding

Track loaders are huge around here for residential grading and every commercial crew has at least one on site. If I had to pick one machine to take with me to a private island it'd be a track loader with a monster winch of course just incase. I do wish I had one for this monster basement I've found myself doing today.


Mechanics definitely have my respect. It's mentally tough to troubleshoot and then bend your arm and body over and in between burning hot or freezing steel to get to the problem. It takes the right person for that job and I don't have it that way but I can fix a lot of things just not the serious stuff.

Thanks again As far as the fines, I hear it referred to as Portland mainly. I usually don't get involved in that, the pool builder employees usually do it but if asked I guess I have to do it. I guess it could be granite fines. I believe it's just fine quikcrete or mortar. It will actually harden from the moisture in the dirt and hold the walls a bit if it rains. If you're using it then usually a rain is coming and the dirt will have enough moisture to activate it. A rain can cause the walls to cave off if it's bad dirt. We also do gravel floors a lot in the rainy winter months.

Brian:thumbsup

Brian,

I didn't think you were being a know it all. I just didn't know you started out on trackloaders and had that much time on them. I apologize if it came out that way.

As for the granite fines question, I am talking about the stuff you are putting in the bottom with the 312. It is hard to tell from the pics but it looks like washed granite fines. Just curious.

 

[CM1995]

Track loaders are huge around here for residential grading and every commercial crew has at least one on site. If I had to pick one machine to take with me to a private island it'd be a track loader with a monster winch of course just incase.

Same here, track loaders dominate the residential market. They're so handy to have. I have two projects going on and one needed the track hoe to dig the hole for a retention system on one site and undercut and fill on another. The loader worked the undercut and fill like a champ with just one machine. The 953's are fuel pigs though..

 

[Fastdirt]

No no, I definitely didn't think you were coming that way at all. I was spe asking in general . A lot if times I talk too much when given the chance after being in a bubble at work everyday. Yes to the granite fines. I was thinking about the other pic. The builder had the fines there to lay pavers and asked us just to use it in the floor to help the plumber and steel guys out. I thinks it's M10 maybe.

CM I don't know from much from first hand about the fuel coming out of my pocket but as an employee I totally agree that the track loaders are huge fuel pigs. Last job I had I on a 963C I was amazed at how much fuel it burnt daily. Pretty much the whole tank in 8hrs. That has to hurt. Like the automatic dump trucks they too suck it up staying at full throttle. I'm actually about to shoot a picture for you right now on site that I sure could use that loader, this is a little big for the little Tak.

Have a good day all.