Hey gang I am new to the dozer world. I have been operating a small construction business for the past few years, and am looking at getting a used dozer. I have a john deere 332D skidsteer and a 60D mini excavator and a single axle dump truck, and having a small to mid size dozer I think would be advantageous. I am good with mechanics, but know very little about dozers, and the track systems on my mini and a dozer are worlds apart. Basically im looking for any info you guys can give me to be able to go out and look at a used dozer and determine if it is in ok shape or not. Such as what all to look at on the tracks, final drives, trans, how many hours are too many hours, pedal steer vs foot steer, and many of the options that are out there. Remember I know nothing about dozers so I owe a cold beer to anybody that can give me plenty of advice
The second thing Id like to find more about is the models. Im probably looking at a 450, 550 or 650. I have a 10 ton construction trailer, and doubt I can go any bigger than the 650 due to weight. From what I can tell the letter behind the number indicates the model year ranges. Im hoping to find a dozer that is in the late 80's to the mid 90's to try to keep the machine affordable, it looks like this age range is a "G"? My budget is about 20k. Can somebody break down the difference between the 450, 550, and 650? I plan on putting in driveways, doing site clearing and pond digging.
Thanks in advance for all the forthcoming help!!!
Andy