450G vs D3

[MICKEY108]

what r the pros and cons of both going 2 use it 4 logging 2 build roads and skid with

[Bobus2003]

I have a '94 JD 550G Direct Drive, Absolutely love the machine, Plenty of power from the 4045T, Easy to work on. Put many Miles and hours on mine, Used it a little for logging but mostly dirt work.

I ran a '98 CAT D3TC when I worked construction.. Wasn't impressed. Hard to start in the cold (Even with Glow plugs), Lacked Power (compared to my 550G).. All around didn't like the feel of the D3 (I could be a little biased i suppose)

[snowstorm]

what r the pros and cons of both going 2 use it 4 logging 2 build roads and skid with

what part of the country are you from? a dozer can be a very expensive machine to yard wood with. a short pull might be ok if its not rocky ground. is the d3 converter or hystat? 550 direct or converter? jd is more hp. if one of them has salt track it would be a big plus

[ScottAR]

They've been building d3's since the 70's to present day.  Exactly which series your looking at will get a more accurate picture of comparing models.

[MICKEY108]

I LIVE IN SW VA  COMPARE LATER 1990S MODELS THANKS 4 THE HELP

[mad murdock]

my neighbor has an earlier mid 70's D3, for the woods, I would take a Deere, the Cat has poor clearance, too easy to get hung up on stuff.  If you are going to yard wood, you need a winch and arch, or a swing grapple on it, otherwise it is a very slow process.  Depending on the ground it can really be hard on the operator as well.  unless the terrain was steep, and a tracked dozer type machine was warranted, I would go for a rubber tired skidder, or a tracked rubber tired machine, over a steel tracked machine, or get an older cat to push dirt, and a skidder to yard wood.  There are a lot of operators out here in the PNW that are using D4H, or some such with the swing grapple, and they seem to move the wood very well. But then again you are talking apples and oranges, not to mention a lot more $$.

[MICKEY108]

thanks 4 your advice

[John Woodworth]

Cat and International have the tuffest undercarriage over Deere, but you pay the price both in parts cost for Cat and just about every thing requires special tools that their mechanics seem to be the only ones to have. Fuel consumption on the Deere will be better and if you use it respectivley you should be ok.