Motor Graders & Questions

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   Hello,

New to the forum and hoping to get some advice and perspective.  

We have a quarter section somewhere in New Mexico which we are wanting to develop into a homestead site.  What this entails is establishing around 1500' of driveway which will then need to be maintained from here on out.  I have been lucky enough to be friends with a retired forest service civil engineer who has helped me survey in the road and establish a drainage plan.  I will need a set of rippers on the machine to get the road started.  Soil is sandy / gravely loam so I would anticipate good working soil.  

So, next up is hands on heavy equipment training through the state DOT.  I'm signed up for a week long class in April.

I am looking at used motor graders and have identified the AC DD and 100M as good candidates to purchase.  I think if I am patient I can find a good deal on something that doesn't break down all the time.

So here is the question, for a budget below $10,000 what are some good reliable machines other than the DD and 100M that would be worth looking at?  I'm open to CAT, John Deere, Austin Western etc.  Also, for used machinery inspection what should a perspective buyer be paying attention to.  I would also like to find something which still has relatively good parts availability.  I'm in this for the long term.....

Thanks.

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JB1 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Bronze Level Joined: 10 Feb 2017 Location: New Mexico Points: 4	Post Options Post Reply Quote JB1 Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Topic: Motor Graders & Questions Posted: 10 Feb 2017 at 8:56am
	Hello, New to the forum and hoping to get some advice and perspective. We have a quarter section somewhere in New Mexico which we are wanting to develop into a homestead site. What this entails is establishing around 1500' of driveway which will then need to be maintained from here on out. I have been lucky enough to be friends with a retired forest service civil engineer who has helped me survey in the road and establish a drainage plan. I will need a set of rippers on the machine to get the road started. Soil is sandy / gravely loam so I would anticipate good working soil. So, next up is hands on heavy equipment training through the state DOT. I'm signed up for a week long class in April. I am looking at used motor graders and have identified the AC DD and 100M as good candidates to purchase. I think if I am patient I can find a good deal on something that doesn't break down all the time. So here is the question, for a budget below $10,000 what are some good reliable machines other than the DD and 100M that would be worth looking at? I'm open to CAT, John Deere, Austin Western etc. Also, for used machinery inspection what should a perspective buyer be paying attention to. I would also like to find something which still has relatively good parts availability. I'm in this for the long term..... Thanks.

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Ray54 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Orange Level Access Joined: 22 Nov 2009 Location: Paso Robles, Ca Points: 4659	Post Options Post Reply Quote Ray54 Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 10 Feb 2017 at 9:06pm
	Just my options. Cat will have the best parts availability on machines going back to the 1950's. Stay away from any brand grader with a old IH gas start diesel engine. Some of the IH engines may be in alright condition but you need to know all the right things to do to keep it that way,and parts are getting hard to find. But you may never look at anything that old. Over on the Antique Caterpillar Machinery Owners Club site some real experts on graders have several pages of things to check on old graders. Much of it has to do with the mechanical gear boxes to control blade function on non hydraulic blades. I think most of this would apply to any of the older non hydraulic machines. The search function is not the greatest over there,but they will answer questions if you ask.

LeonR2013 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Orange Level Joined: 01 Jan 2013 Location: Fulton, Mo Points: 3500	Post Options Post Reply Quote LeonR2013 Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 11 Feb 2017 at 5:24am
	Have you gotten any come backs yet Ray?

Coke-in-MN Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Orange Level Access Joined: 12 Sep 2009 Location: Afton MN Points: 41817	Post Options Post Reply Quote Coke-in-MN Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 11 Feb 2017 at 8:44am
	You are going to pay a premium for a CAT machine over price of others . Depending on lay of the land is the other in what machine you may need . If rolling or without large low grade soils . Hyd blade or manual gearbox - and yes engine power . I have a Adams 411 - aprox 1938 machine I bought in 1976 - just have not used it in the last 15 years as jobs for the machine aren't in this area for graders . And yes it has a UD14 IH gas/diesel engine . Machine was used for about 15 years to grade a 1/3 mile dirt race track in Stillwater MN so it had a easy life for a while until clutch had problems that i had to fix - Before that it was owned by Anderson Excavating in Baldwin WI - and unsure of rest of history.
	Faith isn't a jump in the dark. It is a walk in the light. Faith is not guessing; it is knowing something. "Challenges are what make life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful."

Dgrader Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Orange Level Joined: 17 Jan 2015 Location: Newton,IL Points: 1037	Post Options Post Reply Quote Dgrader Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 12 Feb 2017 at 4:40am
	I'd go with the 100b. We got one and it's a good one. Look around, you can probly find a good one in the $4 to 8 range.
	Ya cain't fix stupid.

Ian Beale Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Orange Level Joined: 03 Oct 2011 Location: New South Wales Points: 989	Post Options Post Reply Quote Ian Beale Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 12 Feb 2017 at 8:58pm
	Current tip from around this part of Oz seems to be Cat 17K - reasonable prices with spare parts available

JB1 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Bronze Level Joined: 10 Feb 2017 Location: New Mexico Points: 4	Post Options Post Reply Quote JB1 Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 13 Feb 2017 at 8:55pm
	Appreciate the replies so far. Good food for thought, keep it coming.

shameless (ne) Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Orange Level Joined: 08 Jul 2016 Location: nebraska Points: 7463	Post Options Post Reply Quote shameless (ne) Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 16 Feb 2017 at 1:50am
	did you see my post of the one coming up at auction?

JB1 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Bronze Level Joined: 10 Feb 2017 Location: New Mexico Points: 4	Post Options Post Reply Quote JB1 Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 16 Feb 2017 at 2:10pm
	Shameless, I saw that one. Thanks for posting!