Dozer Undercarriage Maintenance

Estimated watch time: 4 minutes

Let’s break down some of the topics covered in the video above.

Selecting the Right Undercarriage

To select the right undercarriage for your purposes, ask yourself some key questions:

• How long will I own the machine?

• How many hours a week will I use this machine?

• What are my typical ground and soil conditions?

• What are my impact conditions?

• What are my attachments on the machine?

• What grades and slopes are typical on my jobsite?

Of course, one undercarriage type may not meet all your needs and be suitable for all the conditions in which you may be using your dozer. So you’ll want to consult with your Cat^® dealer to discuss undercarriage options that may work best for you, which are available as complete systems or as individual components. Here are a few undercarriage options:

• The Cat Abrasion undercarriage is suited for highly abrasive, low- to moderate-impact conditions.

• The general duty undercarriage is appropriate for low to moderate applications, or for when your dozer ownership period is brief.

• The heavy duty extended life undercarriage is suitable for high impact applications. It’s built to withstand the high level of impact when the rocks get big or when you're working in forestry.

Maintenance

Properly maintaining your undercarriage is the best way to lower your owning and operating costs, get the longest life out of your undercarriage, and prevent costly downtime and parts failures.

Always conduct your daily walk-around. Check on your components to make sure everything is in proper working order and there's no abnormal wear.

Here are some important procedures to follow during your walkaround:

1. Inspect your track hardware. Check on the outside of your tracks and make sure that your bolts are secure, from your track links to your shoes.

2. Check your link assembly and bushings. Make sure you don't have any abnormal scalloping or pitting on your bushings.

3. Inspect your sprockets. Look for mushrooming of the iron in sprocket pockets.

4. Inspect your idlers. Check for ridging or abnormal unshimming.

5. Check your rollers. Make sure they're tight and free of debris.

6. Check your carrier roller. Make sure debris doesn't add up on the frame. It could clog up and stop the roller from spinning. If the roller can't spin, tracks will roll over the top and lead to accelerated wear.

7. Check your track tension. You want to be able to see two dips between your sprocket and your idler.

More Quick Tips

Here are just a few more ways you can extend the life of your undercarriage:

• Avoid operating at high speeds, whether in forward or reverse. It causes premature wear to your bushings and sprockets.

• If your tracks are taut, your wear will accelerate. It's important to keep a bit of slack in your tracks to allow for movement between your iron.

• Keep your undercarriage clean. Relieve all packing from inside links and remove debris from top of frame. This allows components to move freely.

Remember: Always refer to your Operation and Maintenance Manual for guidance on maintenance, safety, settings, features and more. 

You can get extra bottom-line protection with customer value agreements (CVAs), which offer maintenance cost per hour guarantees. Ask your Cat dealer for more information.