Cat 933 realistic capabilities

[Welder Dave]

I've seen quite a few small track loaders for sale that have under 5000 hours. 2700 is plausible.

 

[BC Placer gold]

I've seen quite a few small track loaders for sale that have under 5000 hours. 2700 is plausible.

Agree, for non-production use, can be found & may not accumulate many hours (acreage/farm etc.)

 

[Welder Dave]

I think some are from bigger contractors needing a small utility machine on occasion.

 

[Dnewell]

Still waiting on the pictures, but that’s how the guy that has it now talks about the original owner, wasn’t really In a commercial setting, kind of semi-commercial if there is such a thing, which is how I would say I’d be using it as well.

 

[OzDozer]

The very first crawler the brother and I bought in Sept 1964, was a 1962 Allis-Chalmers HD11.
It had an an electric hour meter and it was sold to us by the local A-C dealer as a top-class tractor from a good owner, with just 4000 hrs on the clock.

We only found out much later, from one of his operators, that the tractor had done at least 8000 hrs and the owner specialised in disconnecting the hour meter for days at a time. It only needed one wire to be disconnected.

It was a hard-learnt lesson for us innocent and trusting young guys, and that tractor nearly broke us.
The lesson gave me a good grounding in never trusting hourmeters, odometers, or backstories attached to equipment or vehicles, unless they can be backed up with documentation.

The experience brought up the truth in the old saying, "Believe nothing that you read, nothing that you hear, and only half what you see!"

 

[Dnewell]

Here’s what he finally sent over. Is this what we were looking for??

 

[OzDozer]

Yes. Those track bushings are well-worn, there's possibly only 15%-20% life left in them. The tractor has been doing a lot of high speed work, or operating in highly abrasive soils.

The next stage is the bushings will start to fracture and break up, and that is the end of the undercarriage, you'll be up for new replacement track chains and sprockets.

Either that, or the sprocket tooth tips will wear right off, and the teeth then just become bumps on the sprocket, and the sprocket starts to jump bushings!

 

[Welder Dave]

Looks like it was working in wet material by the rust pitting. It appears that the machine may have had the tracks too tight for quite a while and it contributed to the increased bushing wear as well as the sprocket wear. Could ask a Cat dealer to do an inspection as if you were going to buy new undercarriage. That would give you the best idea what shape the undercarriage is in and how much life might be left.

 

[Dnewell]

Well I’m going to be honest, that’s a kick in the teeth, I thought I was really onto something. The more I was driving around the water district the more hours I was seeing and making it pencil out, but adding that extra cost and labor really hurts. The only other machine I have my eye on is a 2002 939c but it has 10k hours on it and Itd also put me over weight on my trailer so I’d have to upgrade that too.

 

[oarwhat]

How many hours will you use it a year?

 

[OzDozer]

If you acquire the 933C for the right kind of money, it will likely do another 1000 hours before the tracks require attention. If you're only doing 200 hrs a year, that's 5 years work before it needs attention - if you're doing 350 hrs a year, that's 3 years before the tracks need replacing.

And at the end of the day, a set of aftermarket track chains should only be around $2000 - $2500, and sprocket segments maybe $500 - and you could roll new chains onto those rollers without replacing them, in 1000 hrs time.

All that is needed is some labor to change the shoes over, and fit the segments and chains, the rest of the undercarriage is in quite good order. So factor those costs into the purchase cost and negotiate the price down accordingly.

 

[TomA]

What jumps out at me is the level of dried mud and rust. Shows it hasn't moved or worked in a very long time, makes me wonder why.

 

[Welder Dave]

What is the seller asking for the 933? That will be the best indicator of if it's worth considering. If he wants a premium price, walk away. If the price reflects the undercarriage is over 60% worn, then it might be worth buying. You can't just say yes or no without a price.

 

[Dnewell]

He’s asking 27k for it. I guess I never did tell you guys that for some unknown reason!

When you think about it as it probably won’t need undercarriage for we’ll say 800 hours that does make it sound a lot better to me, I was thinking when it was said around 20% left on those bushings it would be a lot sooner than that, and of course I understand that it could be. I don’t foresee me putting over 200 hours a year on it as it is another side venture I’d have that is directly related to me full time job.

 

[CM1995]

$27K for the 933 is not bad if engine and drivetrain check out. How much for the 939 and does it have A/C?

Are either of the machines hydrostatic drive?

 

[Dnewell]

They are asking 25k for the 939. And I haven’t contacted them yet but that was going to be my first question for sure. The 939 is hydro, the 933 is not

 

[CM1995]

The 939 hydro is going to be much easier to operate than the mechanical 933 IMO.

Just from the pics and intel provided the 939 appears to be a better deal since it's cheaper and hydro. Even if it doesn't have A/C a Reddot could be added.

 

[Dnewell]

Does the 10k hours scare you any though?
My biggest hang up with it is my trailer isn’t quite adequate for it. So I’d have the added expense of upgrading my trailer. I have plenty of truck to pull it but my trailer only has 20,000 capacity and that machine is going to come in around 22,000 lbs

 

[Welder Dave]

$27K seems a little high but it is low hours. A hydrostat is more productive but I don't know how reliable or the life expectancy of the hydrostat system in a 939. How it was maintained makes a big difference too. If the seller had service records would be a huge benefit. Hydrostats need regular filter changes and oil changes/sampling to ensure longest life and trouble free operation. Clean oil is of paramount importance. I think it would be good to inspect the hoses on a hydrostat machine with 10,000 hours. If they are at all suspect, replace them. It would give good piece of mind. Having a hydrostat hose blow wouldn't be good and could cause other issues. I also don't know how many hours the engines in 939's typically go before needing work. It would be nice to get a professional undercarriage assessment on the 933 so you could get an idea what components would need replacing the soonest and the costs involved. If it just needed rails and sprocket segments and not rollers you might be looking at maybe 5-$6000. If it also needed rollers you could add about $2000. The idlers are likely good and the pads are good. You'd probably want new bolts and nuts for the pads though. If you could get the 933 for 2 or 3K less wouldn't be too bad.

 

[OzDozer]

If you want to buy a 10,000 hr tractor, then you'd better get it real cheap, and be prepared to spend a LOT of money on it in the next 2,000 hrs.
Hydrostatic transmissions are eye-wateringly expensive to overhaul, even though the manufacturers claim they're simpler.
There's nothing wrong with the multi-plate, planetary gear, hydraulically-actuated powershift in the 933C.
And the fact you need to upgrade your hauling rig cans the deal straight up.
I'd be making an offer of around $22K for the 933C - and if you get it for $23K, that will cover the worn undercarriage.
Plus, the 933C has the 4 in 1 bucket, whereas the 939 is only a GP bucket. The 4 in 1 makes for increased versatility in use.