Got a Free Cat 977H Track Loader. Now What?

[bulletpruf]

977 video is up in case anyone is interested.

 

[LAWN BOY]

Awesome!

 

[Dustin4185]

Yes, 1960-1966 is what I'm seeing for the 977H.

It has lever steer and later H models came with pedal steer, so I'm guessing it's 1961, give or take a year. Still need to find the serial number.

This one needs an undercarriage, too, but that's way down on the list. If I could do it for $5,500, that would be awesome, but I think it's going to cost more than that. One sprocket has bolt-on segments, but the other doesn't.

We e had decent luck out of ITR undercarriages. It will be way over $5500! The 400g dozer is a SMALL dozer and it was outrageous. Pulling that one sprocket may be a bear. I think some required a puller, some were bolt on with a pilot. Good luck with the old iron. They are definitely worth saving!

 

[bulletpruf]

We e had decent luck out of ITR undercarriages. It will be way over $5500! The 400g dozer is a SMALL dozer and it was outrageous. Pulling that one sprocket may be a bear. I think some required a puller, some were bolt on with a pilot. Good luck with the old iron. They are definitely worth saving!

Thanks!

 

[Junk Meister]

Cat steel usually welds/builds up good. I don't have any luck with John Deere iron (under carriage) ..
Be sure to clamp ground directly to the sprocket, you don't want any arc(s) going through a bearing. A clean ground - no paint or rust is advisable.
I always liked the track broke and out of the way for better position.

 

[Junk Meister]

BTW, since no one mentioned that either - You suck!

VERY APPROPRIATE comment.

 

[bulletpruf]

Cat steel usually welds/builds up good. I don't have any luck with John Deere iron (under carriage) ..
Be sure to clamp ground directly to the sprocket, you don't want any arc(s) going through a bearing. A clean ground - no paint or rust is advisable.
I always liked the track broke and out of the way for better position.

Thanks for the input!

Scott

 

[bulletpruf]

Houston, we have a problem.

The bearing/hub assembly on the right final drive is damaged and will need to be replaced. I saw it before we started working on it, but I was hoping it wasn't a major ordeal to repair/replace. Now that I've done a bit of research, it looks to be a fairly involved and expensive project.

More to follow, but I think I know why it was free!!!

 

[davidwyby]

We used to do machining and welding for a guy who rebuilt CAT equipment. He’s still around. Let me know if we can help.

 

[bulletpruf]

We used to do machining and welding for a guy who rebuilt CAT equipment. He’s still around. Let me know if we can help.

Can you please ask him if he has any spare parts for a 977H or D7 (977H has the same undercarriage as a D7 of the same vintage).

Thanks!

 

[bulletpruf]

Latest video is up in case anyone is interested.

 

[BrettL]

Latest video is up in case anyone is interested.

It seems really clean for an older machine. . If I could get it operational without going upside down, I'd do it. It's a really cool old machine.

 

[bulletpruf]

Time for a long overdue update.

Several weeks ago, I ended up renting a 20’ x 50’ shop about 15 minutes from home. Added a few mini-splits, so now it has AC. Working in an air-conditioned shop on concrete has been a real game-changer. Sure helps that the machine is 15 minutes away, too, instead of 1.5 hours away.



Moving the 977 to the shop set me back $800 (different driver this time) and it was uneventful. Didn’t even have to crawl up the back of the trailer like I did last time, either.

 

[bulletpruf]

I've been spending most of my time moving the majority of my tools to the shop and getting it outfitted and organized. At the same time, I'm reconfiguring the home garage so the Long Haired General can park her new car in there (we've been married 13 years; first time she'll be parking in the garage). Work has been busy as hell, too; good for the bank account but not great for wrenching time. And we're headed to Jackson Hole on Sunday to escape the San Antonio heat for a week. I hope that's enough excuses for not getting a lot done on the 977 lately!

BTW, please don't make fun of my itty bitty toolbox; I'm moving a few big boxes to the shop.



AC is working well in the shop; I keep it set at 78 and the two 24k units are able to keep the temp at or near 78 and that's fine by me.



I have managed to get some work done, however. Pulled the batteries and confirmed my fear that the box was rotted out under the 2x4's that the batteries were sitting on. No big deal, but something else to add to the list.



The batteries are junk, too; won't hold a charge. They're group 31's, so something you'd see in an RV, commercial truck, etc, but not enormous, by any stretch. Certainly not nearly as large as a 4D, which I think would have been original equipment. I'm inclined to get another pair of Group 31's.

 

[bulletpruf]

Got under the machine a few weeks ago to remove the three belly pans; not a required task at this point, but just trying to do a more detailed inspection before I start spending $$$ on parts.

Anyway, it has three belly pans. The rear pan stunk to high heaven! Might have been a dead possum in there somewhere. Kept track of the material that came out of the middle pan, I think, and it ended up being about 250 lbs. Haven't gotten to the front pan yet.

 

[bulletpruf]

Glad I pulled the belly pans, because when I got under the machine to look around a bit, I noticed that the crossmember wasn't bolted to the roller frame on the right side like it's supposed to be; it was welded. *s-worde. And that's the side that needs to come apart to replace the final drive. So I guess I'm going to need to do some grinding on those welds to get it apart, and then see what's under the plate that was welded to the roller frame. I'm guessing there are some snapped off bolts, and whoever put this back together figured it was easier to weld it back together than it was to remove the snapped off bolts. Just. Freaking. Awesome.

Here's the left side - bolted like it's supposed to be.



And the right side...



Up next - got to get the front belly pan off and do some more inspecting underneath, drain the left final drive to make sure there are no big chunks in it, check the transmission filter to make sure the trans doesn't appear to be self-destructing, and then either rent or buy a forklift and get started on removing the right final drive.

 

[Semotony]

Cool!
Nice bucket.

View attachment 419497

Thas not a bucket. Look closer cowboy coffee pot I believe

 

[Yukon Stihl]

That weld job may have been nessesary to get a job finished or possibly get the loader back to civilization

 

[bulletpruf]

Latest video is up. Trying to decide if it's a parts machine or if I'm going to try to fix it.

 

[bulletpruf]

Sent it down the road. I learned a lot, made a few new friends, gained valuable experience, and broke even. It's all good.

Scott