The Descriptive Process

[catbuster]

how is a grader not set up for grading?

Can the ole D8 be inframed again? or is it just a lot of expensive to haul spare parts now.

The grader that was sent can’t use GPS, it’s one on one of those jobs. It’s a taxiway and as such has to fit the site plan, yada yada. No just making it look right, and it’s a big area we’re going to have to cut to grade. GPS just makes life a lot easier. It also had a scarifying cutting edge on the moulboard, which makes cutting rock harder once it’s been packed.

That D8 is a monster, but it’s a 1983 model, and their run ended in 1987. At the very least Cat still makes parts for it, it’s an old mechanical 3408, which are funny creatures, and I guess I could drop a 3408E model in it and probably put some D9 parts in the undercarriage to make a super-high production frankendozer, but it’s at the point I don’t want to mess with it because it’s the oldest piece of equipment in the fleet and we need to be pulling wrenches on other gear.

 

[Skeans]

The grader that was sent can’t use GPS, it’s one on one of those jobs. It’s a taxiway and as such has to fit the site plan, yada yada. No just making it look right, and it’s a big area we’re going to have to cut to grade. GPS just makes life a lot easier. It also had a scarifying cutting edge on the moulboard, which makes cutting rock harder once it’s been packed.

That D8 is a monster, but it’s a 1983 model, and their run ended in 1987. At the very least Cat still makes parts for it, it’s an old mechanical 3408, which are funny creatures, and I guess I could drop a 3408E model in it and probably put some D9 parts in the undercarriage to make a super-high production frankendozer, but it’s at the point I don’t want to mess with it because it’s the oldest piece of equipment in the fleet and we need to be pulling wrenches on other gear.

Sounds like a good winter project.


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[catbuster]

Sounds like a good winter project.


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I guess I could work something out to keep it, but come next Monday I won’t own it. Hell, I won’t even have a shop big enough to fit that tractor in. I don’t even have a contractor to build a new equipment shop & storage buildings yet, much less a design. Ha. It’s going to be fun starting over after shedding much of a leviathan I created.

 

[northmanlogging]

I guess I could work something out to keep it, but come next Monday I won’t own it. Hell, I won’t even have a shop big enough to fit that tractor in. I don’t even have a contractor to build a new equipment shop & storage buildings yet, much less a design. Ha. It’s going to be fun starting over after shedding much of a leviathan I created.

"stay small, keep it all"-some old logger.

The headache from dealing with so much on a daily basis would likely put me in a home... bad enough with my small fleet and no employees, add a couple employees and the chaos they create, I'd be off the deep end in a hurry.

 

[catbuster]

"stay small, keep it all"-some old logger.

The headache from dealing with so much on a daily basis would likely put me in a home... bad enough with my small fleet and no employees, add a couple employees and the chaos they create, I'd be off the deep end in a hurry.

I’m up to 37 employees, which is fine. I’ve been managing construction & other heavy industry for about a decade and a half now, just about half that working for myself, so I had some good instruction prior. Once I had a good project manager and a couple good foremen I was set, it’s just a matter of finding those people so my nose didn’t have to be in everything, from there I pretty much just directed operations. I just delegated, like I had to in every other large organization I’ve been in charge of.

Fun fact: I can’t bid projects to save my life. I’ve always had someone else do it, and then I would check it to see if it was doable from a production standpoint.

So yeah, I know how to set up a successful larger outfit. I just want to slow down, and get out of mid-size purgatory. I can’t attack big jobs like Kiewit, Walsh or Kokosing-much less Bechtel, and I won’t be able to get into their league, so I figure I’ll just go do my thing with a couple other guys and if I want to chase the big jobs again I’ll get on with one of those big outfits and play with their money.

 

[northmanlogging]

I’m up to 37 employees, which is fine. I’ve been managing construction & other heavy industry for about a decade and a half now, just about half that working for myself, so I had some good instruction prior. Once I had a good project manager and a couple good foremen I was set, it’s just a matter of finding those people so my nose didn’t have to be in everything, from there I pretty much just directed operations. I just delegated, like I had to in every other large organization I’ve been in charge of.

Fun fact: I can’t bid projects to save my life. I’ve always had someone else do it, and then I would check it to see if it was doable from a production standpoint.

So yeah, I know how to set up a successful larger outfit. I just want to slow down, and get out of mid-size purgatory. I can’t attack big jobs like Kiewit, Walsh or Kokosing-much less Bechtel, and I won’t be able to get into their league, so I figure I’ll just go do my thing with a couple other guys and if I want to chase the big jobs again I’ll get on with one of those big outfits and play with their money.

When I was a machinst, I was regularly a "supervisor" responsible for multiple shifts and dozens of employees. I did have folks I could depend on to take care of their areas, and when it worked it worked great.

Now though, I simply don't want the headache, I'm responsible for me, and me alone now and its way more fun.

As for bidding jobs, you know what needs done, so you should be able to figure out material requirements, and hours, from there its just math.

 

[northmanlogging]

Granted for massive civil type works, there is a whole bunch of stuff that needs to be gone through before bidding... and its a total ass ache.

For smaller private stuff, I prefer to do time and materials with a rough estimate as to overall cost, which is fairly simple if you can guestimate materials and time on something as simple as a long driveway, clearing an acre, or a foundation dig. (hint under promise and over deliver bid high ish, and bill lower)

Things go sidewards when ologists get involved with every step of every phase and detail...

 

[catbuster]

Granted for massive civil type works, there is a whole bunch of stuff that needs to be gone through before bidding... and its a total ass ache.

For smaller private stuff, I prefer to do time and materials with a rough estimate as to overall cost, which is fairly simple if you can guestimate materials and time on something as simple as a long driveway, clearing an acre, or a foundation dig. (hint under promise and over deliver bid high ish, and bill lower)

Things go sidewards when ologists get involved with every step of every phase and detail...

Been on sum big ones. Back on the ORB camera phones weren’t really good enough to be worth taking pictures, but this one at CVG was a monster. I was not the primary site contractor, that would be Kokosing, and then Whiting-Turner built the building, whereas I was involved with some of the pipe. Kokosing moved something like 1.5 million yards over one summer to cut down for the building, then did another… Lot for the rest of the site work. They set miles of those huge box culverts the WA800 is wrestling with in the picture, man do I love these big jobs. The trench box in the one picture is bigger than my house & was set in with a PC1250 and a Cat 6015. The fill pads had 5 D9s spread out. WT had its own batch plant on site. It was one of the coolest projects I’ve ever been involved with.

I can bid T&M and am very good at contract negotiation, but if I have to try to lump sum on something I don’t have a concrete plan how to do, that’s when I get myself in trouble. I have on more than on occasion, and that would be the biggest reason I still stick with having an estimator.

Of course, I probably won’t be doing anything I don’t know what to do with a pickup, an excavator, dozer, backhoe and a skid steer loader.

 

[northmanlogging]

Been on sum big ones. Back on the ORB camera phones weren’t really good enough to be worth taking pictures, but this one at CVG was a monster. I was not the primary site contractor, that would be Kokosing, and then Whiting-Turner built the building, whereas I was involved with some of the pipe. Kokosing moved something like 1.5 million yards over one summer to cut down for the building, then did another… Lot for the rest of the site work. They set miles of those huge box culverts the WA800 is wrestling with in the picture, man do I love these big jobs. The trench box in the one picture is bigger than my house & was set in with a PC1250 and a Cat 6015. The fill pads had 5 D9s spread out. WT had its own batch plant on site. It was one of the coolest projects I’ve ever been involved with.

I can bid T&M and am very good at contract negotiation, but if I have to try to lump sum on something I don’t have a concrete plan how to do, that’s when I get myself in trouble. I have on more than on occasion, and that would be the biggest reason I still stick with having an estimator.

Of course, I probably won’t be doing anything I don’t know what to do with a pickup, an excavator, dozer, backhoe and a skid steer loader.

Been looking for a dozer... but folks are insane about what they think a 40+ year old non turbo'd machine should cost around here.

I'm mean some ******* wants 20k for a 50's D6 with fixed blade, never mind no winch, and no its not restored.

Had a backhoe, not real sure if it was worth owning, but i did make enough to help pay for my excavator

Anyway... i digress, One of the main reasons I generally do time and materials is that homeowners don't always know or even understand what they want, so I make a point of getting paid weekly and being very clear as to what needs to be done and why, keeps me from headaches further down the road.

I would also suggest getting yourself a Dumb truck, out here trucks are getting hard to hire, so having one means I can just go do work instead of waiting upwards of a month for anyone to have time.

 

[catbuster]

Snort & I went on a hike through a patch of hardwoods today.

He did well, as usual.

 

[northmanlogging]

todays "easy" project: put two better tires and an aluminum wheel on the logger truck...

tires went on the wheels ok (seems like I have to relearn this process everytime)
but then the bead seater wouldn't work right so it took like 10 tries to get the bead seated on the first one...

then the air compressor on the disservice truck needed the gas changed out of the oil... again...

The bottle jack (one of my tree jacks) wouldn't work, good ole floor jack wasn't up to it at all... so I spent a good hour putting 2 pints of oil in it through a 3/16" fill hole... of course then the jack just sinks into the gravel of my shop (read side of the road in a mud hole)

finally get the truck jacked up, swapped out the 2 tires... tightening the last round of lug nuts... and the compressor runs out of gas... and wouldn't you know it, I have no unmixed gas here at the house...
ended up using the 1" breaker bar to tighten them the rest of the way....

this quick 1-2 hour project on a sunday ended up taking closer to 6 hours

 

[Jhenderson]

As young men, whenever my buddy and I would run into the type of problems you mentioned his father would utter these words of wisdom: “You’ve got to work on everything before you can use it. He was right pretty near all the time”.

 

[rwoods]

I hate working on tools - especially those with flat tires and dead batteries. Seems to always happen when you're running short on time for the job at hand. But that is a part of life.

Especially irritating is the truly avoidable - I got up early Saturday to stage logs for loading. I get there to find the tractor almost out of fuel and the filter iced. Had to turn around and go back home for fuel and conditioner. Got back to find two trailers waiting on me.

Ron

 

[northmanlogging]

I hate working on tools - especially those with flat tires and dead batteries. Seems to always happen when you're running short on time for the job at hand. But that is a part of life.

Especially irritating is the truly avoidable - I got up early Saturday to stage logs for loading. I get there to find the tractor almost out of fuel and the filter iced. Had to turn around and go back home for fuel and conditioner. Got back to find two trailers waiting on me.

Ron

ick...
the trouble with "borrowed" equipment, not that i'm like a role model for machine maintenance, but they generally have enough fuel to go an hour or 2, and the filters are in good shape... you might catch TB or hanta virus just looking at them... but they will run.

 

[rwoods]

Saturday was on me - it was my tractor. I am usually a little less aggravated with others than myself.

Ron

 

[catbuster]

Today I went to look at a hill & give my opinion as to if it would be acceptable fill for a building pad. It will be fine if they stay above a shale layer, but I still went ahead and ordered a proctor as a CYA measure. Then I went to said building pad to look at it with the project manager and superintendent from a company who were recently my competition. I asked why part of the building was staked into a swamp, and apparently it’s where the surveyor staked it. I “recommended” it be corrected before the pad is constructed. I went back and write a report about what I saw, and said and sent it to the owner.

I don’t think I’ll be able to work for too long as a consultant. It’s too boring and you spend too much time trying to avoid all liability. It has too regular working hours too for this guy who thrives in what most people call insane situations. I’m thinking I’ll have to either work for the owner or as a contractor. I’m just not wired for it.

Taking Leo to the vet tomorrow and then going home.

Ron, I worked for a man whose catchphrase was “I’m not mad, but I am disappointed.” That always cut me down to size, even if that was how he really felt-and implying that I should know better. I still feel that way when I do something stupid with a piece of equipment.

 

[rwoods]

cb, I am disappointed quite often - doesn’t always involve machinery.

Hope you guys enjoy Thanksgiving. Friday I am going back to the range to do a little .22 shooting with a friend and his son. I’ll check on the dozer.

Ron

 

[rwoods]

An operator friend assured me that I could adjust the tracks safely, so I went by the range to check on things yesterday. Good thing I did, Chief and an inmate were attempting to adjust the tracks. Fortunately, they were having a difficult time finding the right size wrench. Chief was told to simply loosen the alemite. I stopped them and showed them the nut to loosen slowly. We adjusted both sides to factory specs. Put 5 gallons of an off-brand universal trans/hydraulic oil in each tank (Deere oil is about $120 for 5 gals before tax. Off-brand $34). Hope to top it off tomorrow. Chief didn’t want me to check the final drives as we spent enough already in his opinion. Pay now or pay much more later. He wasn’t persuaded.

Ron

 

[northmanlogging]

An operator friend assured me that I could adjust the tracks safely, so I went by the range to check on things yesterday. Good thing I did, Chief and an inmate were attempting to adjust the tracks. Fortunately, they were having a difficult time finding the right size wrench. Chief was told to simply loosen the alemite. I stopped them and showed them the nut to loosen slowly. We adjusted both sides to factory specs. Put 5 gallons of an off-brand universal trans/hydraulic oil in each tank (Deere oil is about $120 for 5 gals before tax. Off-brand $34). Hope to top it off tomorrow. Chief didn’t want me to check the final drives as we spent enough already in his opinion. Pay now or pay much more later. He wasn’t persuaded.

Ron

yeah deere is rediculous in pricing... the napa stuff is all my skidder has eaten in 9 years... trans is still good, (hydraulic pump getting weak but thats from constantly running it out of fluid)

2 gallons of 80-90w would run about $30, finals... probably 10g's in labor alone.

 

[rwoods]

I’ll try to remember to bring a half inch breaker bar. While he was fussing I tried to open the inner with a ratchet they had been using, but the plug was rusted tight.

Ron