The dozer is a strikingly beautiful piece of heavy equipment. The first thing you notice is the long, vertical steel blade in the front of the beast. It looks like a military tank has been bred with a farm tractor. In this blog, I will look at the components that make this one of the most powerful machines in the earthmoving world.
Mainframe core
The mainframe core, which forms the rigid inner body, is cut from steel plate and structurally shaped so that it easily resists high impact shock loads and torsional forces normally incurred by the dozer. The main structural skeleton, formed through the welding of steel plates to machined casting, is comprised of two boxed-in rail sections connected to the main casing.
Diesel engine and transmission
The engine mounts in the front of the bulldozer; however, it is connected to the transmission, which sits in the back. The two are connected by a long shaft and supported by couplings and bearings. The transmission is then connected to a series of gears and differentials to comprise the rest of the power train.
Radiator and blade
On the front of the bulldozer, an engine casing is mounted to support the radiator and hydraulic lifting cylinders. The blade is a heavy piece of metal that is located at the front of the tractor. It can lift heavy materials through its hydraulic arms. There are three different types of blades. There’s the straight blade, which is short and has no side wings. Its purpose is only for fine grading. Then there’s the universal blade, which is tall and curved. It can carry more material as it comes with large side wings. Lastly, there’s the combination blade, which is shorter, has less curve, and has smaller side wings.
Cab and ROPS
Usually complete in its array of electronics and controls, the cab will be mounted on steel blocks or pads located on the dozer frame. After mounting, connections will be made to the various controls, and power can be supplied to the fully functioning cab. A ROPS is a steel structure that surrounds the cab area of a piece of heavy machinery, such as a tractor.
Ripper
Situated at the back of a dozer, a ripper breaks up dense earth and materials. It looks like a claw with either a single- or multi-shank design, which specifies how many prongs the ripper has. Not every job needs a dozer ripper, but it’s useful for breaking down materials that you need to move. The farming industry also uses rippers to break up farmland and make it easier to plant and grow crops.
Tracks
A dozer’s tracks, which resemble those on a military tank, help the machine move. Because dozers are incredibly heavy, their tracks need a large surface area to keep them from sinking into the ground. The track consists of the track frame, rollers, and assembly. A chain surrounds the frame, which creates a flat surface so the rollers can move across various surfaces.
Final Drives
The final drive is an assembly of gears that rotates a sprocket that in turn drives the tracks of the dozer. Some machines have the final drive close to the ground, while others are elevated above the ground. The tracks then follow a triangular shape (some have described it as a scalene triangle) instead of an elongated rectangular shape. The main drawback to this design involves the tracks: by moving the drive sprocket above the ground, the tracks now have one additional place they have to bend. That is going to mean additional wear and tear on the tracks, which can prove very expensive (as most tracked machine owners are all too aware). There must be some major benefit to risking the additional wear on the tracks.
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