Bulldozers Parts Houston - Bulldozers, also referred to as dozers, are a type of tractor equipped with a dozer blade. They are most often crawler tractors - that is, they operate on a continuous track, rather than wheels - although they can be wheeled tractors. The large metal plate attached to the front of the bulldozer is called the dozer blade. The dozer blade is used to push large volumes of material, such gravel or dirt, during construction and alteration projects. The back of the bulldozer is usually fitted with large, metal teeth, called the ripper, useful in breaking up hard, compressed material.
Specifics
The tracks of a typical bulldozer give it superior traction and maneuvering capabilities on rough, uneven or unstable ground and the specialized transmission system allows the bulldozer to operate with increased tractive force. Sinking into unstable environments is prevented as the track width evenly distributes the weight of the machine. There are swamp track options available which are tracks with wider width options. Bulldozers are often utilized in land clearing applications, road construction, mining operations and other jobs that require stable and powerful equipment to transport large volumes of material.
Wheeled system bulldozers feature four wheels that operate with hydraulically powered articulated steering unit. The bulldozer blade relies on a hydraulic system for operation instead of a mechanical system and is located in front of the articulation joint.
What distinguishes the bulldozer from other large, construction equipment are its principal tools: the dozer blade and the ripper.
The Dozer Blade
The dozer blade is a large, metal plate mounted at the front of the bulldozer. Its purpose is to push heavy objects and material. Gravel, dirt, snow and rubbish are commonly pushed into new locations with bulldozers. Three typical kinds of dozer blade options are available including the semi-U blade, the universal blade and the straight blade.
The universal or U blade features large wings on the sides of the tall, curved blade to transport more material. The straight or S blade is much shorter than the U blade and has no wings on the side or lateral curve, making it ideal for earth grading jobs. The semi-U blade, or S-U blade, is a combination blade which is shorter, is less curved and has side wings, but which are smaller than those on the U blade. Generally, the semi-U blade is used to push large rock piles or boulders into place.
A dozer blade is fitted either horizontally to the tractor or at an angle. Dozer blade angles are capable of being adjusted via tilt cylinders. Dozer blades can be sharpened to enable cutting items including tree stumps and roots. Angledozer blades are pushed forward on one side (hence the name) to clear materials away from the path of the machine. Angledozers are commonly used for snow removal.
A bull blade is a common bulldozer attachment. A bull blade is a reinforced centre section of the bulldozer. The bull blade enables the dozer to push a scraper to move large portions of earth.
Military vehicles also utilize dozer blades. Numerous military vehicles can attach a dozer blade for strategic operations including battle tanks, artillery tractors and combat engineering vehicles. When mounted to a battle tank, the dozer blade allows the tank to push obstacles and mines and to dig shelters or create combat positions. It can help establish a protective barrier against obstacles, artillery and explosive items, making it a valuable machine for military applications.
The Dozer Ripper
The shank or dozer ripper is the substantial tool situated on the bulldozers’ back with long teeth. There are single shank options on dozer rippers or groups with two or more shanks available depending on the application required. The giant ripper design or large single shank is commonly used for large and compact applications. The multi-shank options are called multi-shank rippers.
The tip of the shank is a detachable, metal piece known as the boot. This allows for replacement of the boot when it becomes dull or broken, rather than replacement of the entire shank.
Solid objects including compact earth, concrete or rock can be broken up into tinier pieces thanks to the dozer ripper, creating material that is easier to transport by the dozer. This allows for quicker project completion.
The dozer ripper is used in farming to break up earth and rock for better plowing and planting. In some areas of Italy and New Zealand, for example, this is especially useful as the nutrient-rich, old lava flows would otherwise not be farmable given their denseness. With use of the ripper, the top layer of lava rock is loosened, allowing for the surface to be farmed.
Bulldozer Adaptations
Over time, the bulldozer has been adapted to allow for uses that were not possible with its original design.
The first bulldozer design was too large for working in confined spaces such as mining applications. These size limitations lead to smaller unit designs to enable more maneuverability in tighter locations. Smaller, light bulldozer models are commonly called calfdozers.
In snow areas, such as ski hills, a lighter version of the bulldozer is used for snow removal and preparing areas for winter sports.
More common bulldozer adaptations resulted in the loader tractor. The loader tractor consists of replacing the dozer blade with a sizeable bucket and using hydraulic arms for raising and lowering. This adapted bulldozer model is referred to as a track loader, trackscavator or Drott to load gravel, earth and rocks into dump trucks.
A less common bulldozer attachment is a stumpbuster. This attaches to the rear of the bulldozer. It is a single spike, protruding horizontally, used to split tree stumps for removal. Stump busters are commonly used by bulldozers to clear land. A brush-rake blade is also commonly used with the bulldozer in these situations.
The original bulldozer design is used ground leveling, road carving, deforestation and earthmoving applications. Heavy bulldozers are primarily used to level terrain in preparation for construction. The construction is completed mostly by smaller bulldozers and loader tractors.
Origins
James Cummings, a farmer, teamed up with J. Earl McLeod, a draftsman, to create the first bulldozer design in 1923. The dozer blade was the initial design they created and was built to be attached to an existing tractor in order to plow fields. They soon built the first bulldozer and their original prototype can be viewed in Morrowville, Kansas’ city park. Later that year, Cummings and McLeod filed for a US patent on their bulldozer attachment which was granted in January 1925. At the time, it was common for tractors to run on a track system. In fact, it was this earlier version of the tractor, with its superior maneuverability, that contributed to the creation of the armoured tank during World War I.
By 1929, home-made or custom-manufactured attachments began to appear on wheeled and tracked tractors alike. During the mid-‘30s, the bulldozer attachment started to gain popularity. Once hydraulic cylinders were added, sometime before 1940, bulldozers began to grow in popularity and by the 1950s, the term bulldozer referred to the entire machine.
Bulldozers evolved to become stronger and bigger as their demand grew for small and large construction jobs. Over time, large companies including Caterpillar and John Deer started manufacturing wheeled and tracked bulldozer models. Electric motors and hydraulic cylinders replaced initial cable winch mechanisms and automatic transmissions replaced manual transmission systems. These technological upgrades created more effective and accurate control systems. These days, GPS technology geared toward bulldozing tasks has added to improved grade control.
What started out as a tractor attachment for use in farming has not only become one of the most important machines in today’s civil engineering, it has become an important tool in military operations, mining and building and maintaining the vast infrastructures we rely on every day.
