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Premier Site Work-Excavating Picture Thread

59K views 335 replies 39 participants last post by  KrayzKajun 
#1 ·
We are new to the site figured we would post a few pictures of some of our equipment, first up our 2013 Cat 299D and 305.5
 
#77 ·
We tried that no bottom . . . . we have a friend in the business and his idea was to pour 12" 3" stone make a path with that it may work
I hate to be discouraging, but I do not think that would work....What were the lengths of your mats??

It is slow tedious work in the mud, and one slip and you are is trouble....You saw how expensive it was to pull your machine out with a wrecker, so take `heed`....Even on high land , once the crust breaks through it is hard to get a combine , or any heavy piece of equipment out---and that is when high ground is very close by...

Some times your `first` loss is your `best` loss Tony ps if you just have to do this job, consider very seriously a dredge or a good pump....With the water source, barge, pump and prepared `spoils` area. you would have a better chance.....
 
#78 ·
Just trying to save you money on stone, it won't do squat. As soon as any weight is put on the stone it will sink and mix with the mud. Silt is very unforgiving unless you let it sit and dry for a long long time ( we are talking months and months here)

Work from the shore and try to remove as wide a path as you can into it. Then find some nice dry sandy clay and build yourself a road/ ramp that is a few feet higher then the silt . ( you are going to need quite a bit of sandy clay material) work your way out as far as you can and then try to walk a long reach out onto this and load into your rock trucks . In order for this to work you have to find the hard bottom and build up off of it. If you just add the clay on top of the mud it will mix and the moisture will pump through and the clay will turn to jello and eventually slop.

I have used this method on a very large storm water pond . Used a 450 dlc , link belt 240x2 long front, 700j lgp blade and a few 30 tonne trucks. Rescued the contractors equipment, and cleaned the pond out our selves. Il try to dig up my old lap top that has some pictures on it.
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#79 ·
Just trying to save you money on stone, it won't do squat. As soon as any weight is put on the stone it will sink and mix with the mud. Silt is very unforgiving unless you let it sit and dry for a long long time ( we are talking months and months here)

Work from the shore and try to remove as wide a path as you can into it. Then find some nice dry sandy clay and build yourself a road/ ramp that is a few feet higher then the silt . ( you are going to need quite a bit of sandy clay material) work your way out as far as you can and then try to walk a long reach out onto this and load into your rock trucks . In order for this to work you have to find the hard bottom and build up off of it. If you just add the clay on top of the mud it will mix and the moisture will pump through and the clay will turn to jello and eventually slop.

I have used this method on a very large storm water pond . Used a 450 dlc , link belt 240x2 long front, 700j lgp blade and a few 30 tonne trucks. Rescued the contractors equipment, and cleaned the pond out our selves. Il try to dig up my old lap top that has some pictures on it.
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I like the idea but here's the question, the lake is to the left of where we are working wont all that water flow into the excavation? Almost like New Orleans being bellow water?
 
#80 ·
#81 ·
Hmm from what you were saying I thought all the water was pumped out. With a lake of water behind you , you have to block it from coming into the excavation. How deep is the mud? Can you pump more water out of the lake?
Anthony has an idea with using geo dredging , only issue is it is very very expensive to do.
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#84 ·
Update on the dredging project: As of right now its on hold due to the weather we have been having and the holidays. Gives us some more time to come up with a plan.
 
#85 ·
Here's some shots of a 21 Acre clearing project we started, bobcat sent us a T650 with diamond mower to demo on the project. Things where going well until the door on the skid blew out. I needed a change of pants after that to say the least! The Diamond Mower though is bad a$$ cuts faster than a fecon head makes quick worked in the dense under brush on this project.

Plant Ecoregion Natural landscape Tree Twig


Plant Tire Plant community Vehicle Motor vehicle


Plant Motor vehicle Automotive tire Vehicle Tree
 
#86 ·
I like those style mowers for working WAY far from other people or glass and I had a Davco, which was the standard of that type of mower before the copycats, and I liked it. I got rid of it because it took 2x as long to make things look good and the flying debris was unaccepable to the point where I was scared to operate it near anyone. With practice, the results got be acceptable but I blew out my glass and my customer's truck window (over 150' away). I put the mower away and went to find a lexan insert. I got cut up (not bad) but it scared me enough for me to re-evaluate safety when operating forestry mowers.
I can't believe a dealer would send a machine like that out without a lexan door and debris guards which help keep combustible debris out of the compartments. Not sure what they were thinking if someone could get hurt.

Other than the safety aspect, they are fun to rip and shred thick brush.
 
#87 ·
I like those style mowers for working WAY far from other people or glass and I had a Davco, which was the standard of that type of mower before the copycats, and I liked it. I got rid of it because it took 2x as long to make things look good and the flying debris was unaccepable to the point where I was scared to operate it near anyone. With practice, the results got be acceptable but I blew out my glass and my customer's truck window (over 150' away). I put the mower away and went to find a lexan insert. I got cut up (not bad) but it scared me enough for me to re-evaluate safety when operating forestry mowers.
I can't believe a dealer would send a machine like that out without a lexan door and debris guards which help keep combustible debris out of the compartments. Not sure what they were thinking if someone could get hurt.

Other than the safety aspect, they are fun to rip and shred thick brush.
We where very surprised that they sent it with a standard door! Our 299 has the Lexan door on it, per our request when we ordered it, most likely we will bring the 299 over to the site within the next few days to run the mower. Right now its tied up on a drainage job in Ft. Worth.

Must say though the Diamond Mower is impressive and works very well for what it is designed to do, but I agree don't have anyone around when its operating!
 
#88 ·
I would not even consider running that machine with a mower and a standard door on it. I had a T300 with the lexan door on it and had things hit it so hard it made my ears ring! It scared the absolute crap out of me many times. I had chains on the front to stop SOME of the flying debris, it does help with the distance it goes. I still peppered 3 cars one day driving by when I hit a large branch buried in the grass. Those where some mad ass people I can tell ya that!
 
#90 ·
I was mowing down some tall grass last year, I walked to area first because people were dumping there. I missed a piece of angle iron about 4"x3'. The mower threw it out the front about 90' and it skipped across the neighbors lawn and went another 30'. My jaw dropped.
That's when you pack up for the day and go home before someone gets killed!
 
#91 ·
That's when you pack up for the day and go home before someone gets killed!
It was only a 2 acre plot that a bank owned and wanted to clean it up a bit, put a driveway in and culvert.

Literally walked the whole 2 acres in 5' swaths and the grass hid it, I found other pieces of angle and 2x12s and other garbage but missed that one.....was glad I started after the homeowners left next door. When they got home from work I told them what happened. They ended up contracting us to build a retaining wall the next day to bring grade up on the side of their house.

It all worked out. :)
 
#96 ·
After looking at every mud mat on the market we decided to go the old fashion way. . . we are going to lay down some mats and use our skid and mini ex to remove the material. Those two machines are the only ones that are light enough to operate over the mats with out sinking themselves and the mats.

We where there last week with a little yanmar clean out under docks, worked very well got in got out with not issues. I will get some pictures up

Wheel Tire Sky Cloud Land vehicle
 
#99 ·
Moving that thing was like moving a Tonka truck LOL! But it worked well could operate right under the docks and hog the soil out quickly and easily.

We are going to use 2 cat 305.5 mini ex's with 36" buckets and 2 Cat 299D skid steers with bobcat dumper buckets
 
#101 ·
Yes both of them are 2 speed machines, we have an additional 2 T300 on standby if we need them, it should balance out with the speed of digging and moving the mats back
 
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