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Alright got a good three hours on the dozer this morning. My berm is starting to take a hint of the basic shape I'm hoping to end up with. I've had that dozer on some serious angles this morning. I climbed one area and turned around to look at what I've been working on and sitting on the dozer close to the edge I couldn't see where the side I just climbed met the bottom, it was to steep!

Finally got through to the clay. I did end up wasting a bunch of topsoil. I was out of places to put it so it went in the berm I'll just have to cover it with clay.
 
A couple three pictures of the berm project. Click for bigger pictures.

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Another good day on the dozer so far. Got two and a half hours in this morning. Almost all of that was spent making more room around this ever expanding project. I have been having a blast though. Dozer is showing more and more signs of needing work. The steering clutches and brakes were pretty well gone and I knew that when I bought it but this is the first real showing of being an issue it's made. Opened up another 20-30 feet of space in two areas then started moving topsoil. After the dozer cools down I need to finish moving the topsoil and get around the other side and get it opened up another 30-40 feet. Every time I turn around it seems like the area encompassed in the berm project is growing. Other than loosing 20 or so yards of nice topsoil I am happy with the way things are progressing. Just because it might make life a bit nicer and easier this berm just keeps growing. Swallowing up a fair bit of what would have been terribly sloped & rough ground to deal with.
 
Taken this afternoon. SLOW but progress none the less.

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My youngest daughter took a short few second video that gives a little size comparison yesterday afternoon.

 
I've put a bunch more hours in on this project yet it doesn't appear to me I've made anymore progress. Decided I had better try and tighten up the tracks. Fooled around with that for several hours without success. First I had to dig out all the mud turned concrete from the bogies and track tensioner. Then pulled the grease fittings that work the adjustors. They were both clogged an hour or so soaking in a little gas got them freed up with the help of a small drill bit twisting the crud out of the inside. The left side tensioner has a busted seal and the big coil spring is broken. The right side is frozen solid and refuses to move with all my might working the grease gun. So it looks like I will cross my fingers and pray for now. I flat out do not have the funds to fix it the way prices are now...

My berm is about 11 feet higher than the original ground level was. So if I have to I could go ahead and get a fence across it but I'd really like another couple feet of height if I can manage it. Probably ought to put some sort of overflow pipe just incase this thing decides to hold water. Of course that's assuming it ever rains again.
 
Added almost another foot to most of the top of the berm this evening. It's getting wider and wider the farther up I go. I would hazard a guess that the berm is around 70 maybe 80 feet long now. Made some decent progress cleaning up a lot of the rougher areas as well.
 
Biggkidd said:
Added almost another foot to most of the top of the berm this evening. It's getting wider and wider the farther up I go. I would hazard a guess that the berm is around 70 maybe 80 feet long now. Made some decent progress cleaning up a lot of the rougher areas as well.
Click to expand...
As it grows in size the amount of material required
grows geometrically.

Is it time to declare " good enough" ?

Ben
 
Neb said:
As it grows in size the amount of material required
grows geometrically.

Is it time to declare " good enough" ?

Ben
Click to expand...
LMAO

Oh trust me I know and have known that for many years. I dug & built swimming pools for a living. Had my own company doing it from 19 till MS hit at 34. I am one of the few really lucky MS patience's who was able to learn to walk and talk again.

I could have said that two days ago! BUTTTTTT the possibility for so much more was just right there staring me right in the face. I seriously doubt I will regret the extra time and money it cost in the long run. This is probably a once in a lifetime opportunity might as well go the extra few feet.
 
Biggkidd said:
LMAO

Oh trust me I know and have known that for many years. I dug & built swimming pools for a living. Had my own company doing it from 19 till MS hit at 34. I am one of the few really lucky MS patience's who was able to learn to walk and talk again.

I could have said that two days ago! BUTTTTTT the possibility for so much more was just right there staring me right in the face. I seriously doubt I will regret the extra time and money it cost in the long run. This is probably a once in a lifetime opportunity might as well go the extra few feet.
Click to expand...
And....it is a whole lot of fun.
 
Got another 10 + hours running the dozer over the last couple days. Started opening up the area around the berm project. Thinking about shifting gears / plans again and going ahead and clearing that block instead of putting animals in there to eat it down first. It's so dense and thick it's dark as full on night in there. I can't see but a few feet in any direction up through it. Most anything edible would be well above their heads. I hadn't realized it was half this tall. Looks like there might be some nice bottom ground but I just can't see it yet.
 
Picked up another few hours on the dozer today. Opening up the space around the berm project. I'm seriously thinking I'm going to go ahead and clear the entire area in that section. Didn't look like I made much progress today but I guess every little bit adds up. I'd like to get it planted in grasses / grazing / forage this fall if I can make it happen.
 
Another two hours on the dozer this morning. Progress is slow but progress none the less. Hoping this tank of fuel will let me finish this area as I am just about out of diesel for this project. I had set aside 100 gallons for this.
 
Wingnut said:
I'm going on my fifth month of house painting, lol... :oops:
Click to expand...
Better you than me! I've done quite a bit of painting in my life and it's a crappy way to make a living. It's no wonder most painters are drunks. Much like roofers... About the only part of general housing construction I haven't done at one point or another is HVAC.

Got another two hours in. That's about all this old machine can run in this heat before having to have a long cool off period. Which isn't so bad since I am in about the same shape we, the machine and I are of an age after all. lmao

One of these days there is going to be some very large fires here or I'm going to just have to let all this lay and rot. I know letting it rot would be so much better in the long run but I would like to see this finished before I die!
 
Just now got off the dozer for the fourth time today. Probably got nearly 7 hours of actual work time. I would guess I got the better part of half an acre done today. Pretty stoked about that.
 
Biggkidd said:
Just now got off the dozer for the fourth time today. Probably got nearly 7 hours of actual work time. I would guess I got the better part of half an acre done today. Pretty stoked about that.
Click to expand...
Can you conjure up before and after images?

Ben
 
Not really lol I didn't get any before but I can get some of where I'm at now tomorrow. Provided I remember that is. lol If I can move!
 
Ye old good news / bad news routine. That storm was real fast and didn't dump all that much rain. What it did dump pretty much all came at once. It did add about 8-10 inches of water in our rain catchment totes, that was desperately needed. It also put about a foot of water in my project area in front of the berm. Thank the lord I hadn't cut the opening to the larger run off ditch to it yet. It did tell me we shouldn't have any trouble getting enough run off to fill the pond once it's done. I have been hesitant to use that word for various reasons. One of which was the fear it was a waste of time that would never fill. That's the good news. The bad news is it put a foot of water in my work area. lol Which is going to put a dead stop on that project for the immediate future. The mud around it is just nasty sloppy.
 
Got another dozen or so trees down and out of the way today before the rain started. Boy I've got trees laying everywhere to make firewood out of. I already had a bunch but now that I'm working over on the west side of the first drainage ditch some these are larger. Soon as I cross the second drainage ditch they go from all scrub & firewood to firewood and timber. There are several nice oaks and such that will make some boards that have to go or they will be flooded out when this fills. This weather pattern we are currently in is what we use to get here mid September. It's making me wonder if winter may not be early this year. Actually I've seen a few things in the last weeks that are making me wonder if this coming winter might be one for the record books. Woolyworms in the first week of july and nuts and acorns galore and now september weather here now. For many years we got monsoon season starting the second week of september pretty much for the rest of the month then it more or less stopped a few years ago.

Before long I'm going to have to break out the transit and see exactly what I have so far. As much as I've done here already believe it or not I haven't taken any readings yet.
 
Biggkidd said:
Got another dozen or so trees down and out of the way today before the rain started. Boy I've got trees laying everywhere to make firewood out of. I already had a bunch but now that I'm working over on the west side of the first drainage ditch some these are larger. Soon as I cross the second drainage ditch they go from all scrub & firewood to firewood and timber. There are several nice oaks and such that will make some boards that have to go or they will be flooded out when this fills. This weather pattern we are currently in is what we use to get here mid September. It's making me wonder if winter may not be early this year. Actually I've seen a few things in the last weeks that are making me wonder if this coming winter might be one for the record books. Woolyworms in the first week of july and nuts and acorns galore and now september weather here now. For many years we got monsoon season starting the second week of september pretty much for the rest of the month then it more or less stopped a few years ago.

Before long I'm going to have to break out the transit and see exactly what I have so far. As much as I've done here already believe it or not I haven't taken any readings yet.
Click to expand...
Do you have or considered a sawmill ?

Or hire a sawyer and split the product?

Ben
 
Neb said:
Do you have or considered a sawmill ?

Or hire a sawyer and split the product?

Ben
Click to expand...
I have pretty much everything here to build one EXCEPT the energy. I might need more nuts & bolts and small items but all the big pieces are here on site to build a nice mill IF I ever get off my lazy butt and get it done. I even have three boxes of bands / blades.
 
Picked up a couple 1'x12' pipes today to either use as a bypass for the water as I build or as overflow pipes. I'm thinking at least one if not both together as a single 24' length needs to go in as a bypass. The kids had tried to load them on a pickup which was a no go. Not only are they long and awkward as heck but they are about 1/2" thick and heavy! I was moving hay and had the forks on the tractor so slipping a fork inside the pipe and loading them on the deuce was no problem.

I am afraid the hay we picked up today is ALL we will be able to get this year. The hay crop has been horrid. We had no rain during the spring growing season up until this last week when we started getting some storms. Of course hard fast bucket dumping rain doesn't do much good either since it all runs off.
 
Hummmm looks like my project may be on hold awhile. One area is under 40+ inches of water. lol I guess that could be considered a good thing. I know the area will hold water. I do have the means to pump it out if I ever have to. But I can't see the point in pumping tons of muddy water through good pumps. I was over there looking at it today where I decided to include the other drainage ditch. That's going to double if not triple the area. Lots more clearing work to do now... I must enjoy MAKING MORE WORK for myself.
 
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Reactions: Neb
Biggkidd said:
. That's going to double if not triple the area. Lots more clearing work to do now... I must enjoy MAKING MORE WORK for myself.
Click to expand...

I do that as well!

And when I fail The Princess picks up the difference. 😊

Ben
 
Went to make a payment on the dozer today. Handed it to Mr. Martin and he handed it back while saying it was paid in full. Well he and I both know it wasn't paid in full but he flat refused to take the payment or listen to another word about it. I still owed about $225 or maybe $275. He said he was happy and not to say one more single work about it. We stood around and talked for an hour or so and as I was leaving I tried again to pay him and he got mad, almost pissed and said he wouldn't tolerate any more talk about it. So I come on home. Then I got on the net and used what was supposed to be this months payment and a little extra to order a set of brake linings. lol
 
Brake linings hit today but I'm waiting on new glasses so I can finish welding on the tractor before I can get it and a ton of other stuff moved out of the way so I can get the dozer close enough to work on. Ever notice something is always waiting on something else to happen first? Had to order stronger reading glasses to try and wear under my welding helmet. I was making a horrible mess out of trying to weld the other day, dang eyesight has gotten terrible within arms distance.
 
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