Cat D4 bulldozer

[Mick Norton]

Can anyone add any information regarding the ex RE Cat D4 dozer.

Date of entry into service?

Numbers built for War Office?

Dozer blade and side arm type?

Costs?

I think registration is missing a digit?

I should have more information shortly from the equipment data plate once revealed!

[wally dugan]

the EV series of numbers is for the year 1963/1964 the number looks like 01 EV 00

[Mick Norton]

Thanks Wally.

[Richard Farrant]

I wonder if this is the D4 dozer that used to be on a plinth at Wainscott? If it is, I recall working on the steering clutches whilst on a course there, so the retiring CO could drive it on to the plinth.

[Mick Norton]

Richard,

The Wainscott D4C remains in situ.  (Ex 9 Para) and is still the backdrop for course snaps.

Mick

[Richard Farrant]

Thanks Mick, good to know it has survived as that was about 1980 when it went on the plinth!

[Zero-Five-Two]

On 8/21/2022 at 10:52 AM, Mick Norton said:

Richard,

The Wainscott D4C remains in situ.  (Ex 9 Para) and is still the backdrop for course snaps.

Mick

I take it you mean the one outside the Pondarosa, I thought that was a D6?

[Zero-Five-Two]

On 8/21/2022 at 10:25 AM, Richard Farrant said:

I wonder if this is the D4 dozer that used to be on a plinth at Wainscott? If it is, I recall working on the steering clutches whilst on a course there, so the retiring CO could drive it on to the plinth.

There was one at the Gillingham Business Park, on Ambly Road, just up by the DVSA Test centre.  Might be that one 

[Mick Norton]

The Cat outside the Ponderosa at Wainscott is a D6C with and 8 yard box sat behind but unreeved.

The Cat D4C was at the bottom of the hill at that time outside the former Plant Roads & Airfields Wing.

That's me in the image stood alongside.

I was the Military Plant Foreman (MPF) running the plant training  at the Ponderosa 1984-86.

Happy days.

 

[Zero-Five-Two]

I can't believe I don't remember the D4 at all.   I must have gone past it hundreds of times over the years.

[Mick Norton]

Here's a POM 0-2 course posing in front of the Cat D4C outside the PR&A Wing in 1986.

I'm sat centre front row

[Richard Farrant]

1 hour ago, Mick Norton said:

 

The Cat D4C was at the bottom of the hill at that time outside the former Plant Roads & Airfields Wing.

 

 

 

 

Hi Mick,

That would be right as I was on a course at Plant Roads & Airfields Wing and positive it was 1980. Do you remember a REME Major there named Kemp?

[Mick Norton]

The name Kemp does ring a bell.

[Richard Farrant]

He went to that posting after leaving 44 Command Workshop REME where he was 2i/c. Had a lot of respect for him, now sadly gone.

[Zero-Five-Two]

8 hours ago, Mick Norton said:

Here's a POM 0-2 course posing in front of the Cat D4C outside the PR&A Wing in 1986.

I'm sat centre front row

Many thanks for the reminder, that's stirred some good memories. The course photo, done a few of those. I was part of the MAN 2 team for a couple of years '92, 93 looking after Sect Comd and Plt Sgt courses. Recognise at least one young Sapper in your picture

[ploughman]

I recall that we had a D4 on our POM 0-2  78/10.

Used for familiarisation not for serious work as they said it was getting past it.

Used by the guys on the 100b's rather than the D6's

[Mick Norton]

Bryan,

Yes, the D4Cs were on their way out then.

A good tool in its day, for the smaller muck shifts.

We had one in Thailand on the road and airfield and it never let us down.

Mick

[Zero-Five-Two]

Was the D4 replaced by the TM 70 or were they about the same era? 

[Mick Norton]

Rob,

The Track Marshall 70 (TM70) was about the same time as both the Cat D4C and the Case Terramatic drive light crawler which was not entirely successful.  Some rated the TM70 as a Cat D5 equivalent but I would disagree.  The TM 70 was not the tool to endure an eight hour day with it was bloody hard work.  I worked with the Gurkha Engineers at the Jungle Warfare School in Malaya in the 1960s where we used a TM70 with a small towed scraper which did the work okay.  Track Marshall closed for business in 1990.

Mick

[super6]

Track Marshall ceased production of crawlers in 1998, see  Track Marshall @ The Marshall Club Lots of owners over the years