CAT 972H

[D2 Robert Knighton]

Saw this in Southampton docks last week something a bit different a new CAT 972H loaded up with armour must be for mine sweeping

[Nick Drew]

Nice one Robert

Sure is a mean looking bit of kit !! Lets hope it makes it back in one piece

Are you based down Southampton way or were you just visiting

Nick

[D2 Robert Knighton]

No i live in woking in surrey ! my son took these pics he's a field service engineer for Finning uk

[Nick Drew]

No i live in woking in surrey ! my son took these pics he's a field service engineer for Finning uk

Oh I see Robert,

Just wondered as Southampton is my old home town city, always like to hear about the old place my heart is still up there to be honest If it wasn't for my lady I would be back up there.

Nick

[SRB]

Hello there Robert,

Your lad wouldn't be Graham by any chance?

These 972's are classed a HWT's, Heavy Wheeled Tractors, the first batch we had were fitted with quick couplers and had a range of attachments, including bucket, forks, concrete filled blade that weighed in around 4 ton if i remember and a 12 ton piling rig!
Wheels are foam filled and weigh just over a ton a corner. I remember issues with keeping the wheel bolts tight and we actually lost a wheel during an endurance road test!

SB

[Jocke]

cool some time ago , maybe a half a year ago it was a armoured cat wheelloader for sale on the swedish buy n sell site http://www.blocket.se i think it was a 972 but i´m not sure , brand new , should be something for the garden though

[IBH]

SRB,
I wonder if could help me?
I remember reading an article in Construction News about Amey-Lex taking over the operation/supply of the MOD's plant fleet and a specially designed CAT bulldozer machine was mentioned that is used for building runways.
It had large rubber Challenger type crawlers, rear mounted engine, a wheel oader cab and a standard CAT dozer blade but was able to be dropped by parachute.
Do you have any idea what the model is?

[SRB]

Ey up IBH,

I certainley do, they are called DEUCE 30/30's, DEployable Universal Combat Earthmover... and i think the 30/30 was 30 tons at 30 MPH.

They are a bit of a collision of cat machines...

Blade: D4 PAT blade,
Undercarriage: Challenger rubber belts
Transmission: D250 / D6

Machine has two modes, earthmove and deployment, in earthmover the machine is in the upper position as the pic below, transmission works a standard D6 power shift, 3 forward 3 reverse manual shifting, in Deployment mode, the machine Kneels down, blade becomes locked and the transmission is the same as a D250, 7 speed semi automatic.

Can be driven into Air transportrs and parachuted out the back, think we may have one in the yard, i'll go and have a nose and see what i can find.
Some pics of the DEUCE in action taken from the MOD website, working in Kabul

SB

[IBH]

Thanks SRB thats the one

[D2 Robert Knighton]

DEUCE