"If you look at the history of the pull-type scraper, it started in agriculture to level the land they used laser to precision-level the fields." These days, more scrapers are using integrated GPS systems. Webre says it's commonly used in agriculture and for levee and ditch work. Other technology offered by JD includes iTech, which records functions for repeatability, and iGrade, Deere's own proprietary guidance system. Fine adjustments enable the steep angle blade to produce a smooth cut profile. The push-button load feature measures the parameters in a loading cycle and controls the blade, lifting and lowering it based on rpm and wheel slip, for a consistent cut with no gouging. The auto-load feature "makes a novice operator productive." It allows an operator to move 55 cubic yards per cycle with little training. The technology is fun, too, he continues. "That's an issue with self-propelled scrapers," he points out. Another customer drove it into the Gulf of Mexico to load sand underwater that it then spread on the beach.Īlthough Webre doesn't recommend continued use in such corrosive environments, he says, "It's fun to operate and fun to run." Ride comfort is very good, he indicates, with big, soft tires and a fully active seat. One customer in California used it to load and haul sea salt harvested from evaporation ponds. JD customers have even used their scrapers in some rather unusual ways. "It needs to be excavated every five to 10 years to bring the nutrients back up to the field," Webre explains. John Deere's customer base includes contractors involved in highway construction (everything from roads and bridges to all sorts of municipal jobs), oil-and-gas, mining, the stockpiling of coal, the digging of commercial ponds, the construction of sports fields and parks, landfill work, the regrading of cattle feed lots for improved wastewater runoff, and the reclamation of grass waterways to drain corn fields. It doesn't work well on sites that feature excessive or large aggregates, either, although the John Deere models do have options for moderately rocky conditions. However, he points out, "You can remove one and still be productive if it's wet, or you can top-load." Capable of single, tandem, and even triple configurations, it isn't suited to smaller or tighter job sites in the long configurations. While the pull-type scrapers are versatile in application, use and configuration, there are limitations with any equipment, Webre acknowledges. The ejector has more force it's hydraulically driven and pivots in the front, so it works better in heavy clay, gumbo, or wet, dense, compacted soils." It pivots in the rear and is less aggressive the deeper you go, so it performs well in sandy conditions or topsoil with no rock. "They all load the same," Webre explains, "but the carry-all has a rotating bucket inside the frame that uses gravity to unload. The choice of style comes down to job site. Additionally, the 1810E is popular with dealer-owned rental fleets because they can fit two on a trailer for transporting to customer job sites. Higher-capacity models like the 1812C, 2112C, 2112E, and 1810E are popular because of escalating fuel prices. John Deere, which Webre says is the market leader in pull-type scrapers, offers nine models of that "one machine" in two styles: the carry-all style and the ejector style. The main advantage is that you are excavating, carrying, and leveling with one operator and one machine. They go anywhere conventional earth movers can for lower cost and investment." He estimates that they are 30-50 cents cheaper per cubic yard to operate and one-third the cost of initial investment. "Anywhere you can use it, you should," he urges, "even if you're top-loading or pulling two or three in tandem. We can't do all they can we can't bank or tilt." However, he adds, compared with motor graders, dump trucks, or conventional scrapers, the pull-type scraper is cheaper to operate. "Motor graders are different," insists Chad Webre, product specialist for scraper systems with John Deere Construction Equipment. However, operators continue to find uses for them and consider them valuable elements of their fleets. The invention of the articulated dump truck and hydraulic excavators further diminished its prevalence. The towed scraper remained popular until the motor scraper appeared in the 1970s. By the mid-1940s, there were roughly 30 US manufacturers offering their own adaptations, including cable- and hydraulically operated styles.
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