What size COMPACT TRACK LOADER best works for MX TRACK

That's a dozer, which is a capable machine too - a loader will let you pick up and move dirt rather than just push on the ground alone. A track loader can also push dirt like a dozer.

 A full size track loader looks like this:

https://machineryline.info/-/sale/track-loaders/Caterpillar/963-C-Only-…

A good operator can do all those things with either dozer or track loader. A track loader gives more flexibility one way, but less fine grading control as you might have with more experience on a dozer.

The tracks themselves look pretty worn from what I can see in the photos. How many hours are on it? and how many on the undercarriage?  Rebuilding the undercarriage on those can add up quickly.  The system on the 249,259 has fewer parts and they are all metal. The ASV style system has plastic and rubber wheels, and a lot of them. They (ASV) do say that You can run those wheels until there is no rubber left on them.  If I was looking at buying an ASV style CTL, I would take a good look at the condition of the undercarriage and get prices on rebuilds in my area  and or parts cost if I planned on doing it myself. I think that they say to expect around 1500-2000 hours on a ASV style track system before You have to do a rebuild.  

I know it can be exciting to have  the key to a big project in Your grasp , and get excited about the finished project. But if You get a machine with a bad or worn out undercarriage , It's going to end up with the tracks falling off, or stuck, or in the shop. Depending on how many hours it has on it, the price sounds ok compared to what  they are going for around me. But prices seem to be a little all over the place depending on where You are.  I would also look up any listings on equipment selling websites to see what stuff was listed for and sold around you recently to see how good of a deal something is. 

If that is original paint, it looks like it might not have had too rough of a life. If the wheels and rest of the undercarriage is in good shape and its just the lugs worn on the tracks, and the rest of the machine is solid. It might be worth buying . Sometimes a smaller machine with less power will be more beat up since it has to work closer to its max more often.  20 HP might not sound like a big difference, but the jump from a 80 HP machine to a 100HP machine is BIG.  

I'd be wary of that machine. You can't really tell undercarriage condition from just worn out track. I bought an ASV RC-30 a decade ago sight unseen. Tracks looked new in pics, but discovered the undercarriage was shot, multiple rollers needing replacement, leaking main seal.

If at all possible go look at equipment year to you. Look for a good dozer, track loader or if you are set on it a compact track loader - have a mechanic go with you to inspect if you don't trust your own eyes.

But also know that any piece of used equipment is a risk to a degree.

I have a cat 259d.

With my minimal experience I'd say get the largest ctl you can.

I wouldn't touch that asv style CAT ...it will cost you a fortune to fix...and you will have to fix that undercarriage sooner rather than later.

Find a takeuchi 10 or 12...those things are solid.

My cat has been decent but has cost me north of $15k in maintenance in less than 3 years !

Be ready to throw some serious cash at anything used...these tools are not treated nice and are often abused by previous owners.

And squatch is 100% correct on renting before you buy...another thing to consider is dealer support and location ...if you can't get parts you are stuck.

Some things to consider:

Get an oil analysis done before you buy a machine ..it will tell you if there's damage to the Hydro system.

New tracks will run about $4,000 USD

Get an enclosed cab machine if you can...it's worth the extra cost

2speed is great if you're having to track across your property a lot

2,000hrs is the magic number when these machines start to fall apart ...find a low hour unit.

High flow is nice but unless you plan on doing serious work it isn't needed (masticating, big mowers)

Go to heavy equipment forum.com and search the machine you are considering to find the most common problems with it....those guys know their stuff!

https://www.pon-cat.com/en-no/pon-power/service-tjenester/sos-fluid-ana…

That cat 247 is the dirt bike equivalent to a 250f with bad airforks and 250hrs on the motor.

Quadaviator-

Obviously do what works best for you and your individual situation, but since you sought out advice here, there have certainly been enough folks on here expressing doubts that I think you are really going to regret purchasing that particular unit. I don't chime in to Vital much as we've all certainly seen that everyone has their own often varying opinions, but I deal with both Caterpillar dealers and Caterpillar corporate in my line of work and that particular series of loaders and it's track system was acquired by Cat to get their footing into the small and compact equipment market.

Cat, despite being a global construction equipment leader, was way behind the 8-ball in the compact loader / skid steer market prior to those ASV's. Cat was also getting into the rental business at its dealership to compete with United Rentals, Sunbelt, etc. and didn't want to have to rent Bobcat, Case, Deere, etc brands at a Cat Rental Store. The only thing really "Cat" about them is the yellow paint and Cat decals to begin with. You won't talk to anyone still at Cat that has anything good to say about that series.

You might get this unit and be one of the minority that gets your intended usage out of it at minimal cost and downtime- but its not very likely. Put your money towards something else that has a better reputation and also where you can get service, parts, and support.

I have the smallest ctl bobcat makes. T 450. 60hp. 6200lbs. 5' wide. I can fix up a 90 second lap time sand track in 45 min. Sand being the key word. Im also pretty experienced. Get the biggest one available . 

Rent a dozer to build and for major changes etc. Buy a 4wd tractor with a front end loader for maintenance. Your pocketbook will thank you. 

Like the other guy said, don’t get a cat that ends with the number 7. I had one and the undercarriage is too much light duty. 
 

I’m using the 299D3 and anything less would not have enough power for my use. 

I really like that ripper on that 299. Does it work as nice as it looks?

You'd get a lot more accomplished with that machine, however that's also a very expensive undercarriage if you have to replace, and at that number of hours (8,000+), you may need other major component replacements so that could add $$ quickly. Just to give you an idea, if that D3 needed new chains/sprockets, It would cost you probably $12k. 

I really like JoshD's recommendation, as long as soil conditions permit.....rent a dozer for track build and major overhaul, but for maintenance go for a 4wd tractor or skip loader....Deere 210 would be nice for maintenance and small changes, and very low operational cost in comparison to dozer or even a compact track loader. 

JoshD nailed it . .rent a dozer to do the major work at first (you could probably get the track roughed in over the weekend) and then buy a 4x4 tractor or skip loader.

A dozer is great but you can't use it for much else than pushing dirt.

What else would you be using the machine for?

Do you have a long gravel driveway you need to maintain? Skip loader like a Deere 210 would be best .

Would you need to take the machine to different properties or use it for work? Midsize CTL would be easiest to move and have the most attachment options.

You need to figure out exactly what you need and what suits your property best

The wheels on the undercarriage look ok in the pics. But the part that acts like a sprocket, I've heard people call it the squirrel cage around here, looks like it has a lot of wear. You can see slop in parts of it. Overall it looks decent for that many hours on it. It says 6500 hours on it. That is a lot of time on one of those. If it was me, I would keep looking.Like others have said 2k hours or less would be ideal.   I would stay away from anything over 5K hours that doesn't have proof of some major maintanance. And know that the higher the hours , the sooner You will be spending money on something.

The oil and other fluid analysis is worth doing on a machine You are serious about. The local Cat dealer by me will provide reports for any machines they are  selling. And Cat required that we sample fluids and send them to them to test, to keep the warranty valid, or use them for all of the maintanance. They would still test the fluids and keep the results on file with the machines serial number. I'm not sure if that was a local dealer thing, or a global cat thing. But anytime we got parts for any of our cat stuff we had to give them the serial # and we could see a list of everything that had ever been bought for that machine from Cat.I've been away from fulltime operating for a while now, so that could have all changed.          

As far as buying a dozer , I kinda think that a CTL  or maybe even a 4x4 tractor with some attachments might be more handy .  For building and grooming the track a dozer is going to be my choice . But  there are other things that You'll likely end up doing around the property that a CTL or tractor with loader could be handy for, and You could get away with using them to grade. Being able to pick up stuff and carry it is handy. Moving boulders or trees.  Renting an auger attachment to put a fence in. Or trencher attachment for watering system. A brush mower to keep the area around the track clean and clear.  Picking up and moving water lines as You put the irrigation system in. building any retaining walls you might need. 

If You think You will want to make big changes often, and need to groom the track multiple times per day, consider buying the dozer. But if You plan on Building the track and grooming it 1 time or less per day, not riding everyday, and keeping the same layout for  a longer time, renting the dozer to build and buying the CTL to maintain would be what I would do. 

And looking the machines up on heavy equipment forums will also be a great help. Some machines are known to have certain issues . Lift up  the cab on any CTL You are serious about buying too. We used to wash and vacuum out our machines. Dirt builds up in there and can cause issues like broken hoses and excess wear on other stuff. Sometimes You will have to remove a couple bolts, But its  not a lot of work if they have been keeping up with the machine.   

I’m going to say a big no go on that machine 4k+ hours is a good amount and is around the hour mark where you start throwing money at it. Plus it needs both tracks have you priced those out yet to see a what those run? Also would be weary because the hour meter broke at 4000 hrs and now has “500” a year added to it. As a heavy equipment operator/mechanic I wouldn’t waste my time 

Yes, It's amazing!  Best money I ever spent on an attachment for track prep.

No, but I’ll make one when I do track prep later this week. 

You told them its the ASV style track system right?   In the US its about $1400 US per track so $2800 for the pair. last I checked. Did they quote you per side, or for both sides? 5k for the entire thing would not be too bad. But if its 5k per side, plus 1400 per track.  You are at 12,800 for the fresh undercarriage.

  It did not look like it needed everything, so You might get away with a couple wheels and new sprockets. A friend of mine has a Cat 287 and he replaced some of his plastic/rubber wheels with aftermarket metal versions.  Another friend has a rubber tire cat skid steer that he had to rebuild the engine around 4k hours , and another friend with a 287 had similar engine problems. Both of them bought the machines used, one was from an auction so those may be bad examples.  Only 1 of those 3 uses their machine as a fulltime source of income. And they have since sold their ASV style track machine and now have a 249 and 289 with the rigid metal style undercarriages. The person with the rubber tire  cat, bought a 287 now . So 2 people who still have their 287's use them mostly to work on their private tracks and around their property . Being the only operators. And they really like them. The  person with the 249 and 289, has the 249 so they can lift it with their excavator and put it areas they can not get into with the larger one. 

I have spent a lot of hours in a 60ish HP skid steer. I learned on a Case rubber tired machine. And I think it made me a smoother operator. I believe Cat's have 2 hydraulic pumps and that is what allows them to be so fast even with lower HP and doing multiple movements. I could move as much dirt with the old case, or the deer 333G. But the bigger machine might do it twice as fast. If You will not need to lift pallets of material, or things that are close to the tipping weight of the 247. You'll be able to groom and build stuff just fine. Might even be a little easier to work on berms and tighter areas than with a bigger machine. 

If You have looked for a while and that 247 is the best machine in Your price range  and You are OK with the possible expense that the tracks and having so many hours might cost. Then I would say it will work. But If You can rent a similar sized CTL and also a bigger one, before You buy. I think that will help You answer Your question of if You should buy it or not. That way You can see if the bigger machine might be worth the extra money and time spent to find one.    

Put me into the camp of get the biggest you can find/afford. As others mentioned a skiddy is small iron for a track but they are amazing machines that can do it all. I haven’t seen it mentioned and to me was absolutely the biggest factor in buying a machine is closed cab/vs open and ability to open close the door. For me I won’t even consider an open ROP machine, as such though I enjoy operating with the door open and certain attachments like augers, unloading pallets off elevated forks cannot be done on any enclosed machine without completely removing the door except Kubota and Takeuchi. So that’s it those are the only two options I can ever own and thankfully they are both great choices. I had a TL240 and now have a SVL 97 and I’ve loved both a machines. Back to the size question, being as I only have one they have to drag my 10’ disc around and let me tell you size matters, going for the 86 hp tl240 to the 96 hp svl was a huge difference.

Yah it blew me away the differences between the 100HP Deere 333G and the 80-90ish HP CTL I had been using before. I did not expect such an increase in ability with a relatively small increase in HP and similar weight. It just pushes through  where the 10 HP less machine felt like it was taking all of the power it had.  Pushing up dirt and gravel , regrading my driveway felt more like pushing dry snow than gravel. 

I still think the OP should rent a machine or 2 to try out before purchasing. Especially if they are newer to operating heavy equipment.  Perhaps rent the biggest CTL and smallest that he could see himself buying and see if it works for him.