case 450 crawler/loader vs JD 450 C/L

[Anonymous-0]

How does a case 450 compare with a JD 450 crawler loader, as far as lifting capacities, weak points between machines etc. I am looking to buy either a case 450 or JD 450 and wanted some opinions between the 2 machines

 

[JDemaris]

I'm not going to comment on the Case since I don't have a lot of first-hand knowledge. I worked for several Deere dealers and the 350s and 450s were our biggest sellers.

The 450 series Deeres were all very rugged, and from the 450B turbo and newer, very powerful. The big downside is the HL-R transmission and the expense of fixing one. Considering the age of them, it's something to think about. I've seen quite a few 450s get scrapped out for parts once the trans goes bad. They can cost over $6000 to get fixed if in bad shape.

In regard to parts support, seems to be excellent with both makes. My neighbor uses two Case 450 dozers at his saw mill. He's had them since new and tells me he's never had a problem getting any part he wants.

Deere still sort of sells 450s "new" - so I guess they must have all the parts. Deere buys them back, completely refurbishes and updates them, and sticks on a new serial # tag under the "Certified Relife Program."

 

[Anonymous-0]

Are you only looking at Case and JD? Maybe you'd consider a Cat D3(B)/931(B). Cat has good parts support and I don't think their parts are anymore expensive than JD. I do think the transmission is better though. Just a thought. Dave

 

[Lodemia2]

I've had Case and Deere dozers. Case is by far the superior machine. With a Deere you WILL have transmission troubles. Just plan on it and have LOTS of money ready. Case part support is as good as anybodys. With three Deeres I had transmission problems with then all. Owned 5 Case and never had any problems with transmissions. If I were to buy a dozer today, I wouldn't even look at a Deere. By the way, I have John Deere tractors, so I am not knocking Deere just because of the name-just bad experience with their dozers.

 

[JDemaris]

In defense of Deere - we sold a lot of new 350s and 450s to loggers and dirtmovers. The 350s broke to pieces - but the 450s were extremely rugged and we had almost zero problems with the transmissions until they got high hours on them.
John Deere DID get sued over every HL-R trans they ever made - including all the 2010s and all 450s up to the newest 450C models. But that lawsuit had nothing to do with trans failure, it was all about them taking off in "neutral" and killing people.

Problem is now - they all have high hours on them. Even if a trans was recently "rebuilt" who knows how many parts that still worked - were reused not renewed.

We had a Case industrial dealer across the road from our Deere dealership. When the Case place went under (burnt down), we hired two of their "anti John Deere" mechanics. After a few years - both the guys felt the Deere and Case 450s were pretty much equal in regard to how rugged they were. That's saying a lot considering how they felt at first.

I worked for Deere at three dealerships for a span 35 years. At present, I own one Deere crawler, three Allis Chalmers crawlers, one Oliver-Cletrac, one almost-Case Terratrac, one Case crawler and two Case backhoes. With farm tractors - I have 8 Cases, 2 IHs, and one Deere. So, guess I'm not very brand-loyal to Deere.

 

[steve n carol]

Joe Farmer, I suggest that you drive them both. stay on them for at least an hour. drive them and you decide which you preffer. Take someone with you to look at the machines that knows what they are doing. Evaluate both machines, either one could be a money pit...even a D3. Consider resale value too. How about trucking expense? I love my 4 in 1 bucket..great option. How about ROPS??/

 

[Anonymous-0]

I havnt had much experience with track loaders but quite a bit with both in dozer form, I like the case better and think its a more reliable machine, but in fact the 450 case is more like a 350 deere in the pushing department. all the 450 deeres I ran seemed bigger and heavier than the 450 cases. While they both ran fine while young the deeres seemed to break quicker when they get high hours while the cases just seem to get looser and clunkier(is that a word?..lol) just my opinion...OCG

 

[c65truck]

I have ran Cat, John Deere, International, and Case, myself I like John Deere. I have had 350's, 450's, 550's, and 650's. I have never had trouble with the transmissions. I use my stuff hard but do not jerk it around. Where I work the ground is from sandy to solid rock and everything in between and I have never had my John Deere let me down yet. I do not have a problem with other machines, but my experience I have never been let down by my Deere's I use them everyday, maybe I have just been lucky.

 

[Mike M]

I was thinking that by weight of the machine a Deere 350 is closer to the Case 450 a Deere 450 is a much heavier machine by weight at least.
The one feature I like on the Case is the hi-lo drive on the tracks as you can push heavier loads while turning. With the Deere's when pushing heavy when you pull back on the turning clutch lever you loose power to that side and alot of times that stops you.