Can someone please clarify the official ACMOC policy on reproduction parts, because those of us trying to save these old crawlers need parts that we can no longer buy from Cat, so I've had quite a few parts made for my own tractors over the past 10 years and laid out tens of thousands of dollars, and hundreds of hours doing so, and offer extras to other members through ACMOC Chapter 19 here in Oz, as do other members of our local group, yet surely other folks Stateside and maybe the British Isles, Europe, New Zealand, etc.,  are making new parts too, other than the few I see advertised in the ACMOC Store, like the nice decompression cocks from "The Brothers" and the items from Stephen Sarkany in South Carolina.

How do we reach out to people in our 2,200 strong Club, to find out what parts might be available, and more importantly, what parts are needed, and get more of those reproduction parts into the hands of people who need them, to really help our members get their restorations back on track? Is it worth running a story in the next ACMOC magazine talking about this subject, because very few financial members use this forum regularly.

Making good reproduction parts takes a long time, and is very expensive, and it is crazy to think that 2 or 3 people in different parts of the world might be making the exact same part right now, and not know others are doing the same, that is stupid, when the size of the market for a part might be less than say 10 units, or maybe even just 2 or 3.

I spoke to Jim Zimmerman about 6 years ago about this issue, I was buying parts from him at the time, and he said he was getting out of making reproduction parts because too many guys would shoot their mouths off about wanting things made, but when he actually did go ahead and get them made, those same guys disappeared into the shadows with their big mouths, and money clips, and he was left stuck with thousands of dollars of parts he couldn't sell.

I know ACMOC recently made Cat 60 manifolds, and they were very expensive to make even though we were given the Logue patterns for free, I don't think the Club should be risking making any more expensive parts without first getting a 50% deposit from potential customers, but even then, I'm not sure the Club should be worrying about trying to make parts, when they lack the skills to do it well, and the Directors and Committees are all busy just trying to save the Club.

I want to see ACMOC helping members, and non members, by selling reproduction parts, but it seems to me right now the left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing when ACMOC Chapter 19 has shelves full of good parts, like copper gaskets and brass fuel caps and crank handles that no ACMOC member outside of Australia knows anything about.

We have so many really clever folks in our group, scattered around the world, people who are possibly willing and able to help solve some of our parts challenges, can we please get everyone on the same page.
With respect as usual 
Mike

You brought up some really good points Mike.  You are correct the club really does not have the financial where with all to inventory items with low turnover.  Yet there has to be a way we can  make some parts available although they are hand made and expensive.  The major problem would be who could make the parts and who would carry the inventory.  The other fly in the ointment is that if one makes one part it is no big deal with Cat but they will probably raise their eyebrows if someone is selling something that they think is competing with them. Several things to sort out but you started the ball rolling and making us think.

I think it would be handy if we could at least have a list of who makes what that members could have to see who to contact for various items. I see it as a list of different pieces, example; Compression reliefs: contact: The Brothers, phone # 555-555-5555.

People that make different things could, if they wish, add their, service, name and number to the list. ACMOC would only have to provide a page on the website, or print a list and add it to the magazine once a year.


Also it would be handy to streamline the availablity of blue prints for obsolete parts. I asked me dealer once and they looked at me like I was crazy.

Just my thoughts.

BP.

Hi Team,
link should be to a PDF of the replica parts that Chapter19 has on offer.

replica-parts-full-price-list-apr-2020.pdf

Cheers,
Eddie B.

D4Jim, thanks for chiming in, it's good to get the conversation started.

Thanks Eddie for sharing that PDF, I just downloaded it and noticed it has not been updated with the price for the hand crank.

Bruce, you raised a good point there about Cat blueprints, because I think they will get harder to obtain in future years as mature / older staff at Cat headquarters retire, and younger staff lack the skills / desire / time to go the extra yard to find the blueprints as we request them, I wouldn't be surprised at all if Cat just tell us to go whistle dixie in a year or 2 when we ask for them to supply a blueprint via the Dealer network.

I wonder, how many people amongst our 2,200 members have scans of Cat blueprints, because surely they could be shared fairly easily??

That is good to know John, the only thing I've noticed with the blueprints I have here, is sometimes the measurements are hard to read clearly, 98% of them are OK, but there's always a few you need a magnifying glass and some imagination to fill in the missing bits, a bit like the Jensales reprints of the parts book, though they are better than nothing aren't they.
All the best
Mike

yes that is a provblem, as many of the old timers fall off the perch the knowledge goes with them. and sadly many factory manuals and other service info gets destroyed when the dealers have a clean out and the younger staff often dont have a appreciation (management in particular)for the older equipment so this info is just thrown out. edb has spoken of how he aquired some of his information this way and there was a lot he wasnt able to save.

prehaps a call could be put out to the membership via the club mag, other old machinery mags such as TOMM and the like for people to provide copies of this info for the club to store for posterity and make available to the membership.

Asking in the TOMM magazine is a good suggestion, there are a lot of folks who get that magazine who are not part of the ACMOC Club.