Big Pond, I thought like you for years. I thought having my own dozer to play with and use would let me turn my place into Minnesota (I think), Land of a Thousand Lakes. My favorite color was Caterpillar yellow and I thought a guy who had a tracked piece of equipment really had it made.
Then I saw almost every dozer that came on my place break down. I have learned just how much fun it is to try to put a track back on, how much it costs to replace common parts, etc. Now, these guys were professionals who made a living with their equipment. They judiciously maintained them.
Not for me. I'm not sure I could afford to fix one. The problem is that these things don't break down close to a cheap repair shop and you can't drop them off for repair.
