Thoughts on dozer size and configuration to pull a 3" for fiber optic installation.

Anyone with experience in this type of work that can give some thoughts. My thought is that a vibratory plow in the 48K or so (D-6) weight class would be ideal in rocky ground over a larger dozer with a solid shank. Easier to transport, easier on fuel and cheaper to buy? Ground conditions are dry but rock can be an issue. I believe a track set up with narrow tracks would give the most tractive effort.

Tell us more about the project. Are you pulling conduit then pushing the fiber? What's the distance? How deep is the installation depth?

105–130 HP class dozers (e.g., Cat D5/D6, John Deere 750/850, Case 1150M) are the sweet spot for 3" conduit in most soil conditions, + Bron V75-3 vibratory plow. Capable of ~36” bury depth in many conditions. Good footprint, efficient, and transportable without extreme logistics.

Billions are being spent to run cable in Alaska to every nook and cranny in the state. Even to places where nobody lives. I don’t pretend to know anything about it, but this is what the baller’s are using.

Very profitable niche if you can get the contract.

Adak even has operational fiber that your tax dollars pay for, even though the town was abandoned decades ago. https://alaskabeacon.com/2026/07/21/on-a-nearly-deserted-alaska-island-you-pay-to-keep-hundreds-of-empty-buildings-wired-for-internet/

Doing a prerip is the best idea and marking were the depth can't be achieved. Then open up the prerip and deal with the obstruction, close it after that's done then plough in the cable. No exotic ripper is required. In the early 90s I worked on about 3000 kilometres of the new optic network which was ripped to 1.5 meters, the cable was laid at 1.2 metres. The prerip machines were D9s and 10s and the cable layers were D7s which could lay up to 20 kilometres a day. The big thing is the cable layer can't backup if it hits a snag.

Coaldust said: Adak even has operational fiber that your tax dollars pay for, even though the town was abandoned decades ago. https://alaskabeacon.com/2026/07/21/on-a-nearly-deserted-alaska-island-you-pay-to-keep-hundreds-of-empty-buildings-wired-for-internet/ Click to expand... Thats crazy, I was stationed in Adak in the late 80's in the Marine Corps. Why would they waste the money putting fiber in Adak?

The contract is about a million LF, 3' deep. conditions will have some rock. They are suggesting a D9 stationary plow. I thought about a Bron on a D-6 or Case 2050M would be more ideal, as ChrisMafera points out. The conduit is 3". There is a rock clause built in. It would be pulling the conduit and pushing the fiber. Tones said: Doing a prerip is the best idea and marking were the depth can't be achieved. Then open up the prerip and deal with the obstruction, close it after that's done then plough in the cable. No exotic ripper is required. In the early 90s I worked on about 3000 kilometres of the new optic network which was ripped to 1.5 meters, the cable was laid at 1.2 metres. The prerip machines were D9s and 10s and the cable layers were D7s which could lay up to 20 kilometres a day. The big thing is the cable layer can't backup if it hits a snag. Click to expand... Thanks Tones, that makes a lot of sense.

Coaldust said: Billions are being spent to run cable in Alaska to every nook and cranny in the state. Even to places where nobody lives. I don’t pretend to know anything about it, but this is what the baller's are using. What is a baller ?? Click to expand...

In modern, heavy equipment vernacular and hip-hop culture, a baller is someone who has made a lot of money pulling fiber, achieved high status, and spends it on luxury items, child support and ex-wives.

KSSS said: Thats crazy, I was stationed in Adak in the late 80's in the Marine Corps. Why would they waste the money putting fiber in Adak? Click to expand... Because somebody who works for a non-profit that receives Federal grants for cable installations has a drinking buddy who has a lodge and a cable installation business decided it would be a great idea to give the children of Adak connectivity to learning resources. It was for the children.

Ironically, the new FTTH connections are not being used. My wife was spending $1,300 a month for a 100 Mbps business plan for her clinic in Deadhorse. Residential service is $300-$400. It’s all been replaced with this, practically overnight.

Coaldust said: Because somebody who works for a non-profit that receives Federal grants for cable installations has a drinking buddy who has a lodge and a cable installation business decided it would be a great idea to give the children of Adak connectivity to learning resources. It was for the children. Click to expand... All five of them.

This BEAD money train has no brakes. Bust out another 1$ Billion. Milestone in Broadband Expansion with Final BEAD Funding Approval - Alaska Business Magazine Alaska’s final BEAD awards unlock $629 million, with the largest shares going to Alaska Communications and GCI to connect 46,000 homes. www.akbizmag.com

My son’s buddy, worked for GCI during the fiber craze. Young millennial. Graduate of Nome High School. Can barely read and write, but amassed a fortune ( pi$$ed much of it away ). Climbing poles in villages doing FTTH connections. Grossing $250k annually. Bought a lodge on Wasilla Lake and rents the cabins out, runs a arborist gig on the side. Another round is happening if a young feller wanted to climb poles and stack some cash.

@KSSS , Telstra, the Australian owned phone company developed the zero tension cable plough tractors. They could be set-up to lay the cable in condute. They had a splitter which opened up the condute, inserted the cable then it went down the shute. They also had a separate shute for the marker tape so it became a 1 pass operation. Some of those machines are still around if you have a hankering to buy something exotic. All the D7s had PAT blades and could be used as a normal dozer if required. Another outfit imported some cable layers from Canada that weren't zero tension. Their first job was a 100 kilometre lay which they achieved but had 10ks of cable left over, they had stretched the cable by 10% and had to redo the job on their dime. 1 very big OUCH

Coaldust said: This BEAD money train has no brakes. Bust out another 1$ Billion. Milestone in Broadband Expansion with Final BEAD Funding Approval - Alaska Business Magazine Alaska’s final BEAD awards unlock $629 million, with the largest shares going to Alaska Communications and GCI to connect 46,000 homes. www.akbizmag.com Click to expand... Unlimited money, magic.

A couple years back they got a govt. contract to run fiber all over Texas. I live in a fairly rural area and they installed a fiber service box at nearly every gate around. Didn't matter if it was just to a cow pasture they put a box above the ground. Half of the boxes have been run over or hit with a bushhog now, big waste of money if you ask me. Several guys in the area bought drill rigs and got in the fiber business. Some are still doing it some fizzled out. Good money if you've got the money to start and don't mind being on the road for several years.

Coaldust said: Ironically, the new FTTH connections are not being used. My wife was spending $1,300 a month for a 100 Mbps business plan for her clinic in Deadhorse. Residential service is $300-$400. It’s all been replaced with this, practically overnight. View attachment 365373 Click to expand... Starlink? We have one for camping and used it this weekend on the highest point in AL. Cruising through the 'net and streaming TV.