Facts & Figures Motor Grader

A motor grader, sometimes called a blade or simply a "grader", is a heavy equipment engineering vehicle used to create a finish grade for roads, airstrips, or other large, flat surfaces such as soil foundation pads for building construction. They prepare and maintain gravel roads, which can degrade into a "washboard" after rains. In paving construction, they prepare the base course for asphalt. In colder climates they may be used for snow removal, while in grasslands they may be used for creating dirt tracks where the absence of trees means there is no need of a bulldozer. In some countries they may also be used to create shallow v-shaped ditches along roadways.

Typical models have three axles. The engine and cab rest over the section between the rear two axles, while the blade for grading is suspended from the section between the hinge in front of the middle wheels and the front wheels. Steering is accomplished by the movement of the front wheels on the turning of the hinge.

Early graders were known as "pull-type" graders, horse-drawn modified carriages with a small gasoline-powered motor to drive the conveyor. Invented in 1903 by two entrepreneurs, the Russell grader was eventually pulled by a tractor. In 1928, Caterpillar, whose engines were already being used on Russell graders, bought Russell Grader Manufacturing, and in the 1930s new grader lines were developed, the forerunners of today's modern motor graders.

Major manufacturers of motor graders now also include Case, Grove, Hitachi, Ingersoll-Rand, Komatsu, New Holland, Veekmas-Oy, and Volvo.

Blade sizes range from 2.5 to 7.3 meters, and engine sizes from 125 to 500 horsepower. Some companies may choose to lease or rent motor graders, depending on the size or duration of the project. Rental prices range from around $13,000 per month ($4,300 per week) for a smaller model such as the CAT 140H, to $24,500 per month ($8,200 per week) for a larger model such as the CAT 16H. As with other heavy equipment, the rental price can in most cases count as equity towards purchase, if the contractor decides there will be enough work to justify buying the machine outright.

Source : heavyequipment.com