Hi, Becker2984.
Another giveaway is that early versions had about a 6" exhaust stack where the later ones had a bit larger one, around 7" to 8" diameter. The hydraulic controls on the early ones were very much like the cable control arrangement, horizontal levers attached to the front face of the fuel tank. The later ones had a long joystick coming up beside the seat for the blade and tilt cylinder if fitted and another lever coming up behind that for the ripper.

Just my 0.02.

Hi Team,
I believe all the D8H's starting from the first H's with the S/No 35A 36A onward used dry air cleaners.
If you have an oil bath then it is likely an earlier D8 than a H.
This shows once more that Serial Numbers are vital for correct data to be given.

I agree with OM on the number of line parts would likely be the issue--a six part would be very fast and difficult to operate where as an 8 part system would have a slower and more precise control of the blade positioning.
The blade S/No is needed to enable the Parts Book for said blade to be consulted for the number of parts and likely line length too.
The gearing ratio in the CCU could also be a factor in line speed too. Differing engine RPM changes with Horsepower upgrades could see a low RPM CCU on a later higher RPM engine machine, several factors and maybe more to consider if you follow.
I stand to be corrected.
Regards,
Eddie B.

Serial number is 46a6543.

cable is getting hard to find got some this last year from mlps mn cable company took all they had for a scraper.

If you have oil rigs anywhere near you , a rigging company should have the cable you need. WAY cheaper than any hydraulic conversion -
Your cable should last “forever” unless its running all day everyday. I recall it was practice to pull several feet of the cable through after 40 hours to get the most used parts out of the loop or in a different spot.

In my limited experience ( 40 - 50 hours on a cable scraper) just about any cable will work if you don’t abuse it and or “snap” it when there is slack in the line. I have read long threads on here about the correct cable , I would bet you have the righ answer from Mr. Magnet. There are cable / wire rope catalogs you can spend hours on studying the different applications and or properties . You may find one that is not perfect, but may work perfectly fine.

Over 50 years ago I ran a D6 and a 60 cable scraper on an irrigation canal project. In the 3 months I worked there we only replaced the cables once. Granted, a lot of time was spent carrying as we cut the canal about every 300 or 400 yards to come out of the canal to spread the dirt along the lower edge of the canal. The ticklish part was getting out of or into the canal without upsetting the scraper.