My old D9 18A has a number 29 cable control unit. I had never ran a cable blade until we got this old timer going last fall. Took a minute to get the hang of it but I actually like the cable blade a lot. No down pressure is a problem occasionally but the hydraulic tilt and new corner bits can be used as a ripper to help. Otherwise I find it extremely easy to use. But, I am wondering about the maintenance required back in the day. I have been putting some hours on it and the brake needs adjusted pretty much every day (8-10 hours). About ready for a new brake band. Is this normal? Or am I doing something wrong? How many hours does a brake band typically last in dozer use? I currently have the 324° brake band. Would the 720° band last longer? Or is that just for a better grip for scraper use? And finally, the adjustments are easy, but I can't find a wrench to work on the lower brake band adjustment but. An angle wrench and pump pliers is the only thing I can find to get it adjusted. Did Cat make a special wrench? Anyone have a picture or part number?
No old timers left on here that know about these things?
I used a Cat CCU on a D7e pulling a pan, never had to adjust in over 2mts work. This old timer was to young and dumb to fix em at that time.
I'm surprised no one is chiming in yet as using CCUs usually stirs up the members here. Instead of telling us how much you like the cable system, maybe you should kick the hornets nest a bit and tell us how worthless the CCU is and probably how everyone purposefully forgot how to adjust them because they were that bad. That might get more responses....
I don't understand why you would be adjusting that often. The #25 on a 17A I had or the #29 on a 46A we owned the brake adjustment was a seldom thing. I adjusted the clutches much more frequently than the brakes. The wrench I made by cutting a 12 point wrench with a cutoff wheel to make a line wrench, then heating and bending the shank how I wanted. Now you could probably use a 12 point crowfoot.
As mentioned, brake adjustment should be are limited requirement. The 720 degree brake band is/was a field installation option for heavy duty use (pan) Run it through the proper adjustments and see what affect that has.