360 Hours on this unit. New intermittent chattering noise I hear coming from the area of the left drive hub. Happens at any speed - forward or reverse. I have always put a few drops of oil on each end of each roller every 8 hours to prevent them from squeaking, but this is new. It concerns me and would like to understand the cause. The right side is not in question. Checked for rocks in the bottom of the hub carrier – nothing there. I also noticed that the hydraulic fluid was a bit low and have added about two quarts – have no leaks and the fluid is clear. Checked the filter - looks clean. There were a couple of bubbles in top of the reservoir - not like foam or nothing significant. None of that seems to have made any difference. Service on this unit out here on the coast is virtually non-existent and I’m kind of on my own – appreciate any help. Unit has been flawless up until this point.
I think your best bet is to have someone run the machine while you listen on the outside to pinpoint the problem area. Otherwise you can try adjusting the tension, maybe removing the track and working the sprooket indicating if noise is coming from there
Thanks for that Mike - the sound is definitely coming from the main hub area/carrier well. Tensioned the tracks yesterday - they weren't too far out. Didn't make any difference. After thinking about the noise again, I might describe it as a popping/screeching sound, much like the sound of a rock getting hung up with the metal rollers. I have check the well for rocks and I would have thought that a rock would have disintegrated by now???
Well I used the RC60 for a couple of hours this morning thinking it might go away or it might get worse - it got progressively worse as the time passed and the noise changed at times to kind of a screech. While that was going on, it occurred to me that if it was one of the either metal or steel rollers, I would be able to feel some temperature difference - parked it and they all felt the same, warm as expected, including the main hub (compared to the other side). There is one curious and potentially related question that I can't find an answer to - when all this started, the fluid gauge forward of the engine showed the fluid was down some, maybe 1/2"+ on the gauge. The book doesn't tell you how you're supposed to check the gauge - ie. cold, hot engine running, or??? A couple of days ago I added two quarts and it looked like there was a little too much, but I figured it was ok. Just checked it again and it's now down again about less than 1/2". I see no leaks anywhere. Could all this noise be air in the system??? The unit runs fine in all respects.
Ran the unit again this morning for a couple of hours and no noise except for one click, about 0.2 seconds, that came from the same area. That was all??? Never added any more fluid and it reads full and low depending on if it's exactly level or not.
It is more than likely your taper roller bearings. I would lift the machine, loosen the track and check for movement in the rollers. If you find any movement in those rollers your bearings are shot. there is a snap ring in the centre holding the hub cap. The cap will come off with a pair of pliers no need to destroy them.just hope the damage is not to extensive. If I remember correctly those shafts are welded to that frame so you do not want to run that machine with the noise any longer than you require and save your self a lot of trouble.
I'm guessing that you are referring to the rubber lined rollers on the bottom of the track and not any of the drive rollers/mechanism. Have not raised the beast ever - are there prescribed jacking points and supports for stands? Thanks for that, Nick
Here are a couple of pics: Is it assembly 38, 39 or 43?
Yes, the rubber lined rollers. The rollers surrounding the drive motor is known as the squirrel cage assembly aka the sprocket. The jacking points are the torsion axle tubes. Also if you block up the machine correctly you can run each side independently and pinpoint your noise further before disassembling anything. I'd be willing to bet its your rear idler.
Yes 38,39,43
If everything seems fine on the bottom, number 11 needs to be taken off with a slide hammer and that bearing would be the next bet but its unlikely in that hour range. My cat had the same undercarriage and it was a 500hour service item.
Well, I'm finally getting caught up with the loader and decided to take the track off on the offending side. Got the tensioner loose and didn't seem to release much tension - the drive sprocket fell about a half inch and that was it. Unfortunately, there isn't enough slack to remove the track. My question is, what needs to be removed in order to remove the track. BTW, I'm suspecting this is a suspension problem - a cracked weld or??? Was roading it yesterday and a slight bump in the road caused the noise to appear. Haven't had much of the noise recently otherwise. Also, anyone know what causes smoke to appear coming mostly from the non-exhaust (fuel filler side) side of the engine compartment. Smells like burnt oil but I don't see anything on the exhaust. Have noticed the engine is idling a little rough on the low end, but it has plenty of power. Checked all the fluids and air cleaner - all ok there. For the first time now though, I have spotted a small spot of oil on the floor. Appears to be coming from the upper part of the back side of the engine on the same side as the smoke - the lower part of the engine is clean and dry. Once when this first started I turned off the engine and smoke rose through the floor in the driver's area. Got 405 hours on this unit now - have never abused it??? Nick
Well the smoke was a blown head gasket and I'm waiting for the parts - the break was between the #1 & 2 cylinders and it looked just like the pics I have seen on the internet. As for the track removal, the only requirement to remove the track is to uninstall the front outer idler wheel. After that, it's just a matter of prying the track off. To get the track back on, we used a load strap I lieu of a block and tackle and connected one hook to the edge of the track between the treads and the other end to the edge of the bucket. The track removal did nothing to help determine where the grinding sound was coming from - no wheel bearings were noisy or loose and no broken welds.