My drive motors are getting noisy. Would I be better off going with the heavier viscosity oil or will it make any difference?
Without know what make and model you have it's a guess, but all things being equal I would be using AW46 anyway. Noisy is usually a death knell but you never know without some tests, like charge pressure under load and motor case drain flow.
Sorry, it was late last night and I was headed to bed. I should've waited to post. It's an 04 s175 bobcat with 1600 hours on the clock. Machine looked the part when I bought it, but have since come to discover I own a Ritchie Bros. special. It is a weird machine. The condition of some of the equipment leans more towards a 6000 hr machine, yet others look 1600 hr. As time goes on I wonder if it is not a Frankenmachine. I bought it from a guy who had it a few years but never used it much. He bought it used from a dealer. The dealer had been all through it and I don't know if they resprayed it or not, whoever did it was thorough but it is green underneath the white. In any case the drive motors whine under load, less at full throttle, but more again as they get hot. I changed the hydraulic filter and pulled the case drain filters last night, both had some filings in them. Not very many, but chips of metal not dust. Since I had the filters off I drained the fluid as I have no history on it.I am going to replace it with an AW fluid. We live in a climate where the machine could be operating in -30 to 90 degree temperatures. As usual any and all insight is welcome.
Chips of metal as you know are not good. Green, was that Sunbelt rental? I would monitor it close and if it gets worse or shows any new symptoms either send it to auction or tear it down before the whole system is contaminated.
I use a multi grade hydraulic oil in all my machines. ISO AW 32/46/68. Works great and saves on inventory.
That statement indicates that you have a wear issue somewhere in either one or both motors, maybe the bronze slippers if it's a piston motor, and no amount of fiddling with oil grades is going to fix it. Surgery time sooner rather than later before it goes bang IMHO.......
I have used both 32 when I lived in the Adirondacks and now 46 that I live in TN. I had a brand new machine when in the Adirondacks and if I used anything heavier then the 32 {during winter** it'd scream.
Central Ohio I use AW46 year around in Bobcat loaders. Get the Serial Number and call your local Bobcat dealer. Sometimes they can tell you when it was sold and if it was ever in a Bobcat dealer for service. Sometimes more info than others. Ran a serial number before an auction once, they said it had 6000 hours last time it was in a dealer. The hour meter didn't work at the auction, repainted and brought twice as much as it should have. Sell it on Craigslist or Ebay. Hope you aren't in too deep. Best fix may be watching it ride away on someone else's trailer.
green is definitely a sunbelt machine. for the most part, the bigger rental companies around here get rid of their machines when the driveline warranty runs out. most of them are pretty ragged and abused by then anyway. i've seen 3 year old machines with 1500 hours on them that look and run like they have 6000 hrs. :drinkup