Let me start by saying I'm not a mechanic by any means (Clint Eastwood on "a man's got to know his limitations" Clint Eastwood off). However I'm capable of replacing a hydraulic hose, if I can get to/find it. Over the weekend, I was leveling off a hill where a prior barn stood to build a new barn. I had the bucket empty and raised when it just rapidly dropped. I shut everything down and oil is just pouring out. I checked the hydraulic fluid level and it is completely empty. I can see where oil sprayed all the way back to the engine and out the holes in the frame for the loader arms. I jacked the cab up, but don't see any obvious issues from the back. The small access panel on the "hood" under the ram and the one to access the drain hose down low in the front are too small to really see anything. Do I need to take the whole metal cover off to get clear access? Anyone have any thoughts?
personally i will call in the mechanics, hope you get some answers though
The hose that blew will run from one of the lift cylinders to the control valve an are not as hard to chaange as you think. As for finding the leak you have the same eyes as a mechanic does and since this is not that big a deal I would do it myself, just look at other hoses and pipes for wear while your doing the job
There is a hose on the side of the hyd tank between the tank and the frame(Right side). This hose connects to a Tee on the frame behind the E-bar. Short tubes go to each side where another hose on each side connects to the cylinder. There are two sets, one for raise and one for lower. You will need to drop the front belly pan to change any of these hoses so drop it now so you can find the leak. Have a helper bump the lever while you watch from a distance. Make sure you wear glasses. Never hold the suspect hoses while running the hyds. The high pressure oil can penetrate your skin and it is extremely dangerous.
+1 on that! Use a piece of cardboard or similar when looking for a leak, never use your hand. When oil penetrates your skin, the injury is always serious, and often leads to losing a limb. If you don't believe us, Google it and look at the ghastly photos that come up.
That was what I was afraid of.
The belly pan is easy. it is hinged at the back so support it at the front with a jack and remove the 8 bolts, washers and spacers. lower it down. clean out the dirt and you should be able to find the problem.
we blew one on our 953b we had to pull the belly pans, front "hood", and the fuel tank!!! it was the one you don't want to do. it took 2 of us 2 days to find and replace. hope yours is easier
The way my luck has run in 2011, your scenario is the most probable outcome. I intended to look at it this weekend, but had more pressing issues to deal with. I did get the 15 gallons of fluid from the Cat dealer (no one else carries 10 W hydraulic fluid). Unfortunately, that will be $350 bucks spilled out on the ground. Hopefully I'll have more time to look next weekend.
Nothing much to worry about here, just drop the bottom belly pan, take the dozen or so cap screws(bolts) from the top hood and left side( as you are facing the machine) panel off. this will expose most of your hoses and connections and allow you to easily see your leak. Since you said the boom "dropped" I would assume it was one of the main pressure hoses coming from the valves to the "T" Fittings down behind your hydrualic tank. These lines will empty your reserves in seconds under full throttle. If it is one of the main ORB fitted lines then save the line you have and take it to your cat dealer and have them put in a new section of hose and reuse the ends, get a new o-ring and replace. Before buttoning it up again make an extra special effort to clean out the dirt and twigs and other crud that manages to accumulate in there as some time it may catch fire if you are pushing up burn piles and etc. check out the condition of the other hoses as well. Good luck sir!!
Well, I finally got off of my lazy butt and caught a nice day to work on this. I dropped the front belly pan and spent over an hour cleaning the accumulated mud/sticks out. Once I was able to see clearly, it was apparent that the hose coming off of the T going to the lift cylinder had a hole in it. And it was not a small hole either, I'm kinda surprised I didn't have troubles before now. So overall it was fairly easy, but exceptionally dirty, to replace. The other hoses appeared to be in good shape. As a side note, I had a new hose made with new fittings. One of my older neighbors tried to talk me into going to a shop that would re-use the old fittings. I just didn't feel comfortable re-using the ends and possibly have to take the thing back apart shortly. I'm not sure what the standard practice is.
They are reusable ends. They press apart and if they are ok they are used on a new piece of hose. It is alot cheaper to do it this way, especially on the larger hoses.
Agreed.......... I think I spent only about 35 bucks to get a new piece of hose put in there one time. It's been my experience with Cat that if you have a hose like that (2 piece ends) you are better off putting a new piece of hose in rather than trying to use the standard crimp fittings. Seems they don't allow as much flexing at the crimp due to the extra ring pressed over the fitting. Last week I managed to blow a tilt cylinder hose, I went up to Ziegler Cat in Rochester and I think labor and hose was 55 bucks. same hose from a local IH dealer if they made it would have been around 200! paid for my time to make the trip, not to mention it gave me an opprotunity to see what it was (new) on the lot that I couldn't afford........lol
I ended up paying $123 including tax for a new hose with new fittings, which I didn't think was too awful bad.
The reuseable ends are just as strong as the crimped ends, the bonus is that you can assemble a hose with hand tools and a vise. The downside is that they take up more room in a tight space, and cost more initially. Save those ends.
aw 32 is 10 w hyradulic oil. I was looking at the hydraulic oil that autozone sells. I was told that aw 32 is 10 weight oil. aw 46 is 20 weight oil.