Gents. I've got close to 4000 hours on this 1997 unit (I've owned it since 04) and over the last few years the lift-arms and bucket started to pretty well freeze in place (generally while elevated, with or without a load) after a few minutes of operation, say in under five-10. What I have done is replace the drive coupler (male and female) on the front of the engine two falls ago (no cigar), then installed a new aftermarket pump shortly thereafter (No cigar), and then rebuilt the Danfoss two-spool valve (all new o-rings and seals on the spools, put in a new pressure relief valve and changed the poppets and springs on the load-leveler part as well) and it has simply become even worse. ( In other words, No cigar but the cash register keeps ringing.) And yes, I did change the filter just in" case" and that made no damn diffence at all. I'm thinking maybe I need a damn exorcist or an RPG. Oh yeah, another oddity. There have been times where it's effed up and being all frustrated and **** I'm driving it back to the shop to park it and I'll hit a bump in the road (I live on a U.S. Forest Service Road up in Nowhere, Idaho that runs through our property, so rocks and bumps and other assorted crap like downed trees are a given) and out of nowhere, after running over whatever on the road the engine rpms suddenly go up by around 400 or so and lo and behold, the bucket and arms are working like the machines only got 500 hours on it. A few minutes later the rpms fall and it's all effed up again. A 71 year-old logging guy I know here in Central Idaho (his whole life, owns excavators, skid steers, feller-bunchers, self-loading log trucks, etc., so he's familiar with hydraulics) believes the problem is on the return lines "somewhere". Looking at the exploded view of the hydraulic system in the high-dollar Big Case Notebook on the damn thing, there is a "manifold" at the end of the return lines where the fluid goes back into the hydraulic reservoir, that according the the Case dealer 140 miles away in Missoula, has a "check valve" in it. And Case no longer sells that manifold or the parts therein, so if that's it I've got to hit a boneyard in the Midwest and pray the damn thing still works. Anybody got any idea WTH is going on and aside from hell, where I go from here?
If I'm not mistaken the 1845C's didn't have many grease fittings for the boom and bucket. Maybe the pins are seizing? I know a guy with skid steer that had the lift cylinders completely seize in about 500 hours because he never greased them despite there being grease fittings. Bucket pins and bushings were a complete disaster. The sad part is he owned an auto repair shop. Said he never had time to work on his own stuff. He had a chicken farm too and used the skid steer to clean the barns. It was one of the most abused machines I've ever seen.
Do you have an auxiliary function valve on that machine? That valve is downstream of the bucket and lift functions. If it is partially applied it can cause all kinds of back pressure problems. I seen a Deere 310 get worked on for a week for low power and hard starting complaints, only to find the 4 in 1 bucket control was rusted in the partly closed position.
Agreed, this sounds exactly like the auxiliary hydraulics are stuck on and come off. If I’m driving and use my knee so I can take a drink, I have had the lock slip on the auxiliary hydraulics and then I like the lap bar.
Thanks for the responses, fellas. I do actually grease the pins with an "inconsistent regularity", but since the phenmenon happens to both the bucket and lift arms simultaneously I'm pretty confident it's not the pins. Insofar as the auxilary hydraulics (which I do have), you guys might be right. I had read in an earlier post on the forum (a couple years back) where another unlucky b*****d was having similar problems and noted they kinda-sorta disappeared when he would hit the auxiliary valve with his foot and then "normal happened" for a little while. I tried that multple times but to no avail. It may be that the aux. valve is totally effed up and in spite of engaging-disengaging it, it actually is the source of all evil. I'll give it a harder look and may even bring up someone from town (30 miles away) who can test this **** becaause I'm financially bleeding myself to death with this crap. Again, thanks and keep the advice coming.
What about your ax hyd valve at your feet , does the spool have play in center and even a broken centering spring ?
I've checked it and the spool seems tight. Maybe I'll pull it and check that spring. Thanks.