Hi - just bought a 1990 580K and took possesion this weekend. It has 6700 hrs on it and there is lots of grease around the places where you'd expect but its obvoiusly built up over the years and quite a mess. Is it a problem to power wash this all clean and re-apply grease. Also, what are some of the things i should check right away(e.g. oil level, hydraulic level) and what are some of the things i need to look out for on a unit this old.
Welcome to the club. Just picked up my 1986 CASE 580E last Tuesday and have been cleaning and lubing before I even attempt to use...quite a chore it is indeed but it will get you intimately familiar with your machine real fast and you will hopefully find most of the "hidden" problems before you start to use and damage anything further. Here is a few tips I can give you from my experience this past week: 1. Get the Operator and Service manuals asap if you don't already have them. Guys on this forum are very helpful but you have to wait for answers and the search engine is very frustrating in my opinion. I got both manuals on one CD on ebay for $17 2. Hell yes bust out the pressure washer and blast away! Who knows what problems may lay under all that dirt/grease. Don't even bother with degreaser until you've given her a once over. Just be careful around the electrics, soft hoses, and important stickers etc.. Not sure how powerful your machine is so you might want to start at a lower pressure and then increase gradually to stay in your "comfort zone." Also might not want to shoot directly into tops of your grease fittings as some may be missing the little "ball valve" and you could get water in there. I even pressure washed my cab out! 3. WIX filters all the way! 4. Only CASE spec oil in Tranny and Differential. The torque converter and wet style brakes are sensitive and must have the right stuff. 5. Plenty of ICE COLD BEER to keep ya goin'! Good luck!
Thx Rocketsled for the info. I did pick up a Service manual but couldn't source an operators manual (CD online version). Do you recall which website you used?
No problem Ron. Just do a quick search for "580k manual" on ebay and you will find plenty available. For example this one seems pretty good. http://www.ebay.com/itm/3-MANUALS-S...96731?pt=BI_Books_Manuals&hash=item4d0611929b Cheers!:drinkup
Thx RS - i did see that link - i already have the service manual and was just looking for the operator's manual (that buyer seems to bundle 3 manuals together - i sent him email asking if he'd just sell the operator;s manual)