Has anyone come across a NON-Cat source for these electric actuators that raise the hoods on 980G's? I'm sure they are used on other machines but we only hve the 980's There have been at least for part numbers for these actuators(jacks) The ones I know of are: 161-4001 210-2612 262-4913 308-2073 That last number is one the dealer stocks and they go for $1,460.00 boss almost fainted when I hit him with that number!1,500 clams to open a hood!!!
Are they repairable?
What exactly is wrong with the one you have Ken..?
http://www.machinerytrader.com/list/PartsSearch.aspx?PartNum=308-2073&btnPartSearch=Search&PST=Exact http://www.rockanddirt.com/parts-for-sale/CAT/3082073
I runs but won't pick the hood unless you turn it manually till the hood is a couple feet up at the front edge. Then if you open it full it will not lower till you manually crank it down a bit. I'm thinking the clutch part of the power head is worn or just not fully engaging. I may try tearing it apart to see if there is any salvage before spending the money, just trying to cover all bases in advance. I know it is not impossible to remove with hood down, just not a lot of fun! So I could remove it and still leave the machine usable while I attempted a repair. I have located one guy through Ebay that will sell me one he says is new for around $800.00, guess I could still justify a half a days labor to attempt a repair, even at my high pay rate
There are repair parts available. The most likely issue is in what they call the "powerhead".
When I was looking at SIS everything I found came back to the 308-2073 or 305-8958 number for the complete unit. Not sure what the difference between those two numbers as the price comes back the exact same $1,460.00 Just double checked and the power head for the 2KR03066 serial number we have replaces with the 305-8958 number unless I'm missing something here.
My on-line Parts Store is listing prices for everything separately. Still spendy, the motor's about $200, the powerhead $500 IIRC. All were showing available out of Miami.
Any chance of sending me the part numbers? I'm trying to get them to let me pull it off so I can investigate what the exact problem is, the machine sat for 3 hours this morning while I was putting a hoist cylinder on a 769D and making a parts run to the city then the second I have time to work on it a bunch of customers show up needing to be loaded! Maybe I'll give the "good" parts guy at the dealer a call and see what he says.
It's a shame that the dealers don't value their parts guys. They are such an important part of product support and customer relations. How often have you seen threads on here about guys calling the dealer and not finding the parts but within an hour a few members have it all sorted out? I worked a Deere parts counter for 6mos while the shop was dead and really enjoyed it. Problem was, I was only a level 2 Tech at the time and was making more than a great parts guy that had been there 15yrs. I wouldn't mind slinging parts again someday when my body gives out but I can't imagine taking a $40k pay cut to do it.
You must make way more an hour or else work lots of OT! If I took that big a cut I would not be able to pay for the gas to ride the little XS650 motorcycle to work.
You are blessed, a powerhead will cost you a nice fat 2000usd here.........I won't evewn tell you the price of the complete unit....I don't want to be the cause of heart attacks......
The clutch on these things consists of steel balls which rest in detents sandwiched between two spring loaded plates. The problem is the detent holes wear into slots which makes the clutch slip at too low a torque. It's all dismantle-able. If the cash is a bit tight, I would have a go at fixing it
Well I did grab the machine when it was parked and pulled the actuator. Two problems with it. First the clutch with the balls is the problem that started this deal. Seams moisture got in with the grease and the rusty gritty mess made it slip too easy. Might have been able to clean it up and get a little more use out of it. But and that's a big BUT! The electric motor that drives it has a tiny needle bearing in the lower housing, or should I say DID? Motor shaft is worn almost through where the bearing rides and also the hole in the housing is worn. So with all that I'm actually surprised it worked so good! There is a big problem with this major company when it comes to purchasing anything from a vendor who is not on the "Approved" list, they expect the plant superintendents to use their personal credit card for special purchases then wait 90+days to get reimbursed. This means if the boss can't swing the cash to pay his credit card at the end of the month he gets hit with the interest on the bill, and no they won't cover that! So I contacted a small local repair shop we do deal with on older equipment. He was able to find a source for an aftermarket actuator for approx 1/2 of the Cat price and we are going to go with that. Will let you guys know how it works out, probably late next week when it gets here.
The three "P" rule always applied at the Deere and CAT dealers I worked at, and from observations several other make dealers... The three "P"s? If you got a pencil and a pulse you can be a parts guy. Any warm body can do it, it doesn't take any intelligence, skill, or training, but it's a good place to train all your entry level employees before moving them on to important jobs like..... uh.... SALES! yes, er... well that's the only important job we have here.
I had it very good for awhile at the local Cat dealer. They had a guy who worked in the shop doing engine and power-train rebuilds for several years who then took a transfer to the parts counter. I could call him up and ask a question about changing a seal in a fuel pump while it was still on the machine and he would walk me through the job and tell me what parts I should replace while it was apart.
Yeah, I had a similar path, went from being head mechanic with a contractor to working a Deere parts counter.... got a couple stern "talking to's" when the service manager got wind of me giving customers mechanical or diagnostic advice. "Tell them they need to bring it to our shop!" So much for putting the customer first. I may grumble, but I am fairly sure that not all dealers are like this, and in fact both of the family owned dealers I worked for have changed hands and names since.
I do miss the family owned days, even though the Smith's didn't own Smith Tractor anymore when I worked there, the President was still one of the Smith family. Was a whole different animal when Pape' took over. I'm sure Hessel was the same way. Jack was a pretty good guy the few times I met him.
Hi kshansen did you ever come up with an aftermarket replacement? Any brand or part number? BTW if I search for one what lift capacity should I look for and length of the actuator of course being 24v. Thanks
Had to do a little digging as that project was back in 2014 a year before I retired. At that time I found an aftermarket jack from a local Cat after market shop and it was $840.00. I did a Google search on the Cat part number and found this one: https://propelparts.us/caterpillar-equipment-actuator-a-hood-t-3082073.html I see the price is just a dollar more than we had to pay six years ago so in a way it is even cheaper! I have no experience with that company but might be worth a email to see if they ship to Mexico. A quick look at SIS and it seems that to replace with parts from Cat it could go well over $2,000! if parts are available.