I got the new wheels on and wanted to try them out. I backed up and then went forward but then it just stopped moving. I put it in neutral and waited about 10 seconds before putting it back in gear and it moved again. It did this a few times and then it wouldn't move at all. It was showing a code but it was too hard to see what it was. I shut it off thinking it might reset itself. The only thing I did was add some trans. oil that was a little over full. I took the fill plug out and oil gushed out. I'd guess 2 or 3 litres. Maybe that was the problem??? Hopped in the cab and now it wouldn't start so I figured it must still be in gear. I took my skid steer to see if it would move and it pushed freely. The blade was up. I played around with transmission levers and eventually it started. Played some more and got it to reverse about 10ft. Did this a few times and eventually it kept moving. I went forwards and back several times and it appeared to be OK so I did a little work on the driveway. It stopped moving a couple more times so I checked the trans. oil again and it was at the right level. After using it for awhile it seemed to be working properly. After parking it, it started fine as if it self corrected itself. Any ideas what would cause the trans. to intermittently stop working and not go into neutral for starting? The brakes aren't working so I'll have to check the brake fluid. They worked good last year so I'm thinking it's something simple. The foam filled tires seem to work OK. Didn't take it on the road so am not sure if they bounce a bit at higher speed. Pushed a bit and had them spin with no adverse effects to the wheels or wheel adapters I had made so I think they'll be fine for my needs. Just hoping there isn't a trans. problem.
I'm not a mechanic by any means Dave but those champions the charging system have to be working perfect, With the right voltage from the alternator at all times, if not your tranny and shifting can act up, had this happen to me on the old 230, not sure if this will help
A little overfull isn’t going to hurt. Voltage could be an issue. There’s a microswitch on the shift lever that can cause problems and it won’t show up as a code.
I could hear a switch clicking in the F N R lever. We fixed a loose wire on the starter last year and that brought the voltage up to just under 14. It was at about 12.5 volts. It started instantly after sitting since last fall but maybe the batteries were still a little low. The only thing I did was add oil to the trans. so thought maybe too much oil caused increased pressure or something in the trans. that made the solenoids act up. It seems good now after I used the grader for a while.
Maybe you have it with the batteries been a little low. Try and put some hours on it to keep the charge up and seals lubricated.
Now that the new wheels are on, I plan to be using it a bunch. I put the armrests on the new seat I got last year. The armrests weren't in stock at the time and didn't want to put them on in the cold. Seems pretty comfortable now. Hopefully just have to add a little brake fluid and maybe get some help to bleed the brakes. One brake is disconnected maybe because the brake line was bad. It's cut short and taped up and a bolt was put in the tee going to each wheel on the right side. I'd like to fix that too but it's not a big priority.
Lots of times just adding fluid will bring the brakes back to operational. The key is to not keep pumping when empty so as not to introduce a bunch of air into the system.
The brakes worked good last year despite 1 not connected. Also looking in the manual I have the older style brakes with the cast iron master cylinder that takes Dot 3 brake fluid. I remember reading some Champions use a special brake/clutch fluid like aircraft fluid so it's nice mine takes common Dot 3. Great if I don't have to bleed the system.
The ones that take mineral oil are the later ones that have wet disc brakes. They are easily identified as they have disc type wheels as opposed to the clamp and stud method used previously.
Yes, mine took mineral oil, also there's a master cylinder for the clutch if my memory serves me correct.
You are correct 20/80. They required a bit of upkeep as they got older.
There is another master cylinder for the clutch with a screw on cap. The newer machines have a plastic master cylinder reservoir that you could see the fluid level.
I didn't have quite enough brake fluid but after running the machine for a bit I slowly pushed the brake pedal down a couple times and it seemed like maybe it was starting to firm up. Then I just spent some time cleaning up the oval track. I didn't really need the brakes but when I parked it, it had a firm pedal. Yeah, it has brakes again. I picked up some more brake fluid to top it off and was thinking I could get a new premade (flared with nuts) brake line for the wheel that isn't hooked up. I'll take the tape off the end of the old brake line and see if there are any tell tale signs why it's too short ie/ broken, corroded etc. I was looking at generic brake lines when I got the brake fluid and there was copper nickel brake lines that are apparently easier to bend and offer the best corrosion protection. Some people claim it's easy to bend by hand. Has anybody used this brake line before? There's a few 90 deg. bends I'd need to make and some people have bent it around a socket. A couple places might have a tubing bender they loan out that I'll look into. Does it seem like a good idea to replace this brake line or is it better to leave it incase there's something wrong with the brakes on the wheel? I certainly don't want to have to pull the hub off but can't really see how anything could get damaged inside the drum if the 3 other brakes are working properly. On another note the grader started and ran flawlessly and never hinted at going out of gear and not moving. I've been using the foot throttle basically at close to full throttle when the blade is cutting. I wasn't taking very deep cuts but I noticed the transmission kind of lets you know if you're in too high of gear. It doesn't rev. to full throttle under load in higher gears. I think I was in 3rd maybe 4th gear and it kept pushing but I think under higher load it lugs down a bit and then when the load lightens the revs. come back up a little. Under load pushing the throttle pedal harder didn't seem to increase the RPM's. Not really unlike a tractor but maybe it's just that the Cummins engine is so quiet under load? I wish the tach worked so I could have monitored RPM's. I downshifted because I thought maybe I was over loading it but then it was too slow so I shifted up and it seemed to work fine other than it didn't seem to reach full RPM's. Is that kind of normal for the engine and trans. combination? Other than that I had no complaints. The foam filled tires seem to work good so far so all the work to make the adapters and install the wheels seems to have been worth the trouble. It cost about $1000/$1100 more than putting overseas tires on the original wheels but I'm not sure how much the changeover would have cost. I guessed about $500 but I have premium radial grader specific tires that apparently have something in the rubber to help prevent ozone damage and I don't have to worry they'll go flat if they sit for a month or 2. So far I'm not seeing any problems but I've only got a couple hours trying them out. Maybe I'll take it out on the road and see if they bounce or act funny at high speed not that I'll need high speed very often. Thanks to everyone who helped with this.
There is likely a problem with the brakes in the wheel that has been disconnected. Common practice in the field was to either hammer the brakeline flat or disconnect it, fold it back and then hammer it flat and keep running the machine. Problem is, sometimes the brakes were not ever fixed properly unless there was a complete failure of the whole system and then only if the owner was willing to buck up for the repair cost
I'll take the tape off the line that is obviously too short and see if it reveals anything like it was snagged or something.
I took the tape off the brake line and the nut and flared end are still intact so I figured it was disconnected for a reason. I taped it back up and maybe when I get a bunch of grading done and maybe have some help, I'll hook it up and see if something is obvious with that brake assembly like a leaking wheel cylinder or unusual noise like metal on metal. I don't want to pull the hub. I cleaned up the oval track yesterday because a guy from the flat track group was coming out today to check the track out for an event on Sep. 10 and 11. It had sprinkled a bunch before he came but the track looked primo so hopefully the other people involved will give the OK to have the event at my track. That would be awesome.
The grader is working really good now but I think the tires being a little wider makes it not turn as sharp. I tried the articulation switch and it didn't do anything. I didn't take the pins out but thought it should move very slightly. I don't know where to start on seeing why the articulation isn't working. Electrical maybe but it's obvious it has been used a lot in the past. Looks like it's been slammed to the stops several times. The indicator doesn't read right but just being able to turn sharper would be a good benefit.
Does your diff lock work ? That will cause hard turning if it isn’t unlocking.
My machine is an oddball in that it doesn't have a locking/unlocking diff. The articulated machines are supposed to come standard with the unlocking diff. If the serial numbers work like the older models there were only 7 machines like mine in 1986. 730A-177-07-16890. There are no switches on the right door post(where the diff. lock/unlock would be) just a plastic cover I'm assuming where other wires are connected.
Leaning your front tires doesn't make it turn sharp enough?
Leaning the tires does help but sometimes they can dig in when leaned and I want to try and keep the surface smooth. I need to remember to lean them though, especially when doing a 180 deg. direction change. I should take the plastic cover off just in case there is a lock/unlock diff. It's highly unlikely but maybe some people prefer having the diff. locked all the time without an easy way to unlock it???
I always found turning in reverse was easier on a Champion that didn’t have the unlocking differential.
I moved the grader to add some fuel and the trans. acted up again but then corrected itself. I lifted the cover with the gauges and all the switches and blew it out inside. I read someone else did this and it fixed a similar problem. There are a lot of wires in there. Some look disconnected. Maybe for a previous snow wing or something? A couple wires look like they were repaired and now aren't hooked up. I'd like to try and get the articulation working but don't know if the wires for it are in that big clump. I've got a wiring diagram somewhere but electrical isn't my field of expertise.
Very strange, I ran the grader for a couple hours today and it worked great. Then it stopped moving again. I played with the trans. controls and let it just sit idling for a bit. After about 5 minutes it started working again like nothing was wrong. Does anyone know where to find all the electrical connectors for the trans.? I was thinking of putting dielectric grease on them. I don't think the trans. was throwing any codes. It was blinking but I didn't see an E and then a code. The grader seems to have good power and will spin the tires. The foam filled tires seem to have good traction too. So far I haven't noticed any disadvantages with the foam filled tires. I'd guess if they were air filled with lower pressure they'd have even better traction but no complaints so far.
The grader acted up again today after working perfectly for a couple hours. I managed to get it back by the shop and was happy the transmission control could be pulled right out of the console. I unplugged all the electrical connectors and blew them out. There was no corrosion which is good. There were a couple ground wires attached to the trans. control. I'm wondering if maybe the steel console could have a bad ground to the cab or perhaps some corrosion. Could that cause the trans. to act up after a couple hours of running perfect? I'm also wondering if maybe I should let some more oil out of trans. if for some strange reason after it fully warms up it plays havoc with the solenoids? Too high of pressure or something? It's really weird. Hopefully blowing out all the connectors and putting them back together solves the problem. The grader runs awesome when the trans. is working right.
I suspect you may have an intermittent electrical harness problem. They can be very hard and time-consuming to find. Wiggle all along the harness and check all areas where there are clamps, ties or restraints for chafing and pinched wires, etc
Check the micro switch on the shift lever.
The micro switch double clicks normally in forward and reverse. I read an earlier thread about checking the voltage at the micro switch which I can do. What I noticed today is that when it stops moving it throws a code. I played with the levers before but noticed if I just waited with the control in neutral I could faintly see the display change from a code and start flashing the gear, usually 1 and 2. Then it would move again. After the 1st time, it did it about 3 more times only moving a couple of feet. Then it started working fine again. Sometimes it does it when you shift to neutral to change direction. I had a HD mechanic out at my track and he said he could bring a power probe and help diagnose the problem in a couple weeks. He said the trans. oil overfull could cause the trans to overheat but shouldn't cause a moving problem. He said maybe a solenoid is overheating and they can sometimes be taken apart and cleaned up. He had a lot of experience on Cat graders and some John Deere and seemed pretty knowledgeable. He was a supervisor for a large construction outfit working for Suncor. He said Suncor has purchased Syncrude. That had to cost many many billions.
Ran the grader for about an hour and a half today and it didn't act up at all. It seems to have good power and the foam filled tires are working great!
I used the track loader teeth to loosen up a couple low spots in my driveway. Then I spent forever trying to smooth them out nice with the grader. It's a little tricky with the 16ft. moldboard and about a 11-13ft. wide driveway. I figured it still counts as seat time. What takes me longer is lowering the moldboard to the right depth. I can kind of feel when each corner contacts the ground and try to adjust it so it's just scrapping the surface. Is there a quicker or simpler method for lowering the moldboard to the right height/depth? I cut the cutting edge to make it level and am wondering if it's easier to gauge with new cutting edges? Also I've just been using the foot throttle and going mostly in 1st. gear to get used to it. Is it better to set the hand throttle at a higher RPM?
Even my Volvo tears the ground up when turning. Not as bad as it being locked in, but it still digs in like a tandem truck. Those machines were in that time when some guys sat, and some stood up to grade. If you pull the throttle wide open, you can use the bottom of the peddle like a dozer. Practice practice practice.... Soon you won't have to stop to put the MB down, you'll lower it as you come close, and touch down in the right spot