Deere 850J dozer with M19 track bolts. What size of socket or wrench? 30mm too big, 1 1/8 too big, 1 1/16 too small. 28mm? Any tips for removal? My 1" gun will not budge them.
Usually a little heat with the blue wrench on the nut will make them come off assuming they haven’t been ran loose. And theres a good chance they started life off as a 30MM, now they’re worn down to a smaller size. Can’t say for certain as I haven’t seen them.
Well, I found a 28mm socket (not very common) and it's a perfect fit. Bolts are relatively new and in very good shape and so I'm confident they have a 28mm head and are not a worn down 30mm. I have been hesitant to use heat for fear of heating up the pin/bushing seals in the SALT link. I will maybe try a propane torch or an induction heater around the nut and see how that goes. Thanks for the reply and wish me luck
Well, the next step is a 1-1/2" impact gun and a bigger compressor and a larger diameter hose ..... Then there's always the big torque multiplier option, if the above suggestion can't be arranged ...... Most track shoe bolts get worn heads within a few hundred hours from new, particularly in abrasive soils. The worst part is the heads wear with a slope on their sides, so it's hard to keep a socket on them. You need to ensure any socket you use is a tight fit on the heads - too much slop, and you lose a lot of torque from the impact hits - and you risk splitting the socket.
A 6 point impact socket is your friend. So is a 1" breaker bar and a 6 foot piece of pipe for leverage. By the time your done you will look like the Incredible Hulk. Your woman will be all over you.
When I was quite young, around 1960, the brother worked for a guy who owned A-C HD-16's. His boss was always looking for operators (nothing changes), and one day he sent this young Norwegian guy around to meet the brother - and the brother was to see if he was suitable as a trainee operator. Well, this 19 year guy rolled up, and his name was Ivan Thor (I kid you not - we should've guessed what was going to happen!). Ivan had been working on a ship, and was looking for a change. Despite only being 19, he walked through the 6' 3" doorway and filled it, to the point of nearly blocking out all the light - and he had to duck his head by a serious amount, to walk through it! He must have been 6' 7" and around 275 lbs. He was quite an affable nature, so after the brother interviewed him, he decided to take him to one of the tractors, and see if he was potential operator material. I went along for the ride - but before anything could happen, the tired old HD-16 had to have a number of track pad bolts tightened (typical A-C undercarriage!). The brother handed Ivan a regular good quality 3/4" drive bar (about 2' 6" long) and the 1-1/8" socket to fit the 3/4" track pad bolts, and asked him to tighten all the loose ones he could find. So ... next minute we could hear this track pad bolt screeching, as Ivan put a little effort into tightening it (just with the drive bar - no extension) - followed by a "BANG!!" - as the bolt broke! Ivan expressed disapproval with, "Geez! The bolt! - she bruk!" The brother just shrugged, and commented, "Ah well, it was probably weakened, anyway". So he went and found a new track bolt, while Ivan went on to the next loose bolt. Suddenly, we heard another "BANG!!" Another broken bolt! Ivan just looked a little surprised and said, "Geez, this wun bruk, too!!" The brother was starting to become a little concerned. Just what kind of strength did this guy possess? And did he know his own strength? He handed Ivan a new bolt and nut, and Ivan fitted it and tightened it up - and the new bolt went "BANG!!", as well!! Right about then, the brother decided he'd better closely oversee Ivan's effort on the bolt tightening, and ensured he stopped, when the brother knew the bolt WAS tight! Unfortunately, once Ivan was put to work on the tractor, his continued inability to judge his strength rapidly showed up! He'd just "rest" his toes on the brake pedal, and the brakes would be smoking, in short order!! The end result was they had to let Ivan go - his massive strength and his inability to judge his strength was a real liability, he had no idea of the difference between "gentle" and "heavy". It was a shame, because he was a nice young guy - but his real calling was simply as a big hammer wielder, and not much else! I have never seen anyone since, that was able to cleanly snap new 3/4" high tensile track pad bolts simply using a standard 3/4" drive bar - and do it effortlessly!
All 1" impacts are not equal. You need a one ton gun, something that will give you 2000lbs in reverse. The CP 0611 has been around a long time and will remove any bolt on that tractor. I know this isn't much help to you now but you might be able to find one for a reasonable price in the future. Every time the oil fields shut down, they come up for sale.
I bought a 1" ATP just for doing track pads. 2700ft*lbs working torque. 3/4 air line with twist claw couplers.
follow up: I used a 1:64 torque multiplier. It's the kind of gadget used to take off lug nuts on semi wheels. 3500ft/lbs and it spun the bolts no problem. The hardest part was finding a 1"drive, 28mm socket of the correct length (about 3" deep socket). I ordered one from china for $6 and had to wait 2 weeks. Otherwise, I was looking at getting a too long socket for mucho dollars and cutting it down to 3". It was a pretty easy task, but I wouldnt want to go through all the track bolts like this!
A real life Bam Bam from the Flintstones.
This thing is a beast,but can’t see it on tight track bolts?
I think a lot of those Milwaukee's, but the 1 inch gun I borrowed didn't even move the needle. My 1" air gun is supposed to have 2000+ breakout force, but it didnt do the trick either. Torque multiplier (no heat, no penetrant) saved the day. Mine's only 3500 ft/lbs, but they make a 6000 ft/lb for not too many dollars.
Be wary of Chinese sockets, they don't often use proper nickel/chrome/vanadium/moly/tungsten/cobalt, alloy heat treated tool steel, to manufacture them. They simply use hardened carbon steel in many cases, and this stuff simply fractures under impact and under heavy torque. Seen a few guys go sprawling when they were hanging off a big cheater bar with a Chinese socket, and the socket simply broke in half. There's a reason why you can buy a 3/4" or 1" drive Chinese socket set cheaply, as compared to good ol' 'Merican alloy tool steel. I've got 3 sets of Wright 3/4" drive sockets. They are 1960's. They have an amazing history behind them. They came from Vietnam in the late 1970's. They were buried when the American forces left Vietnam, and some Vietnamese dug them up, and smuggled them into Australia on a refugee boat. Then they sent them to an auction house, where I bought them. I had to pay good money for them, because plenty of other auction house buyers knew what they were looking at. The original toolboxes had to be sandblasted and powder-coated again, because they'd rusted - but the tools inside them were perfect, and I've never had a single component of those tool sets ever give me any grief, no matter what sort of tough workout I gave them.
I'd be willing to bet most of the 'American' tools I have were actually produced in China or somewhere overseas. I use a lot of Kobalt (Lowes)and Klutch(Northern Tool) brand and I'm pretty sure they are not manufactured here. I also have a lot of Duralast (Autozone) and Carlyle (Napa) hand tools and consider all these excellent tools. I also use a good deal of Harbor Freight stuff and a lot of that is one time or minimal use so I don't want to dump a lot of money in heirloom quality--I just want to get the job done and get on with my life. Almost everything I buy has a Lifetime Warranty with in-store exchange procedures. I'll go ahead and admit that the warranty leads to bad behavior on my part like using chrome sockets with impact tools because the chrome sockets are within reach, using screw drivers as pry bars and punches, or instantly converting end wrenches into strike wrenches by adding a 16lb hammer to the mix. It's been my experience that I lose far more tools than I break. I don't run a shop so I usually just buy the socket or wrench I need for a particular use and not the entire set which may never see any use. Yep, I've got a half dozen 11/16 box end wrenches that are in mint condition. The Chinese have really stepped up there game to be globally competative and a lot of there goods are of great quality. Anyway, at $6(free shipping) let her break, it's not a big deal.
It can be a big deal if a tool breaks. Such as when you're lying under a vehicle and a ratchet breaks and your hands fly 100 MPH into the frame rail or you end up falling backwards and hitting your head. There are times when you don't want to sacrifice your safety with inferior tools.