I took delivery of a PC160LC7-EO and it worked great for a couple hours. Then it seems to have lost power. Hyd were sluggish/weak/non-responsive. Googling around I see that is sometimes caused by fuel starvation resulting from clogged filters. But I had noticed that the hose that runs from the hyd tank cap down the side of the tank was broken a couple inches off the cap. When I first noticed it I thought it was just a venting hose and couldn't be the problem. Then I checked the hyd fluid level and saw that it was way down -- 5 gallons brought it to almost halfway up the glass. So I'm wondering if that broken hose is more important than I realized. Can anyone shed any light? If I need a new one, does anyone have a part number and/or source? Thank you! Joseph
It's just a vent. How long do you thing the machine had been sitting before you got it? You will likely find some water in the fuel filters.
It sat about 3 months in the cold with less than half a tank of fuel. Change the fuel filters or can I just drain the water? Having discovered I needed to add 5 gallons of hyd oil do you think there's a problem there also? Thank you!
Do you know that the stick has to be all the way out, the bucket all the way open and the boom down so that all sits on the ground level with the machine to check the hydraulic oil? There is a low spot drain on the fuel tank with a valve. Drain that until you get pure fuel. Then you will have to replace all your fuel filters. Check out my video showing maintenance on some older machines. Good Luck!
Great video -- thank you! Have you made other videos? Super helpful.
Thanks for the nice comment. I have six programs uploaded. The name on the channel is Equipment Consulting Services, Inc. and you can subscribe. I have several others I did for paying clients back then that I can't put up just yet. I did those years ago but want to get back into it whenever I find a point where I can shut down what I'm doing now.
UPDATE: Spent the past couple of weeks working on this. Found the valved fuel tank drain clogged and unclogged it, changed the main fuel filter and water separator pre-filter, changed the engine oil, keeping fuel tank full, lubed everything. The problem that remains is the bucket has very little strength and won't stay open with my hand off the stick (if curls closed on it's own due to gravity). I couldn't replace the hyd filter because I bought the filter but not new o-rings. They are on order. I had to add another 5 gallons of hyd fluid -- don't know where that went. The vent hose at the top of the hyd tank was replaced. I have looked at every inch of every hose/pump/valve that I can see without taking it all apart and see no leaks. No puddles. Is there anything left I can check or do to figure out why the buck is having this trouble? Thank you!
Piston seals might be dead or the piston itself has come loose. But on the -7 like that they have a set screw so doubt it. Does the rod have any defects. like long scoring like it is bent?
The piston is shiny and smooth and dry. Does that help?
The bucket problem can be quite a few issues. The lift check or compensator valve in the main valve could be leaking by. The circuit relief valve for that function could be worn out and leaking. The spool in the pilot valve under the joy stick controller could also be stuck part way down feeding pilot oil to the spool all the time.
Is there an easy way to narrow it down?
You will have to take a few things apart now. To check the spool follow the bucket cylinder hoses back to the main control valve. Make sure the bucket is on the ground and the hydraulic reservoir cap is loose and all the air off the tank before opening up any hydraulic fitting or component. The spool caps will be to the right and left of the hoses on that valve block. You can unbolt one cap being careful not to drop the spring or the O ring out of the cap. You can then see the spool. You should be able to move the spool by hand. Don't pull it all the way out or you will get a lot of oil real quick. It if is free you could move on to checking the circuit reliefs. They will be cartridges in the same line as the spool caps. I usually will swap them side to side as a quick check. If that doesn't change anything you can remove the rubber cover on the joy stick controller. Underneath you should be able to see for buttons sticking up and a round plate that sits on top of them. Move the joy stick and you will see those buttons go up and down. If one is stuck you will need some seals and have to take the thing apart to find out why. I don't recommend anyone mess with the compensators unless they know what they are doing. If you get to this point I'm afraid you are going to have to hire some skill and pay the price for buying an older machine. Good Luck!
Well, I got an experienced hydraulics mechanic to come over. He listened to the cylinder and said it was definetly leaking internally. He then proceeded to try to remove the cylinder to rebuild it, but the top pin would not come out. We tried tons of banging, heat, creeping oil -- nothing worked. So he then removed the piston leaving the cylinder on the machine. The piston was all chewed up -- scored, scratched, etc. And, the inside of the cylinder is all scratched up. Then we noticed that the cylinder itself had a bend in it. So now I'm sitting with a non-functioning machine right when I need it. Does anyone know how to proceed? Replace entire cylinder? Used, rebuilt, new? Good source? How do we get the pin out -- he says the ears are tweaked. Thank you -- I so need some help!
Did the mechanic on site have any recommendations. I believe there is a big used parts supplier in New York. There are companies that can fabricate a new barrel and piston and reassemble it for you. Since the barrel is scored you likely will not have much luck getting an exchange cylinder. All you can do is try to limit the amount of cost. As far as getting the pin out of the cylinder base I've never seen a cylinder base boss damaged to that extent. I have seen plenty of stuck pins though and when that bad I've had to blow the centers out of the pins with a cutting torch or a slice torch. You will then have to assess the bores in the bosses and what you can do when the pin and cylinder are out of the way.
I've searched google all day and can't find a used parts supplier or a barrel and piston fabricator. Any chance you (or anyone here) know one? The mechanic is looking into a solution but as of yet does not have one. He will be bringing a bigger torch to try to the heat solution again (it was raining when we tried it). Anything else we can try short of blowing the centers out of the pins?