seems the swing reduction motor blew out the bottom seal,, i had a small leak in the drain line/tube so i replaced the line/ tube and added 80/90 fluid to the fill mark, ran the machine for several hours over a few days and kept an eye on the dip stick reading ,, each time it was low so i added a small amount to get the reading close to full,, well the machine started to make a different noise i cked the level and it was very low so i loaded her up and sent he to the dealer,, they pulled the gear reduction unit and found the lower seal had blown out and the oil was puddled under the house, , now ive heard of seals torn out as well as worn out but this machine has 380hrs the seal looks like pressure inside the unit pushed/blew it out,, the bearing was perfect and the unit itself looks mint so no damage from lack out oil but the service dept feels uncomfortable with the look of the seal and i as well feel there is another problem, so any ideas? i though maybe the swing brake / hyd fluid was leaking into the unit and that pressurized the unit but wouldnt the dip stick blow out 1st? , new seal is in and machine is up and running, i will watch the dip stick level very close to see possible fluid level changes
Check that the dipstick tube is not bent or plugged that is the breather for the reduction.
thanks dirt hog that makes sense, im not sure about plugged part , ill have to look closer but the stick is in perfect shape, ive been hands on with it since the original fluid level issue and very consistent with level checks on all fluids
well I have run the machine several hours and the level has stayed full , the concern im having is a clunking sound when i swing left or right , it only happens when i move the stick sharply, it doesnt make the sound if i move the stick slow , it swings strong and seems to be working normal but the sound is disconcerting and im not excited about not knowing why it pushed the seal out in the 1st place, any idea what the clunking sound could be ? anything to look for?