Hi guys, Just joined this forum. I'm not a contractor or equipment operator. I just purchased a used 2003 JCB 208HF with 760 hours. I have a large property in a rural area and bought it for snow removal and landscaping/maintenance (and for FUN!!!). I don't have any manuals with it, operators or service. I have not received the machine yet.. I bought it in NY state and I live in Nova Scotia Canada. I am having it trucked here. So any help or advice you guys can offer would be greatly appreciated. Does anyone have electronic versions of the manuals they are willing to share. I purchased a used snow blower as well with a flow rating of 55 - 62 lpm. I believe the auxiliary circuit on the 208HF is around 90 lpm. I've been asking around and one "hydraulics guy" says if the high flow pump is variable displacement and load sensing, it won't be a problem. I know I should not run 90 lpm through a motor who's maximum rating is 62 lpm. Does anyone know if I can make this blower work on the 208HF?
I am looking for anything on JCB's that I can find, as I loved their Youtubes, the viewing area, the side arm bucket to enable a left hand door, no emissions (not sure about yours, did you get a Kohler engine?)..I test drove the 260 awhile back...and want to read as much as I can before I go to another dealer, I am also looking for ideas of where to shop, as the local was very nice, but he would give me NO prices...when I test drove it...and it took a week to finally get a "new" price from a salesman who was sure I should get a used one. Apparently their three locations, they carry many 260's and lease them out. Did you get your JCB yet? I have the same wishes as your post indicated. Did you search this forum, there are SO MANY neat things talked about concerning skid steers, and many nice people, don't give up! check out these neat things: I cannot paste it, check out attachments post from StumpyWally
Kater, I'm not sure what make the engine is, I know its a 4 cylinder diesel. Have you looked at the 208 model (known as 1CX in the rest of the world) . It is a backhoe on a skidsteer frame. To my knowledge JCB is the only one who makes such a machine. For home use I think the backhoe is going to be very handy to have. I did not get the machine yet, should have it in the next week.
Hi Trent. You need to go to I started this thread in 2008 when I had just purchased a JCB 1CX. I now have two, the second one having a full cab and High Flow. I think you are overestimating the hydraulic flow on your 1CX unless it has the High Flow option which will be evidenced as a second set of auxiliary lines on the other side of the machine. The standard setup has about 50 litres per minute of hydraulic flow and the High Flow option gives you an additional 100 litre per minute circuit. The attachment and auxiliary pumps are positive displacement gear pumps and are not load sensing. They are great machines and very versatile. I have kept both of mine busy and have a large range of attachments for both ends If the exhaust pipe comes out of the side of the machine you have a Peugeot diesel motor. If the exhaust comes out the top of the bonnet you have a Perkins motor. Post a picture when you get the machine and I can also supply operating and service manuals in pdf format. Just send me your email address. Have fun, AusDave
Hi Dave, Yes I've found and already read that thread you started in 2008. I believe my machine does have the high flow option because it has the letters "HF" in the model "208s HF". It has a set of lines on each side of the machine as well, so does this mean one set of lines is high flow and one set is standard flow. If so, which lines are which? From reading on the JCB site I thought one set of lines were for operating hand held tools, or is that a feature they added in recent years? Take a look at the pics and let me know what you think. How can I send you my email without putting it in this post? Thanks for your help.
Thanks VERY much for those manuals Dave. They will prove to be invaluable in the future, I'm sure! Just giving them a quick look I already learned a few things. From what I see in the service manual it calls for 10W/30 or 15W/40 "motor oil" for the hydraulic system, am I understanding that correctly? Motor oil instead of hydraulic oil? I always thought that was taboo!
Trent62 - AusDave knows his 1CXs (208s). Yes the High Flow is the single acting service down the right hand side of the loader arm and only available to the front circa 94 lpm circa 25 US gal/min. The double acting services on the LHS of the loader arm and the excavator end (where fitted) have circa 45 lpm or 12 US gal/min. A low flow aux for hand held hydraulic tools is available as an option and depending on model is normally on the left hand stabilser leg or on the fixed dipper on some builds. Flow is 20 lpm or 5 US gal/min at 138 bar or 2000 psi. The 1CX has its roots in the JCB Robot skid steer of the early 1990s. Back then the only oils available to achieve supplier sign off were the engine oils or some of the ATF fluids. Case and Bobcat were similar at the time if memory serves me correctly. Things have moved on with the arrival of some quality ISO 46 & ISO 68 oils with additive packages and JCB started fitting special ISO 46 oils about 18 months ago. I have heard of machines with up to 15,000 hours still working in Spain so by sticking to the maintenance schedule should be ok with the specified oil. Good luck with your purchase.
Hi Trent. Yes, the engine oil is fine. A good 15W/40 Diesel engine oil has a sufficient amount of the necessary additives to work fine in the comparatively simple hydraulic system of the 1CX. The other reason why using engine oil can be handy is because it means you only have to carry one oil for the whole machine, engine, transmission & hydraulics As Fred has stated, the secret to a long life for any machine is good preventative maintenance. Use good quality lubricants and change them regularly, along with the filters, according to the maintenance schedule in the book. 250 hours for the engine oil is best. Even though the manual says 500 hours for later serial no. machines I'd still stick to 250 hours. Use a good molybdenum grease for the pins and bushes, and do the ones nearest the dirt on each end more often. Keep us informed of your progress on the machine. AusDave
Finally got the machine home in my yard. Going over it to find a few things that need fixing. Hooked up a grapple to the aux. hydraulics first off to discover they were not functioning. Lucky enough I traced it to a bad fuse... now it works fine. After that I decided to try the back hoe. I go to put the stabilizers down only to find that one of them will not go down. They both worked fine the day before. Now, as I face the rear of the machine the left one goes down fine but the right one does not even make an attempt to move when I move the lever. I can hear the hydraulics working but I get a slight "knock" noise when I move the lever. Not a continuous knocking but just a single, not very loud, "knock" each time I move the lever. When the guy unloaded it from the truck he tried to figure some stuff out by pushing buttons and such. After reading the manual later I discovered one should not do that as it could damage the machine. He was turning the high flow and aux hydraulics off and on, with nothing attached, as well as pressing the foot pedal rocker for the backhoe. Could this have damaged something to give me this problem? I have little experience with hydraulics so I really appreciate any help. Any advice where to look? Oh, and one more thing... does anyone know what the rocker switch is for on the right armrest of the machine. If I rock it forward the icon lights up but as soon as I release it the light goes out. I'm thinking the light should stay on until I rock it backwards to disengage whatever it is it does. I attached a pic.
Hi Trent - there may be numerous causes of the stabiliser not moving but if it was moving then worth checking if it is jammed with debris or the wear pads. If you move the lever that controls that stabiliser and then select fully up on the other stabiliser lever, is the engine note different - if not then you could be activating the main relief indicating that there could be something jamming the stabiliser - unusual but possible. If the engine note changes (engine strains more) then is suggests that the auxiliary relief valve (if fitted) is operating prematurely or there is a large amount of leakage preventing the correct pressure being produced. Does that machine have any mechanical device to hold the stabilisers in the transport position ? Maybe worth checking not in position. Sorry I can't help any more. Operating the services without an attachment connected shouldn't damage the system as it should be protected by relief valves. The symbol in your photo looks like a float switch. On older machines with joysticks to control the loader they use these switches to operate the float system. This allows the shovel to float over the ground rather than power down and lift the front wheels up. If it is working correctly it should only be obvious what is happening if you lift the loader slightly then press the button which should cause the loader arms to lower. If the light is only showing while it is depressed then I would check the relay as these systems normally control a solenoid valve which needs a relay to operate it. Also for safety there should be a switch sensing the pressure in the joystick servo hose to the lift service to switch the float off automatically - if the switch is faulty that might keep switching the light off. Best of luck - you might need a mechanic to help you get it running right.
Nice machine, Trent....:thumbsup I have the 210S, same as the 2cx, it's the next one up from yours. Like Fred said, check to see if there's not some sort of safety pin holding your stabilizer in. Also check the linkage for it, could be dislodged.
Thanks guys. I found the stabilizer problem. Fred was on the right track. We had some rain the night before and quickly turned to freezing temperatures. I guess a bit of debris along with the water and freezing temperatures froze the stabilizer in place. Next day when it got a little warmer it worked just fine so I cleaned away any debris. Hopefully that will be good now. I'll follow Fred's advice for the electrical problem and let you know. Thanks again!
Been following Fred's advice trying to trace the problem with the float switch. I found the float relay and did some testing around it. The relay has 5 prongs on it and only 4 are being used, I assume this is normal. I unplugged the relay from it's harness and tested the wire harness terminals for power, here is what I found. With the rocker switch in neutral (centre position) there is always power in one terminal. If I depress the rocker switch to the "ON" position, I get power to a second terminal while the first terminal maintains power as well. In this position two terminals are live. I'm not "exactly" sure how these "latching relays" work, but I don't think there should be power going to two terminals at the same time. I'm guessing that the pressure switch Fred spoke about is faulty and therefore sending power continuously to Terminal 1. If I can locate that pressure switch I should be able to disconnect it and see if it kills power to terminal 1. Then when I press the Float button it should stick in float mode. Does that sound like a valid test? Does anyone know where I should look for that pressure switch? I'm not even sure what it looks like. By the way, I swapped out that Relay with the ignition relay and now when I "HOLD DOWN" the float switch the bucket "WILL" float as long as I hold the switch down. The moment I release the switch, float mode shuts off. AND, the float relay that I put in the ignition slot seems to work just fine for starting the machine... but will not allow me to achieve float when it is used for the float relay... ????? Can anyone offer any insight?
Yes, it's normal,...( when the switch is activated) Pin 30 and 87 are the pins that control power to pins 85 and 86, when your "switch" is off, only one pin will have power, when you hit your switch, you give power to the other pin, so, pin 30 and 87 will have power when the switch is activated, this will "energize the coil in the relay, giving power to pins 85 and 86, these two pins control whatever is connected to them, in your case, the solenoid for the float function.
Sounds like your saying the wiring looks good? Any ideas where to look or how to diagnose the problem?
I don't understand, you said it floats now with that relay, so whats the problem?
When Pin 87 is energized by pressing the float rocker switch, must it stay energized to hold the contacts closed in the relay or need it only be energized for a second to close the contacts. I ask because pin 87 is only energized if I hold the float switch down, as soon as I take my finger off the switch, pin 87 is de-energized.
To float "constantly" pin 87 and 30 must have a constant voltage. Isn't your rocker switch suppose to stay locked when you flip it on? I don't see that type of rocker switch releasing itself when you let go of it. Did it ever "lock" before or was it like this always? (meaning , when you push it on, it stays on until you re-push it off) Could the rocker switch be defective?
I only just bought the machine and the float did not work from day 1. Once I swapped out the relay I can get it to work but I have to hold the rocker switch down. When I let it go the rocker switch pops back up and the float turns off. The wiring diagram says the relay is a latching relay. It is my understanding that a latching relay only needs momentary power from the switch to energize the coil and when the switch is released the coil holds the contacts closed and the solenoid remains open until we push the rocker switch to the off position (momentarily) to energize another coil to open the contacts and thus close the solenoid. So either the relay is not behaving as it should or the rocker switch is broken, although it does not feel broken. Is my understanding of a latching relay correct? Thanks for sharing your knowledge.
Here is a wiring Schematic of the float switch. Can you tell me from this how it should work? Maybe the schematic is not for my exact machine....?
From looking at the diagram, ( you did say this MAY NOT be for your machine).... the relay is a normal acting relay, "on when it's on" and off when you return the switch back to off. Have you tried swapping with another switch...I can't see anyone holding that switch down and operating the machine in float mode, I can understand if it was mounted on your joystick. I also noticed there was a "pressure switch" (#35) in the same circuit, it seems that this switch will also activate float mode. Is there another button or switch somewhere that you are overlooking.
1CX Float switch Trent62 - congratulations with persevering with this one, with what I have seen on the previous posts everyone is on the right track. Although I am no expert on automotive wiring I think the problem could be the pressure switch. Looking at the wiring diagram it appears that the pressure switch is enabling the relay to have a latching feature . It looks like it takes the positive feed from the relay at the diode 23 when you energise it with the momentary switch and feeds it back into the relay to hold it engaged once you have let go of the momentary switch. I think that the pressure switch is normally closed and only opens when pressure is raised in the servo hose. However if the pressure switch is faulty and is already open then the relay can't latch and therefore you would only get float by holding down the momentary switch. I am guessing that the switch is a 3 position switch to allow float to be turned off at the switch as well as selecting lift ? A simple test for this theory would be to locate the switch which I assume will be between the loader joystick and the valve block (probably easiest to trace the loader lift service hoses back to the valve block and then trace the servo hoses off that slice of the valve - normally the small flexible 1/4" hoses - somewhere there will be the switch. If you temporarily link the 2 wires together on the switch (effectively making it permanently closed) then when everyone is clear and safe test the switch - if float works but won't switch off when selecting lift then it should be a faulty switch.
Keep in mind, that in the UK, their terminology is a bit different then ours. "Latch" or "Latching", think of this as a "gate latch" it's either latched closed or open. "Pressure switch" think of this as a switch that needs pressure ("held down") to operate. The diodes are there (#38 and #37) just to stop the coils from collapsing and feeding back current into the circuit, diode #23 is there to stop current feedback into coil #38. Don't worry to much about these, because you already stated that "float" does or did work. From the diagram you provided, you have a "always on float" or a "float when temporarily needed" button. Give me the part number on the "relay" #37. Remember, a switch is a switch is a switch, the relay does all the work. Let us know how you make out on this.:thumbsup
Thanks for your advice guys. I tend to agree with Fred that the pressure switch creates the loop back needed to hold the relay. However, even though I was able to get the bucket into float mode a couple of times by holding the button down, it is not consistent. I may go press the button now and 1 of 3 things happens. The light on the button illuminates and nothing else happens, or the light does not come on and nothing happens, or the light comes on and the bucket floats so long as I hold the button. From what I can tell of the schematic, if the pressure switch is open the relay will not hold closed, but even if the pressure switch is open I should achieve float as long as the button is held and sending power to the relay. At one point I had the Float switch out of the arm rest and if I pressed it to the "ON" position I had power on every one of the terminals and the light was not on. I would have thought at least one terminal would be a ground. I'm starting to wonder if the switch itself might be faulty? I'll do some more tracing and testing... If I can find that pressure switch. I'll let you know what I find. Thanks again for your help guys!!
Hi Trent62 - It is always possible that you have more than one fault. If you temporarily bypass the pressure switch that will at least answer the question of the switch until you can find out what is wrong with the rest of the circuit. Intermittent electrical faults can be some of the most frustrating to overcome. It is possible that you have a faulty switch as the machine is quite old in years but still young in terms of hours. It is quite an interesting switch as well switching the positive and negative sides at the same time. Can I assume that it is a 3 position switch that has a momentary action either side of the middle position and is spring loaded back to that mid position when you let go of the button? One side seems redundant for some reason. I also assume that the terminals numbered on the drawing are replicated on the back side of the switch - probably barely visible ! You mention that there must be a ground and you are right it looks like terminal 2 is that ground - terminals 6 and 9 then become the switched ground to energise the relay coil and switch indication bulb respectively. There is an excellent book by Tracy Martin on how to diagnose and repair automotive electrical systems - it helps remind me how electrics work. If you had positive on most terminals then the bulb wouldn't light up if terminals 9 and 10 were both positive in fact it may suggest that the mechanical part of the switch is broken preventing terminals 2 and 6 connecting. I would make sure that the ground is good - even use a jumper cable onto terminal 2 if ground is suspect. I would also strip down the switch and see if it is sound - they are usually capable of being stripped down if you do it slowly and record where all of the moving parts go. Good Luck
Fred, Your understanding of how that circuit works is exactly the way I see it. Yes it is a 3 position switch and functions as you described it. You are also correct when you say "it is always possible that you have more than one fault", because as it turns out... that is the case. I found at least 2 problems in the circuit. First, I did a little research and found out how to test the relay... turns out the relay was defective, so I swapped it out with another that tested good. Now if I hold down the float button I have float, but it does not stick when I release the button and the light on the switch does not illuminate. So I at least know the solenoid is working. Next, I traced the wires down to the float circuit where I located the pressure switch. I jumped the switch so we know for sure it is closed. I momentarily depress the float switch and release it... "Voila"... we have sustained float!! I pull back on the joystick to raise the loader arms and nothing happens... just as we would expect at this point as the pressure switch is closed and disconnected so pulling back on the joystick cannot trigger the switch to disengage the float. However, I still have no light on the float switch at this point. So I remove the jumper wire from the pressure switch and put everything back together. I decide to test the circuit one more time before I call it a night. I know the float function is not going to stick because the pressure switch is bad but it should still float if I hold the float switch down. So I raise the loader arms and hold down on the float switch... the loader slowly falls to the ground and the float switch lights up this time !!?? The conclusions drawn from this are: 1. The float circuit is functional 2. The pressure switch is defective (and must be replaced) 3. I still may have a faulty float switch given that at one point I had power to ALL terminals and that the light on the switch works intermittently. Does anything come to mind that would cause ALL the switch terminals to have power, besides a faulty switch? If I replace the pressure switch and have any further problems my next best guess would be to replace the float switch (or dissect it). I think I figured out how that float switch functions. On the "+" side, the switch between terminals 1 and 3 are "normally open", on the "-" side, the switch between terminals 2 and 6 are "normally closed". When you press the switch to on, it joins terminals 1 and 3, effectively completing the circuit. When you release the switch the loop created by the pressure switch holds the relay closed. When you press the switch to the "off" position, it disconnects terminals 2 and 6, effectively interrupting the circuit and the relay opens, bringing us back to the "off" position. Thanks "very much" to all who helped me with this.
Hi Trent62 - I think everything you said makes good sense - still interesting that the light works intermittently. I would try stripping the switch down as you have nothing to loose as you were thinking of replacing it anyway - should save you money if successful.
Trent, what are you using to test for power, is it a test light or a meter, if it's a meter, you have to ground the negative meter probe on a good ground surface and "leave" it there for all measurements. I say this because you may be getting false readings with your meter if you use different ground points, and it would be impossible to have power on "all" terminals of the switch without blowing a fuse. I'd also like to ask you, where is this "pressure switch" located? Can you see or locate diode #23, it may also be faulty, make sure all connections are secure and tight also. You seem to be on the right track, I'm sure you'll figure this out.
Sorry for the late reply. Been on holidays. I ordered a new pressure switch as I am quite confident that is the float problem. I will let you know. On another topic though... Hooked up my snowblower today for the first time and all seems to work well except I cannot lift or tilt with the loader arms while the aux hydraulics are switched on and the blower is running. Turn the aux hydraulics off and the loader controls work fine again. Is this typical or should I be able to have loader controls while the blower is running?
Just an update in case anyone was wondering.... I purchased the new pressure switch ($300 cdn) and installed it. Float circuit has been working fine ever since. Thank You all for your input!!
Can anyone tell me where the float pressure switch is located. I'm having a similar problem.
Hi Trent. If you don't have a separate high flow hydraulic circuit to run the snowblower then your snowblower will steal the majority of the flow from the rest of the hydraulics. So what you're experiencing is normal on a standard flow machine. AusDave
Just an update I was able to trace a broken wire between pin6 on the float switch harness and pin 85 on the float relay harness. Had no continuity. I ran a new wire and now have float function again. Thanks again to everyone on this thread! Gave me info I needed to fix the problem.
Dobrý deň, mám záujem o ručné pripojenie elektriny k jcb 1cx, ak má niekto o tomto stroji niečo. Ďakujem