Hey guys, I need to repair a leaking oil cooler, anyone have suggestions on the best course of action? I simply cannot afford a new one at the moment ($4,400.00 CAD) Will a good silver solder do the trick? What pressures do these coolers see? Thanks! 977L 11K7981 Cooler part # 4N4374
The good folks at Warco industrial helped me out, we shall see if it holds. If anyone is looking for a great full service rad shop in Northern Alberta they were great to deal with.
Also trying to locate new rubber mounts for this cooler, I think they contributed to the leak. Can't get over how heavy this thing is.... I also tried reaching out to several suppliers in the USA for a replacement, not much for response so far. I know this repair won't last long, and I plan on finding a replacement.
Years ago had a cooler go bad on a cat 235,took it to one of best radiator shops in NJ. They said to buy new ,never had a repair hold up Good luck
Hopefully it holds until I can find a replacement. If anyone has any leads or recommendations i'm all ears. Thanks
Does it make any difference if it's a copper cooler? Repair seems to be holding
Do you mean you're struggling to find Part Numbers for the rubber mounts or you have the P/N's and are struggling to find the parts..? If it's the latter have you tried Offroad Equipment..? www.offroadeq.com/ - they have lots of OEM and aftermarket parts for your type of machine.
Thanks Nige, Yes I did check out Offroad and they did provide me with a quote. Trouble is shipping to Canada is always a headache and usually expensive. Hoping to find someone in Canada that can build me one.
Are you talking about the cooler or the mounts..? I wouldn't have thought shipping the latter would be too much of an issue.
My Apologies, I should have clarified. The cooler itself has been problematic to source and ship, I was able to find the mounts in Edmonton (Direct through CAT)
Wondering if anyone could run that part number through the CAT database and see what other machines used it? I'm sure that cooler would have been installed in other machines? Maybe I could get lucky and find something at a wrecker? Thoughts?
Some listed on machinery trader https://www.machinerytrader.com/par...pe=starts-with&sortorder=#sortorder#&SCF=True
Found this http://positechheattransfer.com/cooler/1031-2/
Unfortunately that particular Part Number is only used in 977K and 977L machines.
Too bad it wasn't aluminum. I know a guy in Edmonton that repairs aluminum heat exchangers that are very similar. Saw him working on one last week. Had to cut thick sections out of the ends, do the repairs internally and then weld the thick sections back on. He also does tons of fuel tanks and real delicate stuff like aluminum motorcycle and snowmobile radiators that can be thinner than pop cans. Does outstanding work! Just found that he has a website now. Never used to have one. You could give him a call or e-mail. https://cmworksltd.ca/
Thanks for all the replies everyone!
If that guy in Edmonton can work on thin aluminium coolers he ought to be capable of working on that boat anchor of a cooler from a 977.
It might depend on how clean you can get it and if there's a bunch of solder involved. Hugh is an awesome Tig welder but it might be like trying to weld repair something after some tried brazing it. That said if it requires Tig welding to repair, he would about the best person anywhere to attempt it. The solid stainless steel and bronze hockey sticks he makes for the NHL are works of art. He said he's seen some cheap copies but not even close to his craftsmanship. I think that's why he doesn't show them up close. He's built them for every team in the league. First one was for Gretzky. He requires a players actual hockey stick and makes an exact copy out of solid material. They are engraved and polished to a mirror finish but weigh considerably more.
Indeed it would make an excellent Anchor, it was an absolute bugger to re-install I did manage to get a hold of the folks at Positech, they do have the cooler in stock however it sounds like they are shutting down Tuesday of this week?? Too bad as the price was reasonable ($1499 US) The gentleman I spoke with figures they are shutting down for good.
So what would the failure mechanism on something like this be? Corrosion? even though its constantly filled with oil? Or simply stress and vibration? Curious
Did you call Hugh to see if he can be of assistance? $1499US is about $2000Can before GST and shipping.
When I look at the anti-vibration mounting setup of that particular cooler (back to our earlier conversation about parts availability) I would say the most logical failure mode would be vibration due to worn mounts. Yet another example of how a bit of low-cost preventive maintenance can avoid a potentially high-cost repair.
Gotta love that exchange rate!! OUCH I'll reach out to him today, thanks for the info!
Hey guys, sorry to resurrect such an old thread but I am in the same boat now with a leaking 4N4374 hydraulic\transmission oil cooler. I am having trouble locating the rubber mounts mentioned in this thread. I can't pinpoint what the part number is in the 977L parts book. Would someone be so kind as to provide a part number, please? Also, RustedHeroes, did your repair hold up or did you end up replacing it with a new one?
3H8726 on the bottom.
Thank you!
For those prices I'd be looking at generic heat exchangers!
Yeah, a new oil cooler is $2700! I even thought of just looping the lines back on themselves. My 977H doesn't have a cooler for the hydraulic or transmission (at least that I know of) and she works fine.