OK Not sure if this is the right place to post this, but I m in NE Pa and looking to try and find a shop or person willing to help me get some cylinders off a NH skid steer rebuilt, as I am getting some slow leak down on them, and don't have means to rebuild myself. had bad experience with a local shop, and don't know any others really near me that do work like this sort of new to owning my own machine, so learning curve here on getting repairs done on it! SO please let me know and thanks in advance! will also be in need of getting a gear box fluids changed, from what I know, there is NO drain plug, so??? as have water in one and this past winter would freeze solid on me, stopping right side drive movements!
What model NH is it? All the ones I've worked on had drain and check plugs in them up front where the chain box kind of kicked down by the front tire. 1/2" pipe thread if memory serves, maybe 3/8" Allen or 3/8" square to get it out..... also one on the side usually too, jack it at one corner or the other to help it drain. Junkyard
its a 1998 LX 865, I was told by local NH dealer there is NO drain on them,, as have a separate left and rt side, and they need to come apart to drain, which means tilting cab and such, which I cannot do here? the dip stick(by foot well) has about an 1/8 inch hole, so cannot really get anything in there to even try to suck it out that way? also, I am NOT trying to drain chain case oil, but gear box fluids on right side drive gear box! I already changed that,as I had HOPED that was where the water was, but NOT that lucky!
You say you are getting leak down - are you sure the cylinders are bad and not the valve?
honestly I don't know, I am NOT loosing any fluid, and machine is older, so, I gather could be that, but local shop suggested to rebuild cylinders based on what I told them, but again, last time I let them do work, they didn't do a good job(heck didn;t even do all I asked, ) but did charge me? so I won't let them do any more work and at a loss so far trying to find another place to do work for me? I was thinking I should be able to get cylinders off and take them some place once I find a place and have them rebuilt and see, rebuild kits seem fairly cheap, but will have to see what labor is?? if nothing else cannot hurt to have them rebuilt, and will rule them out of problem still exists?? but open to advice on other ways to test?
To test your cylinders for bypassing chain the loader to hold it from going higher at about mid lift. Hold the lift control engaged so it bypasses. Check for heat where the center seals are on the tube. The leaky one will quickly become hot from the oil being forced past. Just take the ram end of the cylinder arm off the machine, loosen the end cap from the cylinder barrel and pull the ram out to change the packing. Leave the barrel on the machine. Does a nice job holding it and you do not even have to remove hoses.
OK thanks for the advice, but I don't have the means to work on machine at my place,, NO clue how I would chain it so not to lift higher, and I am rather alone here, as machine is not at my home, but a hunting property I have, so, its NOT easy for me to even get help to come with me there? and to be honest, I am NOT much of a repairman on things either,as I have never worked on a skid steer before, so, this seems past what my skill set is to be honest!, as for doing the repairs myself. I also have a bunch of health issue's that limit what I can or cannot do too, which doesn't help me on fixing things when I have a load in the bucket and start to drive to where I wish to put things, the bucket will slowly tilt down and want to dump, so, that has been the reasoning I have thought it was the tilt bucket cylinders in need of a rebuild>
On double acting ram, wouldn't that be a symptom of a leaking valve rather than the ram packing? If it creeps a small distance and then stops creeping would be ram packing, if it just creeps and carries on creeping that would be a leak elsewhere in system ie valve etc.
Generally speaking cylinders don't normal drift inwards due to a failed piston seal. They might drift in a little bit and then stop. Its all about volume of the rod end vs volume of the barrel end. The rod takes up a lot of volume and thus the higher volume of fluid in the barrel end can't physically fit into the rod end. Same principal of trying to cram 10 lbs into a 5 lb bag. They will drift outwards though since the smaller volume of oil in the rod end will fit into the barrel end. 5 lbs in a 10 lb bag in that case. If they drift all the way down I would be looking at an internal valve spool leak or maybe a load check leaking if it has one. Like was mentioned above, heat=internal leak. Stall those cylinders out somehow and if they both stay cold, they probably aren't the issue.
Willie has done a much better job of explaining they why's and how-fors of this than i ever could. HeavyEquipmentForums
OK don;t have time right now to read all that in the link but will later as for my cylinders drifting or?? I don't know if they will go all the way down or not, I never tried, as when I am working with machine and it starts to tip buck down to DUMP material as I am traveling in skid, I simply just apply tilt to bucket to compensate for it dipping on me, I never lifted with a bucket and waited to see HOW far it will tilt down on me?? Should I try doing this?? and if so, if it doesn;t tilt down all the way, what would that mean as ti IF it only tilts down a little?? NOW< IF I park the machine and apply down force on bucket, like to keep it from rolling(if it might), or raise the front wheels a little with bucket and park it, about 30 minutes later it will have lowered itself and back on tires? with a SLIGHT amount of down force still on bucket , but NOT what I had left it at! does that help ID things any better?? and last question will be, MY left side tilt cylinder last time I used it, would squeak like mad every time I applied any down force on bucket and went backwards as to smooth things with bucket!, it did it for about 2+ hrs of use , last time I used it, which it never did prior to things there is NOT leak visible on cylinder, and fluid level is GOOD. so what would cause this noise on that cylinder? would THAT be a sign of need of a rebuild?? I appreciate the help and teaching me things here, as I said I am new to this stuff more or less, BUT also, if anyone knows of anyone in MY area that does this work, that coould maybe help me, or DO it, I would appreciate that as well as sooner or later its going to need to get some where to get fixed, as I doubt the issue will get better on its own LOL Only worse I gather