Hello everyone, I have an old D3 I bought a couple of years ago ser. 79U4366, I just use it around the house for fence lines, taking down trees or whatever, a dozers real handy around the farm, I decided recently to replace the chains,rollers and sprockets here at home, I bought after market parts and spent a month doing it by myself, a heck of a job, I started dreading working on it as I don't know how many times I got beat up, mostly when something slipped and I hit it with head, arms etc, anyway everything got installed,checked,torqued and it looked good. I drove it a little and did a final track adjustment per my CAT manual specific to this machine, I was all pumped up as I have a one acre pond that needs some long overdue work, I bet I hadnt worked for 5 minutes and started getting loud machine shaking pops in forward or reverse, the undercarraige at that point was getting packed with sand/clay and the tracks were as tight as could be, you couldnt move them if you jumped on them, I've read you should readjust for the operating conditions which I did but it still popped, the popping was the chain bushings slipping past the sprocket teeth, at times some of the sprocket teeth were pushing into the center of the bushing and as the sprocket turned the bushing would slam between the teeth where it should be normally, I didnt know what to do at that point so I called the company I bought the parts from, their within driving distance from me and sent a guy out to take a look the next day, he made several measurements and we removed the covers over the springs, and after looking at them he felt sure they were the problem because basically it couldnt be anything else because it was all new, I agreed to have the machine delivered to their shop at my cost and pay to have new springs installed and pay to bring it back home, after 4 weeks I got a call telling me it runs fine and tracks straight so I called my guy and he delivered it back to me, well the tractor ran great for a few minutes until I got it dirty, then same problem as before. The same guy returned and basically told me he didnt have a clue what the problem is after looking at it again, however, before he arrived I checked my manual for some dimensions and found two things that bother me but the technician says dont matter, one is the bushing diameter, my old ones were 1.8" and the new ones are 2.1", the new chains are SALT, I'm not sure if the old ones were SALT either. but the manual shows they should be 1.8", also there's a dimension from the springs to the front idlers that comes up short, couldnt too large diameter bushings cause this? now they want me to pay to have it brought back to their shop to look at the springs again, I've already paid them once and I'm not going to do it again, those springs cost me $3500.00 not including what I paid for everything else and I'm not convinced they needed replacing anyway. At this point I feel like buying new chains with the 1.8" diameter and returning the other ones for a refund and call it a day, I'm tired of talking about it with them and getting nowhere, the company is known nationally and I originally expected this to be a simple fix for them but I guess not, am I wrong? I'm no expert dozer mechanic but I really feel its the bushings, I've been very patient so far even though I've lost my window to work due to winter rains now.
I can't find any information that tells me your bushes should be anything other than 1.85" diameter. If your bushes are 2.1" then you've been sold the wrong track. You should also check the pitch. (Distance between two pins). It should be 6.122".
Thank you Cmark for taking a look, I'm sure your right on this, everything points to it, even the factory manual, I do have a hard time understanding why this company just don't own up to it, I've been to their shop and their a big outfit, they do repairs for the big construction companies so I'm sure they know what their doing, guess its time to make some demands, I did check the pitch and its right on, Thanks again.
If you're in mud, you need to cut holes say 2" square or round, in the track pads right over the space between pins so the sprocket teeth can push the mud out. Try working in snow w/o the holes!! Mike
As said above your tracks need to be windowed. And drill a 3/4 inch or 7/8 hole off towards the ends too, that helps shed some of the slicker mud and ice were im at. The middle windows are essential for wet mud work. Make sure its exactly the track made for the machine or at least matches the sprocket, my aftermarket undercarriage on my 450b was a little different but the track and sprockets matched so it was all good.
Can you tell us what brand of undercarriage you purchased?
Bushing size doesn't matter, EXCEPT, you have to have sprockets to match!
Yair . . . lantraxco beat me to it . . . if track and segments match I would have thought bush diameter irrelevant. I have never worked in much snow but have played in a lot of mud and have never seen a tractor with the "windows" mentioned up thread. Cheers.
I'm not a track mechanic, but I stayed in a Holiday Inn Express last night. SALT chains have bigger bushings where they engage the sprockets. Sprockets must match in gullet size, and distance apart with the chain. I'd guess some Einstein decided to risk that your worn sprocket would conform with your new chain. Or the new sprocket matches a dry chain's dimension.
You didn't happen to put the track chains on backwards did you? The track shoes tend to pack sand under the tails and raise hell with things.....
Undercarriage manual shows SALT available for the D3 but uses the same sprocket as the former sealed track.
Back again finally, here's a few pictures showing the bushings, I hope the chains not backwards, it was in the shop and they didnt say anything, the new sprocket is one piece type, I took the old ones off and they welded new rings on, The new ring matches the old one so the only thing different is the larger bushings, also the dimension called out by the manual from the recoil spring to the front idler is supposed to be 23" but even with tracks tight it's a couple of inches short of that, and the shoes do have about 1-1/2" holes in them, also the manual only shows the smaller bushing size, this issue is driving me nuts.
First the tracks are definitely installed the right way round on both sides according to those photos. I don’t know if anyone else thinks the same as me but in your 2nd photo down from the top it almost looks like the two sprocket teeth are trying to force their way into the space between the two adjacent bushes and there isn't enough space available. It may be a trick of the photo but that's what it looks like to me.
And you're packing material in the sprocket, doesn't help.... It doesn't look to me that they make a rim to match the stepped bushings, (seems to be two sizes of stepped bushing also) I think you're supposed to weld on an adapter ring and use bolt on segments part# 190-7396? I'm just looking at the CAT undercarriage book, anybody familiar with these?
Nige, your correct, and when they engage as the sprocket turns the pop will shake your bones, however at the back of the sprocket the bushings are dead center in the bottom of the valley, just doesn't make sense, I forget the aftermarket brand but its from Korea.
Yair . . . From Nige From pineywoodsman01 From lantraxco The point I make is that two teeth do fit between adjacent bushes. If the chains are fitted to a sprocket meant for smaller bushes there may be a clearance problem. Does this popping occur at regular intervals on each side or completely random? I've had a big day and it's hot and I can't get my head around the implications but, are there the correct amount of teeth on the sprockets to match the chains . . . that discrepancy in measurement seems odd. Cheers.
It plainly looks to me that the pitch of the sprockets do not match the pitch of the links. It looks to me like whoever sold them to you mixed and did not quite match the parts. The step in the bushings looks normal to me. They are built like that to have a greater wear limit. The bushings being larger has nothing to do with the pitch, which is the center to center measurement. The bushing at the rear of the sprocket is centered, and going away from center in either direction the difference increases with each link. I feel you got a snow job on the replacement of the springs. My idea on why it did not pop right away, but does after it is in the dirt is that the slack allowed the track to somewhat smoothly climb in and out of the mis timed sprocket, but when a little dirt packs in, the added tension causes the violent pop. One way to check this is to let some tension out and try it, but regardless, you should not run it that way, as the popping is hard on the finals. Either the sprockets or the rails need to be changed in order to get things lined up correctly. I would firmly suggest that the seller needs to supply the correct parts to make this right, and I would have a talk with them about the spring issue as well. Did they show you the old ones, and/or explain what was wrong with them, or did they just tell you they were "bad" and needed replaced?
I don't think that's quite the case. The pitch of the old and new links I think are going to be the same, the difference lies in the distance between the front face of one bush and the trailing face of the preceding bush. If the former link groups were fitted with 1.85" diameter bushes and the new one are fitted with 2.1" diameter bushes then unless the new sprockets that were installed have a slightly larger pitch circle for the teeth (unlikely) thus slightly increasing the pitch, or have less teeth than the former sprockets then the new link bushes are not going to smoothly slide in and out of the sprocket teeth because the distance between the front of one bush and the back of the next one is going to be shorter by 0.25" than was the case with the former links. It's what we call trying to squeeze a quart into a pint pot.......at least IMHO.
Yair . . . Umm . . . . I think I said something like Nige mentions in post #18 up thread? Cheers.
That should be a 25 tooth sprocket and bushing size is 1.85". Track pitch is 6.125". 2.125" bushings are for 6.75" pitch. Doesn't matter if you use segmented sprocket, new sprocket or weld on sprocket rim, pitch and bushing diameter is the same.
D4K, D3K, D4G, D3G, D4C, D3C SEALED AND LUBRICATED TRACK LARGE STEPPED BUSHING 36 SECTION: STD (D3, D3B), LGP (D3) 37 SECTION: STD (D3C/B, D4B), LGP (D3C), SPL (D3B) 39 SECTION: STD (D3C/B, D4C), LGP (D3G, D3C/B, D4C, D3), XL (D3G/C) 41 SECTION: XL/LGP (D3K), XL (D4G/C), LGP (D4G)) 43 SECTION: XL/LGP D4K 6.125" (155.6 mm) PITCH - 9/16" BOLT D3C/B, D4C/B, D3 SEALED AND LUBRICATED TRACK 36 SECTION: STD (D3, D3B), LGP (D3) 37 SECTION: STD (D3C/B, D4B), LGP (D3C), SPL (D3B) 39 SECTION: STD (D3C/B, D4C), LGP (D3C/B, D4C, D3), XL (D3C) 41 SECTION: D4C (XL) 6.125" (155.6 mm) PITCH - 9/16" BOLT D3 SEALED AND LUBRICATED TRACK FORMER, STRAIGHT WALL BUSHING , SPLIT MASTER LINKS 6.125" (155.6 mm) PITCH -- 9/16" BOLT D3G, D4G, D3C, D4C, D4B, D3B, D3 SEGMENTS (USE WITH LARGE STEPPED BUSHING) (PER SIDE) QUANTITY PART NUMBER Sprocket Segment (Tough Steel) (5 Tooth) 5 190-7396 Adapter Ring 1 6Y-5499 Bolt 25 9W-9265 Nut 25 8H-5724 Washer 25 5P-8245 D3C, D4C, D4B, D3B, D3 SPROCKETS FORMER MODEL (PER SIDE) QUANTITY PART NUMBER Sprocket Assembly (25 Tooth) 1 8Y-0622 Rim (25 Tooth) 1 6Y-1244
Do you have any info that says the busing O.D. is different than 1.85"? I don't.
From the Caterpillar-Custom-Track-Service-Handbook, 15th Edition, the following bushings are used for 6.125 pitch D3: Straight Bushings 1.95" Small Stepped Bushings 1.97" Large Stepped Bushings 2.13" I couldn't find my book, finally found one online to look at.
OK, thanks. My info is not that late. When I looked on line I still see 1.85" dia. for SALT tracks with straight bushings. Looks like this case has some miss matched components as previously mentioned.
I'm a little slow but still digging. When I went locking for sprockets they all seem to be the same except it does state as you previously mentioned. "Large stepped bushings are to be used with 190-7396 segments and 6Y-5499 adapter ring". I suspect they have a different pitch diameter to accommodate the 2.31" bushings. I'm still looking for sprocket dimensions. Do you have that info?
It's crazy, I think you can still get all three, plus the old sealed tracks with 1/2" bolt holes. Not to mention a System One track!
Dimensions might be available under Cats "Undercarriage Information System" but it tells me I must have windows 7 to access. Can somebody have a look see that has later computer operating system?
I told you I spent the night at Holiday Inn Express! On a sidetrack, does anyone have a good way to get rid of bed bugs?
In my younger days I would just give them a peck on the cheek and bus fare....
I think we are saying essentially the same thing, but saying it differently. One way or another, the sprockets and bushings are not matching one another.
I got to wonder about what is now damaged?
Probably hasn't hurt anything yet, just needs to be addressed before it damages the finals I would think.
Some of the crap coming out of Asia at the moment is shocking. I wouldn't be surprised if you got a tape out and measure across the tips of the sprocket you'd get different numbers, fairdinkum the stuff I've seen you would only use for net weights. I guess it's the old saying ,you get what you've paid for. But it does look like a mismatch chain and sprocket tho. Bill.
Agreed. It would be nice to know what the actual dimensions are. Plenty of specs on the rails but sprocket specs seem harder to come by. I do have specs for the old 1.85" bushing sprockets and rings but would like to add the new info.
OM, if you have the sprocket dimensions for the 1.85" bushing link groups those dimensions might be very useful to the OP because if his sprockets conform to the same dimensions then logically said sprockets could not work with 2.1" bushing link groups because there would not be sufficient space between the teeth to accommodate the larger diameter bushings.
OK, here is what I have on the old stuff.
Any luck logging in to https://ucis.cat.com/
The shop is replacing the chains with my previous dimension bushing, the manager tried to talk me into sending it back my cost and looking at other possible causes, but that was not going to happen, another guy there was telling me someone might have changed the rails and they would look at that also, they were going to do it at their cost if it was related to any fault of theirs but it sounded like a deep hole to me, my old chain was worn out, not yet to destruction, and I didn't have this issue then, I was sure the bushings were the issue and from what I've read here, you knowledgeable guys just reinforce my opinion. Next parts (hopefully not soon) will be factory, not after market even though they are very pricey, at least it will last and work correctly, next week I should be running and I'll let everyone know how it goes, here's a picture I took today, a top view with pads removed, the bushing alignment to sprocket. I guess I could have gotten new sprockets but it was a real trick getting them off and on here at home and I don't want to repeat it.
The Sprockets are pressed on I have done a few of these tractors, its a shame this re-track job has not worked well for you, the large bush chains look very good and would have been a great choice to have kept. tctractors
Make sure whoever bolts the pads back on gets the paint off of the top of the chain where the pad sits. If they don't, the pads will come loose.
We're not there to actually see whats going on but from that last picture things don't look to be off!!!! For a mismatched combination I was expecting to see bushings to be oversize for the sprocket pockets. What do other eyes see?
Yair . . . They were my initial thoughts too Old Magnet but on reflection perhaps the teeth appear a little low? . . . I seem to remember they normally come about halfway up the bush when new. If that chain is tight around the sprocket that last bush looks to have only about a third contact. As you say difficult to tell from photos. I would love to see those chains running with tractor jacked up on blade and rippers. Cheers.
The top two bushings there, see the gap between the front tooth and the bushing? It's riding up the backside tooth rather than sit down into the cup.
I'm with lantraxco, something's off in that the bushes don't appear to be sitting low enough in the sprocket teeth.
Yes I saw that too but was wondering which direction the track tension was coming from.
Used to be you could get wear template patterns for checking sprocket tooth wear. Are they available for the D3?
They're part of the CTS Service Kit. Can't remember the Part Number off hand but if you can find the P/N of the kit it'll be in the breakdown of that number.
What part numbers are on your receipt? Mayhaps a dealer here might verify the correct rails/sprockets on this machine.
Is it possible the same diameter sprocket with bigger gullets is being used. Would this not change the pitch of the gullet spacing?
Here's some side view's that better show whats happening, I stopped it in forward, if I had stopped in reverse, the bushing popping would be at the top, from a mechanical perspective, I don't see how it could be anything but a chain/sprocket mismatch, but I'll admit this is the only dozer I've worked on, I'll know for sure in a few days, these chains are off and sitting on a pallet waiting for the replacements, at least I'm getting some good hard work to do, I'm recently retired from office life and just about live outside now and loving it, these chains are a little awkward when its just you though, but as they say, no pain no gain, just try to work smart.
Only thing I can think of is that those large diameter bushings belong on segmented sprockets like the Undercarriage Manual says but so far we have not been able to determine what the difference in dimensions might be. A good track shop or Cat dealer ought to be able to sort it out.
I agree with 8K Bill. Look at his first picture of the sprocket. It looks like the sprocket has different spacing between the tips. Also those teeth just don't look right!!
Circumference is different from a multiple of pitch. In example, the dimension is a multi sided figure rather than a circle. The dimension of the figure is the radius of the base of the gullet plus half the diameter of a track bushing. From one point approximately in the center of one gullet to the center of the next gullet measured in a straight line must match the pitch of the track. The straight line 25 times to go around the sprocket will total less than circle circumference. It'd be easier if I were smart enough to post a drawing. Hypothetically; it is 14" radius to the base of a gullet from center. The bushing is 2.1" diameter, therefore its radius is 1.05 14+1.05=15.05. If your sprocket has 25 gullets the angle is 360/25=14.4 degrees. Here's where I need to brush up on trigonometry, we can calculate the pitch of the sprocket with this much information. It would be approximately 3.7824864. Less, as straight line distance is less than curved arc distance. Willie
I found LAW OF COSINES. What is the distance from hub center to bottom of gullet? How many teeth, I guess 27 from picture, but can't easily count.
With the tracks off, measure each sprocket segment to insure they are equal before you install the new rails. Easy to do with them off and can give you piece of mind that the sprockets are manufactured correctly.
Not to be rude, but you guys are overthinking this. The pitch and pitch circle don't change, but making the bushings bigger means the bottom of the gullet needs to be lower, closer to the center point, so the center of the track pins align with the pitch circle. The whole sprocket will probably be smaller in diameter so the tooth points don't drag on the bushings as they enter and exit. If you had a segment to hold up against the old style rim you would probably see right away the difference between them.
:iagreeIf that chain and sprocket was on a high trac design it would work. That's why on a conventional low sprocket the lead in angles on the teeth are wider. That chain with the big bushings does not belong with that sprocket. Bill
I'm going to put a new undercarriage on my Kobelco 210 this winter and several guys have told me that there is a track dealer in Pittsburg that will have the best prices on aftermarket and also they have a very good shop. Although I plan to do the work in my shop, I want to be sold the correct parts. Now I'm reconsidering going to Texas to buy the parts on the chance that that is where you got the D3 parts that are giving you trouble. I know that's just an outside chance, and Texas is a big place with lots of track dealers, but your "piney woods" handle does narrow it down to the eastern half of Texas, no? One good thing about doing business in Texas is that the state promotes the agri and timber industry by giving a sales tax exemption to producers of farm and timber products even if they are domiciled out-of-state.
You shouldn't have issues with a Kobelco getting the right parts, the problem with this CAT D3 is that CAT has used three different dimensions of bushings over the years and still offers all of them as replacements. The average parts/undercarriage guy won't be aware that sprocket "A" won't match with bushing "B", at least until the first time he tries it.
That makes me feel better then. It's pretty obvious that Piney Woods got some mismatched parts as diagnosed by lots of experienced guys on this site. The thing that rubs me and everyone else wrong is the dealer came up with the new springs as a fix, when in reality that probably had little to do with it. But one thing I've learned over the years is that dealers will keep throwing parts at a machine as long as you keep paying them. I had one put a new turbo on a C-12 because he couldn't get the $5 gasket on the return oil line to quit leaking. A $1500 turbo replacement didn't stop the leak either, but me taking the tube off and straightening it in my vise and putting it back with a new gasket did the trick. Apologies to the OP for getting the thread off track. Back to the D3 ongoing saga-- keep us posted how it turns out, Piney Woods!
The average person will make the assumption since all the parts are new, if there's a problem it must be somewhere else. Logic dictates that if the problem didn't exist before the new parts were installed, then the culprit is most likely an issue with the new parts.
Revisit the facts. If gullets are wide enough for the bushings, diameter is correct for pitch, it has been back to the dealer for analyzing the problem. Unless the dealer's staff is totally incompetent, the problem doesn't occur until you have it on the ground. Your left track is tight. A small bit of matter stuck between sprocket and chain will effectively increase the diameter of the sprocket. Chain pitch won't soon change, but sprocket pitch changes with thickness of debris in the gullet. Chain gets even tighter, exaggerating mismatch between pitch of sprocket, and chain. With wear, chain pitch becomes longer than sprocket pitch. As you have 7? bushings engaging teeth at a time, worn equipment will become very loose everywhere but the first gullet. New, they should match very well, there is no space for debris in the gullets and any gunk there will make the chain have to climb out of the gullet cause it isn't long enough to get all the way around. This tightens the track even worse. Lift it off the ground, run it until clean. then examine where the track sits in the gullets. With no torque on the chain it should sit in the bottom of all gullets, bottom, rear, and top. Willie
To run those big bushings you have to run a spacer between the roller frame and the roller.
The new chains got here this morning, 1.85" bushings, one surprise was press-fit pin's for the master link's, the shops delivery driver said they would have let me use their press but it was out for reconditioning and wouldn't be back in their hands for two weeks, must be portable I assume, they told me that ITR doesn't make the 1.85" chain with bolted master links, just another reason to use factory parts from now on, my old chain was factory with bolted masters, anyway this has been dragging on way too long and I need to work, I went ahead and got both sides on today. Looking at the pins and the amount of interference I figured if I was very careful I could hammer them in, I got the chain wrapped around and put the link in the top middle of the idler and using a 10# hammer (home made with a machined flat face) very carefully hammered them in, it was fairly easy, I didn't mushroom the end's, while jacked up I ran it forward and back at different speeds and it works like it should, I also tried to simulate packing by dumping material on the sprockets/chains while moving to see if would start popping but no popping, I probably need to do some real work for a valid test, tomorrow the pads go on, too many bolts, my arms are going to fall off by the time I'm done. (showing my age here). I'll be back next week and report what happens.
Don't forget to get ALL the paint off the pad mounting surfaces.
Those chains probably cost a lot less than the ones they sold you originally. It seems they would owe you a refund. Then the spring fiasco, they really should give you all your money back. In our dreams I guess.
I want to get this completed to show the shop the issue was the bushings but I kinda think they already know that, I definitely will be calling them next couple of days after proving the machine for the difference in chain price, and even though I think my original springs would have worked, I think it was a good idea to replace them, there was considerable corrosion, I sandblasted and painted but there was lots of pitting, wish I would have come here for advice when I was buying my first machine, it came from somewhere in Georgia, and when I first removed the spring guards, there was no empty space, completely filled with a hard white chalky type material that took a lot of high pressure washing to remove, I hate the school of hard knocks. Got half the pads installed today, rotated the chains and will do the other half Monday, I removed the paint from the contact surfaces per advice from here, the paint was really thick, I can see how you could lose bolt tension by not removing it, everyone here has been a ton of help and much appreciated, I may take some pictures of my pond project and get some advice on how best to move an unwanted island in my pond to the dump site which is immediately adjacent to it, a lot of people here that know way more than me about pushing dirt.
Just did my first chain and shoe replacement and guys here noted the paint removal I failed to do. The Ox-axe sure made it short work for the nut side
Hello Everyone, Got some good news, the new chains are working great, moved a lot of sandy clay this week on all kinds of angles and no noise, from now on its CAT parts and double check everything. I'm going to ask for guidance on another issue I had today, I was grading down a long steep slope and when I leveled out at the bottom, the machine would barely move in F or R, wouldn't steer either, long story short I cleaned the transmission strainer and was back in business, what really concerns me is the tablespoon of clutch pieces in the strainer, I know their falling off the clutch plates but I dread the thought of pulling the trans right now, this sounds like I could potentially get stuck in the bottom of a pond with rain on the way!!, you gotta love these old machines.
Good news on the undercarriage front. Now's the time to get them to reimburse you for all the work they carried out on the recoil springs to rectify what was their problem in the first place and it was nothing to do with the parts that they said needed changing. The flakes of clutch material indicate you have a friction plate or plates somewhere that are planning on letting go at some future date. If I were you I'd have some pressure gauges on the transmission sooner rather than later and see what values you come up with for P1 & P2 in each of the gears, forward and reverse. If I was a betting man I'd put money on either the first speed clutch being a bit down, with the forward direction clutch a close second.
Nige, Thanks again for your input, my service manual is a reprint and the pictures leave a little to be desired, I cant determine the where the pressure taps are located, I'm guessing maybe these two allen heads may be them?
Forgot to mention the shop manager wont return my calls now, This is a shop to avoid if the guy that runs it treats his small customers like this, I'll bet he wouldn't treat Williams Construction in Houston like this which is a big customer of his, I don't know, maybe I should start with the better business bureau at this point since they are ignoring me.
Tracks and chains ITR - ****. China. It should be compared with the size of a step chain sprocket. Probably different. It should look like comes to engaging tooth chain. Diamter not matter. Bushes of this manufacturer will wear quickly.
Your data
I have ITR track chains on my Komatsu D31 and was hoping to get a few more hours out of them but seems once the bushes wear they (on mine) self destruct! Have priced up to have new pins and bushes pressed in $2500 (NZD) for both. Waiting for Komatsu to get back to me for new chains and sprockets, but won't be much in it as I haven't factored in transport for the tracks to the track company ($800) be more if I take time off to transport myself then my other machine isn't working (one man band) The Komatsu dealer here is very good and like most world wide like to support locals first. Will post decision.
Well, that the segments are deleted. If they are too hard, will wear bushing chain. And vice versa. Compare the cost of segments and chain. Sorry for my English.
Your English is better than My Russian! Welcome to HEF!:drinkup
Here is the trans schematic with test ports and expected pressures.
Old Magnet, thank you for the schematic, I've removed the floor plates but I'm thinking the pressure ports are under the transmission cover on top, I've got all the pressure gauges I need, except I cant find my 0-400psi, it's here somewhere, this morning I drained the transmission oil and put a new transmission filter in (from CAT of course), It looks to be all stainless steel thus the $200.00 cost, I also strained all the old oil and there were no metal particles, there were a few small pieces of clutch material though, the transmission was full when I bought this machine and I think I've only had to add oil a couple of times in the past 2 years, I don't know how many hours total the oil had but I was pouring it through a screen in bright sunlight and it almost looked like liquid metal, on the dipstick or out of sunlight, it just looked like regular oil, I'm sure it's microscopic metal reflecting the light, some of you guys here probably have routine oil samples taken for testing, a friend of mine works at a lab here but they mainly service offshore oil rigs in the gulf of mexico, they can determine quite a bit from the oil, if I find the pressure to be low, could that contribute to clutch material flaking off because of insufficient pressure acting on the clutch plates? or is it more likely it's just a wore out transmission that needs a rebuild? Anyone here dealt with a shop that obviously made some mistakes ordering part's, then supplied you with parts that work but cost less, then ignoring your request to refund the difference? I'm going to overlook the springs they replaced, even though I sandblasted them to bare metal and didn't see any defects, there was heavy pitting and the end plates were so corroded they didn't look safe, so in my opinion they needed replacing anyway, I'm not going to spend a lot of time dealing with this but I think first thing I'll do is send a complaint to their home office, they have locations in six states.
Those aren't the pressure taps. The pressure taps are under the small square cover next door, although the access is easier if you remove the entire top cover.
The cover Cmark is referring to:
Could be either one, low pressure or wear. The pressure test will add more to the story.
Hello Everyone, Been putting in as many hours as possible in my rush to finish my pond project while we're in this current dry spell here, the old D3 has been running good since I replaced the transmission filter, I know I'm on borrowed time since there were bits of clutch plates in the oil and old filter but I'm months behind and I'm roughly 60% completed as of today, I did check the filter and found no more clutch debris, when I'm done with this I'm going to park the Cat and perform some repairs since I'm planning on keeping the machine, my original plan was to sell it after this pond was completed but now I don't think I can do without it, plus I like to use it. I watched a guy on a D6 take down trees by angle cutting the roots on one side then pushing it over, he then pushed the root ball out so the chainsaws could go to work, I've used mine to take down a few trees here and its pretty clean, push the complete tree out of the way (watch out for roots with lots of lifting power, think big lever) and fill in the hole, I want to thank everyone again for all your advice, pulling up documents and so forth, that takes time and effort, Thank You. I would like to ask for some advice on some issues with the pond, I was going to start a new topic instead of using this one if that's the best way.
Easier still is an extension ladder, 5/8" cable choker, and a 1/2" cable longer than the tree is tall. Live healthy trees come out of the ground pretty reliably. The trunk of a tree choked at twenty feet above the root makes a heck of a lever. I'd guess your tractor is rated at about 25000 LBS line pull. Make sure everything is rated for more than that. Store your cable in a dry place, oil it for storage. A layer of heavy expanded metal protecting you from the cable is a must. ROPS is highly recommended. Use lots of observation, and brain power to took for widowmakers. It's only fun if you finish healthy. I have a 1956 Power Wagon. I've been doing this many years. With the PW I have to anchor to a tree, or truck, or tractor. I've only done one with a crawler, it was effortless.