Just picked up a Case 1845c locally for regular farm/residential putzing around. Will mainly be a forklift for moving a 1/2-ton or less. I know these things are as tough as nails, but you never know who owned one nor what they did and how they treated it. ANYONE RECOGNIZE HER? Bought it in SE MICHIGAN. Almost walked away when the guy tried to tell me a bogus year plus it left a trail of hydraulic fluid behind it. Got in my truck to drive away and the guy made me an offer I couldn't refuse. Sold. OMG, what did I do?? haaaa VIN #: JAF0067XXX Any confirmation on a model year? I'm guessing 88-90. The ignorant seller tried to tell me it was a 2001-02, LOL. Also has the yellow chassis with brown cab and earlier "block" decals on arms. Plus...they stopped production in 2000. Can I call a Case dealer and see if the VIN is in their system for service/sales history? Call it a DIY "carfax" approach. Got it home. Hydraulic leak was just a loose aux hose. The aux control valve is frozen, so I'm guessing someone was wrenching on it and didn't tighten that line. Topped off fluids and off she went doing some light lifting and normal driving around the yard. Engine bay is very clean and proper. Filters are all newer Donaldson or Case brand. Tilt hinge pins are a tad loose, but it IS a 4.5k hr machine. However the hourmeter (which works) says 1.6k. I'm guessing it doesn't actually keep proper time, or, it's a replacement gage cluster. The prev owner wrote the oil change hours and date in the engine bay (4.5k done last week). Everything on the gage cluster plus lights work fine. Diesel fires right up & purrs. Drive is smooth and it tracks straight. No creep or drift. No noises. Radiator has a pin-hole leak right at the filler neck, but only air (above fluid level). Loader & hand controls work smooth. Right side safety latch is a little stiff, plus I think I can hear the right e-brake pin slipping past the brake holes. Plan to cleanup the pan and adjust. I know a hose is pressing on the cables. Right tilt cylinder is a little tweaked but works and doesn't leak. Nice newer seat. Cab in good shape. 72" big bucket has a few patches. Needs a few more. I'll prob buy a new low-profile bucket. Quick-attach works as it should. Needs a new front tire, as it's not holding air and only about 15% tread left. They replaced the front right with new wheel & tire, but front left is an older tire on an original wheel. Been painted, but could use some sprucing. Last on my priority list. ANY SUGGESTIONS for specific things to look for? Known issues? Low-hanging fruit? Like I said, this machine is for my home shop mainly as a fork lift and probably clearing my 6k sf driveway in winter. My little Ford 1210 loader tractor was too little for much lifting. Wish me luck!
I know you are aware of the parking brake pin needing adjusting but that would be very important to get right be fore you move again! If that happened to pop into one of the hole while traveling it can cause major frame damage, I seen what that looks like, not good! As for the age I'm sure a dealer could give you a build date with the complete S/N. That said where I worked we had S/N JAF0039895 and that was a 1989 machine. So yours is a bit newer than that. Say 1990-91? Just a guess! It does look like a good machine. I was going to say you got took and I'd be a "Nice Guy" and take it off your hands but don't have a trailer to haul it on so guess you can keep it!
Good grief, I didn't even think about that! Any pointers for the adjustment? Only seems to make the pin-knock when I've got weight on the loader. I've worked around ag tractors and trucks plus I'm a hydraulics engineer, but this is my 1st skid steer. Mechanics I've worked with have always preferred the 1845c, hence why I picked one up. Also...I don't exactly have the trailer for this thing either. Brought it home on my 7k car hauler with brakes on both axles. Hauled easy. Only a 45min drive.
The right-foot side parking pin is stuck. Cable, pulley and linkage aren't bound-- its the pin in the hole. Soaking it with PB Blaster.
I believe there is a spring in the linkage someplace that allows you to put the lever in the release position then when you move the machine a little in each direction to take pressure of the pin it will pop out of the hole in the big gear. I know they are not in an easy place to work on them but if you can pull the rubber boot that should be over the hole the pin is in you may be lucky and get the PB Blaster to do some good. The other option might be to slide the cab assembly forward and remove one or both the chain box covers so you can better see what you are doing. If you don't have the operators manual, it should be in a box located somewhere in the cab area I would try to get one someplace either online or from the dealer. There is a simple step by step instruction on how to slide the cab forward and on the 1845C that makes things 100% easier to work on. If I was still working at the quarry I'd scan those pages in for you!
Oh man, i think i lucked out! I had thought i moved the girl and set the brake with the bucket, but it wasnt enough to release the pin. I inched her forward and voila...both pins move freely. The left vertical link (operates right brake pin) needed adjusted / shortened to give more yank. The little pulley wheel was full of crud and stuck - no spin. I removed the link and shortened it on the bottom end about 1/2". And then loosened the pulley's bolta 1/2-turn and rinsed her with some PB Blaster. Put it all back together. Now getting full yank on left safety arm and linkage, pin coming all the way out. Pulleys spinning freely. Both handle latches moving freely. Took unit for a spin and no more clicking pin. The sound it WAS making...if you've ever used a garage lift and has a safety latch that "clicks" every couple inches...but not nearly as loud. Just enough to hear and also feel through the chassis. THANK YOU for your help. I do love a forum with folks eager to help!! =) Also snagged a set of fuel filters (next item to tackle for my next episode). -Dan
Another thing to check is for cracks near the pins on top/sides of the tanks, they like to crack and let water in... unfortunately the fresh paint will hide cracks that were there before the paint job.
Dan sounds like you got it under control! Like I said an owners manual would be helpful, has most of the day to day maintenance information you would need. Another thing that might be helpful is to take some time to look at the parts info Case has online https://partstore.caseih.com/us/parts-search.html#epc::mr52343ag39140 I think that link shold take you to the page on the 1845C. there are many options shown there but with a little digging you should get a better idea of what the machine is built like. Now if the former owner(s) were nice they would have left the operators manual in the box for it behind the seat in one of the two different places shown in picture below. The lower on in the picture would be mounted up above on the underside of the ROPS canopy.
Danl I would ask the PO if they added HTO to the hydraulic system. After P.I.N. JAF0067438 it is required. Your unit looks good. Good luck SimS
Thanks for the info, KS. I doubt they left me a manual, plus I haven't seen any little treasure boxes while crawling around it. Definitely planning to drain & replace the engine & hydraulic oils before I do any real work. I don't trust PO's and their decisions esp. on trade-in equipment. Hydraulic oil will def include the HTO. The PO has "10w40" written below the hydraulic filler neck. And remember...the guy I bought it from was the dealer who took it on trade. Not only do I not have a clue who the original owner was, but I also do not trust the dealer/seller guy. Now if I could just go back in time and tighten that aux hydraulic hose BEFORE I drove the unit off my trailer and across my yard. Nice dead yellow 4" wide stripe in my grass, lol. Don't tell the EPA.
The HTO...from what I've read (beating a dead horse here) this is the magic added to regular 10w30/40 engine oil to make it perform like a hydraulic oil (i.e. high pressure, high temps, 8-10hr days, etc). I've got my own theories on it all. In my personal opinion with 20yr in the pass-car & heavy duty filtration & hydraulics industries...I'm not gonna take a swing at that dead-horse pinata. I'm just gonna' keep using what this machine has been used to seeing, which is 10w40 (plus an additive). At 4.5k hours she's doing what she's told without any problems.
My 1845c is serial JAF00406XX and it's a late 89 from what I know, just for reference. If you can, it's probably a good idea to park it inside. The chain case covers tend to crack and with the open cab, they tend to get water in the chain cases easily. Something to keep an eye on. And other than the parking brake, they don't usually have a lot of problems. Just be glad you didn't get the early model with the spaghetti noodle quicktach handles.
x2 on the HTO and parking somewhere dry. As I understand it the HTO is an extreme pressure additive that helps protect the orbital motors from wear. It wasn't required on early machines because they used piston motors. Also a good idea to pick up the back end and check for play in the wheel bearings. Those are a commonly worn item on 1845C's
If your drive motors look like this, you've got plantery gears. They take 80w/90 gear oil and you don't need HTO. Nobody told me about them when I first got my machine, lucky they weren't leaking.
Yes good point to keep an eye on those four chain case covers. They can get cracked, often from someone getting to strong tightening the bolt in the center down. Do any of you other 1845C people have a copy of the owners manual? I'm sure Dmoneyallstar would appreciate having some pages scanned in. Me I would like to see him have the pages on sliding the cab assembly forward. Doing that makes working on things 1,000% easier! If no one has a copy I might be able to talk nice to my old boss and get the one from the 1845C they have, or at least did have when I retired in 2015! I'd scan it in and post it here.
Dan PM me SimS
Don't remember if I got books with mine or not.... only gave a couple grand for it as a project to get to one of these days but it still has old original paint and rust.. and a few other problems... but I did drive it on the trailer!!! I'll have to do a bit of searching for the books... I wish I was more organized.
I wouldn't mind a copy either. So far I've been figuring stuff out the hard way.
Right out front I have nothing in this just did a Google search and this was one of the first things to pop up. I'm almost afraid to suggest someone buy this as I got in a fix on this site for recommending "Buying a Manual" for a machine in another thread. Just know if I owned an 1845C this manual would not be available as it would be in the mail to me! https://www.ebay.com/itm/CASE-1845C...8279?_trksid=p2349526.m4383.l4275.c1#viTabs_0 And I would add this one to my shopping list: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Case-1845C...ual-Owners-Maintenance-Book-NEW-/172078984452 Sometimes Service Manuals do not include things that are in Operator'owner manuals so having both would be my personal choice. As far as parts manuals, while nice to have a paper copy in hand the link to Case I posted above is easy to use and it's free!
Good news is that the PO did leave the Operator and Safety manuals in the little plastic tote. I didn't even realize it was there to be honest, ha.
Nope, mine do not look like that. My machine has the "standard looking" hydraulic drive motors with 4-bolt mount flange.
Right where I said it "should" be! Even has the mandatory "Safety Manual"! You could be the first person to see those since it left the factory! Now start reading that owners manual cover to cover, there will be a test on Friday!
Next on the list is to get the 2 left-side tires replaced. Both have very little tread left and front won't hold air for more than 30min and both on what looks to be original wheels. Right-side has new wheels and 85-90% tread tires. Also got a pin-hole leak in the neck of the radiator. It will push out a few cc's of fluid when running for about 1hr. I'll braze the pin-hole in the coming days. Got forks delivered today from Express Steel Inc. Bought them online 9am yesterday morning and they arrived at my place 20min east of Toledo exactly 25-hr later. And that's 'free shipping" even. Plucked the skid off the Estes trailer using the clamp-on forks (for the last time). Tough enough for my needs and priced as low as a lot of used forks with same load rating. Had to un-stick one of the quick-connect pins, but just took some grease and 10sec of torch heat. The huge material bucket is now on a skid on my trailer. Later this fall the ol' bucket will get turned into a snow-pusher. Picking up a new low profile bucket later this week.
New left-side wheels and tires are on. It took a 5' breaker bar to loosen some of the lug nuts, but they all came off just fine. While wheels were off I cleaned up and painted the hubs, replaced a grease zerk (it miraculously came out without a fight), and greased both hub zerks. The "Case Yellow" paint from TSC sorta-kinda matches, FYI.
I had some "custom" paint made up at the local big box store. I took in an existing panel they color matched it. The beauty of using a existing panel is that the new paint is already "faded" and you can do touch ups without having it look patchy. Good Luck SimS
Good idea! This was all hub painting, so no one will ever really see it either. The tops of the hubs were pretty ugly, likely from moisture accumulating & sitting. Prob peeled off a good 1/16" of metal in a couple spots! Question: on the primary fuel filter there is a black and red wire. Red wire has a connector that goes to nothing. What's it for? TYIA.
The PO probably used a filter with a builtin water sensor. Mine just has a thumb screw drain. No alarm light for water either. SimS
Actually, I was wrong. The filter the wires appear to lead to is the hydraulic filter. Looking at engine bay from rear, filter at upper right with a 1" hydraulic line. Ideas? Besides the manual, are there any better (clearer) instructions for changing the fuel filters out, bleeding air out, etc?
IIRC one of the wires goes to the hydraulic filter restriction sensor (should have a small ring terminal on it), and the other one goes to the backup alarm (which is probably long gone by now). Assuming you have a CAV injection pump just unscrew the filters, screw the new ones on (pre-fill them if you want), crack the bleed screws loose on the pump and manually operate the lift pump until you have a solid stream from both bleeders. Those CAV pumps won't hit a lick if they have any air in them so you do have to be thorough.
Awesome -- thanks for the help jacobd.
If you try the manual lever on the lift pump and it doesn't seem like it's doing anything. Bump the engine 1/2 a rotation or with the key and starter. Sometimes they stop at the top of the lobe that operates the lift pump. Ask me how long it took me to figure this out the first time.
Been a while, but that's a good thing! Wondering if anyone has replaced or upgraded the foot pedal on their 1845c's aux hydraulics? First off, I'm just glad the control valve works and moves! But the pedal motion is pretty clunky and clumsy. The pedal is in single-shear with a bushing and I imagine the rigid mount's hole is worn. I had to put some washers for space so the pedal would clear the ledge right below it. This just kinda' multiplies the clumsiness of the pedal. I've replaced the rod and clevis since it appeared the original had been hillbilly-welded back together. I've also replaced the aux hyd quick-connect fittings (so they'll actually fit my attachments). Has anyone... - Replaced the foot pedal with different type/design? - Swapped valve for an electric solenoid type? - Anything off-the-shelf? Thanks! -Dan
Dan, I agree about the foot pedal action. Terrible design. I plan on upgrading mine too. At the very least either drill out the holes and install a larger (shouldered) bolt, or weld/redrill ...to tighten up. As a side note, have you checked and drained/re-filled your planetary drive motors under the seat? If not, I would recommend that. If they should happen to seize up, that would be the definition of a bad day. Also good to go around with an oil can and lube up every point on the hand control linkages. Don't forget to grease the zerks behind the wheels (which you've probably done), and the hidden zerk at the u-joint. The HTO is an anti-foam additive. Foam is compressible so the additive helps avoid it. Probably not a big issue with the way a hobby farm guy uses their loader. Glad it's working out well for you.
EDITED: My machine is later-model and doesn't have the planetary drives. "Next" on my list is the chain case oil change and chain-play check/adjust/replace. I'll post some pics of my pedal once it's done and working. Big snow coming this weekend (so they say) and I'd like to be able to run my power-angle plow.
This is the pedal type I've got (attached). Components #5 & #6 are what I need, and no way I'd spend $110 on them thru Coleman. I got them for $21 shipped from summit racing (part #s attached). Will be 3/8 clevis, 3/8 RH rod end, and 12" piece of 3/8-24 rod plus a couple of jam nuts. The #12 bushing is also worn out and I may just order one unless I find an alternative. $16.25 on Coleman's site, but cheaper elsewhere. Found something very similar on Amazon and cheap enough to gamble & try ( Bunting Bearings EF060812 Flanged Bearings, 3pk for $4.64). I mean really...isn't the aux hyd valve no different than a 4-way 3-position open sprung center log splitter valve? You can find these for like ~$100 and then just remove the knob/lever, plus maybe make a mount plate for it. Hmmmm....
I find this interesting. I've used mine for a lot of snow plowing and never had an issue with the aux pedals. I've always thought they worked well for angling the plow. No problems feathering the angle just a little when needed. Slop in the linkage could be a problem. Hopefully with the new parts it will work better.
I guarantee it's the slop. Like I said, I couldn't even get the left-side to actuate the valve (valve pin down or in) before the pedal would hit the frame under it. Your rig might be in better shape than this one, too.
FYI -- that Summit Racing clevis is not right. It's huuuuuuge. Going to just make a clevis with some steel and a 3/8-24 bolt. =)
Have you tried McMaster Carr? I went there for all my linkage rehab parts. Rod ball ends, pins,etc SimS
Didn't find a clevis fast enough& pin, so I made a new.one on my cncp plasma and bent it. With new hardware as well, I got rid of about 90% of the pedal's free play. The last 10% is due to the holes in the stay being a little large from wear. Operates smooth and it actually operates. This ol' rig is ready for snow plowing. =)
Nice job & quick thinkin.. I was wondering, why did u leave the bolt so long?? Does it hit/operate a switch.? If not, change out the bolt & double nut it to keep it in-place. & when ur plowin'.. ALWAYS push the snow to the NORTH.. we like our temps down here in the 60's during the winter months.. Lol
You mean my bolt with the linch pin? I didn't have any battery left in my cutoff saw, lol. And it was 1am. Pushing this week's snow south, sorry. My first winter with a plow and a steer, so the kids are getting a gigantic snow pile for forts and sledding in the yard. 5400 sf of driveway and a stiff wind here, so it will be a mountainous heap. #CoolDad
Ready to work. The aux hydro pedal works perfectly. Bled the $350 snow plow (+$200 of lines, cross-over and fittings), put some PTFE shoes on the plow pads, and everything works nice n easy. Bought a new block heater since one I had was dead. But just needed to replace the cord. The female contacts in the business end of the cord were rotted. Love this machine! ♥️ Even made enough room for the truck & steer in the barn. Bring on the snow.
It's hard to tell from the pic, but your one hydraulic line might be a little short. Be careful. Remember as you raise the arms up (like to push snow over the top of a bank), you'll have to tilt down to keep the plow level. Or if you get stuck and tilt the plow down and use it to push yourself free. That will take up a lot of slack in the lines. I had this problem when I ran my lines over the top of the quick attach back plate. Here's a pic of my setup now. I ran the line through the back plate down low at the pivot point. Now as I tilt the plow up/down, the length of hose needed stays the same. No risk of pulling a hose apart (again).
Dmoneyallstar, How about you haul that 1845C over to me? I Checked the weather forecast for Toledo and they are predicting all of 3 to 6 inches. Near me in Syracuse they are saying 13 to 19! We could meet some where in Erie PA and I'd swap your 1845C for one of my walk-behind Ariens snow blowers!
I'm 20min east of Toledo and we got 8-9". Nothing out here but fields, so the stiff NE wind off the lake made some 3-4' drifts. Was over 20mph from Noon yesterday to 6am this morning. Given it's only decently snowed 3 times in the last 1.5 winters, we needed some! Snowmobiles and snowplows were getting too cheap, lol.
Must be an illusion in the pic. Lines are plenty long. The aux connection is on the boom. I had the plow 8-10' in the air toppling snow-piles with no issues or concerns. But appreciate the input, nevertheless. =)
No sense having to learn the hard way, like I did. Glad it's working well for you.
In that case you can probably use that 1845C with the plow! I'll just have to deal with our 10 to 12 inches with my walk behind blowers!
Got to use the plow setup a couple of times with great success. Hadn't had time to get the steel cutting edge apart and install a rubber edge. But I ended up just using steel shims on the plow feet to get about 3/16"-to-1/4" clearance and it cleans the driveway nicely. As soon as much snow builds up in front of the plow, it acts like a squeegee and cleans the surface smooth. I've got a 1/2" thick block of solid PTFE bolted to the bottom of the feet, so the plow doesn't leave any kind of marks at all on my seal-coated asphalt. Can't get much slicker than PTFE. Had one small oil drip on a NPT fitting, but that's all. All good. Also the new cord on the block heater has been a God-send. She gets warm quickly. Need to get the battery blanket on tonight with record low-temps coming. Picked up a Mac-Lander 12k GVWR equipment trailer to replace my 7k car hauler. Sooooo much nicer & safer using the right trailer for the job. I don't haul the 1845c around too often, but now i can do it with confidence. Pretty sure I was about 1k overweight with the car hauler, lol.
Sounds like it's working well. Just curious about the cold weather starting. Do you park outside? Do you have ether start? What temp do you start using the block heater? I always though mine took more cranking than it should in colder weather. But I've got nothing to compare too.
Do you have any pictures you could post of the blade setup you are using..
Parked inside a pole barn. I do have ether-start, but only use when I really need to. Usually when it's freezing or colder, doesn't take much time to get it warm. I also keep the battery on a trickle-charger.
It's a Meyer 7'6" plow with a quick-attach plate & braces. I bought it like that used, but the prev owner had welded a pair of tubes to keep the plow straight -- no angle cylinders. I added a pair of new 12" angle cylinders, added a cross-over relief, plumbed it up, and obviously cut the tube-stays off.
Nice work thanks for the photos.
No prob. - The cross-over is " Prince DRV-2HH Double Relief Valve, Differential Poppet, Cast Iron, 3000 psi, 30 gpm ", cost me $78 on Amazon. - Meyer plow with HD quick-attach mount was $350 for sale locally - Angle cylinders are 1-1/2 x 10" (16-1/4" to 26-1/4" length with 5/8" pin) and were $60/ea on Amazon - Lines and fittings for ~$175 from local Farm&Home store - The trailer jack feet w/ pins were $10/ea from local Farm&Home store - Blocks of PTFE were $0 scrap I had from a prev project = just under $750 for the whole setup. Keywords: skid steer snow plow attachment, DIY quick attach snow plow
And a short vid of the plow & aux hydraulics working...
Next question.... Aux hydraulics. I'm running a 50" tiller on the front. Pressing the pedal gives me slow power. But when I move the left drive hand lever "up" a tad (just short of a boom-up signal) I get full power. Is this normal? Or is there something amiss in my flow control?
May have answered my own question....my old man read the sight gage on the hydraulic reservoir wrong. It was a mere 15-qt low after purging the old fluid and adding new -- that's all, LOL. There was a smudge on the sight glass and he thought it was actually showing fluid. Sump is 42-qt. Good times!!
Nope. I'm just going to assume that putting the left hand control in the neutral position allows full flow to the aux hydro. I'm stunned the owner manual and the set of sealer shop manuals I have doesn't really cover how the aux hydro works.