As my rotex replacement project approaches, I was hoping someone could clarify what I need to do to get the lower half of the excavator to roll away from the upper half. I have been told I may need to remove a shaft from the final drives, while I had assumed that disconnecting the hydraulic lines would allow the finals to freewheel. What is the proper/ideal procedure? Thanks! -Sean
Final drives in excavators have a negative spring applied brake that is released by applying a pressure of at least 10-30 bar usually. That's why they won't move without hyd pressure. However, like you said, you can usually remove the shaft the runs in the center of the gearbox.
This may help some:
Thanks for the info. Is it fair to assume that draining, removing the cover plate, and sliding the shafts out is a straightforward operation? Nothing is going to jump out of position and make reassembly on the machine difficult?
SPG... That is my correct, though I have never done it on this drive before.
Some of the excavators I did fell apart when pulling the cover. I took one of the bolts and cut just the head off. Cut a groove in it for a flat tip screwdriver and reinstall it on the top side. The bolt will hold it all in place when you pull the cap off.
Removing the center shaft is better