I'm curious on the thoughts of everyone on rubber tracks . Do they come off frequently ? Do you find the small carrier rollers running on the segmented rail gives a bone jarring ride ? Would steel tracks with rubber road pads be a better choice . What do you know about the new tracks with the continous roller rails (cut on an angle so there is no gap) What about continuosly wound wire belts to stop track breakage ? Thank's .
Not one comment either way on any question , i'm sure it will be ok if you have an alternative opinion to his . These are the rubber tracks with continuous sprocket rail to stop the bone jarring ride and also were made to stop dirt and stones getting jammed between the gaps and enlarging the track diameter around the sprocket .
I have a 430 BC that is in dirt, mud, stone, and on the road & have not had any troubles flipping tracks off. I am still using the original Bridgestone rubber tracks that have 1500 hrs on them.
Rough riding tracks I've got about 250 hrs on mine--most all on dirt and rough concrete chunks. I had it on asphalt and it was a pretty choppy ride. I guess those chunks have taken a toll on them, but only found one actual 1" tear so far--may be needing some of those tracks in another 800 or so hrs.
Mine toss's a track occasionally but that is my own fault. When i replaced the tracks i noticed the tension spring was missing on one side so i cant adjust the track. I havent bothered to order a new one yet, but it is on the order list.
430 zhs track i am having trouble getting a track on my 430. i have it on the drive sprocket and top center roller. cant get her on the front big roller. what am i doing wrong. this this is kicking my ass :Banghead any sugestions. thanks in advance tommy:drinkup
Like anything, it comes with experience. Get it up in the air, and using bars, comealongs, whatever, get some pressure on it forcing it toward the idler, and then 'drive' that side very easy, it should pop back on. First time I had to replace a track on mine took 'forever' now I can do them in minutes. (Seeing as my idlers are wore out and need rebuilt, I've had to do them a few times this summer.)
Undo the grease nipple on the adjuster , clean the chrome ram bar of dirt and push the front idler all the way back , you must do this(if it is stuck you can put a block of wood against the blade and against the idler and lift the blade to force it back) . I lift the trackframe off the ground a "little" , to much and the weight of the track hanging down will defeat you . I put the track on the sprocket and top roller and then using a crowbar or pipe guide the track onto the idler while pulling the travel lever forward through the front window . The crowbar needs to be put behind the idler so you can lever up on the track using the track frame as the support . Don't let the pipe/crowbar ride up on the idler as it could swing around and take you out . You will get good at it after owning one for a while .
i have tried both of those methods. still no luck. i am woreout from fighting this thing. i will give it another try tomorrow. the front idler is back as far as it goes. i am replacing the track because the other one was broke. i am replacing it with a good used bobcat brand track. any other tricks of the trade that you good people know of? thanks for the replys tommy
Are you certain that the track is the same length ?
I don't know whether it's the same on a 430, but on a Kobelco 35, I learned the hard way that the entire front idler and adjuster assembly can slide forward, out of the slot it's supposed to sit in. It got a little crooked, and as hard as I tried, I couldn't get the track back on, because the adjuster was fully compressed, but the whole thing was 8" forward of where it was supposed to be. I figured it out when I went to check and be sure the grease fitting was loose enough, and I couldn't find it. It had slid forward along with everything else. That might not be your problem, but it's worth a look. I'll echo what Iron Horse said about lifting the machine up just a little. Too far off the ground, and it'll sag so much that you won't have enough slack to get over the front idler.
Track problems At about 230 hrs one came off as I was turning and had already adjusted them twice. They are 16" x 8 foot. I gave up after about 5 hrs and it took about 5 more the next day. I did all that Iron Horse said but also cinched two large c-clamps on each side of track, positioned bucket in front and hooked chain and pulled tension while turning track slowly--just like getting a bike chain back on. I also had 2x4 props in place to keep it up. Why they don't just give another inch of slack so you can just push it over is what I wished.
yes, the tracks are the same. even the same part #
Sorry to keep asking the obvious , but have you made sure there is no dirt behind the idler slides as this space gets filled with hard packed dirt off of the idler and wont allow it to be pushed all the way back .
I lift one end of the machine in the air with the boom and slide a chunk of wood under the belly to support the machines weight and then lift the other end with the blade. This free's up the boom for pulling the track back on. Like said above use the boom/bucket with chain to manipulate the track in the proper direction along with the drive sprocket. I can usually tell when it starts to walk off the track but i have had it walk right off when i was too involved with what i was doing. The damn track came completely off as i was backing down a hill, didnt realize it because i was working off to the opposite side with the bucket and the weight was off of it. Man was i surprised when i spun to boom around to see why the machine wouldnt go back up the hill.
Yeah , it's amazing how little traction the sprockets have in the dirt . I have become good at driving the machine with one track to get into a better place to put it back on . If you lift the side of the machine and slew as you drive the other track you can get about 10' every go . It's handy when theres a Bull Ant nest where the track is laying .
no dirt trapped, before i put on the replacement track on, i pulled the front idler out and cleaned out the entire area.
I guess I spoke to early with my last message here because I have had to replace a track since then. Tommy I took both grease fittings out since I was not sure which one it was & then used a 6x6 against the roller & used the bucket to push in with. I had my old track off & the new one on in about 20 minutes. I put the track on the roller first & then used a prybar to help guide it on the drive gear while someone slowly moves the controls & it just fed itself on with no problems.
hi all, i went out this morning and the track popped right on in 5 minuites. :beatsmego figure. thanks to everyone for their replys. i guess i just need to walk away from it for awhile. tommy :drinkup
What about when the center wears through? Hi gang, I'm a real noob here and have learned a bunch from this thread.Thanks Iron Horse. What I noticed while shopping used equipment was the center of the rubber wearing through,exposing the sprocket teeth tips. Is this a condition of being worn out or a typical function of rubber tracks? It almost looks like it is just flash from the molding process filling in the center. Appreciate any input guys. TY Jay.
You are correct , the drive lugs are coated with rubber from the molding process . It quickly wears away , this is normal . A much better option IMHO is steel tracks with rubber/Urethane road liner pads , far more dependable .
with the track not going on the 430 even though you already got it on new tracks are still stiff and not stretched like a used one so the are a sob to get put on big bar and alot of force drive the machine forward roll it on the idler side of the track frame release the grease tensioner
This cartoon was in our latset machinery for sale magazine , i thought it was pretty clever . I'd love to hear from anyone who has used these tracks to see how much better the machine rides .