I’ve got a question/looking for experience in articulation on a Road grader, with a Rome sloper attached. The grader, a John Deere 770D, has articulation cylinders that are leaking/bypassing, causing the machine to articulate left and right, when turning. I found the articulation cylinder lines capped off, due to adding the sloper and needing the valve bank to run it. I’m getting the cylinders repaired and ready to install. Given the mounting design of the Rome sloper, articulation is not usable, but the cylinders are still vital in keeping the machine in-line. My question is are there any options for doing away with the articulation cylinders?
Doesn't the machine have front or rear implement controls? I have a hard time believing it would have been ordered that bare. Option 2. Get a diverter valve for your articulation circuit.
Install the frames lock pin. .
The two articulation cylinder hoses were unplugged from the valve bank and capped off, in order to run one of the sloper functions in their place. The grader has pins in place to keep it from articulating, but it still moves enough to cause the sloper blade to sway in towards the grader when turning right, and out when turning left. I believe a diverter valve will solve this issue, allowing me to choose between functions. I appreciate your response!
That's odd the pins allow it to articulate enough to affect the sloper. Can you add a washer or use a longer pin(s) to completely hold the frame straight? Running a bead of weld on the pin(s) and grinding to fit would be a good option. The pins on my Champion fit in easily but if the pins were a little longer where you had to tap them in place I don't think the machine would move at all. You could tack them in place too. Just make it so the tacks were easy to grind out.
I had to look that up, as I had never seen one before
There is always a bit of slop in those pins Dave. John Deere has a pin that drops down into a pin boss, not the cradle type that Champion has. Volvo has done away with the cradle type like yours as well, and it is only a single pin, not 2. Mine has a lot of slop as well
I'd see if there was room to preferably bolt a couple heavy bars to each side to stop it from articulating. The wider spaced the better. Even welding some lugs the bars could be bolted to should work. Same idea like wheel loaders have for holding the machine straight when servicing but have one on each side. Could even have a big turnbuckle to really tighten it up.
Duhhhhh,,,,, what is a sloper?
I guess it's like a reverse wing for grading fore slopes?
I am always amazed at the versatility of a grader and the conditions they operate in. Nowhere on my 50 miles of roads would a sloper be useable.
I had to look it up. Never seen one before
I always fitted the articulation lock/pin on my Dresser grader when I used my "Jim Smith" sloper/batter blade.
My blade was 25 feet long & a cable to retract it. The reel was ex front scarifier Cat12E run by a hydraulic motor
We had a hydraulic sloper, similar to the picture back in 1980 mounted on a Clark 301 Super 6 wheel drive. The Grader was sent from France (the Shah had been deposed & Clark Equipment had an order for 100 machines over there.) so needless to say they weren't delivered. I don't remember where we purchased the sloper from in the USA. It was great to cut drain but maintenance grading on uneven batters was not good, hit n miss. A cable/reel adjustment was better. I'll dig into the "shoe box" & try to find a photo.