Good evening, I came home from work today and was getting ready to hope on my TD7E and clean out some underbrush when I noticed my left track tension was a little loose. I fired the dozer up to let it warm and grabbed the grease gun to tighten the track. I tightened it up and put the cap on. When I came back to get on it I noticed the tension had slack in it again. I grabbed the grease gun again and noticed that I had grease comminout from behind the fork and the track would not tighten. I've looked in the computer to see if my dozer had a master link or pin and I can't find any info anywhere! Any help would be greatly appreciated. This will be my first attempt to split the tracks as well as fixing the track tensioner. So any and all help, pointers or whatever you can say to help will be greatly appreciated. My serial # is. 441002U009869 Thank you
Yours will be master pin rails, will need to examine the heads of the pins, one will have a drilling or dimple where the others will be smooth, that is the master pin. Adjuster cylinder will be similar to a 175 loader, just a piston in a bore with lip seals, Not sure where to find them around you but Dresser dealers would have access, most hydraulic shops will have close matches.
Thank you Dmiller! I hope to tackle it tomorrow and see what all I need. Is there a certain measurement on the pins, top, bottom and front idler that I can mic to see what percentage my undercarriage is? I figured if I'm going to bust the tracks I might as well check it all over from top to bottom. Thanks Ben
You should have 6" pitch rails, pick a pin preferably at the leading edge of a link set, count to the fifth pin away across four link sets, measure from either face edge( front or back) on the first pin to the same face edge of the fifth, divide that number by four and you get an average of pin to bushing wear. Sorry to say .125 inches greater than 6" is 100% worn slick. For four links would be 24.60. Are other measurements, link Height, bushing diameter, wear of sprocket and idler. Those can be looked at after figure pin to bushing wear.
Awesome Dmiller that will help alot
I will forewarn you as with my dear old Allis the replacement rails are made of Unobtanium, a very Scarce commodity that is generally only found in hidden NOS sitting in old dark warehouses long forgotten. Allis Fiat Allis IH Dresser and a Few odd Case tractors used the same rails, they are all but used up and gone now.
What does that mean Dmiller?
No Longer Made, anywhere. If can locate any forgotten New Old Stock would be extremely lucky as most is already Gone. Pins and bushings next to impossible as well to obtain either. Some get lucky finding rails on Surplus sales or some shop trying to unload old inventory taking up space but that is getting ever slimmer. On worn sprockets could maybe get by with D30 Komatsu(if those still available) rails or 935/931 Cat rails as a close to half life measurement for the IH rails but shoes could be a issue as to width where may have to have those manufacturer units cut down to fit foot print. Komatsu are 6.06 pitch Cat is 6.12 yet either would be decent in average condition if your pins and bushing wear is excessive.
Ok gotcha. Ive priced places like AMS and TNM. So those are the cheap made rails?
If they have them and you are just personal use should outlast yourself. I have cohorts that tried to buy for Allis 6" and were turned away even as the measurements are same across these makes. Then again they may be quoting a set that is for a D30 they know Will Fit.
I told them TD7E and gave them the serial number but who knows. I'm not there with them.
May have NOS Dresser so could be lucked out.
How much are chains for the td7e? You don't have to mention which company. Just curious because I know it's coming one of these days. Mine has some Berco undercarriage parts.
Grady, from the places I priced anywhere from $950 to $1,100 per side. A couple were salt track with 4,000 hr warranty.
How did you go from adjuster seals to new chains? the right seals are available from Komatsu . If your idlers are all the way out to the stop bolts and the bushings aren't broke you can short track ,remove a link. Make sure the track sales are quoting 6" pitch chains and not 6 1/2" chains as later TD7's used . Good luck Bob
Hey Bob. My mechanic was suppose to be by Saturday to look at it and help guage the life of my UC while changing the seal so I just did come price checking on undercarriage just in case. Thanks fo the info on the pads.
Ok Guys, today is the day! Getting ready to try and split the track to get started changing the track adjuster seal kit. I hope it's the right one. The after market part# is 906001. It said for after serial 9501 so hopefully. It looks small but we will see. This is my first time doing this so here is what I have planned. Find the master pin. Block the dozer up on blocks. Position the pin behind the front idler and knock the hell out of it and hope it moves. Then lay the track out from. Attach a sling to my front idler and slitit forward. If you have any pointers please send them to me. I hope the other seal is somewhat atsti intact so I can see how it goes in. Thanks Ben
Knew guys that could hit square used a Rail Spike hammer, I was never that good and never got on to move with one of those so used a 20# sledge welded a pipe to the link ear or attached to track shoe welded to plates and either clamps or welded to shoe to use a drift bar and get the pin moving, saves tapping the pin holder rather Hard!!!
I have it blocked and getting ready to hammer like a little mad man. I was wondering if I could press it out with a porta power from the back side maybe?
Most will require at least 50 ton to get moving, even the small ones. A gas axe to heat the link ears(SLIGHTLY) as another is mashing the pin can get it moving without destroying the link or the pin. This was removing the rails from my parts donor:
The pin will come out either way won't it or does it have to come out away from the machine?
Should go either direction. I just chose Out so I could drive back In somewhat easier when I rehang them on my other tractor.
Ok thanks Dmiller. Well here goes!
Should you opt for replacement chains after repairs a rule of thumb for me is the links have a wide end and a narrow end like a arrowhead, the direction of work laying on the ground is away from the wide end, point the arrow head to the rear laying on the ground. Like a shovel or point, the arrow point will travel to the ground First as the rails roll forward.
Well,,,, no luck on getting the pin out. We beat the breath out of it, heated the link and beat more. I think timotomoim going to try and roll the track off the idler and do it that way. Hopefully
I have a Deere 450B. I used a method I’d been told about for a tough master link: Removed the track pads on each side of the master link. Then used a cutting torch to burn out the center of the ends of the master link. Then I was able to drive it out easily with drift and sledge. I was able to get new master pins locally and they drove in with no trouble (coated with a little anti-seize). Darryl
You are doing two jobs here . Hammering out a pin is best done with the sprocket holding it . There is to much give behind or on the idler . Place you tracks with the pin about 2 oclock on the sprocket having the dozer at 9 . Set up the welded supports for a pin drive using strong stuff . That pin is easier to drive towards the dozer than out , don't worry about driving it back in later , one step at a time .
Can always call around to see who has a pin pusher set, see if they will come and drive the pins out for you then complete the work and have them set it back. Most HE tractor shops will have one, expensive by hour but should not take too long. They can also inspect and tell you if repairs are worth the effort and money or due for rails and wasting time.
Ok Guys, we rolled the track off the front idler. Is the idler suppose to had much play in it? Mine has quite a bit!! Getting ready to pull the idler forward.
Please read last reply about the idler play too. This is the only seal that I got out first picture second picture is the seal kit I got. What is the Plastic piece and the other 2 small fabric seals
To my ignorance and being new at this, I finlfin stuck a screwdriver in and grabbed the Piston and pulled it out. Still don't know where the 2 little seals go but found the busted grease seal
If that rail would roll off the idler and could twist much sideways the pin to bushing clearance or wear is excessive. That would be called snaking and as such can do that at any time the rail is in a side load. There is usually the piston seal at grease end of piston the two wiper seals on the piston back toward the idler push rod and some inside the cylinder bore. On the play do you mean play within the slides of the undercarriage truck or in the bearings at the hub for the idler?
Where the idlers rolls. I asuassthe bearing. I didn't know if it should have any play in it. Mine has some.. when we rolled the track off to the side we had to take it off the top idler and all but the back bottom rollers to get it to clear just enough to slide the idler forward.
I am assuming Dmiller that my bearing maybe bad. It rolls free but has some play in it
I went ahead and trying to take the front idler apart to look in it. I took one of the roll pins off the side but can't get it to come off. Any suggestions?
You are now at a press fit component, nothing on these is easy or loose fitting unless broken.
What about the wobble in it?. It has quite a bit
Need to get that apart see what's going on inside
Do you think a 20 ton press ewil budge it
Will need some really imaginative support structure for under it, may not do it but can try. You have a shop manual for these? You may want to buy one now and look at where you are fixing to go.
Yes sir I have a parts manual
You need to invest in a service manual otherwise you may damage something beyond reusable taking it apart wrong where parts are not all that prevalent for these anymore.
Thank you DMiller. Where can I get one?
I have a engine, operators and parts manual. The service manual would be awesome to have. I'm sure you DMiller wished I would get one too. Lol your probably like oh Lord what is he doing now lol
Fleabay can be your friend as to that manual, otherwise just do a Google search on your tractor series SPECIFY repair or service manual.
Thank you DMiller for all your help!!! I will look. I found this on eBay. Is this the manual your talking about?
Those would be the place to go. Should be one chassis drive train the other engine and hydraulics.
DMiller, I ordered that service manual set! It like it will help me alot!!
The thread seems to be getting a bit confusing to me. We never broke a track on the sprockets on one of the TD machines put out by International/Dresser. There is no outside bearing to support the sprocket so the banging goes directly into the sprocket housing and bearing. Another thing to note is that on some tracks all the pins have dimples in the ends. You have to look for the pins that have a large dimple or center drilling. It is possible for the tracks to have split master pins of the Berco type. The master pins on IH/Dresser dozers did not have much press fit so heating the rail to red on the master link and some judicious use of a pin and hammer was all that was needed to remove them. The master pins will always have a step worn in the pin from the bushing wearing directly against it and you will have to move the link around a bit to clear that step in the pin while happy tapping the end. The reason the track adjuster seals go bad most of the time is because the tracks are worn out and the adjuster is at the end of its stroke. If you could flop the track off to one side without breaking it the internal wear in the chains is more than 100%. You might replace the seals and have them blow again if you put it back together and run it to the end of its stroke. The other issue is that the barrel will be rusted inside and probably ruined at the end of the stroke. New tracks would put the piston working in the area beyond the damage inside the cylinder and be OK. There was always a little movement in the front idler bushings that could barely be felt before the shaft seals were installed. However once you installed the end blocks with the seals installed you would not feel any movement. Usually it was all you could do to roll the shaft around. If you knocked the roll pin out on one side you will have to press the block off the shaft. I have a strong back and twelve ton porto power for that. As I recall there were two bolt holes you could thread ready rod into. It is only an O ring on the shaft between the inside bore of the side block and the shaft along with the dirt packed in there. The real issue is if there is any oil still in the idler. Pull the plug and check it. If the oil is gone the idler is scrap metal and you will need a new one. There are rail type runners on the inside of the track frames that hold the idler front bouncing up and down. Check those for wear pretty close. Usually I just bought bar stock and welded it in there when things got real loose. Good Luck!
I am going through the same thing on a 100e. if the front idler has enough play where it is moving around excessively then it will more than likely not be rebuildable. the seal housings that you are trying to take off gets beat out and a seal will not go back in. also the housing is nla. The bushings inside are only 1/8" thick as well. I reamed my idler out in the drill press and turned out a new shaft then put a grease fitting in it. best to just run the old undercarriage until it will not stay on it anymore. replacing bits and pieces here and there will nickle and dime you to death and you still have a worn out undercarriage.
Mr. Ben I'm in the same situation. The seals have give way. I will stay tuned to see how it goes for you. myself, i will be splitting the track in order to get to the fork. I can beat on the pin or I can cut the pin out. Im looking now to find a seal kit. lets pray the fork is in good shape along with the rod. I have a 1974 TD7E Good luck .
Check out the pin location. remarkable.
How do you identify a warn out under carriage? I did not notice any wear on the rollers when i bought .
There is a internal wear dimension as these units were all ‘Dry Pin’ rails they wear pin to bushing inside the bushing. Google measuring crawler undercarriage wear. Most if not all the IH, Drott, Dresser/Dressta rails are now obsoleted and unavailable anymore as are pins or other parts. A few dealers still have NOS remaining parts but are fast depleting.
Here is a free video that explains dozer undercarriage. Here is the link to my YouTube channel and you can see all the rest of the videos on undercarriage for other tracked machines. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9ZtvgWG-EtmGZhvtMeBMEQ It is free information.
You don't need to remove the track to change the track tensioner on a TD7E. Just jack it up and remove the sprocket. You can then pull the track forward enough to get the tensioner out. That is how I did it on my TD7E when I had a similar problem. Seal kit was $20, and I paid a guy $75 to hone out the inside of the cylinder, as it was all rusted and pitted. Works for now, anyways. Got to do the other side. Love my TD7E.
Welcome to HEF, Arthur !
Welcome Arthur,glad you found us
Thank You for your response. Now im looking for an upper roller.