Hello gents. I very recently bought a used Bobcat 442 excavator....so far, so good. Plenty of power to do what I need, runs smooth, no leaks. I'm trying to adjust the steel (not rubber) tracks and the owners manual is unclear about where to check it. If I lift the left side track off the deck there's about 3 inches of clearance in the middle of the track to the bottom roller...but the maunal seems to be saying I should check track clearance at the top roller...I'll NEVER get clearance there...... Any hints? Thanks in advance guys. mud
Is there a forum moderator that can move this thread to the correct (compact excavator) forum?
bigger than a compact but not a 200 lol. my manual says lay a strait edge between the idler and rear drive you need 3/4 inch sag. there is a cover on the rail on each side with 2 bolts (takes a 9/16 wrench I think ) inside is a button head grease zerk to loosen tracks turn the zerk and release grease to tighten tracks pump grease in. I like to lift the machine with the bucket and spin the track then measure again after adjusting.
Hey thanks!!!!!
3/4" of sag on steel tracks would be powerfully tight, about right on rubber tracks. You'll want ~3" of sag between the rails and the middle roller. If there isn't a middle roller, use a straight edge between the two middle rollers ooor just eyeball it. Loose is better than tight, at least until you walk the track off.
I was going from memory so I rechecked and the manual says 7/8" or 20 mm.