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Big hastle doing maintenance on equipment

Started by Bibbyman, August 30, 2005, 10:17:26 PM

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Bibbyman

I'm sure I'm the only one with this problem.  Any time I do maintenance on a piece of equipment I end up getting covered with oil, grease, fuels, and generally making a mess of thing.   Always ends up being a big hassle.

In my younger years I did all the maintenance on the cars, trucks, tractors, etc.  I even did some pretty heavy mechanic work like rebuild engines.  But any more,  I've got to where I just let Mary take it to a quick lube place to change the oil, etc. and to a garage for mechanic work.

As far as lube and oil change,  having one of those places do it is not all that bad.  And most mechanic work done these days takes special tools and stuff.

But the big problem is with the tractor and loader.   I've always did maintenance on the tractor and have done it on the Terex.  Once I had the dealer service the Terex because it was in for another reason so the additional cost wasn't that bad.  But then another time Mary had a local heavy equipment dealer service it.  They hauled out a loaner loader, hauled the Terex in,  did the maintenance and then hauled it back out.  They even washed it inside and out!  Great job but the whole deal cost something like $500. :o :o

Now that I'm working full time at the mill, paying $500 to have the Terex maintained is a bit too much. 

Today as we were walking back to the house for dinner (lunch to you northerners),  I commented,  "We got along great this morning.  Got a lot done and didn't break anything."  Mary agrees.  Then I say,  "Do you smell diesel?"  We get to checking and sure enough,  the Terex is leaving spots where it was parked.  It was leaking fuel around the fuel filter.   >:(

It was due for a change and all the maintenance needed done anyway.  So after lunch we went into the parts store and bought air, oil, fuel filters, the farm and home supply place and bought oil. About $60 worth.

When we were looking at loaders a couple of years back I took special note of where the filters and other maintenance items were located and how easy or hard they'd be to change.  I was very please to find all the filters in easy access on the Terex.  But what I later learned didn't please me.  The oil drain plug was covered by a belly pan.  There were holes in the pan but none of them aligned with the oil drain plug.  You had to get under it and take the pan down to drain the oil. >:(

So,  I decided to look for an oil pump to pump the oil out of the engine through the dipstick tube.  We checked five parts stores in town and none were to be found.  Mary suggested WestLakes and by Jove, they had a pump that was meant for the job and was powered buy an electric drill.

We got home and I went to work trying to pump the oil out of the engine.  It was a struggle but after a bit,  it started to pick up the oil and dribble it out into the container.  It took at least 15 minutes of running the drill to pump out about 8 quarts of oil.

The oil an air filters was easy to change and mostly clean.  But I don't know who thought of mounting a spin-on oil filter horizontally but they should have their butt kicked.  There is no way to removed it without spilling a cup of oil down the side of the engine – and into the belly pan I'd left on.

The fuel filter was a major mess.  It's held on by a bolt running through it and into a bottom bowl.   Take it off and fuel goes everywhere.  Getting the new one on with the O rings – one top, one bottom - is a mess.  Why can't they make them like a spin-on oil filter?

Then the settling bowl needed dumping as it was full of water and brown gunk.  Took it apart and not only spilled the pint of fuel/water/gunk mixture and fuel kept pouring out until I got it back on.

But I get everything done and oil back in.  Had a little trouble getting it started and had to bleed the air out of the system at the injector pump.  I shut it down and cleaned up all the empty oil cans, filter boxes, etc. and then re-checked the oil level.  AHHHH!  There was fuel coming out around the settling bowl!  I didn't get the O-ring in the groove right.  So I had to do that over.  Another gallon or so fuel spilled.  >:(

Now I had diesel fuel and oil from my elbows down and one leg of my bibs from the knee down was soaked in fuel from where it gushed out and ran down the cardboard I was kneeling on.   I washed the best I could with Fast Orange and water before coming to the house.  I asked Mary to bring me my jogging pants and I stripped off on the porch and left my bibs, shirt and boots outside.  I came in and took a good shower and put on clean cloths. It's been over three hours and I can still smell the fuel on my hands.

Any suggestions that may ease my pain of doing maintenance on equipment would be appreciated.


Wood-Mizer LT40HDE25 Super 25hp 3ph with Command Control and Accuset.
Sawing since '94

Corley5

We had a machine with a belly pan that needed to be removed to drain the oil and after the third time of that nonsense we had short piece of hydraulic hose made up.  One end screwed into the drain plug and the other end stuck just far enough out of a hole to get end wrenches on it to get the pipe plug out to drain the oil.  Worked for us ;D
Burnt Gunpowder is the Smell Of Freedom

Tom

I've found that I can save some of the mess of a horizontal filter by driving a hole in it and draining it before I take it off. You just don't want to deform it too bad.  A couple of holes, top and bottom, will drain it pretty quickly and you can stand there and hold a cup under it.

There are two solutions to the skid pan.  One is to cut a hole in it where the drain plug is located.  I'm amazed that it doesn't have one already.  Is it specially shaped or did someone put in on backwards?  It might be that all you have to do is correctly allign the thing.  Some young punk mechanics are only interested in getting stuff on, not gettin them on right.  :D


The other option is to put a drain tube in the crankcase hole, run the tube to a place downhill of the crankcase and have the end accessible to a wrench and a bucket.  I've even thought about putting a valve there instead of a plug but don't have enough guts.  I keep thinking it might leak. :D

I had the same problem with fuel running when I took the filter off of the backhoe.  I found hole in the inside top of the filter assembley could be plugged with a stick.  I make sure I have a stick handy when I take the filter off now.

Another option could be to take the fuel line off of the filter and plug it before you take the filter off.  better yet, I'll bet the valve idea on the input line would work.  You could turn the fuel off anytime then.   (Do you have a fuel cut-off at the tank?)  

Good suggestion, Corley5.  I didn't copy you, honest. :D :D

Furby

Hey Bibby, try doing all that with the length of hair I have. :'( ::)
Just as you are covered in all that crude, a stray hair will fall across your face and without thinking.........brush it away. ::)

Gary_C

When I saw this topic posted, I thought someone else was having the same problem that I have been battling with since the last week in July. However my problen goes way beyond the dirt and grease. I have had a harvester broke down and have been trying to obtain parts ever since. Hopefully by tomorrow PM, I will have the last of the next day air shipments and finish putting everything back together.

In order to get to this point, I have had two air shipments from Europe because the first was short 6 special bolts that were essential. The manufacturer of a hydraulic drive motor that is only about 80 miles away sent me a seal kit next day air at $35 and backordered the shaft that went with it. Two weeks later they promised to send the shaft next day air at their expense for three consecutitive days before finally admitting they did not have one in stock. I am on about the fourth or fifth shipment from the dealer for additional small parts needed.

The good part of this is that feed roll motor and valve have been giving me problems for over a year. I have fixed a lot of bad o rings and bad parts that it should work like new.

It is such a nightmare finding parts anymore. All the suppliers have the same story.           

"I don't have it, but I can get it."   :)
Never take life seriously. Nobody gets out alive anyway.

breederman

If you wear a pair of nitrile gloves it will keep the stink and gunk off of your hands.
They are kind of like latex except that they are resitant to chemicals.We sell them as milking gloves but a lot of them get used in garages etc. cost less than ten dollars for 100 gloves.Probably can get at your local farm store or I could send you a box.
Together we got this !

BBK

I love the smell of deisel, oil and hydralic fluid are pretty good "skeeter" repellent and a little grease never hurt nothin'.  8) :D  If you play with the toys you are going to get dirty and it ain't no fun unless youre play'in and if you tell my bride I said this I'll deny it !!! ;D (She gets to wash the clothes  >:( >:( :o)

Seriously, sometimes maintaining the toys is pretty messy. If you take your time and be careful it can minimize the mess but to stay clean all the time is impossible.
I love Farming, Logging, Sawmilling, Fishing, and Hunting.

Cedarman

When you are done with the job and your hands and arms are all gooey, take a big handful of that cedar sawdust you set back and rub it all over your hands and arms. Get a second batch if needed.  It will soak up 98 per cent of the oil and grease and leave just a fine film which is much easier to wash off.  It also works great on oil and water spills.
I am in the pink when sawing cedar.

redpowerd

i took a worn out phillips screwdriver and ground it down to a pencil point, use it for popping holes into filters. you drip a little, just pull it out and have a coffie can ready.

line lockers are a plastic plier with a loop on the handle to keep it closed on a rubber line. granted you need a rubber line. i took a pair of needle nose vice grips and slipped some rubber line over the jaws to subsititue line locks, works well upstream from filters. just gotta remeber to fill the filters before you install them. our tractors have a hand primer but i never need it with this method.

60 bucks for all them filters is petty cheap!
NO FARMERS -- NO FOOD
northern adirondak yankee farmer

Bibbyman

Thanks guys for the ideas.   8)

I had thought about the rubber gloves but forgot to look for them when I was after the oil pump.  ::)

I think the next time I'm into it I'll install some valves in the fuel lines.  At lest the ones to the setteling bowl are rubber.  I did look for a cut off valve but didn't find one.  The manual is pretty poor.

Anyone else use one of these oil pumps to drian the engine oil?
Wood-Mizer LT40HDE25 Super 25hp 3ph with Command Control and Accuset.
Sawing since '94

slowzuki

An outdoor pit dug in a bank can be handy for getting underneath, a neighbour just stuck some chunks of well casing into some cement and cut some beams to make a heavy duty ramp out of a hill by his driveway to service his loader and dozer.

The horizontal filters can be beat by buying a bag of rags, I wrap one around my arm at the elbow so my armpit stays oil free, the other is stuffed below the filter or wrapped around it.

Never used an oil pump but I've seen some air powered ones that would be a lot speedier!

Cut a new hole in that skidplate for sure!

johnjbc

Hay Bibbyman I think I can cure you. Just come help me do the next oil and grease job on Big Beaver and it will be a pleasure to work on your Terex.
The belly pans are made of 1" plate and held on with 1" bolts, you need a heavy duty transmission jack to remove them.
It takes 205 quarts of oil plus 35 gallons of hydraulic oil and the filters are under $200
It takes all day and you sleep good that night. :D :D





By the way we have the track off again. This time it the track adjuster leaking grease. So far we have run it less than 2 weeks and have cleared 2k feet of power line 50' wide and cut a ¼ mile of road  into a 60 degree slope, both through heavy woods. Plan to get the heavy work and then try to get my money back. ::) :D
LT40HDG24, Case VAC, Kubota L48, Case 580B, Cat 977H, Bobcat 773

OneWithWood

Bib, I feel your pain. . .

Working on the JD 450C crawler loader can be a big pain and no matter how careful I am I end up soaked in diesel and hydraulic fluid  :(   I use Gojo hand cleaner, both the cream and pumice, to get the majority of oil and smell out of my skin.  White vinegar will cut the smell but then you smell like a salad  ::)  The only thing that really works is a long hot shower.  The hair shampoo seems to do the finish cleaning.
Speaking of hair; Furby, one of the incentives for me to lose my locks occurred when I bent down to pick up a pan of freshly drained oil and my braid slid out of the bandanna and plopped down in the pan :o
It wasn't pretty  >:(
One With Wood
LT40HDG25, Woodmizer DH4000 Kiln

twoodward15

51 galons and 1 quart of oil?  My goodness that's a lot.  I hope you don't buy it by the case.  haha .
Bibbyman, I'd cut a hole in the belly pan or plumb a line to one of the existing holes. 
Tom and Bibbyman.  They make an oils hut off valve for this exact purpose.  I think I've seen them in the Northern catalog.  If I see one I'll post where I have seen it.  It's just a petcock if I remember correctly but it has a locking detent on it so that it can't accidentally spring open.
Bibby, Bets bees makes a saop called "farmers friend" or something like that.  It works great at taking that smell off of your hands ( I work with jet fuel everyday and use this stuff).  Also try putting hand lotion on first or use a product called " dermashield" and you won't have the smell when you are done.
      Are you using petrolatum or vaseline to hold your O-rings in place?  Next time try that if you don't.  Don't be cheap with it either, it'll wash away in the fuel and a nickel worth of vaseline will save you a $2.69 cent gallon of diesel when you have to reseat the o-ring.  Sometimes it works well to pack the O-ring land with vaseline then coat the O-ring itself, then push it into the land.  It'll stick for sure like that.  Most of the time I just goop up the O-ring and seat it though.  If you don't like the catching oil in a cup idea, how about using those absorbent pads to catch it in the belly pan.  They cost a bit, but will soak up the oil and you will stay clean.  You might make your money back with the hour saved doing cleanup, figuring you'll be sawing for an hour instead of cleaning up your hands. legs, and arms.
108 ARW   NKAWTG...N      Jersey Thunder

OneWithWood

One With Wood
LT40HDG25, Woodmizer DH4000 Kiln

Furby

Quote from: OneWithWood on August 31, 2005, 09:36:24 AM

Speaking of hair; Furby, one of the incentives for me to lose my locks occurred when I bent down to pick up a pan of freshly drained oil and my braid slid out of the bandanna and plopped down in the pan :o
It wasn't pretty >:(

Ever been under a car and have a hot tub of tranny fluid dumped on you?
My Granpa's garage had a mechanic's pit in it, been there for decades and used all the time.
Well ya climb down there and put a board across to set the oil pan on to drain whatever it is you are draining.
One time my Grandpa and myself were both down there at the same time and had just drained the tranny. He went to pull the pan out of the way and next thing I know I'm having a real hot bath in red fluid! :o

Larry

I had a Starcraft in out ski boat some years ago.  It had a pop up hatch like thing over the engine so to change the oil you were standing on your head to get to the drain plug...than there wasn't nuff room to get a pan under the drain to catch the oil.  Called the dealer and asked how they changed oil..."just drain the oil in the bottom of the boat and the oil will drain out the back of the boat".  Didn't care much for that idea so tried the drill pump thingy...never was sure if the little plastic tube was at the bottom of the sump.  Plus I like for the pan to drain for maybe 1/2 hour to get every bit of the crud out.  Finally bought something very similar to what Corley5 described and that was the final solution.
Larry, making useful and beautiful things out of the most environmental friendly material on the planet.

We need to insure our customers understand the importance of our craft.

Murf

Bibs, as long as there is a little room around the oil filter you can move it out to a better spot and direction.

They sell remote kits for almost everything now. We have one of our excavators set up this way. The kit threads on where the filter would normally go, then you run hydraulic type lines to wherever you want the filter to be, then mount the new base plate in which ever position works for you. I think it cost us about $75 for all the pieces we needed.

As was mentioned, a few feet of hydraulic hose and a plug or valve works good for the drain too.
If you're going to break a law..... make sure it's Murphy's Law.

james

try coating your hands with liquid dish soap b-4 getting into the grease they wash clean in no time at all
james

Don_Papenburg

The simplest way to change oil? 









Have Mary do it ;D ;D :o ;D
Frick saw mill  '58   820 John Deere power. Diamond T trucks

Bibbyman

Quote from: Don_Papenburg on September 02, 2005, 11:47:22 PM
The simplest way to change oil? 


Have Mary do it ;D ;D :o ;D
I like that idea!   8)   

But then she'd probably think I should do the dishes.  >:(
Wood-Mizer LT40HDE25 Super 25hp 3ph with Command Control and Accuset.
Sawing since '94

woodmills1

Ifin ya does the dishes your hands will be nice and clean. :D
James Mills,Lovely wife,collect old tools,vacuuming fool,36 bdft/hr,oak paper cutter,ebonic yooper rapper nauga seller, Blue Ox? its not fast, 2 cat family, LT70,edger, 375 bd ft/hr, we like Bob,free heat,no oil 12 years,big splitter, baked stuffed lobster, still cuttin the logs dere IAM

Bibbyman

Do you remember the scene in the movie African Queen when Humphrey Bogart had to get out and pull the boat through the reeds?  He climbs back in the boat to find he's covered with leaches about 2" long and Katherine Hepburn has to put salt on them to get them off.  They proceed to push the boat another three feet when it hangs again.  It's at that moment you can see the pure anguish on Bogart's face when he knows he has to get back in that leach infested water again.  smiley_crying

Well,  that's about the way I felt yesterday when it came time to service the Terex again. 

But..  I was better prepared this time.  With some help from you guys and some thought about it,  I got along better.  And I think the next time will be even easier.

I'd put it off longer than I should have because one cold morning about a week ago I started up the Terex and ran it out on the log lot and I just got there when it sputtered out and died.  The day I'd been expecting.  The water in the setting bowl had frozen.  I was able to reach it with the extension cord and plug in the block heater. (Something we hadn't done as it only got down to about 30.)  I use the farm tractor to move the logs and let the Terex set for about an hour.  The sun was coming up and it was starting to warm. 

When I got back to looking at the Terex,  I noted that the settling bowl was mounted on two bolts on the side of the engine.  Ding!  The light came on! smiley_idea  The hoses were long enough that by removing these two bolts the bowl assembly could be lifted up and out of it's tight spot and worked on easily on the outside of the engine compartment.  I wonder if Terex knew this.

I was able to drain some water out of the bowl buy use of the bung plug in the bottom of the assembly and get the Terex going again.  But there was a lot of snot in the settling bowl.  I knew it was time.

It rained all day Saturday so Mary and I made a run to town.  I got all the filters needed for the Terex at the parts store.  At Wal-Mart I picked up some rubber gloves.

Sunday morning Mary had a date to have breakfast out with her sisters.  I could come along but ... I opted to work on the Terex instead.

First thing I did was mark the skid plan in an area where a hole was needed to drain the oil out through.  I took it off, cleaned the guck off'n it and burned a ragged hole about 4" diameter in it with the arc welder.  No more having to take that sucker off to drain the oil!

With the pan still off,  I changed the oil and filter.  No problems here.

I had pulled the settling bowl assembly out and found a couple pair of vice grips and pinched off the rubber lines. I then disassembled it so I could clean it out properly.  Here is where I made a mistake. I didn't drain it first.  Next time I'll know to remember the bung plug in the bottom and drain the fuel out BEFORE I take it apart. The assembly is in four sections – Top and bottom casting, glass bowl, and a metal sleeve – each sealed with an o-ring. Well, when the bolt holding it all together came unscrewed,  the whole thing just kind of jumped out of my hands and about a pint of fuel spilled all over my pants from above the knees down.  smiley_annoyed01

Then, after I had it cleaned up,  I couldn't get it re-assembled with the gloves on.  It was just too slippery trying to get four sections aligned and the bolt running through it started.  I had to go at it with my bare hands.

Next time I'll know to hang the base part up on one of the steel fuel lines above with a couple of wire bundle ties.  And I'll remember to drain that little sucker before opening it up!

Changing the air and fuel filter was simple and uneventful. 

But I had air in the fuel lines now.  I didn't think I was going to get it bled out before the battery ran down.  Being alone and having no one to watch the bled valve,  I'd crank awhile and then go check to see if air was still coming out.  This went on for about 30 minutes as I didn't want to crank too much any one time.  But finally it fired off with an eruption of fuel spraying everywhere!  I didn't want to shut off the engine but I had to so I could close the bled valve.

The farmer brothers that rent our pasture stopped in on their way to feeding the cattle.  They do a lot of mechanic work.  They even got down in the mud and helped me put the pan back on.  We looked over the Terex and talked about it a bit.  One looked under the fuel pump and noted a little lever to hand pump the fuel.  Had I noted that,  I would not have had to crank the engine.

Maybe it'll go better the next time.   
Wood-Mizer LT40HDE25 Super 25hp 3ph with Command Control and Accuset.
Sawing since '94

leweee

Bibby... your going to make a great diesel machanic when your done your apprenticeship at the" school of hard knocks" :D :D :D Keep up the hard work and never give up. ;D
just another beaver with a chainsaw &  it's never so bad that it couldn't get worse.

DanG

Bibby, it sounds to me like you undercogitated on the fuel bleedin' p'cedure.  Shoulda took about 2 evenin's in the shed by the wood stove, maybe even with a manual in yer lap. :P ;) :D :D
"I don't feel like an old man.  I feel like a young man who has something wrong with him."  Dick Cavett
"Beat not thy sword into a plowshare, rather beat the sword of thine enemy into a plowshare."

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