Deere 540A help

[teakwood]

Hi guys, i have a 1971 Deere 540A and need some advice.

i see oil dropping (pretty sure its engine oil) between the engine and dry clutch housing. i'm pretty confident its the back seal of the crankshaft that's leaking. while in there of course i check the what deere calls "dry disconnecting clutch" which helps to start the engine because it disconnects everything from the engine, even the hydraulic oil charge pump.

so my question; do i have to take out the engine or is it easier to remove the "upper cowl" and transmission and clutch housing  

[BargeMonkey]

I'm not savy on the banana nose 540s but I think the engine would be easier to pull than the romps and trans. Alot of oil ? Does that have an inspection door ? 

[teakwood]

Yeah, engine is probably easier, just all that upper cowl and the steering colum has a lot of stuff to remove. 
It's starting to leak, starting to flow down and all the front dif has oil drops underneath,  i will still use the skidder, but definitely something i need to do the next 2 months 

[arojay]

Your 540A is much like my 440B.  It sounds like you have a powershift transmission?  I've had the engine out a couple of times.  Long ago, to replace the transmission charge pump in the powershift and last year to rebuild the engine.  Pulling the engine is not so difficult although there is not a ton of space for hands and tools to remove some of the bolts.  Remember to shim under the transmission before separating the two components.   It makes reassembly easier.  Of course the rear main seal is a suspect, but, does your tachometer work, or did it ever?  Oil can leak back through the port where the tach drive goes in to the engine or if there is no tach there should be a rubber plug in that port.  That could also be a source of an rear engine oil leak.  And yes, the cowl etc. is a lot to remove.  I actually disconnected all the hoses etc., unbolted the cowl and steering valve and lifted the whole works up with a chain hoist hooked to chain wrapped around the canopy when I replaced the charge pump... in the bush... at 30 below.

Good time to replace the pilot bearing.  There are several different sizes.

[teakwood]

thanks. yes, powershift.

by tachometer you mean hourmeter? because there is no engine rpm gauge on this skidder. yes, it works, i put a new one on when i bought the machine, it's crucial in my mind.

what do you mean by pilot bearing? the bolts between trans and engine are a tight fit for sure

[teakwood]

got it, clutch pilot bearing, centers the input shaft of the transmission

[arojay]

Yes, pilot bearing in the center of the flywheel.  The tach reads engine rpm and some record hours too but it's not strictly an hourmeter.  It looks like there is a little oil on your starter.  The port for the tachometer drive is just above there, through the flywheel housing and into the engine.  When you separate the engine and transmission there should be a seal if you have the drive cable or a plug if not.  Either way, that could be a source of oil leaking as they will likely be hard and dried out.  In any case you want to make sure about that before you reassemble.  When I did the charge pump I had lammed a few 2x10s together to make a rail from the top of the canopy to an a-frame ahead of the blade.  I could support the engine and rad and slide them forward after disconnecting hydraulics and electrical and taking the hard front off.  That way I didnt have to lift the engine right out.  I had limited resources at the location where I was working, but it was simple and I'd do it that way again if I had to.

[teakwood]

Thanks arojay, that is very helpful. 
No rpm tach on this machine, only hour meter which i installed. 
The starter has always looked like this because the engineblock has a crack behind the starter. Previous owner welded some there, it's only a sweat so i don't want to touch that.
Now there's much more oil running down to the diff, thats why i suspect crankshaft seal, but i will def check the things you pointed out.

No need to do a bushfix here, i have a big lumber storage building with concrete floor and a forklift to lift out the engine.

[teakwood]

update, finally started to strip down the skidder for some long overdue TLC, removed all panel and we will pressure wash the machine first.

found the source of the leak, a loose hydraulic elbow in the steering valve ( i think is some kind of distribution valve). tighten it up and will try tomorrow , have my fingers crossed. i had the idea in mind that i would need to pull the motor out.
  

[caveman]

I hope that it is just the fitting and that you will be able to get the leak fixed with minimal trouble.  That is a sweet old machine.  I enjoyed riding through the hilly roads in your teak plantation on the back of it back in February.

You have been busy.

[BargeMonkey]

Always nice when you assume the worst on a repair and you get out if it with the easy stuff. 

[GRANITEstateMP]

Good news, you were prepared for the worst!

Better new, looks like a simple fix!

It never hurts to give a skidder a bath!  Since you've got the panels off you'll really be able to get a lot clean.  I remember when we dragged ournold TimberJack to the farm years ago, seemed like I had the better part of two afternoons cleaning and pressure washing the belly pan!  I found at least 3 wrenches along with all the sticks and mud

[teakwood]

Well, we lasted almost the whole day to wash, then i greased, oiled and put everything back together, the oil leak was just the loose elbow, nice to have a easy fix once in a while.

Isn't she a beauty, all shiny clean. i even slapped a John Deere sticker on it, had it laying around for years now.


My worker with the red shirt in the background is attacking the next patients, still need to do the quad and the forklift then

[arojay]

Well that's fortunate!  That's the flow contol valve, part of the goofy steering system.  Those ORB o-rings get inflexible and leak after 50 or so years of service.  I can identify.

[Ron Scott]

Yes, a good-looking machine. Well cared for!

[Resonator]

Lookin' fine!
Good time to inspect everything while it's clean (excessive wear/play, cracks, leaks, etc.) Amazing to think how many decades those old JD skidders are able to keep running and working.

[teakwood]

Yeah, very impressive for a 1971, 54 year old machine. they don't make them like this anymore that's for sure. it's one of the most reliable machines i have, just turn the key and she's ready for work.

i did dismantle her pretty good back in 2013 when i bought her for 12k $. did lots of hoses, brakes, seals, orings, you name it. but since there not much trouble.

Although, i did only use her for 900h since 12 years. But the machine has paid for herself twice in this period of time.