JDcrawlers Messageboard

Hi - I also have a 420 where the undercarriage is pretty much wiped out and I have to keep my tracks tight as well. One thing tightening up the tracks does NOT solve - whether you remove a link or not, is "the snake"... What this means is that on newly bushed tracks, the links stay lined up straight...

I guess I'll throw my 2 cents in even though Lavoy is the expert and has the most experience - my personal experience is "it depends"... I did some repair work this Summer and adjusted the tracks to about one inch of sag and went off for a test drive... Didn't get very far and threw one track off th...

Hey guys - I ran across this site the other day and thought some of you might be interested... unlike most sites, it's short and sweet and full of info!

www.greatcarmovies.com

Hey - I just did one of these on my 420 and my thought is that with a new shaft and bushings, and good oiling by a caring owner, you'll be fine pretty much forever... I just did this and did NOT get new seals - they were just too expensive. Did spring for a new shaft and bushings - put the old REALL...

Dave - pull a plug wire while you are cranking and dtermine are you or are you not getting spark... Probably not your issue, but with mine, someone had replaced the coil with one that had a taller tower and the coli wire was not actually making contact inside the tower... Could be something weird li...

Hi - OK, the crawler is operational! Rebuilt the steering clutches and they are working well - also had to rebuild the carb and starter, debug a million other little things too, but now have been able to drive and turn it. AND - quickly slipped a track... :-( Luckily, it wasn't too tough to get back...

Hi - finally got my 420 back together and steering, and am close to putting her to work! I have about 4 or 5 broken track pads that I'd like to replace. They are 12 inches wide, 2-bolt pads and they are not grousers - they have kind of an "X" pattern cast into them... Anybody have anything? Conditio...

BTW - just as a follow-up to future searchers of the board, regular old grease worked well here and there were no issues just packing the balls and sockets with gun grease and installing - nothing even tried to fall out... - Chuck

Hi Guys - I'm figuring this stuff out as I go... I figure Lavoy knows the answer here but wanted to post so others could benefit from the info in the future. on my 420, I pulled the steering clutch TOB mechanism off one side because the tube is all messed up, and as I'm sure some of you know, those ...

Hey guys - the work on the crawler is going well - I finished tearing off the finals and the steering clutches and things are being repaired and put back together... What that means is that I have gone from "How does this thing work? Man, I hope I can fix this..." to "I get it, and this is definatel...

OK - got her pulled apart (420 5-roller), and I have a few questions. I'm sure Lavoy can answer them but I'd love to hear ANY AND ALL answers! Thanks in advance! - Chuck :-) 1) What is the normal and minimum thickness for both the fiber AND the steel discs? Also - what is the overall thickness I'm l...

Hey guys - Thanks for the replies! I've been out of touch for the past week - been taking care of my two young daughters while my wife went on a well-deserved vacation - and let me tell you - THAT'S a REAL JOB - Holy Cow! :-) Anyway - Yeah - it's been tough to wait to mess with it and I have a few m...

Here is my new crawler - purchased in the Fall and it will be delivered in the Spring. Pretty sure I'll need to do some undercarriage work and the steering clutches are stuck... Hoping to get her going and use it to help restore an old apple orchard on some land I have on the St. Lawrence River in u...

Hi - I am a new crawler owner - just bought a '57 JD 420c with a loader and a ripper from a friend. I have alot of experience with antique car restorations, boats, tractors, etc. - I'm your slightly-above-average gearhead and I guess it's just a matter of time before you end up with a crawler... I p...