Dozer tracks

General help and support for your Lindeman through 2010 John Deere crawler
country53
440 crawler
440 crawler
Posts: 111
Joined: Thu Apr 07, 2005 12:59 pm
Location: Kentucky

Dozer tracks

Post by country53 » Wed May 11, 2005 5:16 am

I just did get done rebuilding a 420C. I also ordered a set of tracks from Wilcox Farms. I changed the cleats out and noticed my old set is 3 cleats shorter. Both sets fit the dozer,so I assume someone has taken lenghths out so it would tighten up. Is this method of repair acceptable or is this totally shadetree method? The old ones were 33cleats long the newer ones are 36 cleats long.

jdman
430 crawler
430 crawler
Posts: 54
Joined: Tue Apr 05, 2005 1:09 pm
Location: Chesaning, Michigan

Post by jdman » Wed May 11, 2005 3:38 pm

Thats The Differents Between The 4-Roller And 5-Roller Models....... Both Were Used On The 420C.....

Jeff

User avatar
Lavoy
Site Admin
Site Admin
Posts: 10937
Joined: Sun Apr 03, 2005 8:32 pm
Location: North Dakota
Contact:

Post by Lavoy » Wed May 11, 2005 6:07 pm

Must have been a while ago, I can't remember the last set of rails I sent out. If I sent you 36 link tracks, I made a mistake, must have assumed you were working on a 440. If you have a 5 roller crawler, there should have been 35 links. If it is a 4 roller, then it would have 31 or 32.
Removing links is definitely shadetree, it is usually done by someone that plans on running the undercarraige to destruction and abandoning the crawler. By the time you take a link out, you are already so far out of spec it isn't funny, and have already started to really cause a lot of sprocket wear.
It will not hurt to put 36 link rails on a 420. Unless you are going to put a ton of hours on the old girl, you will never need all of the adjustment.
Lavoy

ggfossen
440 crawler
440 crawler
Posts: 216
Joined: Thu May 05, 2005 8:08 pm
Location: Jacksonville, Oregon

Post by ggfossen » Wed May 11, 2005 9:45 pm

Hmmm, I just ran out and counted my links. I have 34 on a 5 roller 420. I guess that's not so good. That's a bit less than 3/16 wear on every pin/bushing. Might be a bit much, no?

Gary

User avatar
Lavoy
Site Admin
Site Admin
Posts: 10937
Joined: Sun Apr 03, 2005 8:32 pm
Location: North Dakota
Contact:

Post by Lavoy » Wed May 11, 2005 9:46 pm

1/8" wear total per pin and bushing is considered 100% worn, sorry.
Lavoy

ggfossen
440 crawler
440 crawler
Posts: 216
Joined: Thu May 05, 2005 8:08 pm
Location: Jacksonville, Oregon

Post by ggfossen » Wed May 11, 2005 10:09 pm

Lavoy,

That's not very good news.

I had a wholesale outfit up around Seattle tell me that 350 tracks will fit on 420s. Any truth to that?

What's your cost for a set of rebuilts? Can my chains be reused?

I might have to proceed, though, to see if the rest of the tractor will work before I do anything really spendy.

Gary

ggfossen
440 crawler
440 crawler
Posts: 216
Joined: Thu May 05, 2005 8:08 pm
Location: Jacksonville, Oregon

Post by ggfossen » Wed May 11, 2005 10:45 pm

...on second thought, maybe I'll set down cross legged and figure how to build some sort of a press to push out the old pins and bushing. Anybody out there ever build one? to save me a lot of trouble on R&D?

Bed time.

Gary

night

country53
440 crawler
440 crawler
Posts: 111
Joined: Thu Apr 07, 2005 12:59 pm
Location: Kentucky

dozer tracks

Post by country53 » Thu May 12, 2005 4:57 am

I recounted I do have 35 instead of 36. I bought those about a yearand a half ago. I never did profess to be fast. Thanks for the information.

User avatar
Lavoy
Site Admin
Site Admin
Posts: 10937
Joined: Sun Apr 03, 2005 8:32 pm
Location: North Dakota
Contact:

Post by Lavoy » Thu May 12, 2005 9:57 am

350 rails will work, you will have to buy rails, pads and bolts, as well as 350 sprocket rims. Then you cut off your old sprocket and have it machined to to fit the rim, and weld the rim on.
Trust me, it is almost impossible to do track work without a track press. I built a homemade one once. We got exactly one pin out with a 12 ton jack, torch and sledgehammer combined. Then loaded the rails on the pickup and left for a track shop.
If your rails are decent height yet, not reason to throw them away, they can be rebushed for around $850.
Lavoy

ggfossen
440 crawler
440 crawler
Posts: 216
Joined: Thu May 05, 2005 8:08 pm
Location: Jacksonville, Oregon

Post by ggfossen » Thu May 12, 2005 6:29 pm

Lavoy,

OK, I believe you. I just spent most of the day making a press out of old rail road tie plates (abou 3/4" thick). I used a 5/8 bolt with fine threads, and about as big a cheater bar as I dared to, and the pin never even budged. At least I learned how to use my cutting torch, and got to practice with the MIG unit. Half full glass???

I managed to break loose all the cap bolts on the right hand side. I used the Kroil that I bought yesterday, and, again, about all the cheater bar I dared to. I know that side has had some work done because all the rollers are on inside out (lube joints buried on the inside). Also, one of the rollers is suspiciously Cat yellow. I will turn them all around before I put it back together.

I managed to rebuild the safety plate so that it won't look much different from a new one after it's painted.

I'll keep plodding along until I'm sure that I have a worth while running unit, and then I will address the tracks.

I guess I could run them minus one link, but they have to be a long ways out of time for the sprockets. I still think I should blow off an inch on each side to take some of the load off the rest of the decidedly aging track stuff. It has 14 inch pads, and whomever worked it over in that past put on grousers more than an inch deep.

Do you do track rebuilds? That may be an academic question considering you're probably at least a thousand miles from our place. Then again, it might be an excuse for a short trip. Back to the half full glass??

Thanks for your input.

Gary

User avatar
Lavoy
Site Admin
Site Admin
Posts: 10937
Joined: Sun Apr 03, 2005 8:32 pm
Location: North Dakota
Contact:

Post by Lavoy » Fri May 13, 2005 9:52 am

If your pins and bushings are that worn, no sense narrowing the pads up right now, it won't really affect anything.
Yes I rebuild rails. I have had people drive in from farther than you to do tracks. Also have had rails shipped to me, I rebush them and send them back. What part of the world are you from?
Lavoy

ggfossen
440 crawler
440 crawler
Posts: 216
Joined: Thu May 05, 2005 8:08 pm
Location: Jacksonville, Oregon

Post by ggfossen » Fri May 13, 2005 5:26 pm

Lavoy,

Jacksonville, Oregon. It's in the southwest corner of the state. I just checked with the local industrial JD shop. They don't do track chains. Something about labor being too much. Apparently, they lean towards simply replacing, but the parts for the 420, what's available, is simply too much cash. I didn't check with the Cat place. They may.

I will have to study on this, and see how far I can get with the rest of it, first.

How long does it take you to replace a set of bushings and pins? You're not so far away that we couldn't take a drive with the fifth wheel.

Gary

User avatar
Lavoy
Site Admin
Site Admin
Posts: 10937
Joined: Sun Apr 03, 2005 8:32 pm
Location: North Dakota
Contact:

Post by Lavoy » Fri May 13, 2005 7:49 pm

Gary,
IF, the phone doesn't ring, the kids don't need help with a major near death experience, etc, etc, I can usually do a set in 4 hours or less if I have no interruptions. That is from on a pallet, to back on a pallet. If there is a lot of link repair that has to be done it can go up from there.
Once you get to Montana, you can pretty much set the cruise on 80 and take a 12 hour nap to my place.
Lavoy

ggfossen
440 crawler
440 crawler
Posts: 216
Joined: Thu May 05, 2005 8:08 pm
Location: Jacksonville, Oregon

Post by ggfossen » Fri May 13, 2005 9:19 pm

Lavoy,

Somehow, I had you in Nebraska, but I guess it doesn't make much difference...to me. Might to you. North Dakota might be more on one of our flight paths to Minnesota.

I'm surprised you could do a set that quickly. What are you using to push the pins out?

All this might be academic. I just went out, pulled the idler and the top roller, and flopped one lower assembly over on it's back. I was going to turn the lower rollers back where they belonged. All of them are welded in place. So are the lower rock shields, both right and left. I'm not sure I want to spend days and days grinding away the welds, and then filling, boring, and rethreading all the holes. Tomorrow, I will attack the whole mess with a pressure washer so I can get a better look at everything. Could be, I suppose, that a bunch of the welds are busted, too. And I will look at the other side. I have to sleep on it. Maybe go away, and come back later. It's kind of discouraging.

As I said before, I think it's been rode hard, and put away wet, too many times.

Thanks,

Gary

User avatar
Lavoy
Site Admin
Site Admin
Posts: 10937
Joined: Sun Apr 03, 2005 8:32 pm
Location: North Dakota
Contact:

Post by Lavoy » Sat May 14, 2005 8:16 am

Gary,
I am about 5 miles from the Minnesota border, just SW of Fargo.
I have an OTC Trackmaster 60 ton track press. On disassembly I can remove the old pin and install a new bushing all in one stroke. Then I install the new pin on reassembly.
I need to do a rail next week, I will try and take a couple pics and post them.
Lavoy

Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 40 guests