JD MC Possible Steering Contamination

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Richtdow
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JD MC Possible Steering Contamination

Post by Richtdow » Fri Oct 20, 2017 4:58 pm

The steering on my left side requires excessive pullback on the lever before the brake engages. When I opened the steering box to make an adjustment I noticed a bit of oil down inside. I'm assuming that I'l need to get in there and clean it and repair the seal. It also makes the clicking noise when pulled back. I believe that noise is a travel issue.

What seals will I need?
How much time should I alot for this procedure? (I rent space for maintenance.)
Any parts or special tools (besides the manual) that I should have on hand?
Can the pads be cleaned with acetone to remove oil?

Josh

B Town
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Re: JD MC Possible Steering Contamination

Post by B Town » Fri Oct 20, 2017 7:34 pm

I'm not sure what seals need replaced. Simple hand tools are all that are needed. And in general once the fibers are contaminated they must be replaced. Good luck Bruce

JimAnderson
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Re: JD MC Possible Steering Contamination

Post by JimAnderson » Sat Oct 21, 2017 7:55 pm

Hello,
As stated the fibers once oiled are useless.The clicking noise is definitely an adjustment issue.The service manual is one of the most useful tools you can have.If you have the parts manual then the seal can be sourced from Deere.Keep in mind that the parts manual only gives you JDs part number and not anything that can be matched by any search by outside sources.The seal is generic but a seach by JDs number won't help unless you go to a JD parts counter.To get at the seal you must drop the track and remove the final.If you have not had the fun of this before then how long it takes will be a guess.It will be a lot of work for a $20.00 part.Luck,JimAnderson
4 430C crawlers
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1 420c 5 roller
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JimAnderson
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Re: JD MC Possible Steering Contamination

Post by JimAnderson » Sat Oct 21, 2017 8:11 pm

One of the things I forgot to mention is that once you get the clutch pack apart and new fibers to go in you should have the gage to set the finger height of the pressure plate.Lavoy has these at a reasonable price and the gage can help with the main clutch as well.Luck,JimAnderson
4 430C crawlers
1 40c 3 rollers
1 420c 5 roller
1 440c loader
1 430t tractors
1 IH H
1 3020 JDs
I Ford 3400 loaders
2 IH Cubs
6 WH GardenTractors

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Richtdow
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Re: JD MC Possible Steering Contamination

Post by Richtdow » Sun Oct 22, 2017 6:12 am

Thank you Bruce and Jim.

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Re: JD MC Possible Steering Contamination

Post by Richtdow » Sun Oct 22, 2017 11:43 am

Thank you all for the input thus far.

I'm confident that it is transmission fluid that has contaminated the steering clutch housing. From the parts catalog I believe that I will need item 11 and possibly item 10 to alleviate the leaking transmission fluid. This can be found on page 40-1 of the parts catalog and I've included a copy of this page below.

Can anyone confirm that these are the parts that I need?



Image

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Re: JD MC Possible Steering Contamination

Post by Steven Walters » Sun Oct 22, 2017 7:58 pm

Clicking noise can be a few things. Pressure plate throw out bearing and part # 6. That's what made clicking noise in my 430. If a seal is leaking you may have a bearing starting to fail.

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Richtdow
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Re: JD MC Possible Steering Contamination

Post by Richtdow » Mon Oct 23, 2017 4:32 am

I'm definitely going to be disassembling the steering clutch housing over the next two weeks. I'm going look at what can be causing the mechanical click. I'll take a look at part 6 and the through out bearing while I'm in there.

JimAnderson
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Re: JD MC Possible Steering Contamination

Post by JimAnderson » Mon Oct 23, 2017 7:46 am

When you pull back on the steering clutch lever do you feel a slight pop when the clicking noise is heard?If you do then then the balls are ramping out of the pockets.Sometimes this chips the edge of the pockets.This condition is caused by inadjustment of the throwout bearing.The seal you point out may be bad and its replacement will help keep oil in the transmission.That seal is a bear to get out.The upper inboard seal on the final may be leaking.This is where I would look first as bearing failures in a final are more common than at the ring gear carrier.Luck,JimAnderson
4 430C crawlers
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1 420c 5 roller
1 440c loader
1 430t tractors
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1 3020 JDs
I Ford 3400 loaders
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6 WH GardenTractors

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Richtdow
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Re: JD MC Possible Steering Contamination

Post by Richtdow » Mon Oct 23, 2017 1:26 pm

Yes, the click is accompanied by a subtle bump.

The transmission oil had water in it when I went to drain it on Friday and the oil-water mix in the steering clutch housing matched driving me to the conclusion that a leak between the transmission and the steering clutch housing is the culprit. I'll be disassembling things on Friday so I'll keep an eye out for the situation with the final drive.

Also, should I replace the associated cup and cone bearings as well? Are these generally bad?

JimAnderson
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Re: JD MC Possible Steering Contamination

Post by JimAnderson » Mon Oct 23, 2017 3:02 pm

You will get a chance to check the upper final seals and bearings when you get it off.The seal material if original is close to sixty years old so it will just lose elasticity and leak.Just examine the bearing and cup closely and if they look good they can be reused.There may be some disagreement about reusing the bearing but if you replace it then what about the other side?I Luck JimAnderson
4 430C crawlers
1 40c 3 rollers
1 420c 5 roller
1 440c loader
1 430t tractors
1 IH H
1 3020 JDs
I Ford 3400 loaders
2 IH Cubs
6 WH GardenTractors

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Richtdow
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Re: JD MC Possible Steering Contamination

Post by Richtdow » Tue Oct 24, 2017 5:20 am

Thanks for your advice, Jim. I look forward to getting into it later this week. I'll post how it goes.

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Re: JD MC Possible Steering Contamination

Post by Richtdow » Mon Nov 20, 2017 5:37 am

I've completed the maintenance. After inspecting the seals I decided to leave them in place. The transmission fluid was previously watery and quite viscous compared to 80W-90 and may have leaked by because of this. I've had fresh 80W-90 in the transmission now for about one hour of operation and observed zero in the steering clutch housing. I did pack some marine grease on the outside of the seals to prevent fluid transfer from the transmission if it became watery again, which it shouldn't because it isn't allowed to sit in the rain anymore as it had when I bought it.

I soaked the brake band with contaminated lining in different chemicals as I progressively broke down the oil residue. In the end the brake material was very functional and I was able to reuse it.

Thank you everyone for your advice!

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