440 thrown track

[john lewis]

Hi me again used my tractor for 1.7hrs. WOW was it fun,then i threw a track is there an easy way to slid it back on, Thanks,john

[john lewis]

Im wondering if i disconect the track adjuster and put track on would that work then tighten up track adjuster.the adjuster seems frozen put i can put heat to it to loosen nut do i disconect it off front mount before i try and turn it or do i turn adjuster without disconect plese help thanks john

[Paul Buhler]

Do you have a hydraulic track adjustment? Have you removed the grease fitting and tried to squeeze out the grease to gain some slack? Then work th track back on and go from there. I wouldn't use heat you could damage the seals - others may offer different advise. good luck. Paul

[john lewis]

It is not hydraulic just a rod of steel with a lock nut and treads books says to losen lock nut then adjust .But i dont know if i disconect front mount first or does it turn in front mount when i turn adjuster thanks john

[Paul Buhler]

If it's like my 420, the threaded rod passes through the idler yoke. I found that wire brushing the threads well, applying penetrating oil and heat allowed me to loosen the nuts a bit. Once they loosened it just took patience, oil, then grease, and working the nut back and forth to get every thing moving properly. The threaded rod is specially made so that the threads don't corrode as badly as you would expect, so cleaning them up and getting the crud out of the way makes the loosening process easier. I found a "monkey wrench" and a length of pipe to extend the handle useful too.
The whole spring and threaded rod assembly will spin in the frame mount so that you can get access to the backside of the threads for a thorough cleaning. Of course the inside track adjustments make the process just that much more fun since you're working in a tight place; I needed a pipe wrench under here. Good luck.

[john lewis]

Thanks i have a 3 ft monkey wrench and when i tried to lossen jam nut i thought it may break,i have been putting oil on it hoping to try some heat this weekend.I will wire brush threads they look preatty bad, couldnt see if they had any threads,now im hoping they may clean up,are they normaly pretty tough.Dont quite understand when u say spring and adjuster will spin around mine seem like there is no movement.I can see where spring has moved away from back a bit ,but no movement that i can feel,do i compress the spring in order to get track back on or will it compress when i adjust.thanks john

[thomas72]

just curious, why did it throw the track? Was it too loose?

[john lewis]

yes i tried bebore to adjust but didnt want to break anything i had no heat

[Paul Buhler]

I'm going to have to defer to a 440 owner for specifics. On the 420, there are two nuts per screw rod used for adjusting the track - one in front of the idler yoke and one behind. There is a third nut used to pretension the spring that is not supposed to be messed with by mere mortals. Loosen both the idler most nuts and the rearward one will allow the idler to move towards the rear of the crawler loosening the tension so the chain can be slipped over the idler again. Loosen the forward one so that when you adjust the chains, you can add more tension to get the proper sag.

[john lewis]

If the round thing in the middle on top which track lays on is the idler im already on it i just cant seem to put chain on sproket if i can get at least 2 more inches i think i could get it on, not sure how to get it unless i can free up adjuster.Its raining right now but i will look at idler to see if by lossening idler will i get my 2 inches thanks for help john

[Paul Buhler]

I think you have two reasonable choices at his point - it sounds like both will involve some swearing. Loosen the track adjuster to gain the room needed for the track to be levered back on, or if the master pin happens to be in an accessible place, split the track, then fix your adjuster, then reinstall the track and reinsert the master pin. I feel your pain - been there, done that. Paul

When you get yourself out of this fix, I'd recommend getting all your adjusters loosened and the track tensioned and aligned where you want so that 1) it won't happen again since it will be too easy to fix and the dozer Gods will protect you, or 2) if it does happen, you will be smilling since it will be easier to fix, or 3) you'll develop an educated ear and feel for when a track is starting to walk off so you can stop, sigh and take corrective action and smile - fate denied.

[john lewis]

Thanks to all again,got track back on now got to get adjuster working tomorrow john

[john lewis]

got lock nut working, a bit of a turn on adjuster,need some leverage ill try some more tomorrow john

[Pammark]

An old seasoned dozer mechanic told me to adjust the track tension to have a one inch droop between the top roller and the furthest idler/sprocket. Take a straight edge and lay across the top to measure the droop. Too much droop will allow the track to jump off. Too little droop will be too tight and roll harder not to mention the added wear on the pins. Unless you have dozer manual specs, the rule-of-thumb value might work.

The mechanic also said to run the dozer around between measurments and adjustments. A wet muddy track will be tighter. Best done with dried mud of run clean.


Mark

[john lewis]

Can anybody tell me how long the screw part of adjuster is i got a couple of turns on adjuster then it seized up again wondering if im at end of screw before i force anything thanks john