Forgive Me: I Dug Out My Welder

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CuttingEdge
2010 crawler
2010 crawler
Posts: 534
Joined: Wed Sep 03, 2014 5:13 pm
Location: Maine

Forgive Me: I Dug Out My Welder

Post by CuttingEdge » Wed Jan 04, 2017 3:43 pm

Suffering snot balls I have had a heck of a time lately.

It all started last summer when I replaced the front idlers on my JD 350D. I screwed up and let the track adjuster ball come out, and while I replaced it, I never could get it to seat and keep my tracks tight, so I just jammed a length of angle bar between the adjuster and trunnion: note to self; never do that again!

When it was warm out it was fine, but when it got down to zero degrees and I was logging, it broke the ear off one of the track adjusters. I considered myself lucky and warned, it could have damaged my final drives. Still that was when the fun started.

I got some new track adjusters, but I could not pound my track pins out. I beat on one pin for two days and made 1/4 inch progress. t one point I had (2) 20 ton jacks pressing on it and it still would not budge. I chained my idler to the blade and angled it to stretch it as far as I could, but it was a few inches short of getting the old track adjuster out. That was no big deal, I just put a cut off wheel on my grinder and cut off the rod.

To install the new one, I just cut the rod on that just after the trunnion, but just before the spring. In retrospect I should have adjusted the track for tightness, added an even longer rod then what comes standard, but I was not thinking. Well the track adjuster advanced the track, but after a day of logging it would slack back off. No good!

I got a guy that wants 45 cord of firewood, so I got to get in the woods. Finally after messing around today (it was raining and warm...a perfect day to work on dozers), I just put some bar stock behind the front idler and welded it. There; no more track adjuster issues!

My dozer has very few welds on it which is why I bought it, and the last thing I want to do is start welding it all up, but I had had enough. I almost wished my dozer had threaded adjusters at this point!
I have no intention of traveling to my grave in a well manicured body; instead I am going to slide into heaven with a big power turn, totally wore out with busted knuckles, jump off my dozer loudly yelling, Woo Hoo, another Shepard has just arrived!

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Lavoy
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Post by Lavoy » Thu Jan 05, 2017 11:03 am

Blow into each end of the master pin with a torch being careful not to cut the link itself. Let cool, and they drive right out. Master pins are cheap, your time is worth something.
Lavoy
Parts and restoration for antique and late model John Deere crawlers.
Owner and moderator www.jdcrawlers.com

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