JD350 Found in forest.....free....at first.

[waredaman]

Guys I need a lot of advice. I'm not sleeping anymore and my wifebis sure I have a mistress. I'm a total newbie. You see, I found a JD350 in the woods the other day. I own a lot of forest in central Mass and it was on an adjacent property, stuck in the mud, half tipped over, so deep in the forest, you lost it 25' away. I approached my neighbor of 7 years about it and he said he got it stuck when he first moved here and I could have it if I could get it out. Then he snickered like the mayor in that Mike Mulligan book. Well three days of trudging through the forest, two new batteries,a rebuilt injection pump and starter and about 300 "U" turns with one track stuck and the other free with only brakes in reverse on the free track and we got it to the road! Sounds easy but it wasn't, it is now in our shop in Ware, Mass (ironically, the same building that WARE implements for the Oliver were made).

So now I have cleaned it up, and she is rough! She blows white smoke hard,all the time and we checked injection timing. She starts really hard only with starting fluid. I'm thinking rings? Any other ideas? Would she run with the injection timing out 180 on the exaust stroke? We didn't think so, but we haven't tried pulling the injection pump out and coming around to TDC again and putting it back. It runs ok, not tons of power but hard to tell with only one track. Lots of eye burning fuel smoke.

The undercarriage, the more i learn, the more I find, the worst it gets. We jacked it up and pulled both tracks and so far one drive apart and this one is covered in rust and muck. The throw out bearing doesn't spin and the fingers dont move. The sprockets are worn. The bushings, tracks and pads are really worn. The center cross member that holds the undercarriage or each track in the middle, they have really worn bushings and the feet that hold the track to the cross member are worn and one is broken where a bolt hole blew out. The main bushings at the middle of the frame that connects the blade assembly is really worn. The idlers and rollers look OK. There is something missing on the bottom of both drives underneath, like maybe a guard for the drives?

The machine is a 1961 350 forestry addition with a solid 6 way blade, winch and roll cage. 5041 hours on the functioning meter. I want to save it like one wants to save a stray dog, it's part of me now, I brought it back. But where can I find a used one or reasonably priced parts? Should I just give up on it? Is there something I should look for that would be a critically broken part? I own the dams in Ware and we make hydropower from a bunch of 1920 iron. I'm not afraid of much, but this thing has me scared!

I want to thank all of you for advice. Every night I would come home and read old posts and solve the next days problem. The site is great! Most of all, you guys are all partially to blame for my perdicament. Before last week, I thought an undercarriage was a bellypan! I will get pictures tomorrow and maybe we could take a poll...to junk or not to junk the JD350.

[Lavoy]

The first crawler we ever did (3 roller 40) came home in cardboard boxes and 5 gallon pails, the heavy pieces we loaded with a loader. Years later, we did a 1010 gas that was even further disassembled. Both are still running today, although the 40 does no work, mostly fun.
When you get them cheap enough, you have a lot of room to put parts in them. Many of what you describe are fixable or common parts, some are tougher. Steering clutches are no problem, I stock most of them. New undercarriage is available, albeit somewhat sporadic. Engine parts are easy, injector pumps can be rebuilt.
If you like the old girl, have the know how and the inclination, bring it back to life. Every time you sit on the seat, you will remember what it used to look like, and what it took to get it there, and that is priceless to me.
Lavoy

[Scottyb]

You have found a crawler and you got to take it home...And it has a six way blade ! and a winch !! With a rops too !!! pinch yourself it might just be a dream.
Wow, you might have to give that crawler a name. How about "Lucky"

Really that does sound like a lot of work to restore, but I can't say I have ever heard of a better save on any piece of equipment.


I too have caught the "fix a John Deere" bug and am wondering if this a life long affliction or with some therapy, I might be able to golf and fish again someday

Scottyb

[whiteclipse16]

I think since the price was right, fix it up. At least you know it runs and moves.
My project is like the two Lavoy mentioned. I've put prob. $2,500 in mine and still haven't cranked the motor over yet Some say I should've did the motor first, but oh well we learn the hard way sometimes.
It just depends on how much time and money you want to put into it. Also, it really helps if you have the correct tools (torch, drill, taps, press, etc.) to do things correctly.
Post up some pics for us and good luck.

[waredaman]

I am hard into the drives today. Things are worst than I thought but if I get the drives rebuilt I should be able to get it back together. They are toast from bearings to seals to clutch disks to throw out bearings. A few more questions...
Is this the best place for parts? I got the clutches on EBay and the bearing assembly from broken tractor. Then I realized I can get parts here and was feeling badly.
Do I really need a clutch finger tool to set up the clutch packs or can I use something like a straight edge and a good metal ruler,or are these easily bought?
Is there usually smoke coming out of the oil fill tube or does this confirm my ring issue and all that white smoke out of the exaust?
Anyone know where to score a oil filler cap? Looks like a pipe cap but I was worried it wasn't tapered.
Any ideas on how to repair the four bolts pad on the center crossbar, weld new bushings inside I guess?
Its fun but not cheap. I told my wife I would make her an apple orchard...she is buying it for now!

[Tigerhaze]

Is this the best place for parts? I got the clutches on EBay and the bearing assembly from broken tractor. Then I realized I can get parts here and was feeling badly.

Do I really need a clutch finger tool to set up the clutch packs or can I use something like a straight edge and a good metal ruler,or are these easily bought?!

I personally try to support Lavoy with purchasing parts when I can- he can be very competitive even with the shipping and I feel that we have bought a lot of advice for free as well.

One thing about Ebay steering clutches- there are some that are made of inferior materials and thus are very brittle and won't last. Lavoy stocks steering clutches that will last. There are posts on this site you can search for that describe them.

As for the clutch gauge, Lavoy stocks it as well at a reasonable cost. Some people make them themselves but the measurements are hard to find and again I feel that it is worth purchasing from Lavoy.

Just my $0.02.

[18vtx00]

It sounds like an awesome find and living only a 1/2 hour away from you I wish I had found it!! I have a decent 350B and yes they are costly, but if you didn't pay anything for it it's worth a few grand to get her going. Undercarriage is super expensive but I found that Industrial tractor in NY or ME can help you there. I'd check it all over really well, drain all the fluids to inspect for debris or metallic particle, especially in the finals. Then make a parts list and see if it's worth totally restoring or just throwing a few bucks into just to use and consider it a beater machine. If you finds metal in the trans, reverser or finals it could cost you tons of coin down the road and it's better to know now than after you sink some coin into her..I would search around on craigslist for used machines. I have found a few in driving distance for around 2-3K. If you need major parts you may save a bunch of time by taking them off a used machine and then resell what you don't use. But the winch is worth a couple of grand to the right person.

[andregrondin]

Hello !

What is the type and model of the winch please !

I'm looking for one and I do not know what to look for right now .

[waredaman]

I will get the info off the winch tomorrow and sen you the info. I will also ask Ed at Crawler Heaven if he has one on Friday (Fridays are bulldozer day till she's together). We drove the five hours out last Friday to get Ed's attention but you can't fit much for part in the trunk of a 300d Mercedes sedan. Ed is a great guy with a lot of good stuff. Wish him the best of luck. Anyways, here goes a shot at a picture. We are contemplating removing and overhauling the engine but we have decided we better get turning the wrenches clockwise and get the final drives back on and working before the shop gets filled with too many parts. http://s1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg5 ... aspx-1.jpg

[waredaman]

Ed Christopher at Crawler Heaven is whom I was referring to. I must be a little Bulldozer crazy with that last post and all the poor spelling. I will try to post more pictures as we go now that I have it figured out how to capture a link.

Has anyone ever painted one of these things? I was going to use original JD industrial yellow but wasn't sure if I should prime first, spray or roll and brush?

Also, the six way blade could use a new face. I could get a piece of steel rolled but was wondering if anyone knew the diameter of the roll or if you could just buy the steel off the shelf.

I was also wondering if anyone else has put 10k into a piece of **** bulldozer or if I'm the only one that has lost my mind!

[CatD8RII]

Putting 10K into a "POS" is easier than you might think. Might as well fix eveything you find while you have it apart, or you'll be back in later and say to yourself that you should have done it the first time.

As for the blade, usually you can get a pattern off the blade with cardboard and have someone roll a piece for you.

As for paint, I've always primered mine, then spray with the JD old construction yellow. You will need several coats of the yellow to get a good looking finish, it doesn't cover for crap.

[LeonardL]

Dude!,
Well I guess I have waited just about as long as I can to weigh in on this "Found in the Forest 350". I love your signature as you are absolutely correct in saying there is no such thing as a free dozer!

First let me say that you are not crazy for doing a restore on a machine you found! Usually a person has to buy the silly things and then do what you are doing. So!... Believe me! You are not the first and you won't be the last.
The thing I usually tell people is this, "It's only crazy if you think it's crazy". Or, in my case... If my wife thinks it's crazy! Which is, unfortunately, most of the time and on most everything I bring home. So! If you have the wife convinced and or at least somewhat deceived, I say go for it! Besides, forgiveness is always easier than permission!

You will most likely have 10K in this thing if you do it right and some would say that is crazy! Because you can buy one of these for around 6K to 10K depending on condition and how it is tricked out. Or at least you can here in MO. I saw a 350C with a six way blade sell for 8,500 bucks just the other day. Pretty nice little machine too!

As far as your fix ups, that being paint and that sort of thing, I would definitely spray paint it and if you get it clean enough you don't necessarily need to prime it. Although I would personally.
As for the blade... You are just about going to have to get steel rolled and rebuild it. There aren't many around and when you do find one it will be as bad as the one you already have. And no... I don't know the radius of the roll. Sorry!

It looks like you have the thing going in the right direction and I say just keep going. You will have a nice little "Free" crawler when you are done. Just don't get cheap and try to cut corners. That will bite you on the ole Arse every time!

Keep up the good work and good luck with it!!!

[jsutin_prendergast]

I worked for a couple of body shops that painted a lot of equipment, so as far as painting a dozer I would like to give you a few pointers. The first thing I would do is get all the grease and oil cleaned up. The undercariage can be sandblasted, any big flat areas can be sanded with a dual action sander. Red Scotch Brite pads work well for areas where a sander won't fit. As fas as paint I would go to your local auto parts store that sells automitive paint and tell them what you are doing and they should be able to offer you a primer or sealer to put down first and paint to put over it. They should be able to offer you several different price options also. For masking buy good masking tape and paper from the auto parts store. For the chrome parts of any ram just smear vaseline over them to keep the paint off. If you mask rams off with paper and tape and you move the rams for some reason it can tear the seals out, with the vaseline it will just push it out of the way. For the hydraulic lines Glad cling wrap works very well, just tear off pieces and wrap them around the lines. Definately spray the paint, you can go back and use a brush to get any spots that were missed or hard to get to.
If you have any questions don't hesitate to ask.

[Lavoy]

As far as putting $10,000 in the free dozer you own, versus buying one for that or less at auction. What if another guy like you found another free crawler like you, got it running a little bit, and ran it through an auction where a guy unlike you buys it for $4000 because it was a "STEAL" and what were all those other idiots thinking that didn't bid higher.
Kind of getting the picture here?!?!?!?!?!
Lavoy

[VT350C]

Yes, I have put $7K into a good JD350C! So you are way ahead of me...I have one in Halifax, VT...350C...Have learned alot and would be willing to help...My advice...

- Don't run the engine as is, esp. if your injection pump is STILL working...You could ruin it! Take care of it as it's expensive and easy to replace...So if it craps out after you do eveything else...not a big deal...Mine seized and broke the shaft...I think it did this because one piston's rings were cracked and had no compression and then back-pressured into the pump and sheered the shaft...Not uncommon...
- You should at least replace all the rings unless you find that you have wobbly pistons and need new sleeves and pistons...As someone else said, when you have it open, do everything...even if it adds a year to the process...shortcuts never work and engine rebuilds on these things aren't that bad...
- Check to see if you need to recore your radiator as well...About $550 if you need to.
- If you do an engine rebuild DO NOT USE any adhesive to hold the liner in the block...We did this and it make the sleeve stick up ever-so-slightly that when we torqued the head back down it cracked the sleeve and we had to flush everything and do it again:(...The machine shop we used is good...Cowan Auto Supply out of Shelburne, MA...But they made a mistake about using this adhesive to set the wet-sleeve.
- GET ALL 3 NEW INJECTORS...I got mine on eBay...Get a 3-pack for under $300...Or if you're cheap, at least pull all three and bring them to Schmidt Equipment in Springfield, MA to have all of them tested...Again, stuck injectors can bounce pressure back to your pump and trash it! Protect the pump!
- Broken Tractor is good. Lavoy is great. I also used this place for tons of small parts at about 30-40% off of John Deere prices:
GreePartStore.com
highwayandheavyparts.com
- Beware of the labor associated with parting out old machines...I would buy new or reman when possible or visit some boneyards...but the labor is actually less to put new or reman on than putting on a used part...So spending more for solid parts and knowing they are new and 100% is the way I would go...Lot's of the same parts are worn out...The brackets that hold the frame to the rails are notorious for wearing out...Not easy to find them in good shape...I put all new bolts and washers on...I have also seen people to excellent welds to weld the frame to the rails....But once you do, it's harder to ever take it apart...If you go this route, make sure your undercarriage is put back together with good parts...There are lots of places that sell rollers and undercarriage parts as well...
- It's pretty easy to repack your track tensioners yourself...I did and it kep my tracks falling off! I would highly recommend repacking your track tensioners...
- Also, there are most likely 4 small guide plates on each side of your idler that guide the idler on the frame rail...Looks like a small part, but they take a beating...I installed all 8 new and had them manufactured at a machine shop...Highly recommend this as well as it reduces movement in the idler, which, again, will keep your tracks on...I hate dropping tracks! Ever since I repacked my tensioners and put those 8 new plates on...never lost a track!
- Change all filters and fluids of course:-)
- If you do an engine rebuild make sure you put your rings in correctly...you must stagger them all...

Best,
Bob
350C

Putting 10K into a "POS" is easier than you might think. Might as well fix eveything you find while you have it apart, or you'll be back in later and say to yourself that you should have done it the first time.

As for the blade, usually you can get a pattern off the blade with cardboard and have someone roll a piece for you.

As for paint, I've always primered mine, then spray with the JD old construction yellow. You will need several coats of the yellow to get a good looking finish, it doesn't cover for crap.