jd450 crawler

[boccop]

Can anyone shed some light
The book for my jd450 crawler/loader shows the track bottom rollers as having grease fittings...on my 450 they are all sealed except the top roller and that has a pipe plug.
When we went to change all the filters the transmission bottom one was covered with this slimey gelatinous substance,,,really gross....and to make maters worse a approx. 3/8" ball bearing with metal shards came out also..
It's a beast of a machine that I've only owned for a few months and am trying to get it maintained.
Also the diesel fuel filter in the book shows a double cannister type filter setup...but the filter on my crawler has a rectangular black filter .

[Jim B]

Welcome to the board. A bit of housekeeping here. Your posts for your 450 should be on the Late Models Board. A moderator will likely move this post over there when it is seen, so don't be surprised when you don't find it where you made it.

It sounds like your crawler has had the track rolls replaced with some so called lifetime sealed ones, likely aftermarket. If there are no plugs in either end they don't get lubed, when they leak replace them.

The slime on the transmission screen can be the action of bacteria/microbes in the oil. Water infiltration and not getting run up to temperature and kept there for a time, on a regular basis can contribute to that as well. Some run some Seafoam transmission conditioner in the trans oil. Also some have added a couple ounces of a biocide to the oil. Getting it warm and running for a time is key to reducing this and the effects of water. What are you using for transmission oil?

As for the ball bearing and metal shards - you may have a bearing going out or it was repaired before you got it and those materials were missed when the case was cleaned out.

The double cannister fuel filter was used on the straight 450s and into the 450B series, before they changed to the rectangular glass filter. So- some one may have change the double element to the rectangular one as an upgrade, the original engine may have been replaced with a newer engine and accessories, or you don't have a straight 450. What is the serial number of your crawler and the engine (complete info on both tags, the letter prefixes, where there are spaces, and suffixes can have meanings)? What book do you have (publisher and publication number)? It might not be the right book for the machine.

Others will be along with some other thoughts and info as well, but this is a start for you.
Jim

[boccop]

how necessary are the 2 hydraulic steering boosters? Mine are leaking out all the oil. Thanks

[Jim B]

I would say it would be best to reseal them, the system is designed for them to be there. You might be able to cobble something together to bypass them but it could lead to other issues and it would likely steer harder.
Jim

[77 Ford]

Any chance what you described as "ball bearing with shards" is a magnet? I know some people put them in places like that to grab metal floating around. Normally they are flat but I've seen all shapes and sizes, I found a speaker magnet in an oil pan once....

[Jim B]

boccop,

Just curious. What is the complete serial number of your 450? I'm just wondering if it is a straight 450 or a different series.
Jim