550g steering clutch and brake issue.

[JWWelty]

I am working on a 550g that I think I'm closing in on the issues but.... when the machine is shifted into a forward gear the left steering lever is really stiff to pull. When its shifted into rev. the lever pulls normal. If you hold the left lever and shift forward you can feel the brake move. Anyway tonight i pulled the rear cover and found the shoulder bolt that screws into the clutch loose to the point it was almost out and the bolt on the clutch had been rubbing the housing below the bolt. With the brake band loose the clutch assembly will move around even after reinstalling the bolt. The Pinion bearing didn't have play tho. Is the clutch pack supposed to be loose like that? I'm used to old cats and this girl is way different. I'll post pics if i figure out how.

[Jim B]

Welcome to the board. I hope you are making progress. It may be a bit before you get a response from someone with hands on experience with a 550G steering that can help you, as not many here have any machines as new as that much less a 550G. One thing I can think of is those are self adjusting brakes and they can overtighten if adjustments get out of whack, that might be a possibility. Do you have the manuals (TM1403 Crawler Operation and Test, TM1404 Crawler Repair) for it? TM1403 should have the info needed to test and adjust the steering and brakes.
Jim

[LeonardL]

First of all let me say that I have only ever been inside one 450G. Your 550G will have the same drive system. In my opinion the "G" series is without doubt the best overall series machine Deere ever built. We put a million hours collectively on all of our G machines that ranged from the 450G through the 650G. We just never had any trouble out of them. There were the usual adjustments, engine issues, undercarriage maintenance and an occasional electrical problem. There was very little if any transmission issues and steering issues. They ran an eighty percent efficiency average for repair costs. No other machine we owned at the time came even close to that rating.

As Jim pointed out, if you do not have a tech manual then you really need to get one. Your adjustments are pretty critical on these machines. So a tech manual is a must have to get them right. However once you have them where they need to be then they are very trouble free.

In an attempt to answer at least part of your question, as I recall the clutch pack will kind of float on the shaft that carries it. It will appear loose until it receives hydraulic pressure to engage it. That is why you feel the linkage move and take up the slack once you have started the machine. If things are bad out of adjustment and or as you found bolts backed out or missing will cause an issue such as you have.

I'm not certain I follow exactly what you are referring to in movement of the clutch pack. What I remember is, they aren't like the old Cats and Allis machines that are bolted solid to a flange.

I screwed the pooch on one of my latest attempts to diagnose something on here and I don't want a repeat of that. So hopefully there is someone with more knowledge that can jump in here. A tech manual would be my first move if it was me. I apologize for not knowing more to help you. Good luck!!

[JWWelty]

Thanks for the replies. I have the test manual. Its just kinda leaves out the clutch pack itself. I dont have tm1404 which i wish i did.

[JWWelty]

Well she went back together and still has the same problem when warm. When i serviced the final on the side that has the brake issue I found it was a couple gallons over full. I'm wondering if the pinion bearing is shot and causing my brake fade in reverse.