Durability of a 450c trans

[howardjohn]

Hello all, I had been reading some info on the web about jd 450c HLR trans and that when they get up in hours they have a tendency to break down. IS this a common problem, weak link, with the 450c's?? Are the 455e's and d's any better?? I just wanted to get some opinions from people who have had and run these machines. Thanks Howard

[Tigerhaze]

Since you hadn't received a response I thought I would weigh in to get the conversation going, knowing you want opinions from commercial users such as Digitup.

All three of the models you mention use a HLR transmission. I can't speak as to whether there were any upgrades or modifications to them over the years. However I do have a HLR transmission in my early 1960s 2010 crawler loader and I would say it probably works as well as the first day it was used (i.e. no problems whatsoever). The only issue I had with it was the floor shifter bushings are worn so the lever is somewhat loose. FYI, I believe the models you mentioned don't have a floor shifter for it.

If you are referring to comments I made early this month about HLRs, I did say that one potential issue you can see with HLRs is the can "slip" when hot when they get worn. However I think this occurs more due to lack of basic maintenance such as fluid and filter changes that cause the clutch plates inside the HLR to warp when they don't receive the minimum amount of clean fluid. Also when you are talking about machines that are 30-40 years old (or in my case 50 years old) you can expect they will fail eventually given lack of maintenance or heavy abuse.

There are a number of commercial users and ex-JD mechanics on here that can give you more specifics about the HLR upgrades (if any) over the tears or you can look up the parts manuals for each and see if they differ in internal configuration.