350B loader bushings

[jdlou]

Hello All!!!
I have been searching the forum for what type of material loader bushings should be made of. I guess I cannot navigate the web as well as some of you. I was thinking of tightening my bucket up. Mother Deere wants $52.00 per bushing (part# U12817) I found a seller on ebay that sells bronze bushings for $8.99. They are made out of Oilite. Do I use these, or bite the bullet and use the ones from Deere. Or does someone have a supplier that they buy from? Lavoy if you have these please let me know, I really enjoy your forum!!! Lou

[Lavoy]

Not sure which bushings you are talking about, but some I think are going to be steel, and the others steel backed brass. Oilite is soft enough it will hammer out in relatively short order if used in place of the brass or bronze bushings.
Looking up the part number did not tell me for sure, but it appears to me it is a bronze bushing.
Lavoy

[jdlou]

Thanks Lavoy for clearing that up. The bushings I am talking about are the ones that connect the boom to the bucket. And yes, they do take a beating, and it know makes sense to me why these are so high in cost. Lou

[Lavoy]

On the older crawlers they are hardened steel, but don't remember on the 350, been a while since we had the grapple off. There are some hardened steel split bushings out there from some different suppliers, just a question if they are the correct size or not.
Lavoy