Banshee365
New member
- Joined
- Sep 29, 2010
- Messages
- 8
- Tractor
- John Deere 990
Hey guy's. First post here. I've been lurking for a while on this forum and TBN seems to be up on top for knowledge and activity. I'm starting my first baling season soon and recenty aquired a JD 336 baler. The previous owner has used it for years and said he hasn't hardly had any issues out of it. It is really solid compared to some that I have seem. There is surface rust but hardly any rust through in any area of the baler. It has alway's been barn kept and never sprayed with water to clean, just shot with compressed air. It has also never had hay left in it so the baler chamber is pretty solid. The plunger is solid as well. I decided to run over the baler before we start using it here in the next couple of weeks.
I removed the plunger and the pitman arm to inspect the parts. I wanted to inspect the rollers, wear plates, and wear blocks. The rollers are actually in excellent condition with no play. The rear thick wear block was actually lose. I think this was causing the plunger to shift a little as it was running. Once I had the plunger and pitman arm out I noticed alot of play with the arm at the plunger end. The crank end has a slightly bent bolt but that bearing feels great. I decided to remove the pin and replace the bushings as I was sure they were worn away with the ammount of slop. After removing everything I was suprised how far gone the bushings were and how worn the pin was. I've posted some pics below of the parts. The bushings and pin are self explanatory. I'm a little concerned about the arm end but I think it may be okay. The metal is a little disformed from the play as you can see on the left side of the pitman arm hole. For the bushings and pin I'm looking at $100. The pitman arm is $350+ so I'm hoping it's okay to use new bushings with. There was plenty of grease around the area but I think the hole lining up with the zerk got displaced and the grease wasn't getting to the right spots. Looking forward to getting some insite on this and hearing from others with this series of baler. Thanks!
-Kelly
I removed the plunger and the pitman arm to inspect the parts. I wanted to inspect the rollers, wear plates, and wear blocks. The rollers are actually in excellent condition with no play. The rear thick wear block was actually lose. I think this was causing the plunger to shift a little as it was running. Once I had the plunger and pitman arm out I noticed alot of play with the arm at the plunger end. The crank end has a slightly bent bolt but that bearing feels great. I decided to remove the pin and replace the bushings as I was sure they were worn away with the ammount of slop. After removing everything I was suprised how far gone the bushings were and how worn the pin was. I've posted some pics below of the parts. The bushings and pin are self explanatory. I'm a little concerned about the arm end but I think it may be okay. The metal is a little disformed from the play as you can see on the left side of the pitman arm hole. For the bushings and pin I'm looking at $100. The pitman arm is $350+ so I'm hoping it's okay to use new bushings with. There was plenty of grease around the area but I think the hole lining up with the zerk got displaced and the grease wasn't getting to the right spots. Looking forward to getting some insite on this and hearing from others with this series of baler. Thanks!
-Kelly