Backhoe bucket Pin question

[ozzy59]

I have a Kubota L4240 with a mechanical thumb on the backhoe bucket (so it has quite a long pin).It is a REAL tight-fitting pin and I can barely get it to move..that being said, once i ever manage to remove it...when replacing it...is there a trick or a tool that will line up the keeper bolt hole? Or do you just eye it and hope for the best?
So I guess my question is: Is there a way to rotate the pin once it is fully reinserted, to align the hole to accept the bolt? Not sure but it seems there are recesses around the grease fitting.......special spanner wrench?

 

[yankeerider]

When the bucket curls, does the pin rotate with it? Or does the pin remain stationary and the bucket rotate around it?

You may simply find that the pin is tight in the stick because it doesn't rotate with the bucket, and after removal, cleaning, and reinstallation it will rotate freely.

 

[Willl]

I drive mine in with the keeper hole being last while holding a small alignment bar in the hole to keep it on course. Once it's to the point of having to remove the alignment bar, line it up and drive it home.

Don't think I've ever been more than 1/2 a hole off.

 

[Ford tractor]

Is it possible that the pin is bent? Once you get it out, check it on a straight edge.

 

[yankeerider]

It's also possible that the weight of the bucket hanging off the pin creates enough friction that the pin cannot rotate easily. On my excavator, if I lightly rest the bucket on the ground, without using so much "down" that the boom and stick are pressing down, I can easily rotate the bucket pin by hand.