How do you adjust the Trencher Chain.

[btjones06]

I have a Case 25+4 XP with a 4' trencher and the chain is loose. I looked for some kind of adjustment and can not locate one. My last thought is that it may be spring loaded and the spring inside is stuck or broke. Does anyone have any expierence with one of these?
Thanks Brian

"Never Forget 9-11-01"

 

[jdgreg]

Not sure if this helps or not, but many years ago I rented a trencher to bury some eletrical lines. It used grease to provide chain tension. There was a zert on the back of the bar, just put grease in it just like greasing anything else, to adjust the tension.

 

[SimS]

Brian;

If it is anything like my Ditch Witch, there is a spring inside the boom at the very end. Mine was broken and very rusty. Another adjustment is on the boom near the drive gear. That adjustment takes the slack out of the chain and the spring on the other end takes up slack when digging under load.

SimS

 

[btjones06]

Thanks, you areboth right. I took the boom apart and found the springs at the bottom. The grease fitting is what extends the boom for tension. My only problem is it is now frozen. I took torch and heated up the old grease and cleaned out the boom, but it is still frozen.......

I will look into it tomorrow....

Thanks again for the help.

Brian

"Never Forget 9/11/01"

 

[arkanoid]

... I took torch and heated up the old grease and cleaned out the boom, but it is still frozen.......

Brian, did you ever figure this out? I have a 25+4 with exactly the same problem. I can increase tension easily enough by adding grease, but I can't figure out how the heck to release tension! I thought it was going to be the set screw on the other side of the bar from the zerk, but removing that did nothing. I can't find a manual for this thing, so I'm left guessing.

Anyone have experience with one of these?

 

[joecdeere]

can you remove the grease fitting and ease the boom nose up against something like a tree to collapse it?

 

[Mace Canute]

can you remove the grease fitting and ease the boom nose up against something like a tree to collapse it?

That's the only way I've ever seen it done....just make sure there's nothing in the way of the stream of grease that will squirt out of the hole, it will go a long way if not caught in a container!

 

[arkanoid]

can you remove the grease fitting and ease the boom nose up against something like a tree to collapse it?

Thanks for the suggestion, Joe. I did actually try that first. I can't get any movement back in, even with considerable force applied to the end.

The strange thing is that it moves out easily when I add grease, but won't slide back in at all, even with the fitting removed.

 

[arkanoid]

That's the only way I've ever seen it done....just make sure there's nothing in the way of the stream of grease that will squirt out of the hole, it will go a long way if not caught in a container!

Thanks for the advice. I was starting to think there was something more going on inside that I didn't understand. It acts like the is a check valve in there in that it only moves one way.

At this point, I'm wondering if it is just packed with dirt and such to the point that it won't slide in.

 

[arkanoid]

I got a chance to look at this again tonight. Decided to just fill it with grease until I reached the end of the cylinder, hoping it would just come apart. Sure enough, it popped right out. No spring, no retainer. I cleaned it all up and don't currently see what was preventing it from moving in. The old grease didn't seem that thick and nasty.

In case anyone else deals with this in the future, it is a very simple setup. Pictures below. The cast part with the idler that slides into the "bar" tube really is the cylinder. It contains the grease fitting on one side, connected across to the other side where there is a bleeder screw (5/16 Allen). Both of those connect to a channel in the middle that feeds into the cylinder part.