2615 Issues: Insatiable Front End/Stripped Zerc

[NorCalMatt]

Hi All:
in doing my Spring maintenance on my 2615 HST I came across a couple of issues I could use some help with.

The first is the front end. I drained and refilled with gear oil (I see after researching here that hydraulic fluid may be preferred) and I just can't seem to get enough in there to flow out the fill plugs. The book says it takes 4.4 qts. and I've put in at least 5, and I can't even seem to get more in the fill cap (I'll add a couple of cc's and it will take 30 seconds or so to finally drain down). This happened at the 50 hours service too and I eventually gave up. It seems to be working fine, but I want to make sure I'm not doing damage up there. Has this happened to anyone else? Any thoughts?

The second is a stripped zerc fitting in the Mahindra front end loader. We'd been using the FEL a lot for the past two months, really beating it up, and it looks like a zerc backed out far enough for the bucket to hit it and strip it right out. The next biggest size zerc I've found is a 1/8" pipe thread type, which if course I don't have a tap for. And even if I did, there's not much depth for a tapered tap to cut sufficient number of threads. Any suggestions on how to repair are greatly appreciated!

Thanks, in advance,
Matt

 

[LAWALLSTRACTOR]

Check to see if there is a pressed in zerk fitting that you can drill out to fit.

 

[George2615]

Mine is an 04 and the book says 4.2 qts for the front axle. My book says to leave one of the side drain plugs out (I used the one on the right side of the axle) and fill through the fill plug hole until it starts to come out. Providing all your drain plugs are in and you have 5 qts. in already you are slightly overfilled.

For the zerk fitting replacement you'll need to pull the loader bucket pin out so you can run the tap down in the hole into the area where the pin was. Just remove the E clip and drive the pin out, once the hole is retapped and the new zerk is in you can put the pin back in.

 

[NorCalMatt]

Thanks, Galen. I did try a press-in, but it blew out when I tried to grease it. But I got that part figured out now: remove the pin, drill and tap. Duh...

Still no oil out of the level hole though, even though it is right up to the rim of the fill hole. I might try to inject a little in the level hole to make sure the wheel sumps have oil. I was thinking I have something blocking the passages from the main sump down into the wheel sumps, but it seems weird it would happen on both sides at once. Perhaps its because I'm using gear oil instead of the trans fluid it came with?

I'm stumped.

 

[NorCalMatt]

Thanks, George, I did manage to figure that out on my own. Getting a little slow in my middle age.....

Mine's an '06. I had both plugs out while filling. I've tried leaving one or both out for hours, but no fluid out of either one. Some sort of oil-eating varmint, I'd guess....

 

[LAWALLSTRACTOR]

When filling the front axil, just look in the fill hole and if you have the axil shaft in there covered you have enough. If you have it filled to the top you have too much in it and will blow out the seals. I prefer the Hytran in the front axil over the heavy gear oil.