3510i Front axle problem

[polo1665]

Warrior,

Have you come up with any ideas yet. I checked the level in my front axle yesterday, it has seen roughly 4 hours of use since I changed it. The level was at max immediately after change, now its down the middle of the range. I will keep any eye on this as mine was also low when I changed it. I just can't imagine where it could be going. The front axle is seperate from everything, only has the drive shaft connected to it correct?

Mark

 

[warrior160]

Warrior,

Have you come up with any ideas yet. I checked the level in my front axle yesterday, it has seen roughly 4 hours of use since I changed it. The level was at max immediately after change, now its down the middle of the range. I will keep any eye on this as mine was also low when I changed it. I just can't imagine where it could be going. The front axle is seperate from everything, only has the drive shaft connected to it correct?

Mark

Mark, As you probably know my 3510 is gear drive and yours is hydrostatic, that being said I would assume your transmission connects to the front axle with a drive shaft the same as mine and yes the resevoir of the front axle is isolated from any other part of the tractor, this I believe is common to all Bransons. As I stated before misery loves company, but I'm sorry to hear you are having a similar problem. All I can suggest is that we both check the forum every couple of days to see if anyone is adding anything that may help or have answers to where the frak the fluid is going.

 

[Strongman]

Hooray, I just found the other member named STRONGMAN who has a Branson 3820 with the same problem although he only casually mentions it at the end of discribing his 50 hour fluid changes.
STRONGMAN, Have you found the source of the disappearing fluid?????
...........warrior160[/QUOTE]

Hi Warrior,

Unfortunately I have not found the source of the disappearance of the fluid. In fact I just checked BOTH dipsticks on my 3820 and one side is fine, but the other side doesn't even read on the dipstick - and my barn (cement floor) is quite level. The only difference between the sides is that I have the wheels sort of cranked to one side where I parked it, so I thought I would re-check both sides once the wheels are straightened back out. I have around 80 hours now and haven't needed to add any fluid since I added it at around 40 hours, so my problem isn't as severe as yours. I'm confused as to why the two sides wouldn't be approximately equal if they share the same reservoir like everyone states, and it has been sitting for quite some time. Sorry I haven't been much help, I'll let you know if I come up with anything

 

[warrior160]

Checked all possible ways on my 3510i the front axle fluid could have been escaping, the bottom line, it wasn't. After adding somewhere between 12 & 14 quarts of fluid (sorry I couldn't be more precise than that), the level finally stabilized at the full mark on the dipstick. Where Branson got 7.5 quarts from in their manual is beyond me. Beware of Branson's data, the life of your tractor could depend on your scrutiny. This volume error on their part caused me a lot of grief and unnecessary wasted time.

 

[Reg]

OK, I'll ask the obvious question - sorry if it sounds as if I'm "talking down".

When you drained out the oil presumably you caught it in a drain pan.
I'll presume that you disposed of it responsibly...
How much came out ?
In round numbers; 1 1/2, 2, 2 1/2, 3 gallons maybe ?
My guess is that it should have been pretty close to what you had to put back - and if so there should be no mystery about where it has been going to.

BTW, sorry I didn't get on this thread earlier.

Hahh !
The Century reprint of the Kukje workshop manual says 7 quarts, the Branson reprint says 7 liters.
Mayhap they mean "PER SIDE" ?
(-:

EDIT:
Here's a general thought on oil levels in axles and how much it matters.
If the crown wheel dips into the oil it will pick it up and fling it around.
It will almost certainly fling it out to the outer bearings where it will
"hang around".
I doubt that there is any benefit in trying to totally immerse all the
final drive components in oil.
I'm not saying that the dipstick isn't the manufacturer's recommended
fill level, clearly it is.

I have done "change all fluids" preventative maintenance on junker cars
that my off-spring have bought for not much more than a month's
high school lunch money. Surprisingly little oil has come out of several
rear axles that were still very quiet for the (indicated) mileage.
I doubt that running "only 7 quarts" of oil in these front axles is likely
to lead to an early demise.
JMAO, etc.
:END EDIT

 

[DavesTractor]

I'm not at the shop, so I don't know the capacities, but when you fill the front axle, you must wait for a while and let the fluid make it's way through the bearings and into the outer hubs on both sides. So it is normal if you check it immediately after filling to see it full and minutes later for it to be real low. Put more in and check it 10 minutes later, then do it again, and finally check it again after about an hour. However once it reads good after sitting for a little while, it should remain good. The only place it can leak is on the ground or into the shaft that supplies power to the front axle. If the pinion seal failed, it could conceivably put some oil into the driveshaft cover, but not much.

 

[bobmisi]

Checked the front differentials on my 3820 today after plowing snow, and both dipsticks were not showing any fluid. So off to Napa I went and added almost a gallon. It's probably a little too full now but I'm going to drive it a short didtance and let it settle, then recheck it. Tractor only has 60 hours on it, so this is a real concern to me. I will be at my dealers this week to be sure. When you buy a brand new tractor you should not have to put up with this crap. That's why I bought a brand new tractor. Has anyone out there gotten any answers on this problem from any dealer? If not , it appears to be time to contact the Branson rep and get an answer, as this could cause serious damage to the front drive mechanism. No tractor that is one year old should require this much constant attention, just routine checking every so many hours, not every time you use it.

 

[warrior160]

Bobmisi, I totally agree. That's why I started this thread in the first place. I had about 60 hours on my 3510i when I started to notice the front axle fluid being low. Branson doesn't seem to know the fluid capacities on their own equipment. Read my entries from the beginning.
JM

 

[gldwing57]

I have same problem I have 2 gallons in mine now and am still waiting on answers. You woulkd think a deaer would chime in and give some exact amount or explanation.

 

[Reg]

My guess/explanation is that there was a translation error in the manual.
Not language, but units of measure.
OK, OK, OK, so liters are slightly larger than quarts,
but pints are about half of that and and a discussion of whether or not the English reading market measures things in pints, quarts or liters could easily lead to a x2 or x/2 error, and/or another factor of two if one translator was talking about the whole axle and another translator was talking about only one side.

Bottom line, it takes what it takes and the anecdotal evidence seems to be that a) It takes about twice what the manual says and b) running it at the 1/2 level doesn't seem to hurt (other than the mental anguish factor of not showing up on the dip-sticks) at least in the short term.

If the level drops you have a leak, investigate that and fix it.


OTOH, maybe the dip-sticks are just too short ?
(-: