Blown hydraulic hose fixed! Whew!!!

[Pilot]

Last week I posted about blowing a hydraulic hose while plowing snow a mile from home & driving home, perhaps damaging the hydraulic pump while doing so.

It's a JD 770, no power steering.

I replaced all 4 hydraulic hoses, after a bear of a time getting the fittings off and fired up the tractor to find everything is A-OK!

Cost: $123 for 4 hoses made locally to fit, plus $30 to replace 2 quick disconnects that didn't want to disconnect or reconnect.

Had I ruined the hydraulic pump, it would have cost $405 at the dealer.

Fortunately, the hose busted as the temps were warming up and a few days later there was no significant snow to be seen, so I didn't need the tractor while it was inop. Then we got 4" of rain (one inch in 24 hours is a lot for this area) with wind, followed by 4" of snow as the rain moved out. Then another inch of snow last night.

So far this year, we have had a total of about 23 inches of snow; the most I have seen in 30 years in this area is about 1 foot with 2-4" typical for all winter. Now that the tractor is fixed, we're probably all through with the need to plow!

 

[kennyd]

That is great news

 

[AKfish]

Very good news indeed..! And how exactly did you finally succeed in getting the hydraulic hoses off??

That just might be a very helpful bit of information for the next fellow in "line"..

Thanks.

AKfish

 

[Pilot]

For removing the hydraulic hoses, after first trying them just with wrenches, I let the fittings sit with PB Blaster, which was recommended elsewhere on these forums for getting rusted nuts off. The fittings between the hoses & solid steel tubing finally came off with just muscle power.

The real problem was the other end of the hoses with the quick disconnects which wouldn't disconnect. Finally took my rivet gun (similar to an air chisel, but a little more sophisticated trigger control) set the chisel against a ridge on the disconnect & with the vibration was able to retract the outer slide & get it disconnected from the valve.

Then removing the disconnects from the hoses was a bear. Wrenches on the hose fitting just rounded the corners. I needed some way to hold the disconnect while I used a pipe wrench on the hose fitting. My vise jaws are too wide for the flats on the disconnects. If I put it in the vise, the vise would either close on the outer slide of the disconnect or if I set it down so it wouldn't close on the slide, the nut on the hose would be inside the vise jaws. So I needed some way to secure it in the vise without the jaws touching the outer slide. A trip to the hardware store & I picked up a couple steel square keys--just short pieces of square steel about 5/16" square and an inch an a half long. Taped these around the flats on the disconnects & put the whole mess in the vise. Then a pipe wrench on the hose fitting & off they came. But: 2 of the disconnects were too rusty to reuse, so they were replaced.

I hope this is clear. The square keys will come in handy again sometime, as I have run into a similar problem before.

 

[mfreund]

Great idea with the keys, I will remember that. I am glad the pump was not hurt!!!

 

[AKfish]

For removing the hydraulic hoses, after first trying them just with wrenches, I let the fittings sit with PB Blaster, which was recommended elsewhere on these forums for getting rusted nuts off. The fittings between the hoses & solid steel tubing finally came off with just muscle power.

The real problem was the other end of the hoses with the quick disconnects which wouldn't disconnect. Finally took my rivet gun (similar to an air chisel, but a little more sophisticated trigger control) set the chisel against a ridge on the disconnect & with the vibration was able to retract the outer slide & get it disconnected from the valve.

Then removing the disconnects from the hoses was a bear. Wrenches on the hose fitting just rounded the corners. I needed some way to hold the disconnect while I used a pipe wrench on the hose fitting. My vise jaws are too wide for the flats on the disconnects. If I put it in the vise, the vise would either close on the outer slide of the disconnect or if I set it down so it wouldn't close on the slide, the nut on the hose would be inside the vise jaws. So I needed some way to secure it in the vise without the jaws touching the outer slide. A trip to the hardware store & I picked up a couple steel square keys--just short pieces of square steel about 5/16" square and an inch an a half long. Taped these around the flats on the disconnects & put the whole mess in the vise. Then a pipe wrench on the hose fitting & off they came. But: 2 of the disconnects were too rusty to reuse, so they were replaced.

I hope this is clear. The square keys will come in handy again sometime, as I have run into a similar problem before.

Appreciate the explaination. Have to say; I'd never have thought of using the flat squares of steel taped to the disconnects. And that would solve the problem of the vise jaws crushing the sliding collar, yes?
Thanks for sharing your solution. I think that many guys on this forum; work out a solution and never follow-up discussing how they got there...

AKfish