Cylinder rod pitting - How bad is this?

[LD1]

I have done it MANY times. Just not with a "snowplow" cylinder. But I have moved hydraulic cylinders pleanty of times before with air. The part about the air hose and 50' away was just said to appease the saftey police.

And just for everyone to keep in mind, this IS the internet, and the advice IS free.

People get killed flipping tractors pulling from a drawbar. Does that make it bad advice to tell some one to pull from there and not the front of the tractor?

About ANY advise given about ANYTHING can possibly be dangerous.

Just workiing in the shop around power equipment is dangerous. Yes, using air "can" be dangerous. Do it if ya want. I'm not holding a gun to anyones head and making them do it. Jerking and prying on it can be dangerous too. But whatever. You made your point, I've made mine. I'll admit that it "can" be dangerous, but a little common sense goes a long way. We'll let him decide what he wants to do.

 

[dstig1]

Well relax people. Based on the brutal pounding it took to get together, even 100 psi of air ain't gonna budge it, so I'm not going to try.

What I am going to do is get hoses and flat face couplers that I will need in any case. I will hook it up to the tractor hydraulics on the plow frame and try it, with due caution. if it works, great . If no-go, new cylinders. If it works, I will give a bunch of cycles to hopefully lube up the seals etc. I need to get new hardware in any case.

I don't want to make this out to be bigger than it is, as I know it is small potatoes. I just have no experience with hydraulics ...so far. Well ...other than my 3rd function valve, but the hydraulic shop set me up with all the fittings and such for that... and everything was new.

TRR

If you have a bar clamp, or a big "C" clamp, or a press, or anything to push on the rod with, just push the rod back in (with the hydraulic port open of course).

Already tried that (see earlier post). I couldn't pull it back with a bar clamp, so upped the game to a pipe clamp. Still no go. Then I pounded it in. I figured it would break loose and work better, but it did not. But they are fully retracted now...

 

[2458n]

You are looking at it in the correct way. It is a learning process. Having a couple of plows on trucks , I would say that those cylinders will be fine. In Ohio alot of salt and rust from year to year. This year in Southern Ohio alot of plows were never used. The local TSC. carried plow stuff a couple of years ago, do not know if they still do. The hyd. hoses are a must have spare item when "other" people plow, as they wear out from the blade hitting obstacles. Back pressure kills even new hoses. You will like your plow hook-up.

 

[rsewill]

Well relax people. Based on the brutal pounding it took to get together, even 100 psi of air ain't gonna budge it, so I'm not going to try.

Hydraulic fluid at low pressure will move a cylinder that all kinds of air pressure won't budge.

 

[Mace Canute]

Hydraulic fluid at low pressure will move a cylinder that all kinds of air pressure won't budge.

And safely too.

 

[LD1]

What I am going to do is get hoses and flat face couplers that I will need in any case. I will hook it up to the tractor hydraulics on the plow frame and try it, with due caution. if it works, great . If no-go, new cylinders. If it works, I will give a bunch of cycles to hopefully lube up the seals etc. I need to get new hardware in any case.

..

Not sure this will work the way you envision.

You HAVE to have the cylinders already mounted on the plow in order to cycle them a bunch.

REMEMBER these are SA cylinders. The one pushes the other closed. So unless you plan on extending them with hydraulics, then pushing/pounding them back in by hand like you alreaady done......I'd get the plow together first and try them on the plow.

And like I mentioned earlier in this thread...They really dont look that bad. And a little leak/drip isnt a huge deal on your tractors ~10gallon system like it is on a truck with maybe 2 quarts

 

[Don87]

I've never used air pressure to try and move them, but when fully retracted like those are, I have hooked them to something solid like a tree and pulled them apart with a tractor.

 

[dstig1]

Not sure this will work the way you envision.

You HAVE to have the cylinders already mounted on the plow in order to cycle them a bunch.

REMEMBER these are SA cylinders. The one pushes the other closed. So unless you plan on extending them with hydraulics, then pushing/pounding them back in by hand like you alreaady done......I'd get the plow together first and try them on the plow.

And like I mentioned earlier in this thread...They really dont look that bad. And a little leak/drip isnt a huge deal on your tractors ~10gallon system like it is on a truck with maybe 2 quarts

Maybe I wasn't clear enough but that is the plan - "...on the plow frame". I just need to reassemble them on the A-frame/sector (and with the pivot pin). Then they can push against each other like normal, but I don't need to reassemble absolutely everything to do that. I need to get new hardware too.

 

[dstig1]

Well I got these hooked up today to see how they worked. They moved just fine under hydraulic pressure, but once extended, I found the rod section that was hidden looked pretty bad. That plus there was still murky fluid in there, though I thought I had flushed it out good. So I pitched them and will get new ones. Not worth screwing with any more to save $100 and potentially contaminating the hydraulic fluid in the tractor.