If your foot suddenly feels really warm...

[jinman]

...it can't be good. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

If you smell hydraulic fluid, you have two indications things are going downhill. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

Yep! I was out clearing some of my property, pushing small trees and brush into an erosion gully and a small stump found its way up and into my Hydrostatic transmission filter located just in front of my left foot. The stump bent the filter and caused the o-ring seal to blow out and spray very warm hydraulic fluid all over my left foot and the whole left side of my tractor. What a mess! /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

I was about 1/4 mile away from my house and decided to try to make it back before the fluid all escaped. Seven gallons of fluid later, I rolled up in front of my barn. Most of the oil was on the county road, so it will just help keep the dust down. ...no harm done. /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif I was shocked that the hydrostatic transmission kept going, but it did fine.

I didn't really know the extent of the damage or I would have just stopped the tractor, got a new filter, and fixed the problem on the spot. But, hindsight is 20-20. I put a new filter on and 7 gallons of new fluid back in the tractor. After a serious cleanup, I was back in business. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

I figure overall I was really lucky. ...unfortunately, my hydraulic soaked left shoe is "toast." I needed to get a new pair of work shoes anyhow. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[RHP]

Not a good thing at all!

Did you have an extra filter and oil at home?

It's surprising you made it home. Now at least now we know these machines can do double duty: work all day and oil the road on the way home.

I had an uneventful day trying out my new EZ Toothbar. Got stuck in the muck but got out with the help of my loader (so I guess I wasn'rt really stuck.)

Was it near time to change the hydraualic oil? Is there a bright side besides making it home and a new pair of shoes? /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

 

[jinman]

I had just bought a new filter and I had extra 134A oil because my dealer had it on sale the last time I bought, so I got enough for two changes. I was about 125 hours out from my next change, so it wasn't too bad. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

It's good to have some good luck just after having a bit of bad luck. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[PineRidge]

Jim it sounds to me like you had quite an interesting weekend. It's no fun at all when you have to limp your tractor back to the house. At least it was nothing serious and you were smart to have an extra set of filters on standby. So, when will you be adding the belly pan?

 

[rambler]

Glad it worked out for you.

Just a note - oil pumps (that's what a hydro tractor is - a great big pump bolted to the engine) do not like to run without oil in them even for 60 seconds or so. They will very, very quickly overheat the pump parts without cooling & lubricating fluid. Likewise the motor end (what drives the weels) is also a big hyd pump, and it too will overheat & destroy itself in a very few seconds. The repair bill would easily be several thousands of dollars.

On some models of the big ag JD tractors, if you push in the clutch & freewheel down a hill; or you pull the tractor 1000 feet or so without it running - there is an upper shaft that does not get lubricated & it will destroy itself in that short of a time. One kinda forgets....... It's $4000 in parts to repair - was a discussion on an ag forum this winter about it, how quick it is to ruin hyd parts, and how many this happened to.

I'm not trying to be a big wet blanket here, but what you did by driving it so far was very risky. By the time the tractor would have stopped moving from lack of fluid, it would have been too late. Just a note for those reading, you really, really need to take good care of your hydro. Any leaks beyond dust catchers, and you need to shut down right there. Operating without fluid is _not_ covered by warrenty.....

--->Paul

 

[techinNY]

Glad to hear it was nothing real serious. I guess I'm still gun shy from you after "where the TC deluxe is not so deluxe" posting that was so active for a while, I cringed when I saw this one. I plan on keeping an extra set of filters on hand for such inconveniences. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[Egon]

It could even be worse. That warm feeling could come from the dog standing beside you.

Egon

 

[techinNY]

Yea, but that would not cost anything! /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

 

[jinman]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I'm not trying to be a big wet blanket here, but what you did by driving it so far was very risky. By the time the tractor would have stopped moving from lack of fluid, it would have been too late. )</font>

Paul, your advice is good. Operating a tractor without fluid will surely destroy hydraulic pumps which require oil for lubrication and cooling. In this case, an intimate knowledge of the temperature of the transmission (measured by the thermostat in my foot) told me that heat was not a problem. Also an intimate knowledge of the flow of the oil from reservoir, through the charging pump, through the cooler and the filter that was leaking, into the hydrostatic pump and on to the motor tells me that everything was working fine. Essentially, as long as oil was spewing out, there was no danger. The transmission really did not know there was any problem since there was no load except for the tractor pulling its own weight. About 3 gallons more and the flow slowing would have told me to stop the tractor immediately. As it was, I was just emptying part of my reservoir, and the fluid quantity had not reached any critical level for the health of the tranny. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif Messy, but no danger. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

My warranty was up long ago, and I have to fix anything that goes wrong. If there is a critical problem or one I'm not sure of, you can bet I will shut down. This was a calculated response based on the speed of the leak. It's a calculation I hope not to ever have to make again. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

 

[jinman]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( It could even be worse. That warm feeling could come from the dog standing beside you. )</font>

If it's not your tractor or your dog, check your Depends. /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif