John Deere 346 Project

[ddivinia]

How does the part's baler look? Are you gonna be able to recycle some of the parts for the rebuild?

Or should I buy some more JD stock...?

AKfish

Most things right now are things that need to or should be replaced.

Parts baler - going to snag a handful of parts off of it that bolts are broken off, etc.

No sense in wasting time on pulling pick up teeth off the parts baler - they aren't in great shape.

How about those bearings? I will get some new ones coming. I am going to pull the pitman arm off and see what is loose in there. Check out the video - thing it needs fixed?

Also - on the bale case from the bottom there is a lot to weld onto, etc. I am hoping to weld that up this weekend.

Overall - it could be going worse. Sure learning a lot about this baler...

D.

 

[flusher]

Most things right now are things that need to or should be replaced.

Parts baler - going to snag a handful of parts off of it that bolts are broken off, etc.

No sense in wasting time on pulling pick up teeth off the parts baler - they aren't in great shape.

How about those bearings? I will get some new ones coming. I am going to pull the pitman arm off and see what is loose in there. Check out the video - thing it needs fixed?

Also - on the bale case from the bottom there is a lot to weld onto, etc. I am hoping to weld that up this weekend.

Overall - it could be going worse. Sure learning a lot about this baler...

D.

You're right about that. I learn something new about my MF124 baler every time I run it.

 

[AKfish]

How about those bearings? I will get some new ones coming. I am going to pull the pitman arm off and see what is loose in there. Check out the video - thing it needs fixed?

Also - on the bale case from the bottom there is a lot to weld onto, etc. I am hoping to weld that up this weekend.

Overall - it could be going worse. Sure learning a lot about this baler...

D.

The pickup teeth aren't too expensive. IIRC - they come in a box of 10.

Yep.. that bearing has got alot of "shakin' goin' on"!

You're gonna be a baler pro by the time you get that baler back into the field! And you'll sure know what to look for whenever you buy another small square baler! :thumbsup:

AKfish

 

[ddivinia]

The pickup teeth aren't too expensive. IIRC - they come in a box of 10.

Yep.. that bearing has got alot of "shakin' goin' on"!

You're gonna be a baler pro by the time you get that baler back into the field! And you'll sure know what to look for whenever you buy another small square baler! :thumbsup:

AKfish

I went ahead and got 20 pickup teeth. I think that should get me close to getting it fixed up.

It is supposed to rain this weekend, so I can get some work done on it. I hope to weld the floor up, get the plunger back in, slip clutch and go thru the pickup. Next week I will do the knotters.

Believe it or not the roller bearing was fine in the plunger. The pitman arm and pin is the problem. I am not sure it is worth fixing.

I am learning a lot as I go. I hope it will be baling hay in a week or two.

D.

 

[ddivinia]

I needed all 20 of the pickup teeth.

I pulled all the strippers, cleaned out the twine wrapped up in the pickup, swapped 20 teeth, and put the strippers back on. All I can say is I am glad I have an air ratchet.

D.

 

[ddivinia]

New Hay finger bushings - helped some, but it is still loose. I need to check out a new baler to compare.

D.

 

[AKfish]

New Hay finger bushings - helped some, but it is still loose. I need to check out a new baler to compare.

D.

D.

When I put the new finger bushing's in the 336, I noticed that the bolts were double-nutted and not tightened down really tight. They were snug (at least considering the wear) and that's how I reinstalled the new ones. Just tightly snug and then cinched the 2nd nut down to keep everything from working loose.

Took almost all the slop out of the fingers but not all and I don't think the finger's are supposed to be "rigid" tight anyway's.

AKfish

 

[ddivinia]

D.

When I put the new finger bushing's in the 336, I noticed that the bolts were double-nutted and not tightened down really tight. They were snug (at least considering the wear) and that's how I reinstalled the new ones. Just tightly snug and then cinched the 2nd nut down to keep everything from working loose.

Took almost all the slop out of the fingers but not all and I don't think the finger's are supposed to be "rigid" tight anyway's.

AKfish

Mine has double nuts also.

I think you are right that it is somewhat loose by design probably to keep it out of a bind.

D.

 

[ddivinia]

I put the new bearings on the plunger and got it back in today.

It is so tight in there I can't turn it over by hand. I loosened up the left hand lower rail and tried to move it over - no go. I think I will be pulling the plunger again and probably pulling the rails to check them out. Something is too tight in there. I figure some new bearings on the plunger and it would go back together OK. Well, I guess they had torqued down the guides and rails, etc for the worn out bearings.

Any ideas?

D.

 

[flusher]

I put the new bearings on the plunger and got it back in today.

It is so tight in there I can't turn it over by hand. I loosened up the left hand lower rail and tried to move it over - no go. I think I will be pulling the plunger again and probably pulling the rails to check them out. Something is too tight in there. I figure some new bearings on the plunger and it would go back together OK. Well, I guess they had torqued down the guides and rails, etc for the worn out bearings.

Any ideas?

D.

Sounds like the rails that guide the plunger are misaligned pretty badly. The plunger on my MF124 moves with no problem when I turn the flywheel by hand.

Gee, D, this project is turning out to be a real bear. On the bright side, just think of it as a quick course in small baler repair/rebuild. I'm sure you'll get immense satisfaction once this baler starts earning its keep.