Lubrication of the main lifting bolts

[stray]

I removed several of the bolts in the front lifting mechanism of my 422 and found that some were dry and some were getting lubricant to them. I use a silicon lithium spray. I am not satisfied with this method as it seems to take a lot of spraying to get little lubricant to the bolts. I was wondering what others have done about this situation.

 

[pajoube]

Interesting, have you seen any unusual wear on the bolts? Like you I have been using silicon lithium spray every 8 hours (normal maintenance) and have not noticed any problems.
Not sure what else a person would use.
PJ

 

[Clarke]

I don't think the lifting assemble should rotate on the bolt shaft at all. Myself and another board member have shimmed the bolts so the lift arms rotate on the ball joint like it is supposed to. Do not try to just tighten the bolt because it just bends the attachment which is to far apart. On my machine I think I had to shim about 6 of these joints to make them work proper. When they work as they should you just lube the ball..

sg

 

[J_J]

I have always thought that the ball assembly should rotate around the bolt or pin. and that the movement of the ball was designed so the operator could align the implement. If the ball assembly is forced to rotate, more wear will occur in the ball and arm. A worn bolt is much less expensive than a new lifting arm with new ball joint.

If I can't get any lube on the bolt , I just remove the bolt or pin and put some water proof grease on the bolt and slide it back on.

 

[Clarke]

I would have to take a look but you can most likely weld on a new joint. My way of thinking if the bolt wears so does the bore of the joint. In that case replacing the bolt may not snug the joint.. My theory may be wrong but inspection of the machine revealed three of the ball joints rotating on the ball and the rest on the bolt from the factory. You are right to lube the bolt properly you would have to remove it. My machine works very smooth rotating on the ball even the steering cylinders..

sg

 

[jol1269]

ok now im concerned , i was told to use this stuff called superlube for the ball joints and its a teflon type of dry product is this the same type of things you guys are refering too . the stuff im using drys after your spray it and it forms a white to grey color film on the ball joints

 

[Clarke]

When I first started to lube the machine I used the same as you are using. I noticed the link ends or ball joints really never rotated so lubing them would make no difference. njbill brought up the question about the ball joints rotating on the bolt rather then the ball. This made a lot of sense to me so I shimmed or tightened all the ball joints so the bolt and ball did not move and rotation was on the ball only. Now I lube the ball with 14's mixture. You can move most of the joints on my machine after the lube is applied to make sure it is on the wear surface..

sg

 

[stray]

pajoube The bolts were not worn but showed discolorization as in starting to wear. I have only 190 hrs on the 422. I guess maybe if I sprayed a little longer and harder the ones that didn’t get any lube would have. It is just a lot of expensive lube going nowhere.

J.J. I did as you and greased it and put it back in. In fact I just greased all of them and put them back in. I’m like you in thinking that the ball is for alignment and the rotating surface should be between the bolt and inside the ball. The main bolts that hold the two halves of the machine together have grease fittings that grease the bolt and inside of the ball don’t they? So I guess I may be waiting to see if someone has tried drilling the bolts with a small hole and placing a zerk in them or replacing them with a greaseable pin. Or maybe I am waiting for someone to say that they have umpteen hours on their PT and have done so and so and have had no trouble out of the bolts and ball and that there is little play in them.

I will keep researching this and post my findings. Please you all do the same.

 

[jol1269]

does this silicon lithium lube attract dirt and other non wanted items to the joint and what brand are you guys using , and ofcourse whats every one else using on thier machines

 

[J_J]

If you want something to resist dirt, someone mention that they used Teflon lube, it goes on wet but drys. That is also what people use on motorcycle chains.

Just use what ever you have available.

 

[FOURTEEN]

As mentioned earlier, to grease those 'ball' joints on the lift arms and steering arms, mix Amsoil Racing Grease with a little gasoline to the consistency of oil based paint. Brush on with a 1/2" paint brush while rotating the shafts. Because it is thin, it will carry the grease deep inside the joint where the gasoline soon evaporates, leaving a nice grease coating inside. No over spray! Easy to wipe up any excess! No gobs of grease on the garage floor, or the wash mitt when you wash your PT!!

Every 100 hours I remove all the large bolts, then coat the bolts and bores with Amsoil Racing Grease, and reassemble them being careful to not overtighten! The first time I found no wear, but there was discoloration and minor rust from OEM!

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[MossRoad]

<font color="blue"> So I guess I may be waiting to see if someone has tried drilling the bolts with a small hole and placing a zerk in them or replacing them with a greaseable pin. </font>

I had the same thoughts back in June(click here to read them). I haven't gotten around to it, but am still thinking about it.

How about some of you folks that use these in your businesses? Has there been any problems with these joints?

 

[NJBill]

JJ
I covered this situation in earlier posts. The bolts are supposed to be tight enough to prevent the inner sleeve from turning, this will now make the two parts of the ball type joint work one inside the other, and those are the parts which need the lubrication. I mentioned that I use a mixture similar to Fourteen, a good grease mixed with enough gasoline as a carrier to take the grease into the inner surfaces of the " ball ". the greater surface area of the two ball sections will carry the load for a considerably longer time than just the bolt. Ask any old timer about the many barrel shaped bolts they may have replaced in the past, when bolts carried the load.
Check it out. Bill

 

[Clarke]

Amen.. Even PT will tell you if you quiz them enough that the joint is designed to rotate about the ball. Terry says it really makes little difference and very little lube is necessary on these parts. I do enough maintenance on this machine and won't like removing the bolts to lube them..

sg

 

[blackwell]

We have a 1430 with over 3000 hrs with orgional ball bushings. Pins have been replaced twice at about 1200 hrs. Sprayed every 8 hrs with " Super Lube". It's much eaiser and less expensive to let the pin wear and replace it than to cut the ball bushing out and weld it back in. Be sure to keep the pin tight enough to prevent it from turning in the lugs which will wear the lugs too quickly.
EB

 

[stray]

thanks blackwell I bleave this is what we were looking for. And good thought about the lugs. woulding won't to be replacing those.

 

[FOURTEEN]

My primary objective in greasing the bolts is rust prevention!
That is why I grease my PT-425 AFTER I wash it, so as to drive out any water or dirt that may have been forced into the joints during the cleaning!

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[MossRoad]

<font color="blue"> That is why I grease my PT-425 AFTER I wash it, </font>

Me Too! That is the most important time to lube everything.

 

[jol1269]

now my question will be what do you use for the shims ...washers im guessing what size ...

 

[J_J]

You may have meant this post for someone else, as I do not use shims nor do I tighten bolts so tight as to restrict the ball joint from moving. It should move in both planes, mainly around the bolt.

This ball joint assembly is used in all 3pt situation, and nothing is ever tighten on the implement, as there is no bolt to tighten just a pin to hold the implement on. Both moving pieces should be lubricated. It has been this way forever.
Enough said