rsearer
New member
I have some questions but I also have some information that might be benificial to anyone with a V30 Ditch Witch.
So first with the information and then I have some questions at the end.
I have been asked by my brother to repair a V30 Ditch Witch and due to the age of this unit it is difficult to locate parts. The model V30 he owns is serial number 25479 so I have to be careful as to which series to reference to in the parts manual provided with the unit. The local Ditch Witch dealer did not seem interested in crossing the old part numbers from the manual for the brake shoes, and then said the brake shoes may not be available anymore. I realized he was trying to be kind as he did not want to tell me the price.
I got the hint, and so I removed the wheel and drums to see if I could match up casting numbers on the wheel cylinders, and through a lot of cross referencing and time on the internet I determined the following:
1. Brake shoes for this unit (10" diameter X 1 3/4" width) show a Ditch Witch Part Number 160-613 and 160-615 as the left and right set for this machine, and this matches to the NAPA part number TS-267 that includes both left and right for less than $40 total.
2. The wheel brake cylinders for the Left Side is NAPA #370192 and the Right Side is NAPA #370193, and they appear to be brand new units, are complete with boots, pistons, spring, and bleeder valve, for less than 15$ each.
3. The original casting number on the wheel brake cylinder does not specify the bore diameter, so using the casting number alone will get you the right casting but most cross reference sheets show a 1 1/8 bore which is not correct. 15/16 bore is the correct bore on this particular unit but sometimes a 7/8 bore was used on later units. But the difference in bore is not significant if both cylinders are the same on a given axle.
4. The hardware kit for the brake shoes that includes the hardware for both sides is NAPA 2221 but it does not include the piston push rod that engage the shoes, or the star adjuster, so before you discard the old parts do an audit of what parts you still need. Also the Emergency brake arm and expander on the brake shoes can be discarded if your unit does not have the parking brake feature installed.
In addition to the wheel brakes the master cylinders on both sides had to be replaced on the unit I working on and found that a Ford Falcon 1960 master cylinder ( from Advance Auto #10-32900) will bolt on nicely when the opening in the floor for the master cylinder fill cap is enlarged. The original master cylinder has a small fill cap, and this is a pain to fill with a large brake fluid bottle. I replaced the original bolts with smaller 1/4" grade 8 bolts and nuts to allow the cylinder to be rotated a couple of degrees away from the frame. This allows the larger fill cap to clear the frame and cutting the floor opening larger allows the large fill cap to be removed. This really makes filling the master cylinder easier.
Now for the quesitons:
This unit I am repairing has a backhoe also mounted on it. This backhoe connects to a vertical tube on the front of the machine, and inside this tube is the lifting cylinder that extends and retracts an inner tube that projects out of the bottom of the vertical tube. On the lower end of this inner tube is where the mounting plate for the backhoe to be connected. This arrangement is absurd in that no replaceable bearing material is used between the clamping devise that slides up and down on the outside of the vertical tube, nor is there any wear bearing material between the inner tube that projects out the bottom of the vertical tube that must lift the entire weight of the backhoe.
Due to the loose fit of both tubes and the sliding clamp that is part of the mounting support of the backhoe, these parts have become riddled with fatigue cracks. There are chunks of steel missing from the large support tube.
Has anyone worked on getting rid of this absurd design, or at least worked on a way to fit a Nylatron bearing or something of this sort to eliminate the loose and fatigue cracking design?
So first with the information and then I have some questions at the end.
I have been asked by my brother to repair a V30 Ditch Witch and due to the age of this unit it is difficult to locate parts. The model V30 he owns is serial number 25479 so I have to be careful as to which series to reference to in the parts manual provided with the unit. The local Ditch Witch dealer did not seem interested in crossing the old part numbers from the manual for the brake shoes, and then said the brake shoes may not be available anymore. I realized he was trying to be kind as he did not want to tell me the price.
I got the hint, and so I removed the wheel and drums to see if I could match up casting numbers on the wheel cylinders, and through a lot of cross referencing and time on the internet I determined the following:
1. Brake shoes for this unit (10" diameter X 1 3/4" width) show a Ditch Witch Part Number 160-613 and 160-615 as the left and right set for this machine, and this matches to the NAPA part number TS-267 that includes both left and right for less than $40 total.
2. The wheel brake cylinders for the Left Side is NAPA #370192 and the Right Side is NAPA #370193, and they appear to be brand new units, are complete with boots, pistons, spring, and bleeder valve, for less than 15$ each.
3. The original casting number on the wheel brake cylinder does not specify the bore diameter, so using the casting number alone will get you the right casting but most cross reference sheets show a 1 1/8 bore which is not correct. 15/16 bore is the correct bore on this particular unit but sometimes a 7/8 bore was used on later units. But the difference in bore is not significant if both cylinders are the same on a given axle.
4. The hardware kit for the brake shoes that includes the hardware for both sides is NAPA 2221 but it does not include the piston push rod that engage the shoes, or the star adjuster, so before you discard the old parts do an audit of what parts you still need. Also the Emergency brake arm and expander on the brake shoes can be discarded if your unit does not have the parking brake feature installed.
In addition to the wheel brakes the master cylinders on both sides had to be replaced on the unit I working on and found that a Ford Falcon 1960 master cylinder ( from Advance Auto #10-32900) will bolt on nicely when the opening in the floor for the master cylinder fill cap is enlarged. The original master cylinder has a small fill cap, and this is a pain to fill with a large brake fluid bottle. I replaced the original bolts with smaller 1/4" grade 8 bolts and nuts to allow the cylinder to be rotated a couple of degrees away from the frame. This allows the larger fill cap to clear the frame and cutting the floor opening larger allows the large fill cap to be removed. This really makes filling the master cylinder easier.
Now for the quesitons:
This unit I am repairing has a backhoe also mounted on it. This backhoe connects to a vertical tube on the front of the machine, and inside this tube is the lifting cylinder that extends and retracts an inner tube that projects out of the bottom of the vertical tube. On the lower end of this inner tube is where the mounting plate for the backhoe to be connected. This arrangement is absurd in that no replaceable bearing material is used between the clamping devise that slides up and down on the outside of the vertical tube, nor is there any wear bearing material between the inner tube that projects out the bottom of the vertical tube that must lift the entire weight of the backhoe.
Due to the loose fit of both tubes and the sliding clamp that is part of the mounting support of the backhoe, these parts have become riddled with fatigue cracks. There are chunks of steel missing from the large support tube.
Has anyone worked on getting rid of this absurd design, or at least worked on a way to fit a Nylatron bearing or something of this sort to eliminate the loose and fatigue cracking design?
