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74 case 350 crawler loader resortation
- Thread starter hvguy
- Start date
Welder Dave
Senior Member
I've read in the past (likely on here) that track tension or even track length has no effect on tracking straight. As long as one track isn't super tight as to cause resistance to turning, the sprockets should still turn at the same speed. I think someone even said if one side had a link removed it should still track straight. Could be a slipping clutch or brake problem and not track related at all.
Have you put it into a pile to see what it will do? Are you trying to check it on perfectly flat ground? Any little variance bump etc may cause it to track off. I thought in an earlier post the differential was mentioned , any drag on the brakes or binding in the u/c? You could run it get a heat gun and look for hot spots any friction will generate heat. The rails look really worn from the pics , count the links on each side to see if they are the same.
Drove it around and nothing was hot, the actual carriage is physically bent out. Picture the front idler being positioned further out to the right. Its like on a vehicle: having the left tire track straight and the right tire turned a little bit to the right....
Looks like it needs to go about half an inch in.
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old-iron-habit
Senior Member
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- Nov 22, 2012
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Thats a common cause of not tracking. The dead axle system is probably tweaked. Easy to do if pushing the machine with another one. Or is the idler not shimmed properly. I would think if this was the case it would show up as rubbing hard on the roller flanges on one side.
TomA
Well-Known Member
Pin and bushing turn or new p&b.....sorry.
pin and bushing?
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Took some pics, and measured the carriage, the right side is only 1/8" from the left, so hardly anything. I recall the manual saying something about shims?
These pics are of the front idler.
Left side, right side
Measure outside to outside the track pads. At the rear and the front to see if its pigeon toed. I know nothing about these tractors , does there seem to be a way to adjust it if the front is spread open? Your pins and bushing are what the sprocket drives the chain on. Take a wrecking bar of flat iron digger and put between the pads and see how much wiggle room is there. When you had the rails and pads off they looked to have a decent amount of wear in them. The bottom pic in post 213 and top pic in 214 were the pad is angled sharply kind of indicates heavy wear. I'm sure you didn't want to hear that , nobody does. I did notice the way the roller frame bolts on , it looks like it would be impossible to get the distance wrong. If the tracks are that worn , they will do all kinds of weird things.
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DMiller
Senior Member
I might even consider straight edge to the truck frames where you can access a decent length. A piece of known straight angle iron, square steel even lumber that sights out straight could detect a bend in the frame. My Allis shims the front idler from side to side to achieve a true line, does not appear the same on your machine but must be addressed in the service manual.
Welder Dave
Senior Member
If 1 idler is pointed out or in can cause tracking issues. There's probably a dimension for idler toe in or toe out.
Labparamour
Senior Member
bronco71
Well-Known Member
I had a bent axle on my D7 front idler that caused tracking problems.....
While mocking up the mounting bolts for the edge I happened; to look straight down the right track and noticed its all straight... except for the front. So I took the cover (what I thought was the cover) off of the recoil spring which then abruptly slid the front idler backwards. I noticed you could rotate the front idler a little bit in each direction... my theory is that the hydraulic tensioner and recoil assembly were crooked from some sort of mishap, and since the idler carriage has no alignment guides in the back, its free to angle the wheel wherever it wants. I did notice that the left track has a new'er' spring assembly... and since half of the bolts are broken off on the right tensioner... it was allowed to pivot and push the wheel out of alignment.
My fix for the track alignment:
With the tensioner assembly taken apart, I pulled the wheel carriage perfectly straight (using calipers), I then welded a piece of 1/2" square bar (about 2" long) right next to the inside of the idler carriage to keep it straight while tensioning.
Conclusion: after measuring, it appears that its a little over corrected by about 1/8, however it drives much straighter.... its not completely fixed. However its not NEARLY as annoying as it was before.
My fix for the track alignment:
With the tensioner assembly taken apart, I pulled the wheel carriage perfectly straight (using calipers), I then welded a piece of 1/2" square bar (about 2" long) right next to the inside of the idler carriage to keep it straight while tensioning.
Conclusion: after measuring, it appears that its a little over corrected by about 1/8, however it drives much straighter.... its not completely fixed. However its not NEARLY as annoying as it was before.
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Now my new issue is why isnt my fan fanning? Ive been having this same issue with my telehandler. Its spinning, the blade is angled correctly, however it sucks air in from the back and blows it out the sides... literally NO air goes through the radiator. Ill probably just remove the mechanical fan and swap it for an electric one.
The fan shroud wont fit, nor would it be worth making a new one compared to attaching a fan to the front... which is what I just did. Had one handy, just needed trimming to fit between the trans cooler and radiator. Since I dont have a thermostat installed, im going to install one that kicks the electric fan on when needed.
I would also agree with you on the shroud being a key component however... a ceiling fan, or oscillating fan doesn't have one. And, my telehandler has one but suffers from the same issue... rad's are clean and its direct drive.
I would also agree with you on the shroud being a key component however... a ceiling fan, or oscillating fan doesn't have one. And, my telehandler has one but suffers from the same issue... rad's are clean and its direct drive.
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old-iron-habit
Senior Member
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Curious as to why are you not running a t-stat? Engines will always run better and last longer if run at the correct tempurature. A ceiling fan pulls air from around it with little resistance and moves it back down. A radiator fan without a proper fitting shroud does the same thing. It pulls air from the side instead of pulling it thru the radiator. The old rule of the path of less resistance.
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