Cat 206 questions

[krusty]

Just purchased a Cat 206 wheeled excavator for use around the homestead. It has lots of hours but in OK shape for the price. I realize I cannot take it into the mud to work like a track machine but that is OK for me. Need to move it around the neighborhood so wheeled was my choice. Heck maybe I will get a track frame at some point and make it quick attach

Aside from some sloppy bucket pins and a small leak I have to hunt down I think it will be fine. Older machine was preferable since I can work on them myself for the most part. I have 2 questions while I await my manuals on order:

1) generally how do I determine the shape of the swing bearing? The gear teeth are fine and no uneven wear. It is the only thing I really need some guidance on mechanically....well that is until some seals go

2) front axle engagement: is there a mechanism/switch/lever to engage the front axle? Right now it is just the rear propelling it and when the neighbor comes over will check on the drive shafts to see if they are spinning. When I lift all 4 wheels up, only the rear spin.

Happy digging!

 

[92U 3406]

Not sure on Cat's specific procedure but every other machine I've encountered with a swing bearing they want you to measure the amount of play in the bearing with a dial indicator at specific points. I would wait until you get the manuals and then follow Cat's procedure. The other thing is does it rotate smoothly? If its rough or feels like its binding, it could have issues.

 

[krusty]

The swing bearing feels fine. It is my front drive that is bugging me. It is like there is some binding somewhere. With the machine up in the air, the rear axle drives both rear tires. Also when I spin one side, the other tire rotates in the opposite direction much like a car diff.

The front drive shaft is turning properly, but inside the axle at the kingpins I can only see the right ride turning, but it is not spinning the tire. The left side will not rotate at all and feels like the brake is applied. So it looks like I will be tearing apart the front final drives to see what is up in there.

Got the manual and it looks simple enough to get into. Will start with the left side.

 

[krusty]

Well I have finally got around to opening up the front planetaries. First time working on them so took a bit to understand what was going on in there. One side had something shredded inside and luckily it did no damage to any of the gears. It is almost back together but still need 1 thrust washer. Local CAT dealer seems to have ordered the wrong one. The only thing missing was the thrust washer and maybe that is what it was but no way to tell.

The other side looks like there was some problem with the brake parts so the PO took the ring gear out as well as the brake disks. The hub and spindle are fine. Will put in new seals and should be ready to roll for now till I source a used ring gear at a reasonable price.

Price for new replacement parts is beyond crazy all things considered....so does anyone have suggestions on CAT boneyards with some vintage type equipment? My 'g**gle' searches have yielded a couple leads but would like to shop around and get a whole 'everything off the spindle' included.