Center section, hinge , articulation joint ect.

[partsandservice]

Anyone have any experience splitting a 544 j to repair center section. Mostly wondering about the weight distribution of the rear frame and what has to move to get the top pin out. Thanks.

 

[John C.]

Common Deere problem. How may hours on the machine?

I used to put a couple of bottle jacks or some kind of blocks between the rear axle and the main frame to take twist pressure off the main pin. The counterweight also puts upward pressure on the center. Some people block the back half level and move the front have when they split the machine. For me it really depended on what I had to lift with.

 

[tctractors]

The best way is to firstly strip off the front bucket and lift the arms up about 4- 5 ft off the ground and lock in place with a steel from ram to frame, then block the back unit very well under the weight etc including forward of the rear axle, chock all wheels front and back at all times, best you look at my stuff in Caterpillar Sprocket Removal as there is a few good pictures to study, bucket off and arms up some as you need to get into the front plate for pipes etc.
tctractors

 

[Tractorguy]

We always block the back and pull the front forward. I'd say leave bucket on the front for stability and get some forks to slide beneath but as mentioned above does depend on what is at your disposal.

 

[kshansen]

I think we usually left the bucket on and blocked the front end just ahead of the center pin area. Then rolled the back half back several feet to have good working room. But this was mostly on the 966C through 988B Cats and we had the advantage of a 40 ton overhead bridge crane to hold things up while moving them! One thing you need to keep in mind is the rear axle is a pivot and you are best off to block between the frame and rear axle to avoid the rear frame tipping side to side as you move anything! Also need to understand which half of the machine has the parking brake and do what needs to be done to allow what ever end you are going to move to roll.

 

[tctractors]

I would have done around 30 loading shovel splits in my days so I have worked out the best way to do the job by myself, you often need to get inside the front plate under the loader frame for wires pipes and so on, this is best done with the bucket off and arms about 4-5 ft off the ground, the back section of the loader is pure weight and needs leaving blocked up and stood firm, the front section can then be rolled forward very easy as it usually only has a slight bit of weight thrown back towards the centre pin, I can easily pull the front section forward, my advice is to never move the rear section in any way and leave Blocked,Chocked and well alone as the back bit is DANGER. this is my view only and we all do things our own way, study my pictures as all you need is a bit of timber a length of H beam and a bottle jack, it works the same through near all loading shovels regardless of make or size.
tctractors

 

[partsandservice]

Thanks for all the advice. I plan on moving the front. I too have done many of these type jobs except on log skidders and bunchers. On the skidders that require splitting, (the timber jacks had a cartridge system and did not require separation) we move the rear section. I will treat this like a buncher and crib in front of and behind the rear axel as well as blocking the pivot axle.

 

[partsandservice]

Thanks for all the advice . It went off with only one minor hitch. There are two sleeves on the bottom pin. Parts book shows quantity one on engine frame and quantity one on front frame. Both are the same part number so I only order one the first time. Even though on separate pages they are stacked on top of each other. The person that did this job before made to same mistake but let it go with only one of these sleeves. With only one sleeve the seal on bottom bearing seal might as well not be there , a direct cause of the bottom bearing failure, also the front fork was bouncing up and down.I was able to remove the plate on the bottom and press the the second sleeve in. Done, now onto the steering issue.