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Adding a case drain line to a Cat 259b3

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Howey Matt

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Dec 19, 2021
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129
Location
Howey in the Hills, FL
My new trencher attachment has a 3rd hose for a case drain, so I need to add a case drain hookup to the machine. I've found some writeups for other makes and models, but not for the Cat 259b3.

Does anyone have any experience with this? Where would be the best and easiest spot on the machine to tap into a drain line?

Thanks in advance.
 
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Howey Matt

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Joined
Dec 19, 2021
Messages
129
Location
Howey in the Hills, FL
Does anyone happen to have a hydraulic schematic for this machine they'd be willing to share? I'd like to tie the attachment case drain into an existing circuit but I don't know which location would be best. Where do they connect the attachment case drain on the machines with high flow?
 
5

56wrench

Senior Member
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Dec 4, 2016
Messages
2,106
Location
alberta
Just make sure its t’eed into somewhere with zero backpressure or directly into the reservoir above the oil level. Most hydraulic return systems on machines have some amount of backpressure and will cause the seals to leak on some hydraulic motors
 
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Howey Matt

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Joined
Dec 19, 2021
Messages
129
Location
Howey in the Hills, FL
56wrench said:
Just make sure its t’eed into somewhere with zero backpressure or directly into the reservoir above the oil level. Most hydraulic return systems on machines have some amount of backpressure and will cause the seals to leak on some hydraulic motors
Click to expand...

There's a Manual Loader Lowering Valve that connects directly to the drain manifold. It basically allows you to lower the arms manually without the machine running. The current plan is to tie into the low-pressure side of that valve. That seems like the best option to me.
 
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Howey Matt

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Dec 19, 2021
Messages
129
Location
Howey in the Hills, FL
Just to confirm, I tested the pressure on the hose between the lowering valve and the drain manifold. 0 psi with the machine running, so I should be good to go.
 
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Howey Matt

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Dec 19, 2021
Messages
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Howey in the Hills, FL
I was able to put a tee on the low-pressure side of the Manual Loader Lowering Valve - basically between the valve and the drain manifold. From there, I ran a hose to the back of the machine, up to the loader arm, and then to the front of the loader arm with the other quick connects. I've just got the hose zip-tied for now.

I tested the trencher attachment and everything seems to be working well. I'll keep an eye on it. Thanks for everyone's help, especially @Nige for the hydraulic schematic.
 
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Booshy

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Apr 2, 2024
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3
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TN / CA
Hi Guys I found this thread as I am trying to do the same exact thing on my Cat 259B3. I would like to install a case drain on a Cat 259B3 skid loader for a fire wood processor. I would really like to tie in the same way @Howey Matt did. I am not in Tennessee right now were the machine is. So I have asked my buddy to get me the serial number for my machine. If there any chance @Howey Matt or @Nige can share a snap shot of the location you tied in on the machine or the schematic and highlight were the low pressure side of the Manual loader Valve is? I would really appreciate that or any help you can give to point me in the right direction where to do this tie in. We were going to pull the tank and add a bulkhead but this seems like a much better way of doing this. Thank you very much Booshy.
 
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Howey Matt

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Joined
Dec 19, 2021
Messages
129
Location
Howey in the Hills, FL
Booshy said:
Hi Guys I found this thread as I am trying to do the same exact thing on my Cat 259B3. I would like to install a case drain on a Cat 259B3 skid loader for a fire wood processor. I would really like to tie in the same way @Howey Matt did. I am not in Tennessee right now were the machine is. So I have asked my buddy to get me the serial number for my machine. If there any chance @Howey Matt or @Nige can share a snap shot of the location you tied in on the machine or the schematic and highlight were the low pressure side of the Manual loader Valve is? I would really appreciate that or any help you can give to point me in the right direction where to do this tie in. We were going to pull the tank and add a bulkhead but this seems like a much better way of doing this. Thank you very much Booshy.
Click to expand...

Sorry for the late reply. Here's how I did mine. I have not had any issues.


Here's the manual lowering valve:

IMG_7270.jpeg


This is the low-pressure/drain side where you want to tie in:

IMG_7271.jpeg


If you follow that drain hose from the lowering value to the bottom of the machine, you'll see it goes into a manifold. I added a tee at the end of the hose right before the manifold. You can see it where my light is shining here:

IMG_7272.jpeg


Then I just ran a hose from the tee around to the hookups on the loader arm:

IMG_7275.jpeg


I hope this helps. It gave me an excuse to clean the leaves and sludge out of the machine. :cool:
 
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