Any input Rebuilding idlers ?

I have a D6R that needs idlers and rollers, I am going to look at a lathe tomorrow that is big enough to swing them,

Has anyone had any luck welding and turning idlers?

I plan on building a jig to hold a mig gun I plan on using 3/16" flux core

I also spoke with an old shop hand that used to work for a local coal mine and he said he remembered them building them up while they were on the machine, has anyone got any pics of the apperatus that it would take ?

Pj

powerjoke said:

I have a D6R that needs idlers and rollers, I am going to look at a lathe tomorrow that is big enough to swing them,

Has anyone had any luck welding and turning idlers?

I plan on building a jig to hold a mig gun I plan on using 3/16" flux core

I also spoke with an old shop hand that used to work for a local coal mine and he said he remembered them building them up while they were on the machine, has anyone got any pics of the apperatus that it would take ?

Pj

Click to expand...

Its not generally considered viable to do the rollers here if you are paying labour costs.One of the problems can be that welding up the external diameter will shrink the internal bore so you end up having to machine them as well.
The big idlers are done routinely and there are a couple of tricks like not getting it to hot and drilling a hole so it doesn't pressurise. You need to make sure the wire is right for the job. Its not a job I get involved in to much but I have seen them done for twenty five years. Someone may be able to give you more hands on advice than me.

I have not done it myself, but have seen rollers as well as idlers built up by welding across perpendicular to the surface, instead of around it. Many passes, close to one another. I have seen it on rollers for D-8 and D-9 machines, so I imagine it would work for a D-6. The question I have is if the labor cost is worth the extra wear you will get. The welded up ones don't seem to last as long as original, except that I have had good luck with the idlers that the local Cat dealer has done with their machine.

I have done the ones on my 850C JD , it was a little time consuming , but i did it in spare time. I have a tank made that holds the rollers halve submerged in water that is continually comeing in at the bottom and exiting from the full level. With the water halve full the bearings and seals never get hot , also the heat from the weld drys the metal before it is turned to the weld area.

I first grind the complete area to be welded and then put in place , on the side there is a square hole and this is where i have a 1/2" extension put and then it is hooked to a large wheel that is slowly turned.

I have been using some Stoody wire and it has performed excellent , these rollers have around 1,000 hrs on them now and you can still see the weld tracks - nearly no wear .

The amount of time and expense is well worth it if you can do it without hiring the welding to be done.

In the pic you can see the water level line that comes halve way up the roller .

Yair . . . powerjoke The apparatus we used to build up idlers on the machine is a decent welder, a stool and a nice soft cushion for your butt. I suppose you could make up a jig for a MIG gun and a friction drive run off a variable speed drill to turn the idler . . . but I can't really see a lot to gain . . . you can only shoot so much wire in an hour.

We welded across the worn faces with a vertical up technique, alternating to different places around the idler. . . keep checking but it is likely to take a long time before heat in the seal area is an issue.

This was just a normal part of our maintenance and kept the operators in work in rainy weather. It is completely unnecessary to lathe idlers or rollers after rebuilding.

If one of the young fellers got carried away and laid it on a bit high in places a ten inch grinder will soon work it back to average.

Swamp rat A good set up mate. I just lay the rollers with the shaft flats down on the edge of a cut off forty-four gallon drum and turn the roller with the gloved hand . . . a trickle feed from a hose keeps the water coolish.

Cheers.

I did one on a D8H like Jerry says crossways, made 2 complete rounds with stick hardface Rainite BX I think. After the first one I sent the other off for machine build, not worth it to me. 6R idlers are much smaller in diameter, good luck if you do it, we cut a hole in the 8H idler side to let the pressure out then welded it up when done, not sure if the 6R is hollow but if it is I would do the same

I have a machine designed for building idlers for sale. I'm retired from owning/running a undercarriage rebuild shop. You can see a picture of it on www.bestindustrial.com

Thanks for the input guys, I am defiantly going to try it.....$9/hr help will help me out a little as well lol.

FASTRAX, I would like to see your setup but your site seems to be down when I click on IDLER REBUILDING it goes to a 404page error can you upload pics or pm me i would like to see it

Pj

I usually find the $9 "help" hinders me