955L questions before i buy

Nige said:

The spec for this one is 84 +/-1 mm outer tooth to outer tooth.

He has 15 discs/14 plates in one pack and it measures 86.5mm.
He has 15 discs/15 plates in the other pack (extra plate sandwiched in the middle) and it measures 88mm
Even removing the additional plate from the 2nd pack would only get it down to about 86mm.
So both packs are over-spec by about 1mm but if the number of friction discs are reduced to 14 (which is what the book says it should be), even with 2 extra plates sandwiched somewhere in the middle as permitted in the spec both packs are going to be well below the minimum spec of 83mm.
That's the dilemma as I see it.

I think it's either micrometer or digital vernier time and get some accurate measurements of each disc and plate.

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I would tend to think the extra 1mm is not going to hurt any and stick to 15-14 disc total, as long as they stack tidy on the hub (friction first then steel) it should be fine. tctractors

If Tony is happy with going with 15/14 and it being slightly above the max specification then you should be fine.

A question for you. Was the side with the extra separator plate in the clutch pack the same one that had the broken thrust flange by any chance.?

Sorry for the long delays guys, I had to get back building my house. I got a 1" mic and took some measurements.

All of my plates were within spec, most averaging in the 0.074 range. (spec- 0.075 +/- 0.006)
All the friction discs on one side were at, or slightly below spec between 0.155-0.160 (spec- 0.165 +/- 0.005)
The friction discs on the other side(broken side) were all within spec averaging around 0.165

Im thinking im going to buy new friction discs for one side unless advised otherwise. I am more inclined to get it back to the correct number of plates within spec of the book. And also get new springs all around. Do i need to get new nuts for the throw out bearings? They drilled between them and the hub and inserted a set screw to keep the nut in place. Can i just redrill them or i guess reuse the same hole when i put it back on?

Nige the extra plate was on the side that wasnt broken and the good friction discs were on the side that was broken. Still no idea why it broke.

Workshoprat92 thanks for the advise and offer. Im up north of St louis, would be a haul. I got a 20 ton press, would be interested in seeing pics of what you did and how to do it. I thought i heard something about guys putting a pin between the sprocket and track and rolling into it to compress the spring.

TC i had got advice from another guy to take all lubricant off the splined shaft and hub when pressing it back on to avoid it going on to well and cracking. My press is 20 ton, not sure if i should give it all its got when i put it back on. " the release bearing needs every care to ensure the thrust side is correct" can you explain what your saying here

cg3p0 said:

Sorry for the long delays guys, I had to get back building my house. I got a 1" mic and took some measurements.

All of my plates were within spec, most averaging in the 0.074 range. (spec- 0.075 +/- 0.006)
All the friction discs on one side were at, or slightly below spec between 0.155-0.160 (spec- 0.165 +/- 0.005)
The friction discs on the other side(broken side) were all within spec averaging around 0.165

Im thinking im going to buy new friction discs for one side unless advised otherwise. I am more inclined to get it back to the correct number of plates within spec of the book. And also get new springs all around. Do i need to get new nuts for the throw out bearings? They drilled between them and the hub and inserted a set screw to keep the nut in place. Can I just redrill them or i guess reuse the same hole when i put it back on?

Nige the extra plate was on the side that wasnt broken and the good friction discs were on the side that was broken. Still no idea why it broke.

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Opinions are like a$$holes, everyone has their own. So FWIW here's mine: -

1. I'd put a new set of 14 friction discs in what was the "broken" side, and reuse the 14 "good" discs in the other side.
2. The plates look like they will all go again. Replace individually as required if you find any of them are warped or badly blued.
3. Now here comes the complicated bit. 14 discs @ 0.165 + 13 plates @ .074 comes out to 3.285" (83.44mm) but that includes the thickness of friction material on the plates at the end of the stack. I reckon that even with new discs, 13 plates will only give you a stack somewhere around 3.272" (83.11mm) which is right on the bottom limit of the spec and any wear on the friction discs would soon have you below that. An extra disc @ .074 on top of that ought to get you right on the max spec of 3.350" (85.09mm)
4. So based on your measurements and the Cat recommendations for rebuilding the clutch packs I would reassemble both packs with an extra separator plate stuck somewhere in the middle, just like the one that you pulled out, only on both sides. That means you'll have to buy at least one new plate.
5. New nuts for the throw-out bearings will be a small expense on top of what you're planning to buy, Why skimp..?

Parts are ordered. I will be back working on it soon.

I need to get some oil to dip the friction discs in and also to refill the steering clutch compartment. The book calls for CD/T0-2 SAE 30

Found some locally for a reasonable price but im not sure if it is the correct grade. Will one of these work?

This one says SN
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/traveller-diesel-engine-oil-sae-30-5-gal

This one says CF-2
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/traveller-heavy-duty-sae-30-motor-oil-5-gallon

TO-2 is an old spec of power train oil containing additives for friction materials (steering, transmission, brakes) and the like. Can you get some SAE30 TO-4.? That’s the more modern specification.
That’s what ought to be in the transmission anyway so it wouldn’t get wasted.

Napa has that. Not thrilled on the price though, will need about 27 gallons for the steering clutches and transmission
https://www.napaonline.com/en/p/FHQ85305

What is everyone else using?

They are sure proud of that.

Have a look around. Often there are offers on oil/filter joint purchases at the Cat dealer, or the oil supply houses. TBH I wouldn’t entertain Parts store own-brand oil in my machinery. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again - good quality oil & filters are the best insurance policy you’ll ever buy for any machine.

I got the clutches reassembled. That went ok, took a few attempts to figure out how to line up the outer teeth so the brake drum would slide over after the springs were put under tension but i figured it out.

I have started pressing the clutches back on the shaft but ran into an issue. I got it in the press ok and gave it all she had but Im not sure it seated far enough down on the shaft. The book gives a measurement between the drum face and shaft shoulder around 1/8". My gap was a hair over 1/4". Am i looking at this right?

IMHO you need a bigger press....
Effectively you have to get the drum about another 1/8" further on than it is right now.

Thanks, thats what i figured. The press i got is 20T but its from harbor freight so.... I hope a chunk of funk didnt get on the splines before i put it on there, i cleaned both sides off but i dont know. I took it back up to the shop to have them put it back together.

Thinking a bit more about it, it might be better to press the drums off and start again from scratch with a bigger press because the load it takes to move a drum that is already tight on the shaft can be more than what it would take to press it on to the shaft from a "slack" state, if you get my drift.

Nige said:

Thinking a bit more about it, it might be better to press the drums off and start again from scratch with a bigger press because the load it takes to move a drum that is already tight on the shaft can be more than what it would take to press it on to the shaft from a "slack" state, if you get my drift.

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And there is the chance there is a bit of crap or burrs that you did not notice before.

Yep, it always pays to buff the bejasus out of the splines with some wet & dry before putting it in the press.

Nige said:

Yep, it always pays to buff the bejasus out of the splines with some wet & dry before putting it in the press.

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Speaking of "buffing splines" wonder if it would help if I buffed my spine, some days it does not flex too smooth! And no comments on buffing other body parts. I know how sick some of you can be!

Sick? Whose sick!!! We all just have Dirty Minds!!

Do they make a spine lube?

Dont buff your spline or you will go blind.

Update: bad news
The shop cracked both hubs pressing them back on. They got it back together now but want to charge me $1800