How many hours your backhoe/machine have when main Hydraulic Pump needed servicing?

[joeeye59]

I'm curious to know whats been going on for people with their backhoes that are similar or like my 1988 JD 310c with how many hours you have gotten out of the main hydraulic pump before you needed to have it serviced and/or replaced?

I'm curious if there was a typical range of common hours to each specific machine thats known when to expect to find your hydraulic pump will be getting weak or going bad? Basically with regular service and taking good care of the unit.

I see from my service records my hydraulic pump had parts replaced at 4427 hours, not that it matters but the parts listed in case you can make sense of this list, the parts were a spring, cushion, cap screw, spacer, washer, plate, adapter.

Now I tried to cross reference the part numbers on the existing work order from back then in 1997 to a print out I got the other day of course in 2008 and none of the part numbers match, so its going to be hard for me to learn whats typically replaced perhaps for only weak pressure... this is what I wanted to learn if them parts were replaced to get back up to running pressure?

I have 9100 hours on it now, so it looks to be 4683 hours were put on the hyd pump with out any other servicing.... so I'd like to look into what I need to do to see if the hyd pump is weak or going bad.... am I correct to assume a hyd fluid oil sample can be tested to see if the hyd pump is going bad to catch it in time before it blows?

And at some point and place in the hyd lines I can hook up a gauge to look at the hyd pump pressure reading to see if its going weak?

thanks for any advice and input...

 

[bolt thrower]

Sounds like the work done @4427 hrs was on the flex-drive coupling for the pump, not the pump itself.

 

[rockdog]

Got a noisy pump on my JD. When I can post questions I'll ask for advice.

 

[AtlasRob]

There will certainly be pressure points on the system / pump to check the output and yes oil sampling will help to show wear in the system but really you need several samples over several hundred hours of operation to give a better guide.
Check out the " what it all means" in the lubrication threads to understand what the results mean.
I know from other posts you have done a lot of work on this machine, get an oil sample ASAP but dont have a fit over the results, then get another sample in a couple of hundred hours. Remember a blown hose resulting in adding a large quantity of fresh oil will corrupt the sample results and needs to be taken in to account when comparing the results.

 

[joeeye59]

Got a noisy pump on my JD. When I can post questions I'll ask for advice.

Please do post back right here, I'd like to know what you do with your pump

 

[joeeye59]

There will certainly be pressure points on the system / pump to check the output and yes oil sampling will help to show wear in the system but really you need several samples over several hundred hours of operation to give a better guide.
Check out the " what it all means" in the lubrication threads to understand what the results mean.
I know from other posts you have done a lot of work on this machine, get an oil sample ASAP but dont have a fit over the results, then get another sample in a couple of hundred hours. Remember a blown hose resulting in adding a large quantity of fresh oil will corrupt the sample results and needs to be taken in to account when comparing the results.

Thank You AtlasRob for the help. I'll do all that.... I want to keep on top of things thinking it will avoid bigger problems.

It must be nice to be a seasoned machine operator to be able to jump on any machine and to be able to listen to it for any mechanical sounds that are not normal prompting you to a mechanical issue

Being new to this its taking some getting use to the sounds, I don't know if the sounds I hear are normal for my machine... or if I may have a mechanical issue... My hyd pump is up front and it sounds quite, but when I'm in the seat I hear all kinds of different buzzing and whining sounds out of the hydraulics in different variations and rpm's and it drives me nuts being new to whats what...

 

[Deere450c]

About 20 seconds before the splines on the pump drive on my 450c went south I felt a slight vibration on the loader control handle. I never heard anything funny. Of course I sat the loader down to see if I could figure out what was wrong and when I decided I better get the loader up before it was too late it was.
The pump splines had stripped out but internally the pump looked like new. My JD parts manual shows the splined shaft but JD no longer offers individual parts for these pumps. I found our local driveline/hydraulic supplier could order the very same pump new, same model, even came with JD 450C part numbers on its tag. The best thing was it was only about one third of John Deere's price. Talk about markup!!
When I get the chance I am going to make up a new shaft for the old pump just so I have it ready in case I need a replacement. Might make up a few spares if someone else is in need.

tim

 

[joeeye59]

About 20 seconds before the splines on the pump drive on my 450c went south I felt a slight vibration on the loader control handle. I never heard anything funny. Of course I sat the loader down to see if I could figure out what was wrong and when I decided I better get the loader up before it was too late it was.
The pump splines had stripped out but internally the pump looked like new. My JD parts manual shows the splined shaft but JD no longer offers individual parts for these pumps. I found our local driveline/hydraulic supplier could order the very same pump new, same model, even came with JD 450C part numbers on its tag. The best thing was it was only about one third of John Deere's price. Talk about markup!!
When I get the chance I am going to make up a new shaft for the old pump just so I have it ready in case I need a replacement. Might make up a few spares if someone else is in need.

tim

I've been looking at an exploded view of my pump to see how its made, I'm yet to look at you're 450c pump but don't know the year of you're machine. Because of how JD have hugely changed the look/design of the 450c over the years it can be any number of pumps

You're spline that went bad, is this the kind of spline that sticks out of the exterior case of the pump picking up the power to spin and pump fluid off the mechanics of the engine power? either by belt or gear to gear drive?

I'm curious why the spline went bad... like what's connected to it and is it seizing up?

If you happen to have a link of you're pump please send it over, thanks...

 

[AtlasRob]

It must be nice to be a seasoned machine operator to be able to jump on any machine and to be able to listen to it for any mechanical sounds that are not normal

:lmao :falldownlaugh thanks joeeye, if I ever find one I'll let you know. My machine is fine now, I found where the volume control for the radio is and turn it up a bit if I hear something I dont like.

In all seriousness you are quite right to take notice of what your machine is telling you, it can save you a lot of money.
One of my biggest frights was as a 17yr old on a borrowed farm tractor with backhoe attachment that I was using to clean some ditches.
I didnt know that the area I had moved to was a low level flight training area for some of our RAF boys. One crossed above me at 90* and to say I nearly wet myself as I thought the tractor was going to explode is an understatement

 

[Sreamerbeast]

you will know if it going bad...It will squeal all the time when lifting something and its not because it is low in fluid i know it will do that if it is though

 

[joeeye59]

I want to operate my backhoe now that its been in the teens and 20º degree weather at night, little warmer in the day, the ground is still workable to move some soil around..... but.... even though I use the electric block heater before starting it I'm concerned if its worth it to operate it at that temp being I'm not on a job, I'm only fixing up my yard around my house.

So being its an older machine (1988) I feel like the mechanical components in line with the hydraulics as well as what ever else dont take too well to the cold will have a much higher rate of breaking, stick, failing making bigger problems from being very cold?

Anybody's advice, two cents, and experence are always welcome....

I have no long time experence with working these heavy equipment and really don't know anything...

 

[Turbo21835]

Dont worry about running it in the cold. The only thing you need to change is your warm up routine. Let the machine idle for a good 10-20 minutes. Before you start doing much of anything, start cycling the hydraulics. Do this by putting them through their range of motion. Dont put a load other than the weight of the machine parts. Cycle everything for 5 minutes, then youre ready to go

 

[joeeye59]

Dont worry about running it in the cold. The only thing you need to change is your warm up routine. Let the machine idle for a good 10-20 minutes. Before you start doing much of anything, start cycling the hydraulics. Do this by putting them through their range of motion. Dont put a load other than the weight of the machine parts. Cycle everything for 5 minutes, then youre ready to go

Thats a good cold start procedure... So I'll be doing that until the cold weather freezes the ground pretty hard so I won't be able to move the soil around anymore.

So far its been staying more warm in the mid day, and cold mostly at night, so the Sun is hitting the cab warming it up pretty good for day use, so after I have the engine block heater plugged in for a half hour or so it starts up pretty good, but unlike the summer time I have to hit the fuel peddle for it to start where in the summer I didn't have to.

 

[Bartlanz]

Dont worry about running it in the cold. The only thing you need to change is your warm up routine. Let the machine idle for a good 10-20 minutes. Before you start doing much of anything, start cycling the hydraulics. Do this by putting them through their range of motion. Dont put a load other than the weight of the machine parts. Cycle everything for 5 minutes, then youre ready to go

Thank you for this info, I am new to having a TLB and was wondering about this my self. I would like to keep my Case 580K around for as long as possible with minimal costs... rite... ointhead

 

[tuney443]

Thank you for this info, I am new to having a TLB and was wondering about this my self. I would like to keep my Case 580K around for as long as possible with minimal costs... rite... ointhead

Something else you might want to do--whenever it gets 20* or colder,I always warm up the entire drivetrain the same as you would a race car.Get your rear tires up in the air{front too if 4x4},stabilizers down,put her in gear,set your R's at app. 1200---warm her up.Simple.

 

[Deere John]

Something else you might want to do--whenever it gets 20* or colder,I always warm up the entire drivetrain the same as you would a race car.Get your rear tires up in the air{front too if 4x4},stabilizers down,put her in gear,set your R's at app. 1200---warm her up.Simple.

Yep - I do that too at temperatures below zero. One day, it was -30 and I was going to spend the day lifting snowbanks higher. I let the machine warm up like this (at 1200 rpm as well) for 30 minutes. I got a comment from a neighbour later saying that what he saw that day confirmed to him that I was now, in his mind, completely off my rocker. Oh well - he wasn't on the "lifting list" anyway.

 

[joeeye59]

Question about my "88" JD 310c backhoe....

I was thinking... at times it's been dipping into the 10º-20º at night, but usually the night time temps are around 20º-30º. and the day's sun brings the temps around 45º-55º. I haven't gone below a half tank of fuel being its common sense to keep it as full in the winter... But, by now should I have already be mixing in some kind of Winter fuel additive in the diesel fuel? Not sure if I'm cutting it close to making problems being I'm yet to do that, because soon with the months of December, January and February coming its going to bring even more colder raining weather.

Could I have already jeopardized anything so far?

I ask because I now have a moderate sweating type leak of diesel fuel dripping from around the fuel injector pump lines that go to the cylinders.

I'm not sure whats exactly leaking. and I'm not sure if it was like that when I bought it because the whole machine was cleaned up pretty good and painted, getting rid of any signs of oil leaks.... I'm guessing perhaps being its gotten colder the lines may need to be checked if they are snugged down tight enough, because metal does contract in the cold, especially if the injector pump was replaced in the dead of the summer heat on a hot engine, this might happen.

Perhaps I'm posting too much right now, but I wanted to get it out there, because of the things I'm finding and being new to all this I don't want to mess up this nice machine.

I do need to do some reading about what to expect from the hydraulic pump as far as the pressure it puts out in different temps... and where and how I check my hydraulic pump, like if it's still putting out an acceptable pressure..... The hydraulics seem weaker now, perhaps its not warming up all the way? or some other valve of some sort is not working correctly giving me a false indication its the hyd. pump...

Anybody like to shed some light is always appreciated, thanks...

 

[Steve Frazier]

I've found that I start having fuel issues at about 25 degrees or less. If you expect to have these temps, I'd recommend fuel treatment, I use 911.

I can't say if your fuel leak is related to the temps or not.

 

[joeeye59]

I've found that I start having fuel issues at about 25 degrees or less. If you expect to have these temps, I'd recommend fuel treatment, I use 911.

I can't say if your fuel leak is related to the temps or not.

Thanks, I'm going do that right away... Where do you get your 911? Fleet Pride? or any auto parts store? I never hear of it thats all.

Also, I noticed in the JD factory manual it says to use No.2 Diesel Fuel above 40º and No.1 Diesel Fuel below 40º.

So at Shell I thought I seen what the sulfur content was in their diesel fuel, but not quite sure if they sell No.1 or No.2.... I always thought the home heating fuel was #2 and the gas station was number #1...

Is this number 1 & 2 diesel fuel something I should pay attention to? not sure why its called out like that use #1 #2 under and over 40º... I thought I asked the dealer but forgot.

 

[Steve Frazier]

I get 911 at my NAPA store.

Wikipedia has a pretty good explanation of the different grades of fuel. Be aware you will experience higher fuel consumption and reduced power with the No 1 fuel over No 2 as there is less energy in it.