So dealing with an older dozer that was supposed to be good to go. Reality is the driveline hydro system has issue. On this unit, the trans oil is drawn in by an engine driven gear pump, from the trans/steer clutch area, to supply pressurized oil to the trans, TC, steer clutches, and control valving.
That oil is filtered via a magnetic filter screen system just before the gear pump, and is post filtered with two larger filter units. The post filters have bypass ability so if they are clogged, they will bypass oil to get the job done.
So, on personal inspection, i have confirmed the magnetic filter is plugged to the hilt. Mostly silver fines but I did not totally pull the filter yet to confirm every issue. It was simply obvious the magnets were doing their job and this is the reason the pump cannot supply proper pressure/flow to the trans and clutches.
The post filters did not initially show major concerns but I did not actually pull them and cut them open because I have concerns that removal will put even more metal in the outlet side. Not sure how the system is designed.
It is obvious there is moisture in the system. There is still some black oil indicating this might be a condensate matter as I don't see many other water intrusion possibilities. When I drained the trans gear pump, I had black oil, gray oil, and even droplets of straight water.
The symptoms previously were a loss of trans hydro pressure in the system. I think I can confirm that at least the magnetic filter to the pump caused most of that. However, those don't foul for no reason and something either died or is dying. I would like to get some experienced thoughts on how to proceed? Is it cheaper to just buy cheap oil and try to rinse the system? Will that even work? Can we rig up a crash cart to filter things and try to revive it that way?
I do not have a current oil analysis. Was told it was high in "metals" but knowing what those are would help! However, without knowing the composition of materials in all of the system, it might still be a guess as to what is going on.
That oil is filtered via a magnetic filter screen system just before the gear pump, and is post filtered with two larger filter units. The post filters have bypass ability so if they are clogged, they will bypass oil to get the job done.
So, on personal inspection, i have confirmed the magnetic filter is plugged to the hilt. Mostly silver fines but I did not totally pull the filter yet to confirm every issue. It was simply obvious the magnets were doing their job and this is the reason the pump cannot supply proper pressure/flow to the trans and clutches.
The post filters did not initially show major concerns but I did not actually pull them and cut them open because I have concerns that removal will put even more metal in the outlet side. Not sure how the system is designed.
It is obvious there is moisture in the system. There is still some black oil indicating this might be a condensate matter as I don't see many other water intrusion possibilities. When I drained the trans gear pump, I had black oil, gray oil, and even droplets of straight water.
The symptoms previously were a loss of trans hydro pressure in the system. I think I can confirm that at least the magnetic filter to the pump caused most of that. However, those don't foul for no reason and something either died or is dying. I would like to get some experienced thoughts on how to proceed? Is it cheaper to just buy cheap oil and try to rinse the system? Will that even work? Can we rig up a crash cart to filter things and try to revive it that way?
I do not have a current oil analysis. Was told it was high in "metals" but knowing what those are would help! However, without knowing the composition of materials in all of the system, it might still be a guess as to what is going on.