if you know what you are doing and have the correct kit or the brains to work things out, I have 50 years+ in the pot and possibly done more F/Drives than anyone I know so I have the Badge and Stripes, think what work you want to or expect to get and don't waste coins on something you might never use, I have already said chop out pins and press in new don't waste your time pressing worn out crap and then you have to learn the secret of how to keep the link space correct to be able to fit the plate. tctractors
Tony..........I appreciate the feedback. Please understand, I'm starting with basically nothing and am looking to buy a good starter set. Yes, I understand you have a plethora of experience and knowledge doing this.......that is why I am inquiring from you. I wish, as do many others on here; that you were closer so that I could come and spend some time with you to learn your secrets and hard won knowledge regarding final drives and pin pushing. I want to be that sponge to soak up knowledge. I'd love to be able to know it all, but I don't..........I readily admit that.....hence the multiple questions.
When I was growing up, my family had a pile driving company. I soaked up whatever knowledge and experiences my father, uncles, and grandfather shared with me. Learned to drive tractor trailers in the yard when I was 10 or 12. Summers, my brother and I spent cleaning the boilers, painting the booms and cabs of cranes..........whatever we were told to do. Learned how to run cranes after we learned how to maintain them. I went to college and got my civil engineering degree because I was the heir apparent. Family in fighting destroyed the company while I finished college. Ended up working on a tugboat after being offered a job. Went from coastal tugs pushing fuel to ocean going boat. Worked my way up from deck ape to chief engineer and held a 200T masters/ 500T mates license. Have traveled from Venezuala to Quebec, Canada and every where in between. Experience of a lifetime!! That was in my 20's. Got tired of going away and put my college degree to use. Worked on the Big Dig in Boston for 10 years with one of the major heavy highway companies. Figured I'd be with them for life...............wrong. They went bankrupt. The bonding company ended up finishing their contracts. Got another job with another heavy highway company. Thought I had it made in the shade. Nice salary, $850/month vehicle allowance, fuel card, fast pass, and they provided 100% coverage for good health insurance to their engineers. 6 years with them.........my daughter was 2.........she was diagnosed with leukemia. My wife and daughter lived at Childrens hospital in Boston for 8 months during the worst part of her cancer and treatments (its all good now........she's 15 and strong and healthy). I ended up getting laid off 6 months into her treatments. I'll never......ever........forget that day when I walked into the hospital room at 1pm instead of showing up at 5pm as per routine. My wifes face brightened and she said "What a nicce suprise!! Your here early!!". Then she must have read my face and I had to tell I had just been laid off. Nothing but a number to them. The costs out weighed the benefits. Something I didn't know and found out a few years later..........the more you use the health insurance, the more it costs the company in premiums. I was costing the company a boatload with the insurance because my daughter got sick!! Found that out a few years after I got laid off from a friend in the company. That was when I made my decision to start my own repair business. I enjoyed the work, something I could do by myself, and I already had a bunch of tools........not nearly enough, but quite a bit more than I needed to start.
My biggest lament has been not being able to soak up ALL of my fathers, uncles, and grandfathers knowledge regarding construction and equipment repair. They could take a crane apart and have it back together again the next day, it seemed. I would have loved to be able to plug into their brains before they passed and copied all of that knowledge and put it into my head!! 2 generations of experience and knowledge gone!! And every new generation needs to learn it for themselves either the hard way or from someone who has been there and learned the ins and out.
So dude..........this is why I and others pepper you with questions and ask for your sage advice. So we can, hopefully; learn from your experiences and hard won knowledge.
So when you say I need to learn the secret of keeping the link spaced and you would have already had the job done and figuring the bill before the manufacturer had the bits installed and they started work.............great. Guess I'll just figure out for myself what might be a good starting point and entry press and hope I've made the best choice that I can expand on.
Not trying to be discourteous. I appreciate everything you've imparted and the time you've taken to reply. Your just being a little cryptic.
This is the rig I would get if I were starting and out and this is why.
This is what I do to keep the spacing between the links and why.
Thank you again........