bushing
The Cat 305 I just recently bought had some wobble in the bottom hole on the stick(pin that holds the bucket on). No big deal I thought, bought new pin, bushings. Went to install them, removed old pin moved bucket out of the way and seen that it has actually been the bushings wearing on the stick, so the old bushings pulled out with my fingers and new ones pushed in by hand. I put it back together with all the old parts because figured running all new stuff isn't going to tighten it up any and probably ruine new parts. Whats the method for fixing this? boring it out round and running a little larger outter diameter bushing?
I have done it the quick way and the proper way
quick way Redneck way (Im a Redneck, so I can say this)
remove the bushings and weld the worn areas and use a grinding stone to grind the weld, so the bushing will fit tight, keep checking the bushing and pin so they fit proper. Its best to use just a under size grinding wheel to keep it round. Example, if the OD of the bushing is 2 1/4", use a 2 " grinding wheel on a large die grinder or fast turning drill. When you get it to fit tight all the way in, take it out and clean it good and put Loctite on the bushing and drive them in. They must be tight or they will just wear out quicker.
Proper way
Get a machine shop to remove the old end, make you a new one and weld it back on. VERY IMPORTANT!!!! make sure they weld the new end, properly aligned with the stick. A friend of mine had this done and they didnt get it welded true to the stick and the bucket was always at a slight angle and trying to dig a flat bottom ditch with a angled bucket, isnt easy. It should have made them cut it off and do it right.
A lot of times, you can buy bushing stock from machine shops, cheaper than the dealer, it may not be to specs (hardness) but if youre digging in mud it really doesnt matter, they both are going to wear out, so to me the cheaper is better
Bucket ear replacement
If your bucket ears are worn into the bucket, I have had a bushing (donut) made and cut the hole out in the bucket ears (with a torch) and put a temporary pin in both bushing to align the bushings (donuts) together. You need to taper the hole in the ears so you can get a welding pass inside also.
Just weld a little at the time on each bushing, turning the pin to make sure the weld doesnt pull the bushing
#2 example
weld the bushings (donuts) on the outside of the bucket, you might need a longer pins and this works OK on the smaller machines
Good Luck