What would you do?

[Elbow]

Hey guys looking for some starting advice.... Picked up a L35 that runs great but leaks everything, seems to start right up and have nice power but when stopped milky hydro fluid leaks out, oil from under the engine, and looks like out of a wheel .... Engine oil is full, hydro fluid barely registers and is milky,.... Where should I start? was thinking about throwing in a few gallons of hydro fluid and pulling it out of the garage to power wash and drop the bucket, and bring it back in for further investigation... Any thoughts? Thanks Craig

 

[deaop06]

First of all the hydro fluid has water in it. Not good. It all depends what you want to invest in this machine . The wheels have seals that will need fixed. If I were going to keep it I would get all the hydro fluid out and clean and dry the tank. Fix the wheel seal. Then find out where the engine is leaking. Could be valve cover or the main seals. You may need a service manual to refer to. I have repaired and used two skids and you have a lot of time and money invested. Parts can be hard to get. I make all the gaskets I can. Only when you have repairs made and all new fluids and filters replaced do you run it. Good luck.

 

[Tazza]

First of all the hydro fluid has water in it. Not good. It all depends what you want to invest in this machine . The wheels have seals that will need fixed. If I were going to keep it I would get all the hydro fluid out and clean and dry the tank. Fix the wheel seal. Then find out where the engine is leaking. Could be valve cover or the main seals. You may need a service manual to refer to. I have repaired and used two skids and you have a lot of time and money invested. Parts can be hard to get. I make all the gaskets I can. Only when you have repairs made and all new fluids and filters replaced do you run it. Good luck.

Good question.... If it leaks out of all it's orifices, you are kinda wasting your time giving the system a real good clean just yet.
I'd start by pumping all the oil out you can then re-filling with fresh cheap oil, be it engine or hydraulic oil. Run the machine a bit and dump it again, re-fill then start chasing your leaks.
I'd start at one spot and fix the leak, move on and on till they are all clean.
Once you have most of the oily bits done, you can then concentrate on more oil flushes.
IF you are planning on a full strip of the machine to do the leaks, there is no point flushing the oil, as you will have all the parts off and you can blow them out with compressed air.
I have re-built machine from the ground up, so all the oil was removed and the system was squeaky clean.

 

[Elbow]

Good question.... If it leaks out of all it's orifices, you are kinda wasting your time giving the system a real good clean just yet.
I'd start by pumping all the oil out you can then re-filling with fresh cheap oil, be it engine or hydraulic oil. Run the machine a bit and dump it again, re-fill then start chasing your leaks.
I'd start at one spot and fix the leak, move on and on till they are all clean.
Once you have most of the oily bits done, you can then concentrate on more oil flushes.
IF you are planning on a full strip of the machine to do the leaks, there is no point flushing the oil, as you will have all the parts off and you can blow them out with compressed air.
I have re-built machine from the ground up, so all the oil was removed and the system was squeaky clean.

Thanks guys, when you say cheap oil what is an example of something I can throw in to move it around a bit and fix the leaks? Thanks

 

[deaop06]

Thanks guys, when you say cheap oil what is an example of something I can throw in to move it around a bit and fix the leaks? Thanks

I got hydro fluid at Rural King for 15.99 /5gal. It is 303 and I used it to flush and used new to run on. Still running after a year. It was on sale. They will ship it to you free if you buy over $100. Tractor Supply was 22.99 for same stuff. Thats as cheap as I could find. If you can buy oil cheaper you can flush with it.

 

[Elbow]

I got hydro fluid at Rural King for 15.99 /5gal. It is 303 and I used it to flush and used new to run on. Still running after a year. It was on sale. They will ship it to you free if you buy over $100. Tractor Supply was 22.99 for same stuff. Thats as cheap as I could find. If you can buy oil cheaper you can flush with it.

Thanks for the info, there's one like an hour away from me.... I'm gonna pick some of that up to flush it out for sure.... I just picked p some for 40 a 5 gallon so that's a good savings..... Thanks