Thomas 233 Lift Cylinders

[bret2973]

I have a leak in both my lift cyclinders and need to get them redone..... I took off the right side and the front pin cam out no problem, but I can not get the back pin to move at all.... I removed the bolt that holds the pin in but is there a trick to this? do I hit the pin towards the motor or away from the motor? need help on this one

thanks in advance

Bret

 

[brdgbldr]

The pin probably has wear groves that will not allow it to come out. This is common on all machines.

Sometimes you can hammer them out. Other times you have to torch them out. I have had some luck drilling them out also. There are a lot of videos of how to get stuck pins out of machines on the inter-web.

It is sometimes possible to rebuild lift cylinders without removing the rear pin. The arms however need to be in the up position and make sure they can not come back down while working on the cylinder.

 

[bret2973]

The pin probably has wear groves that will not allow it to come out. This is common on all machines.

Sometimes you can hammer them out. Other times you have to torch them out. I have had some luck drilling them out also. There are a lot of videos of how to get stuck pins out of machines on the inter-web.

It is sometimes possible to rebuild lift cylinders without removing the rear pin. The arms however need to be in the up position and make sure they can not come back down while working on the cylinder.

When you say with a Torch do you mean heating it up and then trying to hit it out? or cutting it out with torch?

thanks

 

[brdgbldr]

When you say with a Torch do you mean heating it up and then trying to hit it out? or cutting it out with torch?

thanks

Both.

A torch is a last resort for me. Too much damage possible. A carbon air arc is more precise but not many people have the equipment needed.

There are several methods to remove pins. You just have to find one that you are comfortable trying or that you have the equipment for.

The most basic method I have used is drilling a hole through the pin. Sometimes this is enough to get the pin out. If you drill the hole big enough you can get a saw blade into it and cut grooves in the pin to allow it some give. Either way be very careful not to cut into the frame. This however takes forever so patients is key.

If only drill the hole part way through the pin this will give you a hole for a rod or bolt that then can more easily be hit with a hammer.

You can weld on high strength all-thread to the pin, place a large socket on it that is bigger than the pin, then using a high strength nut and washers, tighten the nut and pull the pin.

After drilling the hole all the way through, you can weld a rod or angle iron inside the hole and try to hammer it out. The weld will shrink and should help shrink the pin.

Good luck

 

[Jyuma1]

Pictures would be very helpful.
On my Thomas T133 I removed the lift cylinders, and as expected the rear pins were a bear to remove. I did get them out using an old pin I had laying around as a chase and a 5-pound sledgehammer. I pounded from the outside towards the engine compartment (yes, the pins went in far enough to free the cylinder but not far enough to remove the pin entirely). Turns out that the pins were slightly bent which is what made them difficult to remove, but once I had most of the pin exposed, oil made it a lot easier to pound them back in when the cylinders were put back.