763 Steering Issue - Found Problem

[SpaceCase614]

I had issues where the left side would want to walk forward. i got diagrams from the service manual to adjust neutral and after popping the cab up and taking a look I saw right away what the problem was. The rear cam that is bolted from underneath the aluminum arm is loose. Problem is that it won't tighten, the bolt underneath will thread so far in then start to spin. This lets the cam move around and one of the things that happened yesterday when clearing the driveway was I lost the ability to go forward on the left side. I think it just unthreaded enough and the bolt head jammed in because one I threaded it back down as far as it would go I could push the left stick forward. Sooo .. to fix it I need to take the top plate off which just looks like a heavy spring on one end then it should slide off the two pins, then I can see the aluminum arm. Anyone know if I'll be able to get at the bolt head from there or if I'll have to take the arm off. Also, any ideas how to get that spring off, it seems like it's under a lot of tension.

 

[jerry]

I have seen the solution for that spring removal posted here somewhere, I think it involved running a threaded rod through it with nuts and washers to control it but thats been a long time ago

 

[Tazza]

I have seen the solution for that spring removal posted here somewhere, I think it involved running a threaded rod through it with nuts and washers to control it but thats been a long time ago

The way i saw it done was with a few heavy duty cable ties, run it through the top and bottom coils to compress it, i'd use a few to take the load. Remove the nut holding it in place and you are good to go.
You can do it without the cable ties, but it's hard to get back in. I had to get my GF to assist by holding a pry bar to compress the spring while i tried to put the nut back on, it took about 15 minutes of trying and a bit of whining from the gf as it was taking too long, but we got there.

 

[Bobcatdan]

The way i saw it done was with a few heavy duty cable ties, run it through the top and bottom coils to compress it, i'd use a few to take the load. Remove the nut holding it in place and you are good to go.
You can do it without the cable ties, but it's hard to get back in. I had to get my GF to assist by holding a pry bar to compress the spring while i tried to put the nut back on, it took about 15 minutes of trying and a bit of whining from the gf as it was taking too long, but we got there.

Any signs of a hydraulic leak on top by the arms? Normally the pintal shaft seals leak causing the arm to loosen on the shaft. If they are loose, they are junk, replace them. The spring isn't under a lot of pressure and canbe removed as is. To install, like Tazza said, press it in a vise and zip tie. Look over the blocks and cams for wear as these need to good shape to adjust propperly.

 

[TriHonu]

Any signs of a hydraulic leak on top by the arms? Normally the pintal shaft seals leak causing the arm to loosen on the shaft. If they are loose, they are junk, replace them. The spring isn't under a lot of pressure and canbe removed as is. To install, like Tazza said, press it in a vise and zip tie. Look over the blocks and cams for wear as these need to good shape to adjust propperly.

To compress the spring before you secure it with Zip Ties, pull the right steering lever to the rear and put a 3/8" spacer between the Pintle Arm Cam ( the short round piece bolted to the aluminum pintle arm) and the block it was resting against.
Next push the right steering lever forward. The cam with the spacer will now move the steel plate further to the right compressing the spring. You can now place an inch or longer spacer between the top steel plate and the L shaped steel bracket bolted to the top of the pump.
This will hold the spring compressed until you get the Zip Ties in place.
Remove the two spacers and remove the bolt holding the spring in place.

 

[Fishfiles]

To compress the spring before you secure it with Zip Ties, pull the right steering lever to the rear and put a 3/8" spacer between the Pintle Arm Cam ( the short round piece bolted to the aluminum pintle arm) and the block it was resting against.
Next push the right steering lever forward. The cam with the spacer will now move the steel plate further to the right compressing the spring. You can now place an inch or longer spacer between the top steel plate and the L shaped steel bracket bolted to the top of the pump.
This will hold the spring compressed until you get the Zip Ties in place.
Remove the two spacers and remove the bolt holding the spring in place.

I never used the zip tie method , sounds good but time consuming , I have gotten really good at threading the nut while compressing the spring with a 3 ft pry bar which has a slight angle at the end ( which was a stock bend ) , the bar fits against the side the machine and the tip on the head of the bolt , it takes very little force to get a thread or two out the nut side of the plate , you do have to have some coordination to hold the bar and thread the nut with the other hand , older machine don't have a window like the new ones , the window allows you to put the nut in from the top easily , ------------ I got a tool I put together years ago , simple and gets the job done but very seldom use it as this is really an easy job once you get the feel for it , I drilled a hole in the end of my old school 7 series drive belt adjustment tool and welded a 9/16 socket to a piece of steel plate , drilled one hole thru the plate and attached the socket to the end of the bar , socket on the head of the spring bolt and pry against the side frame and it will go right in and not slip off the bolt

 

[SpaceCase614]

I never used the zip tie method , sounds good but time consuming , I have gotten really good at threading the nut while compressing the spring with a 3 ft pry bar which has a slight angle at the end ( which was a stock bend ) , the bar fits against the side the machine and the tip on the head of the bolt , it takes very little force to get a thread or two out the nut side of the plate , you do have to have some coordination to hold the bar and thread the nut with the other hand , older machine don't have a window like the new ones , the window allows you to put the nut in from the top easily , ------------ I got a tool I put together years ago , simple and gets the job done but very seldom use it as this is really an easy job once you get the feel for it , I drilled a hole in the end of my old school 7 series drive belt adjustment tool and welded a 9/16 socket to a piece of steel plate , drilled one hole thru the plate and attached the socket to the end of the bar , socket on the head of the spring bolt and pry against the side frame and it will go right in and not slip off the bolt

No leakage anywhere that I can see. The aluminum arm seem solid, it's just that one cam that's loose. I'll pull it apart tonight and get it all tightened .. hopefully. Other than that steering issue which has popped up from time to time that I didn't know why the machine has been running great. Should have my crossover relief valve today so I can hook up my hydraulics on my plow.

 

[Tazza]

No leakage anywhere that I can see. The aluminum arm seem solid, it's just that one cam that's loose. I'll pull it apart tonight and get it all tightened .. hopefully. Other than that steering issue which has popped up from time to time that I didn't know why the machine has been running great. Should have my crossover relief valve today so I can hook up my hydraulics on my plow.

Depending on how long the alloy arm has been loose, you may need a new one. They wear and no matter how much you tighten it, it will not hold in place. I actually reapaired a set for my S250 by throwing them in the mill and making them over size and using shims to take up the space. Worked a treat.
I'd have bought new, but it was a sunday that i started it....

 

[SpaceCase614]

Depending on how long the alloy arm has been loose, you may need a new one. They wear and no matter how much you tighten it, it will not hold in place. I actually reapaired a set for my S250 by throwing them in the mill and making them over size and using shims to take up the space. Worked a treat.
I'd have bought new, but it was a sunday that i started it....

The arm isn't loose, it's solid, it's the round cam on top of the arm that was loose.

 

[Tazza]

The arm isn't loose, it's solid, it's the round cam on top of the arm that was loose.

Ah good, far easier job then.