HanSolo
Well-known member
- Joined
- Sep 11, 2012
- Messages
- 299
I've been having a lot of hoses come loose lately on my 843. I attribute that to working it hard and poor maintenance prior to my ownership. Latest incidence caught me by surprise though. I'm back-dragging a leech field area to dress it up and the control sticks start to get "sticky". It's hard to describe but it's a different feel and the hydrostatic drive is whining fairly loud. The hydraulic functions also begin to get jerky. So I take the machine up to it's parking spot and check the hydraulic fluid level. It's 3X the normal level and foamy. I'm thinking this can't be good and shut her down. Oddly, there's no leaking observable. So I figure I'll move on to another chore (weed eating) and post the symptoms here later for the next step. As I'm trimming around the machine, I noticed a substantial hydraulic leak has developed in the last 15 minutes (with the machine off and parked). It's losing fluid at a alarming rate so I'm flipping the cab and looking hard for the source. A hydraulic hose from the filter to the front pump is REALLY loose. Practically off the pipe nipple. So apparently the loose hose was allowing air to be pulled into the system which foamed it up and increased volume in the reservoir. I'm actually glad now that the leak made it fairly easy to find the source. I'm going to make a habit of checking the hoses anytime I'm under the cab from now on.