Power major hydraulics suddenly quit working

[scottyboy]

The screen was really filthy full of ice and dirt. I replaced with new oil. Is it possible everything would need to be flushed out somehow? Im hoping it will stay working im not sharp at all with hydraulics. If not ill have to take those steps you've listed i appreciate the help!

[blackbob]

I know this isn't very helpful, as I haven't much experience of the Major's hydraulics internals - but it seems to me that there must be a droplet (or more) of water somewhere, which is causing the problem when it freezes?

But.. why don't the detergents in the oil dissolve the water? Or could it be somewhere that isn't in contact with the oil?

[scottyboy]

Thats kind of what i was thinking myself. But im not sure how i could get all that water out. It gets a little to expensive to keep changing the oil.

[RH]

Gas -line antifreeze would work, it absorbs I think 10 times its own weight in water.
What's the proper name?...can't think of it at present! Methyl Hydrate, that's the stuff.

Would it hurt anything if a cup -full was dumped in the hydraulic oil???

[shepp]

Hi scottyboy

If your filter was that bad then it is highly likely that there is emulsified oil/water in the valve block, which freezes up and causes one of the valves to stick, probably the check valve, resulting in the hydraulics failing to work. Emulsified oil will freeze as it is part water.

I don't know about Methyl Hydrate, but if you do not fancy a dismantling job then what you could try whilst the hydraulics are working is to give the tractor some hard work for a few hours to get the oil in the rear axle warm. Give the hydraulics plenty of use, you could even warm up the valve block with a hot air gun. Persistent flow of fresh warm oil through the block might flush out water and emulsified oil from the block and the check and relief valves. The hydraulics on these tractors will stand a lot of abuse with water and dirt contamination, it's just that yours has probably gone over the top, that filter might never have been out after the tractor passed it's warranty period! Don't worry about getting every drop of water out of the back end, that should not be necessary. If it stops again, then warm up the valve block with a hot air gun to get it working again. It might eventually sort itself out.

[oehrick]

Any mileage in having the filler plug out?, can't see much through it IIRC but might hear sound of a leak otherwise smothered by the casting.

Rightly or wrongly I still think suction problem, you hear oil flow on the pressure side, on tickover with cold oil you should hear the revs vary if you push the PTO lever out of gear.

With no pressure gauge available, unscrew the trailer pipe coupling, push a short bit of hose over the pipe long enough to go into the filler hole* and see what oil flow there is with the lever lifted at tickover then bring up the revs, its a lower resistance path than through the PRV so you should see oil proportional to revs, pressure is a different matter but you can gauge it roughly by squeezing the pipe with pliers.

* I keep a bit long enough to go into the gearbox filler as my middle oilseal leaks and the back end fills up

[scottyboy]

Hi i just wanted to update everyone on the problem. I finally solved the issue. I used a heat gun on the lift valve block and it has worked ever since there must have been some ice making the valves not work. .

[oehrick]

Great news scottyboy, OK until the next hard frost perhaps or if it was a slug of wet deadheading valve movement hopefully it'l go back to living down in the sump where it ought to

Back in the days of steam traction engines those involved in emergency heavy recovery etc couldn't afford the time to shove 400 gallons of freezing cold water into a dry boiler (ice does really nasty, terminal things to boilers and fireboxes) and then some hours to boil up from cold, they used to leave a near full boiler, take one of the inspection doors so they could spot any ice flows forming and left a 40 or 60 watt bulb on in the firebox, 24/7 this kept the water warm enough to avoid freezing damage and warm enough to have steam up in an hour. I've seen photos of a loco left stranded on the line during the 1947/48 freeze, on the flat sides of the firebox the expanding ice had pushed the sides out in between the stays (the grid of rivets or studs holding the inside and outside firebox sides in place) so badly it looked like one of those sofa backs which have the buttons forming dimples in the covering material.

[shepp]

Hello scottyboy

That is a good outcome, as I said the problem was likely to be minor but obscure and I am pleased for you that my suggestion to use a hot air gun on the valve block has worked. It is likely that the check valve was sticking due to frozen emulsified oil. If you give the hydraulics plenty of use when your climate is warmed up and the oil in the transmission is warm the valve block should be cleansed of emulsified oil. The problem would be unlikely to recur, but if it does you know the solution - and keep the transmission oil clean!

Best wishes