Hopper Incline Auger Gearbox Reliability Fix
Oct 21, 2023 14:24:02 GMT -6
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Post by bigal on Oct 21, 2023 14:24:02 GMT -6
So I posted this on the old combine forum as well, but figured I would post it here too.
So I was feeling a bit inspired to post about a fix for above mentioned reliability issue, at least in our experience. So I don't know if our experience is an anomaly or not, but it seems like we were not alone, and it also seems JD isn't the only manufacturer with the issue. Anyway, a few years ago, when my boss still ran a 9600, it seemed to be a somewhat common occurance for the bearings to fail on that gearbox. Seals blowing out appears to have been the cause. We even tried using corn head grease once, with no success. Then my boss hit upon the idea of putting in a breather on the gearbox, because for some reason, they don't have one from factory. So we took out the dipstick, threaded in the necessary fittings to adapt to 1/4 inch barbed fitting. We attached a clear plastic hose to that,and led it so the other end hung outside the hopper. The end was covered with a ziptied on rag to keep dust out. Fairly low tech, but we never had that gearbox give trouble for the remainder of our time running the 9600. When we upgraded to a 9770, that was, I think the first modification we did to it. We've had no trouble with that gearbox whatsoever over the 4 harvests we've now ran it. I've probably jinxed it now. 😬 I don't know if that gearbox has even been a weak point on the 70 series, but take it for what it's worth.🤷♂️😃 It's a cheap thing to do, and the only real downside is it is slightly more annoying to check the oil level on it now. Maybe this will help someone who is as frustrated with this issue as we were.
So I was feeling a bit inspired to post about a fix for above mentioned reliability issue, at least in our experience. So I don't know if our experience is an anomaly or not, but it seems like we were not alone, and it also seems JD isn't the only manufacturer with the issue. Anyway, a few years ago, when my boss still ran a 9600, it seemed to be a somewhat common occurance for the bearings to fail on that gearbox. Seals blowing out appears to have been the cause. We even tried using corn head grease once, with no success. Then my boss hit upon the idea of putting in a breather on the gearbox, because for some reason, they don't have one from factory. So we took out the dipstick, threaded in the necessary fittings to adapt to 1/4 inch barbed fitting. We attached a clear plastic hose to that,and led it so the other end hung outside the hopper. The end was covered with a ziptied on rag to keep dust out. Fairly low tech, but we never had that gearbox give trouble for the remainder of our time running the 9600. When we upgraded to a 9770, that was, I think the first modification we did to it. We've had no trouble with that gearbox whatsoever over the 4 harvests we've now ran it. I've probably jinxed it now. 😬 I don't know if that gearbox has even been a weak point on the 70 series, but take it for what it's worth.🤷♂️😃 It's a cheap thing to do, and the only real downside is it is slightly more annoying to check the oil level on it now. Maybe this will help someone who is as frustrated with this issue as we were.
