maintenance ideas

rongarrett

New member

Equipment
M7040 SU
Nov 10, 2011
55
0
0
Newnan Georgia
Just got thru changing the hyd oil and filters on new M70 40. turned out to be a messy job. Got er done, but looking for easier way. Used empty five gallon buckets to catch old fluid. Really shoots out of tractor. Ran first bucket over. Hard to get plug back in to stop flow so bucket will not overfill. Let hardware store talk me into manual operated pump. Ended up throwing it in trash can. Taped a funnel in place and climbed on tractor with 5 gallon full of Super EDT. Gotta be better way.
 

Bulldog

Well-known member

Equipment
M 9000 DTC, L 3000 DT
Mar 30, 2010
5,440
73
48
Rocky Face, Georgia
A cut off 55 gal drum makes a good catch pan. As for filling I bought my oil in a 55 gallon drum and put a fill-rite push/pull pump with a 20' hose. Makes things much easier and cleaner.
 

Hook

Member

Equipment
L3240 with LA514 FEL, Box Blade, Howard Rotovator, All Purpose Plow, Sub Soiler
Jul 6, 2010
212
6
18
Jackson, Georgia
When I serviced my tractor I loosened the hyd filter and caught about 5 gallons. By loosening the filter rather than take a drain plug out, I was able to tighten it back when the catch pan started getting nearly full. After draining as much as I could out of the filter I took the drain plug out and got the rest. Mine holds 11 gallons of SUDT. I have heard of others who would drive one side of the tractors wheels up on a block or something to raise one side so they wouldn't lose so much when they took the plug out or filter off. For refilling a big funnel is fastest but it can be awkward pouring from a 5 gallon bucket into a filler hole which is about mid sternum high. I placed the replacement hyd fluid bucket on the tractor behind the seat above the filler hole. Then I submerged a syphon hose in the hyd fluid and filled the hose. Finally I placed my finger over the end of the hose to plug it and inserted it into the filler hole and syphoned it in. It takes a while but there was no mess. To catch the old fluid I used two plastic mud pans from Home Depot. I call them mud pans but they are used to mix thinset and such when installing a tile floor. Hope this helps.
 

bcbull378

Member

Equipment
GL3830,fel,brush hog,pallet forks,disc,gannon,auger,springtooth,plow,drag,ripper
Sep 6, 2011
579
27
18
Ventura Ca
My L3830 holds 11 1/2 gallons of fluid so when I drain it I got one of those large plastic tubs with the rope handles you see at Walmart that people use as open top ice chests had to cut abot 4 inches off the top but it'l hold all the hydr fluid. Then when I refill the tractor I transfer the old fluid back into the 2 1/2 gallon jugs and take it to the recycle center, No mess no fuss.
 

300zx

New member

Equipment
1979 B7100D, 2009 ZG20, 1991 B2150, 1990 B6200
Dec 1, 2010
445
1
0
Forest, VA
Ron, I have been using a vacuum oil extractor for last two years for engine, transmission and other oil reservoirs. I usually stick the suction pipe in the dipstick hole or fill hole. It uses an air line extractor to pull a vacuum on the tank in about a minute. Once the siphon has started, it takes very little vacuum to keep it going. I realize six gallon wouldn't hold all of your transmission fluid, so you can shut it off to empty it or I know they make bigger tanks. My car dealer has a 30 oil extractor he uses on Mercedes and Mercury's which is where I first saw one and got me started. I got mine at Harbor Freight:

http://www.harborfreight.com/6-1-4-quarter-gallon-oil-extractor-46149.html

My car has a cartridge type filter on the side of the engine, so with the oil siphon for the crankcase oil, I don't even have to get under the car to change the oil.

John
 

ETRon

New member

Equipment
M6040
Aug 4, 2010
128
0
0
Tellico Plains, TN
Just get one of those 18 gallon foot locker or whatever ya want to call them from Walmart or the like. Only concerns are capacity to hold over the 15 gallons and height so you can carefully slide it out. I used a cut open 1 gallon container to empty the drain oil back into the 5 gal. pails the new oil was in so I could dispose of it.
 

Stumpy

New member

Equipment
L175
Dec 1, 2011
848
3
0
NE Ohio
There is a better way. There's a reason the top of my transmission is still off. :) As for draining it I did it with two oil catch pans. Stuck the plug back in between pan swaps. Dump one into the 5 gal bucket while the other is filling. It's a little tricky getting the plug back in but I've had plenty of practice (used to work at a quick lube) and the gloves make it easier.

The only problem I have with the oil extractor is it doesn't clean out as much of the gunk sitting on the bottom of the case as draining through the plug does. To drain differentials that didn't have a drain plug we would hook up a line to our diaphragm pump and do it that way. We experimented once on the differential of my coworker's truck. Drained it with the pump and then pulled the drain plug to see what was it didn't pull out. We got a quarter cup of sludgey gear oil that had plenty of suspended metal particles in it. I'd recommend doing the last few quarts with the drain plug if you use an extractor.
 

rongarrett

New member

Equipment
M7040 SU
Nov 10, 2011
55
0
0
Newnan Georgia
Just curious, how much fluid does the 7040 hold? My 9000 takes about 20 gallons.
Holds just shy of 15 gallons. I would not have had as big a mess as I did if I had something to hold the 15 gallons in without running over. There are two drain plugs. Rear one holds most of the fluid. Front one only a couple quarts. My idea for doing it again, {other tractors I have to service in the barn}, is to get a 12 volt operated transfer pump and just pump the fluid in. Also a big enough container. I ain't getting any younger and climbing around on the three point hitch with a full five gallons of super UDT isn't the best thing for me. The pump would also transfer any liquid to whateveer container I wanted to fill. Anyone use one? Model? Cost? Not due for another Fluid change for awhile, but the pump would come in handy for oil changes as well. One thing I found out. The oil filter on my tractor is so close to other items that you can't get a standard oil filter wrench {band type} on it. My boss had a special oil filter set of pliers though that worked like a charm. Seems the Japnese have never heard of "hand tight".
 

Bulldog

Well-known member

Equipment
M 9000 DTC, L 3000 DT
Mar 30, 2010
5,440
73
48
Rocky Face, Georgia
I use Fill-Rite push/pull hand pumps for my hyd and engine oil. They cost about $150 or so. Been using them for years and have never had any trouble.