Shop Talk Blog

When hurrying to reassemble your final drive motor, it’s tempting to torque one bolt and move on to the next adjacent bolt. But that isn’t a wise choice. In this Shop Talk Blog post, we’ll discuss why the sequence in which you tighten bolts is important and then look at what can go wrong when you don’t.

Here are a few other Shop Talk Blog posts you might enjoy:

• Bolts, Torque, and Final Drives
• Loctite and Final Drive Motors

Bolts fall under the category of mechanical fasteners whose job is to hold things together. Bolts not only hold your final drive together, but they also hold your drive motor to your machine. We know they must be extremely strong, considering the massive pressure within your final drive. However, how you install and torque them can compromise their ability to hold things together.

Our body works hard to keep itself at about 98.6 F. When exposed to heat for long periods, it will start experiencing complications. One way to prevent those problems is to stay hydrated.

We aren't the only things that can overheat in the summer! Here are some Shop Talk blog posts about overheating equipment:

• What Causes Hydraulic Fluid to Overheat
• How to Troubleshoot and Overheating Gearbox on a Final Drive
• 7 Quick Tips for Skid Steer Maintenance in Extreme Weather

Our body works hard to keep itself at about 98.6 F. When exposed to heat for long periods, it will start experiencing complications.

Many years ago, my brother-in-law worked for the water department in a small city here in Texas. James was a tough guy, used to working in the heat. One day, however, he overheated and suffered a heat stroke. My sister, also working for the city then, told us they’d stripped him to his underwear and poured ice and water over him after placing him in the bed of one of the city trucks. And let me clarify by saying that the truck bed was lined, so they didn’t add any skin burns to the heat stroke.

Particles are tiny solids, and when they get into your hydraulic fluid, they will definitely cause problems! In this blog post, we’ll look at the types of particles that can contaminate hydraulic oil, their effect on your equipment, and the measures you can take to keep them out.

Here are some other blog posts you might find helpful:

• Hydraulic Hoses and Final Drives
• Load Sensing Final Drive Motors
• Hydraulic Motor Drive Shafts

It’s never good when a final drive motor stalls or gets jammed, especially on the job site. But here’s an outline of typical causes and how we diagnose them.

Here are a few Shop Talk Blog posts you might find interesting:

• Revisiting the Topic of Gear Oil
• Load Sensing Final Drive Motors
• Gear Oil Part 1: How to Troubleshoot Gear Oil Problems with Your Final Drives

Learn how we diagnose a weak final drive motor.

Here are a few other Shop Talk Blog posts you might be interested in:

• Hydraulic Hoses and Final Drives
• CTL / MTL Undercarriage Basics
• Preventing Hydraulic Contamination

The Bobcat RougeX is a new autonomous or remote-control concept machine that will eventually serve as a fully electric track-loader platform.

Here are a few other Shop Talk Blog posts you might find interesting:

• Off-Planet Mining Equipment
• Built Robotics: Are Robots Going to Replace Operators?
• Electric Compact Equipment:: What Does it Mean?

Failure in a final drive motor is always bad -- but a good understanding of basic metal failure can help understand what causes it and lead to a better understanding of metal behavior in general.

In this Shop Talk blog post, you'll learn about basic metal failure and the material properties that explain it. This includes an introduction to tensile testing, a discussion of key metal parameters, and an example of how these parameters can vary.

Here are two other blogs in this series:

Dr Mac's Notebook: Basics of Mechanical Stress

Dr Mac’s Notebook: Displacement Under a Load

One of the most important relationships for final drive motors ties together power, torque, and speed -- and understanding this relationship can help you troubleshoot your final drive motor.

Here are a few other blog posts you might find helpful:

• 5 Reasons a Final Drive Can Lack Power
• Torque, Traction, and Horsepower
• 3 Critical Questions About Single-Speed and Dual-Speed Final Drives

Oil seals are used on the final drive motor axle to keep the gear oil for the planetary gear set or bearings from mixing with hydraulic oil. These seals are vital to the operation and performance of your final drive motor -- and learning how they can fail is essential.