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I am going to see if draining/flushing worked to keep the temperature down once the weather starts to warm up. If it still runs hot, I will check with you on doing the process and supplies I will need to do the major flush.
Looked at your pictures, you have some impressive pristine equipment. See you have rubber tracks, is it because you are on and off highways a lot? Do they grip as well as steel tracks? Any advantages?
Tried to remove the other plug but it is on so tight I can’t budge it… That was the plan, take a look at the other one.
I had the mechanic change oil/filter, fuel filter, drain and check the radiator. He didn’t find anything not flowing as it should.
I tried changing the oil and fuel filter earlier. Wouldn’t budge and the parts Nortrac gave me originally were so far off that I could see that the fuel filter I bought with the numbers they gave me was about half the size of the filter installed. I was afraid IF I used extra force and screwed up the original taking it off, I had nothing to put on temporarily.
I added some antifreeze to top off the radiator. Bought what was recommended to mix but am suspicious that it didn’t blend in. However, actually added very little. Since I got it back and have run it a bit on a warm day, temperature stayed pretty normal. Maybe draining/flushing fixed that issue???
Next issue to fix is the steering brakes. Will try myself but if all goes to hell, will have the mechanic do it. He makes house calls and has worked on my brothers farm equipment.
Appreciate your input.
First, you “assumed” just because I didn’t spell it out for you that I didn’t check out the dozer before I used it. Remember, assume makes an ASS out of U and ME… I owned several motorcycles and if you had the desire to come back in one piece, you had to do a damn good job checking out everything BEFORE you climbed on. Found nuts loose on the dozer during several occasion that needed tightening. Check radiator, oil, hydraulic tank level, etc. So, your assumption of me not checking the dozer before I use it was a waste of your typing skills.
Been under the dozer plenty. Read my original message, they didn’t bother trying to keep the wire up high enough to keep it from catching on just plain dead weeds, didn’t occur going through brush, just dead weeds on the edge of a field. Am always careful about brush, have stopped several times to cut brush/limbs off areas because they were wedged where just backing up could rip off a hose. Told Bob Daily at Nortrac they needed to get the wires up out of the way. He said he was going to tell the assembly group to make sure the wires aren’t drooping. That and a dime won’t get you a cup of bad coffee…
Should I have crawled under the dozer to see the cotter pin was opened to prevent it from falling out when I lost all control of the left side turning ability???
The guy that fixed the clutch showed me the manual and how the clutch was inserted in the bottom hole position for the brake and the brake was inserted in the top hole for the clutch. Actually crossed. He said he had to reverse the adjustment they had made at the factory to get it where it should have been. He was amazed to the stupidity for something that simple. I wasn’t, already had seen plenty of stupid or lazy quality control issues.
I have checked the all the possible basic things for the radiator overheating. Pulled out the thermostat and did a test to see if it was working/opening. Watched the flow of the fluid through the radiator with the cap off. Was moving normally. Keep checking the oil dip stick to see it’s NOT rising from antifreeze leaking into the motor. Clean off the front of the radiator constantly. Had the mechanic drain and replace the antifreeze. Said he found no blockage anywhere. Seemed to overheat faster when I was in reverse just smoothing off bumps/lumps with the blade floating over the ground. That should be the process that takes minimum effort/power.
I crawled under the dozer and took pictures of the hole with the missing plug and sent it to Nortrac. It clearly showed where it’s at by the rest of the area in the picture, including part of the right rear side of the track. I even measured it so they would know which plug it is. Probably one of the largest on the bottom of the dozer. They sent something that was about 3/4 of the size needed. Wasn’t the first time I tried to get the damn plug. I gave up.
I bought plenty of stuff from Northern and saw the dozer in their catalog. Looked at the reviews on their site and nothing glaring about issue others had. But I’m somewhat skeptical about reviews. Nothing stops them from putting in their own glowing reviews.
Turning brakes work when they desire. Notice they work better in high range.
Know it’s not a D4. I have learned to pick my battles as to what it will do. Some small trees can be removed easily but you ain’t going to root out a hickory tree… Roots are straight down, half way to China. Have made a lot of trails for kids to ride ATV’s when they show up. Cleaned off a lot of area where I was once using a weed whacker with a blade and chain saw. Nice to be able to pick up a log with log chain and do some easy slicing and dicing before carting of the the wood spliter.
Are we making progress/having fun yet?
Interesting about “operator error” reference in each reply.
Let me see if I understand your logic…
I take my car to the dealer, they rotate the tires and change the oil. Problem is, they didn’t tighten up all the lug nuts and failed to replace the oil. I drive it, a wheel falls off and the motor freezes up. So, it’s operator error because I drove it… And I should keep my mouth shut, not let anyone else know about the lousy service they performed. Perfect.
That’s sounds like a real solution, sell that junk to some other poor sucker.
I know what a D 11 goes for, I’m not going into the strip mine dirt redistribution business. My brother has a D 4, D 5 and D 8. Too big for what I needed to do.
Might as well took the 20 and lit it on fire in a parking lot. Wasn’t a big deal for me, was what I figured was worth spending for what I wanted to do. Think you’re naive to think 20 is meaningless. Shows more money than brains…
As I already know, “Free advice is worth the price you pay for it…”
“You can’t elect or teach common sense.”
Which ones don’t make sense???
Grew up on a farm so I know how to piece stuff back together, a little baling wire for a temporary fix. But after dumping $20,000, I don’t think it should require that much baby sitting for a mere 150 hours of use. That’s an indicator of a pure junk product. The dozer is a basic machine, not much sophistication. Nephew and brother can tear/repair just about anything. They can help but think it’s a joke that this dozer has so many issues. Am 76 years old and not in the mood to be a hobby repair guy.
The guy that fixed the clutch is my only savior. Am sure he can fix any future problems. As for brother/nephew fixing stuff, I found out over the years that it becomes cheaper to pay someone else to fix the problem else you will end up with owing more favors that you’ve received. Part of my education…
Yes, bought it new. So it shouldn’t have had all the issues delivered new from factory. The people that assembled it were either careless and inept. Period.
Saw on post where a Nortrac rep came out to see the problem. Where did that guy live??? Got NO such offers for my $20,000 paper weight. Also, spent another $5,000 on add on equipment. You would think Nortrac would have made a little better effort after I dropped that much on their company. Will not be spending another dollar on them unless it’s an out and out necessity.
Have a couple of farms and could have hired it done much cheaper. But I like the idea of being able to pick and choose projects rather than someone else needing to have instructions and later wanting something fixed/changed. It shouldn’t have required 50% work and 50% down time for repair. That’s why I bought it new.
Live 200 miles from the farm where the dozer sits so when I make the trip, it’s not with the intention of staring at $20,000 of useless equipment. My time there is limited so I have to make the best of the time, not waste it.
Sorry, but it makes an old man a bit cranky.
