[Mike_U]

If you use the fittings every so often, you should not need to do anything to keep them moving freely. Each time you connect or disconnect a hose from the fitting, usually a few drops of hydraulic fluid seeps out onto the fitting and that is usually enough to keep them freed up - - unless the machine sits out in the rain and snow all the time and the fluid repeatedly gets washed off. Dust, dirt and sand tend to stick oily or greased areas so if you ever do need to lubricate them, use a vey light oil that does not become sticky.
The best advice I can give is to use them regularly and keep them dry from water and snow or at least work them by hand and lightly oiled every couple months if you are worried about them rusting up. Purchase dust caps for your tractor and attachment fittings if you don't have them. They keep the internals of the tractor fittings and external surfaces of the attachment fittings clean and protects from dirt contamination.

 

[Mike_U]

Well, I pulled the engine again. I had an oil leak that I just couldn't ignore. After running for a while I noticed the tarp I have been keeping under it in the shop had small oil puddles on both sides under the flywheel shroud. This got me to take a closer look. The inside of the shroud and both sides tins were wet with oil. I had no leaks when I started the project. I replaced all gaskets and torqued everything to spec. I couldn't tell if it was engine oil or hydraulic fluid. I was getting ready to change the hydraulic fluid, so no dye had been used at this point. I proceeded with the hydraulic fluid change and used the dye. After running it for a while, I noticed the leak had the red tint. I removed the battery and disassembled the pedastal to search for the leak. At least one of the rubber hoses that clamp to fittings on the cooler is leaking. The engine sideways still seeping undyed fluid but I'm hoping that just leftover from the leak before the dye because I can't find any oil leaking from the engine. That's the picture I'm posting. I'm wondering if the flywheel sucks the hydraulic fluid leak into the shroud and onto the deck under the engine???....Robert View attachment 287879

Did fixing the cooling line hose stop your leaks?
The good thing about those big flywheels is the way they move massive amounts of air across the engine to keep it cool, even on the warmest days ---- the flip side is that they carry just about anything lightweight and blow it along with the air (oil, grass clippings, dust, etc. ) Once the engine gets a light film of oil on it, the dirt and dust tend to build up and pack into crevices and cooling fins so if that leak carried a lot of oil and coated the engine block, you might want to pull one or two tins off this spring and see if the engine exterior needs degreasing.

 

[WVmtnman]

If you use the fittings every so often, you should not need to do anything to keep them moving freely. Each time you connect or disconnect a hose from the fitting, usually a few drops of hydraulic fluid seeps out onto the fitting and that is usually enough to keep them freed up - - unless the machine sits out in the rain and snow all the time and the fluid repeatedly gets washed off. Dust, dirt and sand tend to stick oily or greased areas so if you ever do need to lubricate them, use a vey light oil that does not become sticky.
The best advice I can give is to use them regularly and keep them dry from water and snow or at least work them by hand and lightly oiled every couple months if you are worried about them rusting up. Purchase dust caps for your tractor and attachment fittings if you don't have them. They keep the internals of the tractor fittings and external surfaces of the attachment fittings clean and protects from dirt contamination.

Thanks for the advice Mike. That makes sense. I really had to work those old disconnects hard to get them to move freely again. When I tried to hook my plow up, the hose fittings don't seem to seat all of the way so I can't get them to stay connected. I have a couple new ones but breaking the old ones loose is a bear! I'm still working on it.....Robert

 

[WVmtnman]

Did fixing the cooling line hose stop your leaks?
The good thing about those big flywheels is the way they move massive amounts of air across the engine to keep it cool, even on the warmest days ---- the flip side is that they carry just about anything lightweight and blow it along with the air (oil, grass clippings, dust, etc. ) Once the engine gets a light film of oil on it, the dirt and dust tend to build up and pack into crevices and cooling fins so if that leak carried a lot of oil and coated the engine block, you might want to pull one or two tins off this spring and see if the engine exterior needs degreasing.

Mike, I did find and fix two hydraulic leaks. The hose clamps on the oil cooler. I was very happy that no engine oil was leaking. It turns out that the red dye I put in the hydraulic fluid has another benefit. In the future I would know if a leak was hydraulic fluid or engine oil. I'm going to put it in all of my machines. It's awesome to be able to park this one in the garage without messing up my floor!...Robert

 

[Mike_U]

That’s interesting Robert. I’m guessing you checked this already but I’ll mention it anyway. Do the male hydraulic fittings have the same type of round ball as the female fittings on your tractor? Sometimes the attachment has the ‘bullet’ shaped male hyd fittings, and they don’t always fit into the female fittings on our older tractors. To check, do the new female fittings you purchased fit on your attachment fittings?
Also, do you think the tractor fittings are still not loose enough or do you think your tractor or attachment has pressure on the lines causing it to be difficult to connect? Do the round balls on the tractor fittings depress? Do the round balls on your attachment hoses depress?

 

[WVmtnman]

That’s interesting Robert. I’m guessing you checked this already but I’ll mention it anyway. Do the male hydraulic fittings have the same type of round ball as the female fittings on your tractor? Sometimes the attachment has the ‘bullet’ shaped male hyd fittings, and they don’t always fit into the female fittings on our older tractors. To check, do the new female fittings you purchased fit on your attachment fittings?
Also, do you think the tractor fittings are still not loose enough or do you think your tractor or attachment has pressure on the lines causing it to be difficult to connect? Do the round balls on the tractor fittings depress? Do the round balls on your attachment hoses depress?

Mike, I used the plow on my 322 yesterday, so I'm pretty sure the connection is the same on the 318, but I'll make sure tomorrow. I tested the pin in the female with a screwdriver and hydraulic fluid came out. Maybe it's not loose enough to engage with the male fitting though. I can't for sure say that the ball bearings on the inside of the female are depressing enough to let the male fully engage. That's a great idea to use my new female connector on the implement fitting 👍. I might just be putting off the inevitable job of replacing the tractor connectors. That's what I intended to do today but I couldn't get the fitting to break loose.

 

[Mike_U]

You might be right. The small locking ball bearings in the outer ring of the female hyd fitting may not be moving outward enough to allow the attachment connector to seat fully.

 

[tmac58star]

Replacing old connectors/fittings with new is one of the best things you can do to keep your tractor working right.

 

[WVmtnman]

Replacing old connectors/fittings with new is one of the best things you can do to keep your tractor working right.

Agreed 👍

 

[gazer61]

hijacking the thread again! I have had my block welded. success will be determined over time.

 

[WVmtnman]

Gazer,
I hope that works out for you. Let us know every so often. I went ahead and switched to the B43 setup because I believe the cylinder head mounted starter was a design flaw. It seems a lot of people have had the starter problems with that design.

 

[dhager4692]

Gazer,
I hope that works out for you. Let us know every so often. I went ahead and switched to the B43 setup because I believe the cylinder head mounted starter was a design flaw. It seems a lot of people have had the starter problems with that design.

This problem of the starter mounts in the block failing has been discussed many times on this site and others. I agree it is a design flaw that could have been different with different results.

 

[gazer61]

I have a question. Is this a problem that has always been there or is it something that has become apparent now that more people are replacing the original equipment starters with POS china Sxxt?
These tractors are 30+ years old, I didn't have an issue until I went against my better judgement and ordered one of them. Yes I am guilty of a weak moment and ordered from amazon :-{

 

[WVmtnman]

Gazer,
My starter was original. As much as I hate to admit it, I've only had good experiences with China starters except for the first one I installed on this 318. The pinion gear wouldn't retract after the first attempt to start. The reason I got it through Amazon was the ease of returning it and getting a quick replacement. I've even used them in marine applications and had years of perfect service.

 

[gazer61]

Thanks for that feedback. Still leaves me with the big question: Do i put the same starter back on, or do i replace it. The starter was brand new, only started the tractor about 10 times. I had to fix the block and replace ring gear. If it is the consensus that the china starters are decent quality i will try it again, with the assumption that something else was the cause.

 

[TempletonJDguy]

I think thier ok. The big thing is a good running 318 should fire off at the touch of the key. I’ve had the whole gammet but my favorites fired off quickly which obviously means no starter abuse. Clean electrical connections everywhere really helps.

 

[gazer61]

I will admit that this tractor was giving me issues staying running. I will press forward with the focus of getting it to start better. I have replaced the carburetor, intake, capacitor and the rotor. Hope this solves the issue. If I am overlooking something, I am all ears.

 

[WVmtnman]

If you replaced the carb, it might need tweaking but search this forum for the proper procedure to do that. My engine now starts instantly. I put the choke on full and immediately turned it off after it fires up.

 

[TempletonJDguy]

How cool is that! Very nice!

 

[WVmtnman]

How cool is that! Very nice!

It really is cool! So much help I got from you guys! I can't wait to start on the next project.