Looks like my B7100 is down for the foreseeable future...

[Lil Foot]

Noticed a pretty severe oil leak coming from the B7100 this past week.
It appears that a small piece of this gasket (lt blue oval) has dropped out in the area of the red arrow.
Leak is approximately one drop per sec cold, faster when hot.
Seems like a pretty easy fix, ONCE YOU REMOVE ENOUGH PARTS TO GET THERE.
It appears I will have to drain the oil, remove the backhoe, the backhoe subframe, the front loader, the front loader subframe, the rear wheels, rear wheel weights, the fenders, the seat, brake linkage, and I'm sure some other stuff too.

And, if I have it that far apart, I may as well split it & put in a clutch & related parts also. (clutch has been marginal since I bought it)
Maybe I should also look into that noisy transmission shaft bearing rattle also.

Crap.

Besides all the normal homeowner chores and tasks, this comes in the middle of fencing my property in the high country, helping out the wife's aunt & uncle back east, and I guess my excavator project will go to a further back burner than it all ready was.

I need to decide whether to work on it in the high country, (fewer tools, no shop, 85 -95F) or at my place in the low country (shop, more tools, 105-120F)

I thought I was going to have more time after I retired.....

 

[Jim L.]

The rule is that work expands to fill the time available.

 

[AndyM]

Well I for one always enjoys your projects ... lots of pics please.

 

[woodman55]

I would pick the shop and more tools. With no shop and less tools, you will be working harder and longer, so the slightly cooler temps advantage will be eliminated.

 

[mcmxi]

I need to decide whether to work on it in the high country, (fewer tools, no shop, 85 -95F) or at my place in the low country (shop, more tools, 105-120F)

Kind of "out of the frying pan, into the fire". But it's a dry heat right?

 

[Mountainman]

Hate to hear that. Check that area real good. I've sold a few axle housings that were cracked in that area and were leaking.

 

[DustyRusty]

Hate to hear that. Check that area real good. I've sold a few axle housings that were cracked in that area and were leaking.

Why would you sell a cracked axle housing? I believe that what you meant to say was that you have sold a few axle housings to replace ones that were cracked in that area. The real question is, why are they cracking in that area?

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

The real question is, why are they cracking in that area?

50% old age
50% water collects at the bottom of the case and then freezes and cracks the case.

 

[jaxs]

Why would you sell a cracked axle housing? I believe that what you meant to say was that you have sold a few axle housings to replace ones that were cracked in that area. The real question is, why are they cracking in that area?

If the truth were known I'd wager wheel spacers account for some.

 

[Lil Foot]

50% old age
50% water collects at the bottom of the case and then freezes and cracks the case.

Pretty sure it is not water freezing recently, as I am pretty fanatic about oil being clean, and the tractor lives indoors in Arizona.
But it is certainly possible from the PO, who left it outside all the time. When I got the tractor, I drained about a 1/2 cup of water from transmission drain under the shifter. (no shift boot)
Maybe it froze & cracked back then, and just got worse recently.
It has had a small leak there since I bought it.
I will keep hoping it isn't cracked.