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yeah, that sounds about right.
 

putting it back in like that is just and much fun, if you like those kinds of puzzles.

andy b.

NOW i see it.
THANKS Mike!!!

that is one crazy set-up.  i wonder if it feels like a more modern hydrostatic trans when you drive it.

andy b.

oh well.  i went to that link and looked at every photo i could find (three albums and three plain pages) and could find no photos of a weird crawler with a hydraulic motor connected to the belt pulley output.

if anyone has a direct link to the photo, i'd love to see it.

andy b.

Jim,

i didn't remove my brake levers when i pulled my bellhousing off.  and now that i think of it, i am positive i pulled the entire assembly out without pulling the shaft out of the bellhousing.  all i did was remove the small driveshaft with the two universals (the one that connects the bellhousing to the tranny).  i did have to wiggle the bellhousing around to remove it from the crawler, but it wasn't too bad.

andy b.

where are the photos?  i don't see any......

andy b.

are you guys saying that the drive shaft in the bell housing that connects the clutch to the stub axle (and passing through the bell housing) needs to be removed prior to removing the bell housing (clutch cover i think is what the manual calls it).  i think all i did with mine (a 1957 OC-46) was remove that stub axle (the one between the bell housing and tranny), and then unbolt the bell housing and remove everything attached to the bell housing as a complete unit.

i don't think having that universal joint yoke left on the back of the bell housing would've made much difference in what i did.

andy b.

Deron,

good to hear you found the problem.  i'm not sure how those bolts could shear unless they were loose.  i'd say check the bolts on the right side as well to be sure everything is tight.

andy b.

Deron,

Ray is right on.  i also have an OC-46 (a 1957 4 cyl though) and last year i went through what sounds exactly like what you are experiencing.

to clarify what Ray mentioned (and emphasize), here is what i did to diagnose the problem.

first, due to how the standard differential works in these crawlers, the crawler will move forward in basically a straight line when either brake is partially applied, even if one of the final drives is not getting power (broken axle, stripped bull gear or pinion, etc.).  i do not know how the Slo-Lo or any other funky transmissions will work, only the plain old standard differential like i have in mine.

now, do exactly as Ray suggested.  i used a big chunk of concrete block wedged in front of my tracks.  i first wedged it under the front of the left track.  i then started the crawler and applied the LEFT brake ALL THE WAY (pull back on it like you want to STOP).  the crawler started going forward as the brake was applied, but once i LOCKED the left side, the crawler attempted to turn to the left.  make sure you don't have anything of value on either side of the crawler as it tries to turn one way or the other, as these babies turn on a dime when they want to.  i then kept the concrete under the left track and applied the RIGHT brake.  the crawler just sat there like it was in neutral (the left drive pinion was totally stripped on mine).

then, to verify things i moved the chunk of concrete to the right side.  when i pulled the LEFT brake, the crawler attempted to jump up over the chunk of concrete.  i then applied the RIGHT brake and while the crawler attempted to move forward for a second, it did not go over the concrete and just sat there like it was in neutral again.

if this is what happens when you try these tests, it means power is not getting to one of the final drives (which one depends on the results of the tests).  pulling apart one of the final drives is not all that big of a deal.  a small come-along, a 10-ton bottle jack, and a bunch of wrenches really are the only tools needed.  it took me an afternoon to get mine apart, and only a few hours to put everything back together.

let us know what the results of your testing are and we can talk you through the rest.  i had an advantage in that i only live a bit over an hour from Zimmerman's, so i just drove down with my broken parts and they set me up with what i needed to get back in action.

good luck with the project,

andy b.

Dan,

i'm surprised John didn't reply back yet.  he's usually pretty quick.

single acting:
power up, gravity down (once they hit the ground, that is it, they are down)

double acting:
power up and power down (if you keep pushing down it should lift the front of the machine)

floating is a function of the valve, i believe.

my OC-46 with the Ware loader also has cylinders that come apart with a spanner wrench, though i have not had a reason to disassemble them yet.

andy b.

you lucky dog!!!  that looks like a real find.  i'm also near Oley (over by Allentown).  it figures that i wasn't looking for crawlers for a few weeks on eBay and this one popped up.  

andy b.

Adam,

it looks like i'm going to just leave the distributor on for now.  i'll get the info off of it for you and take a few photos.  i didn't do the conversion, but i was TOLD it was a simple swap with no parts changed (other than the external ignition parts and the distributor).  i don't know if that is true, but that is what i was told.

edit - i just noticed my email isn't showing up for some reason.  here it is if you want to contact me direct (with the standard AT and DOT substitutions):

hamrdogATptdDOTnet

andy b.

Pd,

i have an OC-46 with the 4 cyl. gasoline Herc engine.  i also picked up a new carb from Z-man's about a month ago.  i don't have my manual in front of me, but the adjustment really is fairly simple.  you want to make sure the throttle on the carb can move through its entire range of motion (from almost fully closed to fully open).

the first step is to make sure the crawler is turned off.
 

next disconnect the throttle linkage between the governor and carb (i pull the link out right at the throttle shaft on the carb).  move the throttle through its entire range and make a note of where fully open and closed (idle) positions are.  next connect the governor back up.  now move the throttle lever to the idle position and make sure the carb throttle moves to the closed position.  if not adjust the linkage so it does.  now move the throttle lever to the fully open position.  the throttle on the carb should move to the fully open position, and the spring connecting the throttle lever to the governor linkage should be under some tension.

if the closed position is adjusted correctly, but the crawler still seems lacking in power when under load, you can adjust the spring tension.  on mine there are several different holes to put the spring in.  the hole farthest from the pivot on the governor will give the spring the most leverage, and hence cause the throttle to stay open a greater amount.  remember, the governor tries to CLOSE the throttle.  the spring and throttle lever on the dash work to keep the throttle OPEN against the force of the governor.

as for your sensitive throttle, i don't remember offhand, but are there different mounting positions for the linkages either on the carb or on the throttle lever on the dash?  somewhere there may be a linkage that can be moved to a hole closer to the pivot point.  this will make the movement of that specific linkage have a shorter throw and reduce the sensitivity.  i'd get the other adjustments set first though and see how it works.

also, are you sure the carb main mixture is adjusted correctly?  running too rich or too lean can affect power.  you should notice running too rich by some black smoke, but too lean may not be noticeable.  i adjust my old equipment to where it is starting to show richness, and then back it off a bit.  i figure i'd rather err on the side of being a bit too rich (waste fuel) than on the side of being too lean and burn a valve or something.

andy b.

Mark,

i'm not near my OC-46 at present, but if i remember correctly the only spring is for the choke.  the main throttle has no spring and is controlled by the governor.  the governor has a spring on it though that pulls the throttle OPEN (the governor pushes it closed).  my OC-46 has the 4 cyl gasoline Herc engine.

i don't know if this helps.

andy b.

Deron,

don't just shove it into gear (at least not too hard).  

my OC-46 is an older 4 cyl. gasoline model (1957) but i believe it should be similar to yours for debugging purposes.  i just have a plain old manual tranmission with the differential steering, no shuttle shift or exotic rear end.  on mine i can look down between my feet and see the universals on the drive shaft spinning.  can you see this on yours (there may be a small cover there).  have the tractor running with the clutch out and not in gear, then push the clutch in and watch to see what that driveshaft does.  does it keep spinning at full speed, or start to slow down?

even if i am at half throttle or less and push the clutch in, i can see that stub driveshaft spin for probably a minute.  the inertia of the clutch disk also adds into the equation and acts like a small flywheel to keep things spinning.  what i normally do is slow the throttle to initially shift into gear from neutral, and once the clutch is out i bump the throttle up.  if i am runnign and shifting from one gear into another, there is no problem, just as you have observed.

i am not sure what others do, but when i am going from neutral into a gear, and the tranny gears are still spinning, i slowly move the shifter towards the gear i want.  you can feel the gears starting to touch, and if you just sort of lightly bump the gears together, it will stop the input shaft from spinning and you can shift into gear.  you shouldn't hear any grinding when you do this.  i really can't see any other way to do it unless you wait two minutes for the driveshaft to stop spinning or try to idle the engine down to 300 RPMs somehow.  while i am sure this does create some minute amount of wear when doing this, most of the stuff i drive is at least 50 years old and when i've had any opportunity to look inside the transmissions, they've looked fine (no noticeable wear), and no metal particles come out when changing fluids.

andy b.

Deron,

i don't know how familiar you are with the old Oliver crawlers (and old non-synchro trannies in general), but it seems to me you are pretty much describing how the tranny seems to work in most of the old stuff i've driven.  in fact, i have a John Deere Model 40 tractor, a 1957 OC-46, and have driven a bunch of other old farm equipment and it does just as you describe.

first, if the tractor is in gear and you put the clutch in and come to a stop, then none of the gears in the tranny are moving (if they were, you wouldn't be stopped, since you are in gear).  if you go to shift to a different gear, the gears obviously cannot grind, since for them to grind they would need to be moving, and you are stopped.

now, let's say you are in gear, put the clutch in, and come to a stop.  now you take the tranny out of gear and let the clutch out.  you will not move (because you are not in gear), but the input shaft to the tranny as well as any gears directly connected to it will now start spinning.  if you put the clutch in and quickly go to shift it into gear, those shafts and gears may still be spinning, and you will grind the gears.  it seems in these older transmissions the shafts are so worn in, that they have enough momentum to keep turning a bit until the forces of friction bring them to a hault.

like i said, i have found this to be true in any old non-synchromesh transmission i have driven.  in my mind, there really isn't a problem with your tranny.  you just can't drive it like a 2005 Mustang GT.  

andy b.