Jan 21-25, 2013: skid steers and forklifts

This past week I got some more practice bleeding brakes on a forklift and learned how to read transmission pressures on a RS8 forklift. I helped assist someone with bleeding brakes on a forklift and learned how really long it can take due to the whole line being full of air. It seems the most common way I have learned to bleed brakes is with two people: one on the brake pedal and the other on the bleeder screw. I have heard through others experience that you want to watch how far you push the master cylinder past its normal operating stroke. I learned that if servicing an old piece of equipment that the master cylinder has worn maybe about half the length of the cylinder and when you pressure bleed them you can end up going past that mark and damaging the other half. Something to keep in mind in less you want to risk buying a new master cylinder. Jesse also showed me what he was testing for on a RS8 forklift. The customer complaint was that the unit would sometimes shift and it wouldn't always stay in gear. After reading transmission pressure they were way to low. Another great week and on to the next one!

Hours: 25
Hours to date: 150

Jan. 14-20, 2013: Flex plate, Excavators, Breakers,

This past week I got to work on some units that needed repairs. I had a john deere mini excavator that had some customer damage that entailed a dented hydraulic tank, guard and hood. I ended up just ordering the guard and hood due to the dent in the hydraulic tank wasn’t structural. I also worked on a skid steer with a bobcat breaker on it. The breaker ended up having a hose that was damaged due to it not having hose wrap. I learned and had more practice making hydraulic hoses. It also had a quick disconnect fitting that went bad and leaked during operations, so I had to replace that too. I also worked on my truck this week. I was in the process of getting a used good flex plate off of a donor engine. I learned that I had a problem after hearing the engine not turn over and the starter would. I need to replace the one on my truck badly soon due to how the starter is wearing down the sides of the teeth. 

Hours: 25

Hours to date: 125

Jan 7-11, 2013: the torque hub

This past week I have been doing some general work around the shop, but one particular item that caught my eye again was the torque hub. I ended up asking a few questions and understanding that it is basically a differential on the end of the axle. It uses planatary gears to slow the speed of the sun gear to multiply it's output torque. I had sort of a "click" in my brain. That moment when it just made sense. I had seen them before, but never put two and two together.

Hours: 16
Hours to date: 100

January 3, 2013: light plants galore!

Thursday was my only day at work because I just got back from break, but I did get to learn some troubleshooting on a light tower. This unit was ran out of fuel and wouldn't turn over. After much thinking about why it isn't turning over I ended up wiggling the trigger wire for the starter solenoid and it turned over and fired up. I believe that there was some corrosion or a bad connection. This unit tested my ability to perform an electrical diagnostics on the starter circuit. It felt good to know that I learned this in school and I used it!

Hours: 4
Hours to date: 84

Dec. 17-21,2012:baskets and burned up wires

This week I learned how to change a basket on a broom lift and some more practice on changing light tower wires. There was a lot to learn about changing a basket. I also had to learn to think ahead and plan how I was going to do it because I had to move the machine out and bring another in. I found out that there weren't many bolts that hold the basket on to the machine. As you can see in one of my photos, I got more practice on changing out light bulb cables. This units cable had burned up and burned the cable in the middle which is on unusual.

Hours: 40
Hours to date: 80

Dec. 10-14, 2012: hoses and sensors

This week I learned about sensors. I had a light tower that was shutting down because it was overheating. It turned out that the sensor wire rubbed out on the frame. This was telling the machine to shut down automatically. I learned to always check the wiring first. As time goes along I am also learning how to make hydraulic hoses better so they last longer and don't end up like in the photo. What a really bad hose!

Hours: 40
Hours to date: 40