jinman
Rest in Peace
- Joined
- Feb 23, 2001
- Messages
- 20,387
- Location
- Texas - Wise County - Sunset
- Tractor
- NHTC45D, NH LB75B, Ford Jubilee
With the TC45D, there are several things to check as listed below. I'll try to keep them in some order so you can work your way from the front of the tractor to the rear.
1. Battery area - this is a bad area on most TC45Ds of this age. The battery stand, radiator, and HST cooler lines behind the battery may be severly corroded. Lots of posts here about that problem.
2. Check over the front differential well and check the dipstick on the left side 4wd axle housing (yellow plastic screw cap). Look for evidence of good greasing on the front axle pivots grease zerks (one in front of axle and one behind).
3. Check the condition of the fan belt. It may be worn/cracked badly on a 3000 hour tractor. Check the condition and level of the radiator coolant.
4. While the hood is raised, look for any obvious hydraulic leaks around the steering column and power steering reservoir. Pull the cover on the air breather on the right side of the engine and check that it has been serviced properly. There is an outer (large) filter and an inner filter that is supposed to be changed every 1000 hours of operation.
6. Check the engine oil level and that there are no leaks.
7. Close the hood and make sure the hood latch locks and releases properly.
8. Go to the operator platform and check the operation of the tilt steering. The steering wheel should move when the lock lever is raised and lock into place when it is released. If this is not the case, the hydraulic actuator needs replacement. The steering wheel is also supposed to extend and retract as a function of the big knob in the middle of the wheel. It may not do that since it is common to not be operational.
9. Now, while sitting in the seat, turn the key ON (don't start) and look at the instrument panel. You should see the alternator and oil pressure warning lights. The fuel gage should also work. Start the engine and look for the tachometer to indicate as it should and the oil pressure may go out, come on, and go out again. This is pretty common. Unfortunately, we don't have an actual oil pressure gage, only an idiot light. The temperature gage should also operate, but it will take awhile to come up to operating temperature. Don't let anyone smooth talk you about the instrument panel. The fuel, temp, and tach are all individually replaceable. You don't have to replace the whole panel if one of them doesn't work. If there is nothing attached to the PTO, go ahead and engage the PTO with the lever on the left side. See that the PTO indicator light comes on on the instrument panel and goes off when you move the lever to disengage. Probably, if the backhoe has been on the tractor most of its life, the PTO has been used very little. That's a good thing because PTOs are easily damaged on these tractors if they are abused.
10. After the tractor is running, check out the loader operation. You can expect the loader to be a bit loose if it has been used often. My loader gets hard use and it's a bit loose despite my doing regular greasing. While you have the joystick in your hand, press on the rabbit/turtle switches and watch for the light on the fender switch (orange switch) to change with the joystick switches. When you actually drive the tractor, do this again to see that the transmission changes speed as it should with the rabbit/turtle switches.
11. Unfortunately, with the backhoe, you won't be able to check the 3PH or hook anything to the PTO, so you will be really limited. While the tractor is running, check the backhoe for operation and look for unacceptable leaks or improper operation.
12. Finish your checks by driving the tractor and making sure things like brakes work properly and the tractor drives without any strange noises. Check both Hi and Lo ranges of the transmission with the lever on the left side fender panel. There are two ranges and two speeds (rabbit/turtle) in each range so that you essentially have a 4-speed HST on this tractor. There is no clutch, so you don't have to worry about that.
13. After the tractor is warmed up and operationally tested, shut it off and crawl under it to look for leaks or drips.
Whew! I'm getting tired of typing, and those are the big things I can think of right now. Some things you just won't be able to check with the backhoe attached, so you might try and negotiate for those items to be guaranteed by the dealer. Otherwise, maybe you need to ask him to remove the backhoe and let you test the 3PH and PTO. I think I'd want to do that on a 3000 hr tractor.
You haven't mentioned price, so I won't say much except I'd expect this tractor to be over $12k if everything works, but no more than $14k. If it's rough, I'd be offering less. The tractor with backhoe probably sold new for around $27.5k. With these hours, I'd say it is not over 1/2 the original cost and maybe even less.
1. Battery area - this is a bad area on most TC45Ds of this age. The battery stand, radiator, and HST cooler lines behind the battery may be severly corroded. Lots of posts here about that problem.
2. Check over the front differential well and check the dipstick on the left side 4wd axle housing (yellow plastic screw cap). Look for evidence of good greasing on the front axle pivots grease zerks (one in front of axle and one behind).
3. Check the condition of the fan belt. It may be worn/cracked badly on a 3000 hour tractor. Check the condition and level of the radiator coolant.
4. While the hood is raised, look for any obvious hydraulic leaks around the steering column and power steering reservoir. Pull the cover on the air breather on the right side of the engine and check that it has been serviced properly. There is an outer (large) filter and an inner filter that is supposed to be changed every 1000 hours of operation.
6. Check the engine oil level and that there are no leaks.
7. Close the hood and make sure the hood latch locks and releases properly.
8. Go to the operator platform and check the operation of the tilt steering. The steering wheel should move when the lock lever is raised and lock into place when it is released. If this is not the case, the hydraulic actuator needs replacement. The steering wheel is also supposed to extend and retract as a function of the big knob in the middle of the wheel. It may not do that since it is common to not be operational.
9. Now, while sitting in the seat, turn the key ON (don't start) and look at the instrument panel. You should see the alternator and oil pressure warning lights. The fuel gage should also work. Start the engine and look for the tachometer to indicate as it should and the oil pressure may go out, come on, and go out again. This is pretty common. Unfortunately, we don't have an actual oil pressure gage, only an idiot light. The temperature gage should also operate, but it will take awhile to come up to operating temperature. Don't let anyone smooth talk you about the instrument panel. The fuel, temp, and tach are all individually replaceable. You don't have to replace the whole panel if one of them doesn't work. If there is nothing attached to the PTO, go ahead and engage the PTO with the lever on the left side. See that the PTO indicator light comes on on the instrument panel and goes off when you move the lever to disengage. Probably, if the backhoe has been on the tractor most of its life, the PTO has been used very little. That's a good thing because PTOs are easily damaged on these tractors if they are abused.
10. After the tractor is running, check out the loader operation. You can expect the loader to be a bit loose if it has been used often. My loader gets hard use and it's a bit loose despite my doing regular greasing. While you have the joystick in your hand, press on the rabbit/turtle switches and watch for the light on the fender switch (orange switch) to change with the joystick switches. When you actually drive the tractor, do this again to see that the transmission changes speed as it should with the rabbit/turtle switches.
11. Unfortunately, with the backhoe, you won't be able to check the 3PH or hook anything to the PTO, so you will be really limited. While the tractor is running, check the backhoe for operation and look for unacceptable leaks or improper operation.
12. Finish your checks by driving the tractor and making sure things like brakes work properly and the tractor drives without any strange noises. Check both Hi and Lo ranges of the transmission with the lever on the left side fender panel. There are two ranges and two speeds (rabbit/turtle) in each range so that you essentially have a 4-speed HST on this tractor. There is no clutch, so you don't have to worry about that.
13. After the tractor is warmed up and operationally tested, shut it off and crawl under it to look for leaks or drips.
Whew! I'm getting tired of typing, and those are the big things I can think of right now. Some things you just won't be able to check with the backhoe attached, so you might try and negotiate for those items to be guaranteed by the dealer. Otherwise, maybe you need to ask him to remove the backhoe and let you test the 3PH and PTO. I think I'd want to do that on a 3000 hr tractor.
You haven't mentioned price, so I won't say much except I'd expect this tractor to be over $12k if everything works, but no more than $14k. If it's rough, I'd be offering less. The tractor with backhoe probably sold new for around $27.5k. With these hours, I'd say it is not over 1/2 the original cost and maybe even less.
