how to shorten welded hydraulic cylinder

[accordionman]

HELLO TO ALL,
i have a hydraulics expert helping me setup a top,
and tilt. he gave me two cylinders, and said, when
you get these shortened call me. i did not know these
could be reworked. i can weld these up, but i want to
research this first. question, has anybody done this?
if so, can you tell me how to proceed?
any help, or comments appreciated.
accordionman
wlbrown
wright city, mo.

 

[accordionman]

HELLO TO ALL,
i have a hydraulics expert helping me setup a top,
and tilt. he gave me two cylinders, and said, when
you get these shortened call me. i did not know these
could be reworked. i can weld these up, but i want to
research this first. question, has anybody done this?
if so, can you tell me how to proceed?
any help, or comments appreciated.
accordionman
wlbrown
wright city, mo.

 

[3RRL]

When you say he wants them shortened up, what exactly does he mean? Does he want the overall length of the cylinder in the closed (retracted) position shorter? Or does he want to shorten up the stroke of the cylinders? You might be able to do either of these but it depends on the type of cylinders and the connections on the body and rod end. A couple of photos would be nice too.

 

[3RRL]

When you say he wants them shortened up, what exactly does he mean? Does he want the overall length of the cylinder in the closed (retracted) position shorter? Or does he want to shorten up the stroke of the cylinders? You might be able to do either of these but it depends on the type of cylinders and the connections on the body and rod end. A couple of photos would be nice too.

 

[accordionman]

3RRL,
i have to shorten the cylinder, and the stroke.
i have measured the top link full open, and
closed, and the cylinder will have the be the
same, or close to it. i also posted this question
on a welding website, and it says the piston will
bottom out before it hits the area where the port
is located. i think i will need to cut the cylinder off
inside the port, and have to weld on a new one.
also said, this is not a pipe coupling, but a high
pressure coupling.
i see by your post you are a tool, and die man.
i am retired machinist, and have all the tooling to
do this type of operation, but have never done this
before, so i am trying to find out all i can.
thanks for the reply.
accordionman
wlbrown
wright city, mo.

 

[accordionman]

3RRL,
i have to shorten the cylinder, and the stroke.
i have measured the top link full open, and
closed, and the cylinder will have the be the
same, or close to it. i also posted this question
on a welding website, and it says the piston will
bottom out before it hits the area where the port
is located. i think i will need to cut the cylinder off
inside the port, and have to weld on a new one.
also said, this is not a pipe coupling, but a high
pressure coupling.
i see by your post you are a tool, and die man.
i am retired machinist, and have all the tooling to
do this type of operation, but have never done this
before, so i am trying to find out all i can.
thanks for the reply.
accordionman
wlbrown
wright city, mo.

 

[MadReferee]

Cylinder rods are lengthened and shortened all the time. The body of the cylinder is never shortened as it would be cheaper to get one the right size to start with.

Depending on the rod stroke, the rod can be shortened anywhere from a few inches to several inches. In your case you are probably looking at a cylinder with a 4" or 6" stroke and you want to shorten it one or two inches.

For a top link, the retracted length is the dimension you want to be close to what you have now on your tractor. The stroke of the cylinder can be more since you have control over it. You should be able to find a cylinder that is really close to your actual need. That being the case you can shorten the cylinder rod to get your ideal stroke.

You don't mention what type and size of cylinders you have now. Knowing that will allow a much more informed reply.

 

[MadReferee]

Cylinder rods are lengthened and shortened all the time. The body of the cylinder is never shortened as it would be cheaper to get one the right size to start with.

Depending on the rod stroke, the rod can be shortened anywhere from a few inches to several inches. In your case you are probably looking at a cylinder with a 4" or 6" stroke and you want to shorten it one or two inches.

For a top link, the retracted length is the dimension you want to be close to what you have now on your tractor. The stroke of the cylinder can be more since you have control over it. You should be able to find a cylinder that is really close to your actual need. That being the case you can shorten the cylinder rod to get your ideal stroke.

You don't mention what type and size of cylinders you have now. Knowing that will allow a much more informed reply.

 

[rdbrumfield]

If you have the means to shorten it yourself go ahead. It will cost you the price of a new one to have someone else do it.
To shorten it, you will have to cut the cyl on the piston end to length, drill a new port, and weld a new end on it, (unless you have a lath and can cut the end off and reuse it.) Then take the rod and shorten it to the needed length. Remember that you are dealing with high pressure here, amature welding might cause catastrophic problems.

 

[rdbrumfield]

If you have the means to shorten it yourself go ahead. It will cost you the price of a new one to have someone else do it.
To shorten it, you will have to cut the cyl on the piston end to length, drill a new port, and weld a new end on it, (unless you have a lath and can cut the end off and reuse it.) Then take the rod and shorten it to the needed length. Remember that you are dealing with high pressure here, amature welding might cause catastrophic problems.