Jinma 254 Rear Creaking Noises

[Jimmy254]

I thought I had read somewhere that loose wheel nuts cause a creaking noise but I can't locate that thread anymore.

This has been happening for a while. Not sure when it started. I have the wheels bolted on at the widest possible setting. I tried tightening the wheel nuts but the noise continues. It happens in slow forward first gear and slow reverse in both high and low ratio but that's all I can tell while driving and leaning over the rear mudgaurd. It is a bit alarming almost like cracking sounds. I can put up with it if I know it is not a major problem.

I'm after ideas as to how to pinpoint if it is the wheels or something else. I have a backhoe on the back as well. Any ideas?

 

[quicksandfarmer]

I would try jacking it up so one wheel is off the ground. If you put it in gear the lifted wheel should just spin. Then you can stand beside it and see if you can figure out where the noise is coming from, whether it's on both sides. It could be as simple as a piece of sheet metal rubbing, the fenders are pretty thin.

Just be super careful, this is kind of dangerous.

 

[piper184]

That could be just about anything.
Some questions to get you started on the detective path.
Does it happen in both 2WD and 4WD?
Does it happen if you stand on the floorboards (not sitting in the seat)?
How is your backhoe attached, 3 point or frame mount?
Can you wiggle any of the backhoe parts (boom, outrigger, frame, etc.) and make the noise?
Does the noise go away if you lightly apply the brakes? One side at a time?
If you use the loader and the backhoe to lift all 4 wheels off the ground and run it in low gear, does it make the noise?

In my case, the floorboards squeak as I step up onto the deck. They flex just enough to let it rub against the clutch pedal.
Another thing I found was after several years and several hundred hours on the tractor, the bolts that hold the ROPS to the rear axle had worked loose.
Check everything.
Let us know what you find.

 

[Jimmy254]

few ideas for me to try, I'll report back.

 

[Jimmy254]

I checked all the wheel nuts, some were a little loose. After tightening i think its improved. I almost totally forgot about it so it cant really be much of an issue.

 

[piper184]

If you think the loose nuts were the source of the squeak there are a couple more things you can do to make sure.

First take the entire wheel off of the axle. A little bit of work but not too bad if you have a good floor jack.
On the back side of the wheel where it touches the axle hub, look for indications of fretting. You should see either shiny metal or places where the paint was "dusty". This indicates where there was movement.

If I remember, the lock washers on these studs are not exactly top quality. I would replace them with better quality lock washers. Then with a rattle can of paint, touch up the areas that were showing wear. Let it dry good and re-assemble everything with proper torque. That should eliminate any chance of more fretting. If it returns, something else is amiss.

Of course the alternative is to do what I would probably do. Crank the nuts down tight and move on. Just try to remember to check them again sometime. Maybe make it part of the oil change/lube routine. I sometimes just take a hand full of wrenches and go about checking anything I can get to for tightness.

True confession. Yesterday as I was cleaning corrals as I was backing up there was a bolt, lock washer and flat washer laying on the just scraped ground! What the ???
No idea of where it came from and it was just pure chance that it didn't wind up in the compost pile. Couldn't see any missing bolts but wasn't about to crawl under it where it was! Tractor is due for an oil change/lube and other routine maintenance anyway so it got hosed off and left to dry. Next week it will be in the garage where I can get under it on a creeper and see if I can find an open bolt hole. Life with equipment.....

 

[Jimmy254]

Thanks for the advice, good to have. Yeah I hate finding stuff that come off from some place but at least you found it. Let us know if you solve the mystery. I had the opposite problem. I was using the clamp on forks on my bucket to make a burn pile and I lost the separator bar that slides over the forks and kinda stabilses the two forks. I figured it was around somewhere. About two years later I burnt that pile and there it was on the ground, paint was burnt off it but who cares, still usable. Once I was working on my car under the bonnet checking something and the missus needed it so I shut the bonnet and she drove off. Couldn't find my glasses anywhere then it occured to me that I would have taken them off when looking under the bonnet. I rang the wife, she popped the bonnet and there they were. Everyone has stories like this. They can be very funny.