Maintenance

1900 · Jul 30, 2004

Just bought a new Branson 4220 and was reading the owners manual and noticed there are no maintenance routines listed in it. Did anyone get these? If not what are the recommended times and parts that need to be worked on, i.e. oil change, air filter, ect.

virgil · Aug 4, 2004

Here is what I recomend for preventative mantance:
At the first 50 hours of service
Change ALL oils and filters
AFTER THAT:
Change the engine oil and filter EVERY 50 hours
Change the hydraulic oil and filter every 300 hours
Grease the FEL every 4 hours of use...
Remove and clean the air filter every day of use... even more frequently under sever conditions. replace the filter when needed. It will amaze you at how much "stuff" the air filter collects.
Blow out the radaitor every day when mowing... even more often when opperating in sever conditions.
I see a lot of grass GROWING from radatiors, and other places on tractors when the owner neglects to clean up his machine after each and every use.
Ckeck all fluid levels BEFORE you start the machine--- EVERY TIME
Change the antifreeze once a year
Keep the tires properly inflated
Keep an eye on all lug bolts and nuts... Keep an eye on the loader frame bolts... tighten as needed.
A general walk around inspection of the machine every time you work it will pay great dividends.
Grease, oil and filters are cheeper than parts and labor.
Be careful, pay attention, and think ahead about what you are fixing to do. virgil

MicroPilot · Aug 4, 2004

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Here is what I recomend for preventative mantance:
....Grease the FEL every 4 hours of use...
...)</font>

WOW!!! Thats a lot of grease. My loader has no less that 12 grease zerks.

virgil · Aug 4, 2004

Sir; Grease is about $2.00 a tube.. the pins are about $6.00 each... If you wear out the bushings, its machine shop time.......$$$$$$
Grease is cheap, cheap, cheap. You do not need to use a lot of grease, just a few squirts will do. If the Grease cert will not take the grease, then find the cause and fix it.
I'm old enough to rember the Wix guy on TV... He was holding a filter and stating "pay me now, or pay me latter"
I would invite anyone to come to my store and we can go out to the machines in the back that are in line for service... All kinds of machines, green ones, orange ones, yellow ones, red ones, big ones and little ones... I can show you the differance in a machine that has had a little T.L.C. and one with the same hours on it that has not seen a grease gun, a wrench, nor an oil filter.. Big differance in the price of repairs ($$$), trade in value ($$$), and coustomer satisfaction. virgil

virgil · Aug 4, 2004

By the way, that brush hog and finish mower you have need to be greased also... U joints, shafts, wheels, bushings and axels are very expensive.
Look at it this way, you can spend a little time with your $18,000.00 machine with a grease gun, air compressor and a few tools and keep the machine in tip top shape. While you do some P.M. ( preventative mantenance), you can keep an eye on every little thing so that the little things do not become big things.. virgil

MicroPilot · Aug 4, 2004

I don't disagree that grease will prevent damage and costly repairs. I even greased my whole FEL Monday night when I realized that there wre zerks in all the hydro cylinder joints, and my implements get greases before use.

Still a LOT of grease though.

I told my wife I know what I want for Christmas - an electric grease gun!!!

rameye · Aug 4, 2004

Virgil basically hit the nail on the head,,,almost verbatim from owners manual for my Zetor (century).

They also said gease every fitting before every use.... on the Zetor there is a mess of them...even found some underneath at the linkages they didn't mention!

herdfan · Aug 4, 2004

Speaking of greasing the machine, I have been having trouble greasing the lower bushing for my Century backhoe (the one in the center where the boom pivots left and right). I have tried all sorts of positions/support configurations with the hoe and have even jacked up parts of the subframe without much luck. I can "muscle in" a little bit of grease, but the pressure gets too high and the grease squirts out the fitting at the end of my grease gun. I have taken off the grease zerk, cleaned it, and the lube flows right on through it when it's off the tractor. I was able to lube it pretty easily when I had the hoe off, so I think it is due to the weight of the hoe on that joint.

Any tips on how to lube this properly without removing the backhoe??

virgil · Aug 4, 2004

I've been known to "dilute" my grease with gear oil or even diesel in extreeme cases. After washing out the joint with the diluted grease I will use the undiluted grease and thoruly lube the joint. (make a big mess). I also have a neat little tool I got from snap on... It is a small grease gun that you load a small amount of grease into, place it on the grease cert, then strike the tool with a hammer.. 9 times out of 10 it will blow out what ever is fowling the joint.
Dumb question...Have you extended the boom and dipper out, rested it on the ground at differant positions around the machine to see if that will make it take the grease?
I had a haull truck one time that would not take grease in the king pins of the steering axel unless you jacked the front end up off the ground, got my wife inside the cab to turn the steering wheel, while I shoot the grease to it.. Had to do that about 10 times before I finally got the king pins to take the grease.