My first mod on the Mudd-Ox turbo Diesel

[fcris]

An external plug for the block heater.
It ain’t much, but I have to start somewhere with some mods. I’ll admit, aside from some noise damping I did, there’s not much to improve on with this machine.

As for another project, I’d like to make a tonneau cover for the back to keep the debris and water from dropping in.

Since I’m so hung up on the noise, I’m wondering if installing hydraulic accumulators on the forward pump pressure ports will quite things down a little.

Frank

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[Buzz]

Nice. Pan heaters for the oil pan and hydraulic tank wouldn't hurt either. Your pigtail would could plug into a 3-way. (I know the block heater cord is kinda short though). The pan heaters draw very little and don't have to be plugged in very long. If nothing else, a good warm up before you start working the sticks is always good practice. I've got aw32 oil in mine, it's never gotten too hot. I think the cooler is very effective. Our ambient air temperatures are a bit cooler, which I'm sure helps.

[Buzz]

Right now I'm trying to remove one of my bolt-on hubs (gas machine, standard axle + wheel spacers). My goal is to look at the hub, axle diameter at threads, and the step-up to the main axle body, along with some measurements. My goal is to get an idea what it would take to replace the center axle bolt-on hubs with a trailer idler hub (possibly short) to act as a track tuner. This will be for my diesel as it has longer axles and bearing cages (no wheel spacers) and therefore cannot use tuners ( I do not want to push the wheels out any farther). Once I get the hub off (it's being a pain right now with the probably frozen key), it will be easy to see if it's possible. There are many options for inner/outer bearing and seal size, as well as a sleeve (maybe) to act as a retainer and seal surface. I'm trying to figure this out on the gas rig as the diesel machine is in storage (out of town).

[Matt O.]

Right now I'm trying to remove one of my bolt-on hubs (gas machine, standard axle + wheel spacers). My goal is to look at the hub, axle diameter at threads, and the step-up to the main axle body, along with some measurements. My goal is to get an idea what it would take to replace the center axle bolt-on hubs with a trailer idler hub (possibly short) to act as a track tuner. This will be for my diesel as it has longer axles and bearing cages (no wheel spacers) and therefore cannot use tuners ( I do not want to push the wheels out any farther). Once I get the hub off (it's being a pain right now with the probably frozen key), it will be easy to see if it's possible. There are many options for inner/outer bearing and seal size, as well as a sleeve (maybe) to act as a retainer and seal surface. I'm trying to figure this out on the gas rig as the diesel machine is in storage (out of town).

Hi,
The bolt on axle hubs have a very tight fit and are on a tappered shaft. The best way to remove a hub is to remove the axle and use a shop press to remove the hub. They press off very hard. When replacing the hub nut torque is 350 foot pounds. If you can not come up with a "track tuner" to work with your long axle set up you can replace your center 4 long axles with standard axles and bearing boxes. Let me know if you need any help.

Matt

[akexpress]

Right now I'm trying to remove one of my bolt-on hubs (gas machine, standard axle + wheel spacers). My goal is to look at the hub, axle diameter at threads, and the step-up to the main axle body, along with some measurements. My goal is to get an idea what it would take to replace the center axle bolt-on hubs with a trailer idler hub (possibly short) to act as a track tuner. This will be for my diesel as it has longer axles and bearing cages (no wheel spacers) and therefore cannot use tuners ( I do not want to push the wheels out any farther). Once I get the hub off (it's being a pain right now with the probably frozen key), it will be easy to see if it's possible. There are many options for inner/outer bearing and seal size, as well as a sleeve (maybe) to act as a retainer and seal surface. I'm trying to figure this out on the gas rig as the diesel machine is in storage (out of town).

Jeff
take a standard three arm gear puller and put a big load on pulling the hub with it and then tap the hub with a hammer all the way around and it should pop off.
Mark

[Buzz]

Sounds good Mark. Last time out to the garage, a puller had definitely crossed my mind. Makes sense now that the hubs are pressed on...I was about to that point. Hmmm, I'm a little less hopeful now on my idea...with the tapered shaft and key. I just couldn't tell what I was looking at until the hub comes off. Is the key actually machined into the axle body (elevated from the smaller threaded diameter)? Or, do both the axle body and hub have recessed channels, with they key being separate? I didn't expect it to be as simple as a perfect slide-on replacement but was hoping there might be "some amount" of flush, smooth-shaft directly behind the threads but prior to the step-up for the main axle body. Something for a front bearing to possibly nest.
Thanks Matt for the middle standard axle/bearing cage suggestion too. I had a feeling that's probably the best option...pretty straightforward anyway. Pretty cool that the entire rail does not need to come off either with the way you are making them. Appreciate the info, hopefully it helps others too. Anyhow, we finally got some more snow today...hooray!

[akexpress]

key is seperate from hub and axle there is no non tapered area behind the treads until it reaches the axle full diameter. We sheared one of these keys on a front hub 3 miles into a moose hunt this year but continued on and drove it that way for over 100 miles. The hub got pretty wobbly by the end but at least we could continue the hunt. it might not have wobbled so much with tracks but we were on wheels. It beat the crap out of the rim but it never lost air so the bead locks really did their job.

[Buzz]

Well, this made me chuckle...Patience acutally pays off, not that I always practice that... headed back out to the garage last night to go at the hub. I touched it (barely), and it wiggled, then it came right off in one hand....no way! Yeah, no kidding. Allright! A couple days earlier, I had heated it with a torch, pounded a bit, and then soaked it in PB....and had pretty much planned to move on to Mark's suggestion. Let it sit in the unheated part of the shop to cold-soak. Guess I got lucky. Hey, last week they drew my name from a hat, and I was dismissed from Grand Jury Duty too! First ever winning streak.

That's good to know everything survived with the axle key sheared....with that much friction inside. I wonder if a guy could put a thin tapered insert (UHMW) or even just grease inside the tapered hub and leave the key out. At least with tracks, most of the time the wheel/tire/hub would be turning "almost" the same speed/direction as the axle, even though the key was removed. I would think it would tolerate what little friction/movement there was between the tapered hub body and the tapered axle that was caused by any difference in tire diameter. I need to look into bearings with "tapered" inner bores. I think the tapered axle end prior to the threads is ultimately where an idler hub's outer bearing should nest. I don't know if the axle end is a standard taper or ? I need to just take the hub to the bearing store so they new just what size "tapered inner bore" would fit over the axle end. A short idler hub with such a bearing would be perfect. Even a standard length hub that could use this kind of outer bearing and a standard 1.25" i.d. inner bearing on the main axle body....with a seal of the same diameter.

[Buzz]

MattO or Mark-
I can't remember exactly where the individual axles braces (instead of the single rail) sit on the bearing cages. If I was to put shorter axles and bearing cages in the center, could I still utilize the individual support members between the center(shorter) bearing cages and the front/rear(longer) bearing cages? I want to say they were drilled "closer in" and "further out" for options on the bearing cage, but I can't remember.

[Buzz]

I could always drill and tap the longer cages in a spot closer to the tub if need be (didn't think long enough before I posted)...but I wanna say they're already tapped in a couple spots...