[dan deutekom]

Originally posted by Bill Schwab
There is one thing that tears up tracks more than any single thing you can do with that machine...Backing up at high rates of speed. You will do more under carraige damage this way than any other. And for the most part, that is ANYONES track drive machine..

Bill I am not disputing you I just want to know why this is so. I do not understand the mechanics of this

[PSUscaper]

I'd like an answer to that one also.

Winter is here and soon my machine will be plowing............I'll be flying in reverse just as much as in forward. I'd like to know if I shouldn't be.

[Paul]

I wonder too, On all the heavy track equipment that I have run it allways went faster in reverse than foward. Now I've been out of the seat of the bigger equipment for some time, and other than our track tractor which does very little reverse work, why would they put a higher reverse gear in them?

[PSUscaper]

The only thing I can think of is this.

with a 'two cog' system, such as a excavator has, where there's a big cog in the front(the front being the end with the blade if so equiped), and a big cog in the back, and then little wheels in the middle. The drive hydraulics/motors are usually on the back cogs..............maybe when you drive in reverse and 'plow' things over such as small rocks and climb over objects, it does 'direct' damage to the drive cog????

I find this tough to believe though, as with a excavator, you really don't think about whether you going forward or reverse.

With most of the new track loaders, they have the 3 cog sytem, with the drive cog being elevated in a triangle type pattern...I would think this would be a fix to this problem if it is a problem.

Also, the other thing I can think of is with rocks and dirt getting into the tracks......maybe, by suddenly going forward to reverse, you tend to suck more rocks into the undercarriage and kind of grind them in more?

Or is this just a matter of a sudden, drastic change in direction.....ie.....going full speed forward and then slamming it into full speed reverse..........kind of putting a sudden, drastic tug on the track as it changes direction......if this is the case, then I think you are just being a bad operator and will do a lot more damage than just to the tracks.

[Stonehenge]

I sure could've used a tracked loader when I was moving some trees around in my yard a couple weeks ago....

[Will Pacala]

Look's to be a hard job. Ever consider getting steel tracks that fit over the tires. When not in use you can take them off.

[Stonehenge]

The funny part is, the trees I was trying to move are about 12 feet to the left of the skid steer. I was trying to get to on in the back of the bunch, and started slipping. Once that happened, I wriggled and spun my way down the ditch, about 6' away from where I started slipping.

I've thought about steel tracks, but it hasn't gotten past that. My guys got a big kick out of seeing how bad the boss got the skidder stuck.

[Will Pacala]

Well at least they got a good laugh out of it. As long as you didn't get it stuck in there.

[jwholden]

Tips and tricks when the skidder starts sliding away.

* Stop and think before you go into panick mode and make the situation 10 x worse!

* Dig a bit behind the tires and put some flat rocks under there so the machine doesn't sink anymore. If you have process or sand on site that will work as well.

* You can always put some plywood down in the path of the machine, but when it's that muddy you are guaranteed to destroy the plywood.

[Stonehenge]

Yeah, I've been in enough sticky spots to have picked up a few tricks... with the clay we have, plywood never works very well - ends up becoming a projectile when the soil is as greasy as it was.

The distance I traveled into the ditch was traveled very slowly. The soil was too loose to stick the forks in and pry myself out. Each time I tried to maneuver a slightly different direction, a got a bit further down the hill.

I dug the machine out once by hand, added some 3/4" stone, but didn't work. By the time I was at the bottom, the skidder was stuck against a tree, so my opportunity to move was very limited without doing major damage to the tree.

So it got parked until Monday, when I could get a guy to help with truck and chain. 15 minutes later we were back in business.

[Bill Schwab]

Dan:

AS it has been explained to me, and it makes soem sense, it is that the track and carriage design is made so that it can can tremendous amounts of strain in forward mode...Think of when the loads are all being placed. You are in forward digging right?

As you back drag, there is not as much strain on the machine. But, when you hit high speed in reverse, the strain on the tracks becomes a reverse thrust pattern that can buckle, shift wear, etc.

That is how the mechanic at Hawthorne Equipment (our local cat dealer) explained it to me....

[BJR]

Hi everyone,

It's been a while since I was last online.

I would just like to advise everyone that if they are considering purchasing a track loader-

DON'T BUY AN ASV!


I thought they had sorted out the problem with my track system. No such luck.

The problems are still continuing and the running costs are getting out of hand.

I am currently seeking legal advice on what to do.

[Bill Schwab]

Bjr:

It is obvious you have a lemon or something is just not right on your machine. We have had an ASV since 2001, over 2500 trouble free hours, and just about due for tracks.

I would contact your local Cat dealer, who ever that may be, and if you get little help, keep going up the food chain until you do.

In over 35 years of being associated with Caterpillar products in several states, I have never had an issue with a piece they haev not resolved.

In the mean time, I qwill continue putting my faith and money in ASV and Cat products.

[BJR]

Bill

I have been as far as I am allowed to go.

I am banned from calling ASV in the States, and also the Australian Importer.

I have been told that the ASV RC30 has a tracking problem and that they are trying to fix it. I have also been told that the Importer over here has already traded in 4 RC30's to get the owners out of trouble and into a new series 2 model. I was told that they would not considder trading mine untill they had resold these four.

My problem is that my tracks only last app 380 hours untill the teeth are torn appart and are no longer functional. The only advice I have been given is to tighten the tracks right up to help stop the misfeed. This resulted in the bearings, in the front and back wheels, being put under undue stress and they finally desintegrated after 760 hours. This resulted in me having to replace 1 stub axle and 8 wheels, a cost of $3000. ASV have supplied 2 new sets of tracks at no cost but I have had to pay upwards of $5000 for labour and parts over a period of 2 years.

I have also seen RC50 tracks in the dealers yard that have had teeth just torn away. Another 2 contractors I know are starting to see cracks appearing where the teeth meet the track. This in under 1000 hours of use. I am not the only one having problems with ASV machines.

I will scan some pictures to show the damaged tracks.

[Bill Schwab]

BJR:

I have put soem thought in your situation with the ASV today...I was under a truck changing a transfer case, so, hasd time to discionnect from the daily ops, and do a bit of fun stuff..

Herezz the deal.....On another forum some years back, we had braod success when the forum itself pooled together and lobbyed the various manufacturer/dealer distributors to stop makiong excuses for equipment that failed under warrantee and fix it. We had sucdess with a small operator who owneda Scag mower, and a huge operator who had purchased over 300K in equipment in one eyar. Both were given the run around until the manufaturers were bombed with E-mails, letters, and demands to straighten out their issues or face a nation wide ban with reasons for the ban of that equipment. We actually were going to attend various trade shows and talk to prospective buyers about why not to buiy that brand...

Well, it worked...There are some hurdles to climb first. The first is that we have Jeffs permission to proceed should we see a case at hand.

The second, before anyone agreed to help, we need names, dates times, and businesses invovled in you getting the run around....As a son of a mechanic, a person who has had grease in his blood from the age of birth, I find it appauling when any manufacturer jerks a buyers chain, and since the lawn indistry has been so fragmented with the various entities invloved, it is easy for a distributor to blow off a buyer for example...

What this will ential is a careful letter,email writing program from the various other companies who particpate on this forum. If you can provide any othe rnames who have had issues, and documentation of any sort, it would also be of great importance, as strength is in numbers.

By the way, in the case of the fellow with the JD equipment, JD agreed to buy back every piece at a settled upon price. The owner was reasonabkle and figured the time the machines were used. The guy wuith the Scag got an extended warrantee, and complete service repairing the issues.

So, first, are you OK with this Jeff, and are you ok with this BJR?