A while back a customer called me who had a leak on his 1840. This is a machine that is used privately & not for an income.
No problem, I called in & sorted a heavy leak from his servo controllers at the hydrostatic pumps. While I was there, I noticed that his loader frame would barely raise without giving the machine near full rpm – I said to him “that’s not right”. Hydraulic function was working just fine – as long as engine RPM was high. Experience told me that his main relief valve was stuck open. He allowed me to take a look & sure enough there was a small chunk of metal caught under the poppet. I cleaned the valve & re-installed it & he tried the hydraulic operation. Well, he was over the moon that everything was working at speed with low engine RPM.
“Now”, I said, “that piece of metal has come from somewhere – most likely the hydraulic pump”……….
Move forward a few weeks….. I get the call……”Uhmm, all hydraulic movement has stopped on the machine.” I arrived on-site, no testing, just went straight to the hydraulic pump. Expecting to find either a stripped drive coupling or a sheared pump shaft, I found neither. I then pulled the fittings from the pump to inspect the gears – two broken gear teeth were behind one fitting, BINGO!
Next step, to get pricing for a new pump. I haven’t needed to buy one of these for quite some time & was unable to source one from any aftermarket supplier “off the shelf” here in Australia. Ok, let’s see what genuine will cost….. I sent the emails….. Quite frankly, I was shocked that there is very little change out of $3K for the pump alone! Last time I bought one of these, I’m sure it was under $1K & I’m NOT THAT OLD!
Even buying non-genuine from US suppliers would cost just over $2K landed here in Australia.
I broke the news to my customer & he was in disbelief that this small repair was going to cost almost half what he paid for the entire machine!
So, I began a search for something that I could buy locally & hopefully at a realistic price.
Good news! I have sourced a pump that will fit straight on, is rated at the same GPM & using the same fittings – absolutely zero modifications required.
My customer couldn’t believe that I got the job done, including labour, well under the cost of the genuine pump alone!
Happy days!
If you are needing a hydraulic pump for your CASE 1840 / 1845C – Get in touch now! 0412 127 722
