I have been looking for a Skid Steer for a few years and today October 15 2011 had this New Holland L425 Skid Steer delivered. It has a gasoline 4 cylinder 30 Hp Wisconsin air cooled engine and all hydrostatic drive.
October 15 2011

In order to drive it from the street to the driveway the battery was dead and had to be boosted. October 15 2011

There were MANY things wrong with this skid steer that I wasn't aware of and could have been injured very seriously, The previous owner said be carefull, it jumps around a bit. October 15 2011

I had a spare battery and jumper cables so tried to start the engine. The controls could not be placed in the neutral position but I didn't know that so when I started the engine it roared to full RPM. The lift arms began raising the bucket and I couldnt reach in to turn off the key so when the arms reached the top stops it jerked and the drive handles became engaged causing the unit to began reversing, then going forward, then reverse, at one point it was bouncing on the back wheels, and spinning around VERY SCARY. Running beside the tractor trying to keep my feet and legs from going under the wheels, I had a chance to reach in and turn off the key. I then went into the house and made a coffee. October 18 2011

I wanted to remove the bucket so it would take less space in the garage while working on it. Bucket is 60" wide. October 18 2011

This is a view from the rear and that is a battery charger on the pail. The battery was very low on water so I filled it up. October 18 2011

With the bucket removed I jacked up the skid steer and put it on a dolly so I can move it around more easly October 18 2011

With the wheels removed and sitting on the cart it is easy to move around. Acording to the service manual with fluids and a driver it weighs 2860 pounds. October 18 2011

Boom safety latch is controlled by a lever to the left of the drivers seat and used to safely secure the boom in the upright position. The mehanizism was so rusted and damaged it could not operate and this bracket on the right side is so badly bent I had to pry it out with a bar.   October 25 2011

It was time to roll it into the shop for the rest of the restoration, I do not plan on running the engine untill I can be assured it will be safe. This machine is an excellent example of neglect.
    Previous owners should be ashamed ! ! .   October 25 2011

Bucket Cylinder, the connector on the end of the shaft at one time was seporated from the cylinder shaft and welded crooked and I would guess when it was welded the cylinder was closed therefore burning the seals because they leak badly. Replacement cost from New Holland cylinder $1056.03 each, seal kit $60.34

Check out how I repaired the cam plate shaft
Go to the Cam Plate Repair page. The left hand control lever would be fastened to this shaft through a series of levers and links but the bracket that is to fit snugly on this shaft was also damaged and so loose it was impossible to shift to neutral.

Jacked up 17" so the gas tank can be removed and then I can get at the covers at the back axels and remove the lock nuts and slide the axel out. The left rear and front right axel seals will be replaced because of a leak.

The left rear axel was easily removed and the seals are on order. There is a oil seal and a dust seal, both will be replaced. There is a grease fitting on the outside of the axel that is supposed to keep forign material from the dust seal and I don't think grease was ever used because the dust seal was full of grit, dirt and sand.

This photo taken from the inside the cab shows the cover removed over the left rear drive sprocket, the chains have been removed.

To give some perspective of the size of the chains, the drive chain that drives the wheels is on the left a #60 and the primary chain on the right #50.

In the service manual they suggest two people working together to replace the #60 drive roller chain because it has to be snaked over the rear sprocket then around the front sprocket up and over the idler jack shaft sprocket then around the tensioner sprocket then the two ends have to be coaxed to the center opening of the housing so the connecting link can be installed. Ya two people. As you can see the connecting link is in place.

Now with the drive chain in place I can install the primary drive chain, however while doing this, I discovered the primary chain is loose and will need to be adjusted, to do this I will have to remove the bucket and boom control valve.

The pins held by the tape are .076 dia. by 1.0320” long and on the print are item #16. The purpose of the pins is to apply pressure to the pivot washer #13 which holds the pistons to the pressure plate.
I could not purchase these pins anywhere, they are not available, these are a critical part of the hydraulic pump and without the pins the pump is useless. As you can see none are the same length, all worn a little. I took the longest pin as my sample, added a little and made new pins from rod stock I had in the shop. I used .080” rod.

“0” rings on the right were removed from it hydraulic resivour for the emergency brake shaft, the one was worn and the other had a piece missing, that would explain the leak, I replaced with the new rings on the left. to replace these O rings is a huge job, hydraulic tanks (57 L) have to be drained, front axels must be removed, emergency brake discs removed then the 3/4 inch shaft split and pulled then you can change the ¢10 O rings. This must have been designed by an engineer, not a mechanic. I would guess 10 hours.
See photo 15 above, the hole behind the chain is for the emergency brake shaft.

Check valves from the boom and bucket control valve were worn and pitted a little. These valves are used to hold the boom and bucket in place after the control spools have shifted to neutral position and prevent the boom or bucket from droping.

In this photo you can see I machined the surface of the valve, I removed only about 0.010” but at least now the valve will not leak. The pressure relief valve was also not operating, if you go back to the top of the page I said that the boom raised by itself and almost killed me, well now I know why, the top of the spool valve had come loose from the spool and floated where it wanted. Also the boom control has a “float” position and the detent spring and balls were worn badly, I replaced with new, works great now.

Today March 8 2012 I took the Skid Steer for a little test drive up and down the street, this machine works GREAT. I am so pleased the pins I made for the main hydraulic drive pumps are working well. The boom and the new cylinders I bought for the bucket also seem to be operating properly. There was a safety switch under the seat that would not allow the boom to lower without someone in the seat. When I got the machine there was no switch and the circuit had been jumpered out. I replaced the seat with this one purchased from Princess Auto.

A photo of the micro limit switch I installed on the seat frame that will close the circuit to the boom solenoid allowing the boom to be lowered when the operator is in the seat. This safety works great now.
The next project is building a stone bucket,
click here to follow along
    Home Built Stone Bucket