OC-12 vagaries , band replacement time ?

[rockhead]

Finally got to put a few kms on DMC1450 . I had spec adjusted the torque on the steering bands and then backed it off a touch ~1/4 turn more on the right to reduce apparent drag and drift.
50 yards from the truck it went into hard right turn mode, spun a donut went another 10 yards straight and then donut again
Backed off the tensioner another 1/2 turn or so and it started behaving fairly well.
Had a bit of wandering on the trip but nothing offputting aside from a moment when reefing on the right stick had almost no effect !


Is this likely bands or master/slave cylinder evil ?


Made it up top, made it back

 

[redsqwrl]

You got me confused....

did you put new bands on/in?

Why did it need adjusting?

My gut is thinking you are a bit off on the band adjustment. the donuts was when they got ahold of the drums.

Your speed might have been above (hey lets break this puppy in speed?)

Or

something is a miss in the diff.

the second thing that caught my eye is the reefing the stick and getting no output.

That could happen any number of ways, piston out of travel.

Band WAY too loose of adjustment or.....

What I am thinking, (but don't have enough info to know) the brake band was soo very hot from being adjusted that it was boiling the oil in the diff.....

So, get me up to speed on previous outings or what warranted the adjustment??

 

[rockhead]

Adjustment performed a) as recommended in the manual and b) due to previous pulling right experience.
I may indeed have backed it off too far (thank you ) , but that seemed necessary to prevent drag/drift or outright veering
Which leads me to think that the bands may indeed be very worn and thereby difficult or impossible to adjust 'right' .

 

[redsqwrl]

got it.

so you drove it and it pulled one way or the other.....

so then you adjusted the brakes thinking you had one dragging.

then.

you took it out and had this experience.

in the FWIW dept...

I have operated quite a few snow cats and few of them go straight like a car in the ruts of an asphalt high way.
adjustment of the brakes could cause that, however the indicator of that condition would be a slightly to very hot differential.

I found a nice write up about drifting on the safety one web site.

good luck sorting the drifting out it is frustrating as a tucker that has a bit of play in its steering arms.

 

[rockhead]

Had a very hot differential experience last year been watching it close this year and had nothing that was beyond warm to the touch.
When its on a reasonably flat track it does go surprisingly straight or at least would after the brakes were adjusted by feel as opposed to by torque wrench.
I probably get another run tomorrow, film at eleven . . .