931B starter removal???

It turns out I do need to take the starter out of
my Cat 931B. Tried a bunch of things and then took
the end cap off the starter motor. No oil but a
big rust spot on the bottom, so I'm thinking water
must have slowly got in from melting snow or
something?

I managed to get the top starter bolt loose with a
stubby wrench and a pry bar on the frame for
leverage. This weekend I'll pull the belly pan to
hopefully get at the other 2 bolts. I think it
will have to come out the bottom but there's an
oil cooler line there. Maybe I can push it out of
the way, won't know till I see it. I read of
someone else taking the starter out the top but I
think even if I remove the hyd. hoses on the pump,
my pump is too big to get the starter out? Does
someone know if the optional piston pump to run
the backhoe is longer/bigger than the standard
pump? Any help you could provide to get this darn
thing out would be greatly appreciated. Then
getting it back is going to be a job in itself.

Glad to hear you got the problem figured out.... sorry to hear it was the starter motor itself and not just the solenoid.

On getting the bolts out, have you tried a long 1/2 drive extension and a swivel joint socket. Usually you can"t get the bolts all the way out without the socket jamming against the body of the starter, even with a swivel joint, but it does give you the ability to put the leverage offered by a long handled 1/2 drive ratchet into use to get them to break loose. Too they make wrenches bent in an arc to get to the "hidden" bolts on a starter. Usually they aren"t that much better than the stubby you used for breaking them loose, but they are invaluable for getting them out after the fact.

Now, you had asked in your previous post about using another machine to pick the bucket up to get the arms out of the way. Hopefully you"ve managed to get past that. If not, as long as you"ve got something to set the bucket on once you get it up in the air, or a piece of heavy channel or angle iron to lay on one (preferably both due to the weight of the bucket)of the lift cylinders, you should be able to get the arms out of your way and make things a lot easier. The main thing is to insure whatever you use in the way or angle or channel is strong enough not to bow up so getting under the arms is safe.

Beyond that, I"ve pulled many starters, as well as other parts, in impossible places over the years, (and have the skint knuckles and scars on my hands and arms to prove it....LOL), so I know it"s never any fun. I wish I could help with telling you an easier way to do things beyond what you"ve already got somewhat planned out, but without actually seeing it for myself I"d be afraid to tell you that something would definitely work as even the brand of lines used (different brands often means different diameters of the same size line) could make all the difference in the world when it comes to the question of "will it fit?". So, I"ll leave you with a heartfelt GOOD LUCK.

Thanks Wayne! If you were close and my worst enemy, I'd hire you! LoL Look at my latest post above from today. I used my tractor and skid steer to lift the boom high enough to get at the starter. I have it blocked up on a barrel and also have some 2" pipe for supports. Getting the starter bolts out was easy. I think I'm going to have to pull the engine in order to replace the starter. Right now the starter is wedged between the frame, track cross bar and engine. If I can manage to get it loose, about the only other thing I can try is to remove the hyd. hoses and the hyd. pump to get enough room to pull it out the top. Then putting it back in requires a little more precision. This could be the worst repair nightmare I've ever had and I've had to lay in 60 litres of hyd. oil under the machine to fix the main hyd. hose from the pump because some fool used non Cat hose with metal shim on a Cat fitting.