I am getting slower as I get older!!!

My neighbor's JD 4640 shucked the main clutch out yesterday while they where hauling manure on hay ground. So they brought it over for me to work on and the local JD dealer said it would be next week before they could get to it.

So this morning at 6:00am I started on it. I had to drain all the hydraulic oil out first. Then I removed the hood. Removed the AC compressor and left the lines intact. I just hang the compressor on the left rear fender when I split one any more. Got the splitting stands on the old girl right at 7am. Came into the house at 9 am had it split and flywheel off. Got the wife to take the flywheel to the machine shop for me. Cooled off a little an played on the PC a few minutes while cooling down. Back at it at 9:30am. While she was gone to town I pulled the HI-LO clutch pack and the control valve. I rebuilt them and reinstalled them in the tractor. I then rebuilt the pressure plate with new springs and fingers. The face was good. She got back with the flywheel just after 2 pm. (She waited for it at one of her friends in town. They visited until the machine shop called her that it was done.) At 7:00 pm I backed the tractor out of the shop to test run it. All was well put the hood back on and all was done at 7:30pm.

So with a few breaks I had it done in about 12 hours. I did it by myself. That is not bad but I used to do them in less than eight hours. So I just charge a flat rate anymore. I think that is the only fair way as I get slower at the work.

The neighbor is happy as he had more manure to haul before they started chopping. Funny the JD shop called him and told him they maybe could work him in Friday. He told them he already had it fixed and would be using it Friday. I did think that was kind of funny.

I for one, am very impressed.

JD,

I am becoming more like an older friend used
to say-- I can still do a days work, it just
takes all week to do it.

george

In your case, a week and a half---

You did good. I start out slow, then taper off.

Give yourself a break. Regardless of wether you worked faster today or not it would still have taken you 12 hours just like way back when, when you say it used to take you 8. Think about it, even if you did everything faster today and got your part done in 7 hours, it still took the machine shop 5 hours to get the flywheel surfaced and back to you. So, even if you had worked faster, there would still have been 5 hours down the drain waiting on them. So, take the 5 hours they wasted for you away from the 12 you spent working on it and your down to having done it in 7 hours.............. Sounds to me like your getting faster, not slower.......I know it's all a bunch of BS, but it does add up, and it's always better when you can share the blame with the other guy instead of taking it all for yourself.......LOL

By my calendar, Friday is still 2 days away.

Don't sell yourself short. Getting back in the field is worth something. As long as you can still cut the mustard, charge for your time.

That's a good job. I'll bet you work by your self also. I can't work with someone trying to help me. need to be by myself. I'll bet you sleep good tonight. Stan

Are you located in Texas somewhere by chance?

Sounds to me like you're still hangin' in there pretty good. If it's as hot there as it has been here lately, that will slow you down. Me, I'm more like george md stated.

No I am in North-East Iowa. I don't like the heat well enough to go to Texas.

JD...You needed to take some time off, like a week and spend it in my shop. 12hrs-7 days yep that should do it. Ha Ha.

Nice. I usually have to wait a day or two on parts to get anything done, then find other stuff that might as well be replaced while I'm in there. You either got a well stocked dealer or a well stocked shop.

Gotcha! Let me invite you instead to far southwestern Oklahoma!! It will be one full degree cooler....LOL
Thanks for your life story. I am contemplating to let my mechanic read it .....he's got a F3000 now for 14 months!!!! (supposedly is rewiring parts of it.... just gets distracted by other jobs walking in....) (in all fairness, he went over my 5010 from front to back, incl. rebuilding hydraulic pump, wiring, rockshaft work, 3pt, etc... and worked a little on the 4320.... but I am still waiting...8(...patience running thin, though!

I keep everything to do a quad range clutch and Hi-Lo pack on hand. I usually do five or six each year. So I can order the parts and get better pricing an shipping. So I have them when I need them.

I am lucky that my local dealer usually has them too. I order the clutch form A&I just like he does and I get better terms. The clutch pack parts I have to get at JD but I get a discount for the amount of parts I use. So it all works out. I have four JD dealers with in thirty miles and three others within fifty miles. We are lucky to have them.

JDseller
I'll bet bet you did a quicker clutch R&R than any of the local JD dealers around me. Good work.

sounds like you may be using your brain more than your brawn.

Yeah, aren't we all. But at least we're still moving and doing.

You're wearing me out talking about doing a clutch job on a split that quick. I pulled the top off the rear end on an Oliver 1550 and rebuilt the 3pt cylinder a week and a half ago. Had about 5 hours labor in that one. Couldn't have done it that quick if I hadn't just had another one apart the first week of June.

Very Impressive.I'm slowing down myself, two weeks ago did an inframe on the engine in our Komatsu excavator took the whole week. Just not as good standing on my head as I once was.
Ron

I wouldnt feel too bad or let it worry you, its natural to slow some as we age. Maybe a younger guy could have done it quicker and maybe NOT!!!!!!!!!

Dont worry a bit about it is my advice

best wishes, John T

Sounds PDQ to me.
As others pointed out, maybe it could have been done faster by younger, but would the quality of work have been the same?
I can spend a little more time (and money if need be) for quality.

Doing better than alright considering everything.