Date: 15 January, 2006 Priority: 3

Version: 03
Sequential Number: SL-ES-221
Product Code: #007
Subject: Shovel Hoist Drum Gear Alignment Procedure
Applicable to assembly: All Hoist Drum Shaft Assemblies
Models affected: 2300XPA/XPB, 2800XPA/XPB, 4100/4100A, 4100TS/BOSS, 4100XPB

Purpose:
Improper alignment of the hoist drum gear will cause end loading of the gear teeth which
may result in pitting/spalling or scoring on the mating tooth surfaces. Examples of this type of
deterioration is shown on the following page. If end loading is occurring, it’s typically visible on
one end of each of the pinion’s teeth.

To correct for this potentially serious issue, the hoist

drum gear alignment procedure must be performed on every
new machine build and for every occasion where a major
maintenance activity could influence the hoist assembly
alignment (Ex: welding repairs, new gearing or bearings).

Side Stand
Bearing Block
(Behind Drum)

Hoist Machinery - Rear View

Alignment of the hoist
drum gear will be accomplished
by shimming under and in front
of the side-stand bearing block.
The goal of this procedure will
be to achieve equal backlash
across the entire gear face, both
front and rear. We will check for
acceptable contact patterns and
hopefully eliminate any evidence
of misalignment.

Hoist Machinery Pictorial

 (Right & Below), Examples of how
misalignment can deteriorate the
surface condition of the pinion teeth.
Deterioration is often localized on
one end of the pinion face.

To the right is an example of how

misalignment can affect the surface
condition of the hoist drum gear as
well.

2
General Machine Condition:
On new builds or existing shovels, when the hoist drum gear alignment is be performed
the shovel should be positioned on level ground with a raised boom and all of the counter-
weight installed. There should be no stands under the rear of the shovel, as this will alter the
deflection of the revolving frame. Be sure to have either a swing brake or the anti-swing kit in-
stalled, R54200F1, before removing the counterweight support stands. This will prevent free
swing of the shovel’s upper revolving frame.
The lid to the hoist gearbox should also be installed, doweled and bolted tight, as this is
an integral structural component of the gearbox and may affect the alignment of the gearing.

Hoist Gear Alignment Procedure and verification:

Hoist gearing alignment is a fairly involved process. The efforts in leading the gears and
bluing the teeth can be incorporated into several parallel tasks, which if done correctly, can
save valuable time. The complete hoist gearing alignment procedure starts on the following
page.
To accompany this procedure, there will be an Excel Spreadsheet SL-ES-221Ver01.xls,
which contains the mathematical formulas to interpret the lead measurements. It is this sheet,
that calculates the required degree of side-stand bearing block movement (see picture below).

If all the steps are followed, a properly aligned gear set should result. In some cases,
things can go wrong and interpretation of the findings can be difficult. We have also put to-
gether a section in Appendix E “Past Issues & Possible Scenarios” to help with this. We have
also put together a “Questions & Answers” in Appendix F, to help give an understanding of the
overall process.
It is good practice to visually inspect hoist gearing every 6 months. If signs of misalign-
ment are present (end scoring/spalling or lack of full face contact), as a minimum, the gear
alignment procedure (next page) and the gearbox wedge adjustment procedure (Appendix B)
should be performed to evaluate the status of the gearing.

Regards,
Jeff Schwake
Senior Service Engineer

Side-stand
Bearing block

Plan view of hoist machinery

3
 Table of contents

Cover page ..................................................................................................01

Introduction..................................................................................................02

Table Of Contents .......................................................................................04

Gearbox Gear Alignment and

Contact Pattern Verification PROCEDURE.................................................05
Step #1 (Prepare machine, equipment and people) ..........................05
Step #2 (Prepare hoist gearbox for inspection)..................................07
Step #3 (Prepare rear pinion for lead wire and front for blue) ............09
Step #4 (Rotate lead and blue through the gear mesh) .....................11
Step #5 (Documenting results and clean up) .....................................13
Step #6 (Prepare front pinion for lead wire and rear for blue)............14
Step #7 (Rotate lead and blue through the gear mesh) .....................16
Step #8 (Documenting results and clean up) .....................................18
Step #9 (Evaluate blue and alignment program operation)................19
Step #10 (Adjust the shims at the bearing block)...............................22
Step #11 (Redo the analysis) .............................................................22
Step #12 (Reassemble machine) .......................................................22

Appendix A - Gearbox Wedge Adjustment.................................................23

Part #1: Gearbox wedge keepers (100N3200F1)...............................23
Part #2: Gearbox jack bolt Keepers (R35356F1)................................29
Part #3: Latest Developments in Jacking Systems (R57939F1) ........31

Appendix B - Side-Stand Bearing Block Alterations.....................................32

Appendix C - Pre-bending lead wire and needed equipment list .................34

Prebend lead wire...............................................................................34
Tool List ..............................................................................................36

Appendix D - Interpret Readings & Case Studies .......................................37

Case study #1.....................................................................................40
Case study #2.....................................................................................43

Appendix E - Past Issues with Gearbox Alignments ...................................49

Appendix F - Questions and Answers.........................................................59

4
 Gearbox Gear Alignment and
Contact Pattern Verification
PROCEDURE

Time to complete, 4 hours for experienced crew, 10 hours if for the very first time.
Luckily, efficiency is learned quickly.

Step 1 Prepare the machine, equipment and all involved people

#1a Hoist gear case wedge system adjustments should be performed if necessary. Every
hoist gear case has a wedge system. It is very important that the case be tight, operational
loads will cause hoist case movement which will induce gearing misalignment. The procedure
has been detailed in Appendix A.

#1b Hoist side-stand bearing block. When a new machine is assembled, everything’s ideal
and there’s enough adjustability designed into the side-stand to allow for accurate alignment of
the hoist gearing. However, as a machine gets up in hours and may have had crack repairs or
there may have been changes in the operating parameters, it is often found that there is not
enough adjustability in the side-stand. Please see Appendix B, for possible bearing block al-
terations in preparation for hoist drum gear alignment.

#1c Pre-bend lead wire (solder) and required tool list: It is extremely difficult to bend the lead
wire around the pinion teeth by reaching through the small inspection hole in the gearbox
cover. Please follow the lead wire pre-bending procedure stated Appendix C. Also, a general
list of required tooling will be detailed in this section.

#1d Park the shovel with the bail and/or equalizer lying all the way forward with visibly slack
hoist ropes. This will help eliminate the stored energy in the hoist system. See Service Bulle-
tin SB-ES-132. Please see adjacent page for visual understanding of stored hoist energy.

#1e Electrically Lockout/tag-out the machine. Present the alignment procedure to all individu-
als involved. This is to educate and identify the associated safety hazards.

5
 In reference to 1d, the above 4 examples
were of shovels parked with obvious
stored energy in the hoist system.

In reference to 1d, the example to the

right was a shovel which was parked
with not so obvious stored energy in
the hoist system. Notice how one
rope is tight, one is loose and the bail
is not all the way down.

In reference to 1d, the example to

the left had virtually all the hoist en-
ergy removed from the system. No-
tice the visibly slack hoist ropes and
the bail is resting on the dipper.
THIS IS WHAT WE WANT.

6
Step 2 Prepare the hoist box for inspection

#2a With brakes engaged, remove both motor

coupling guards and coupling bolts. If applica-
ble, do not separate the coupling halves, as we
may be able to avoid adding grease to the cou-
plings.

#2b Keep the area clear and release all resid-

ual stored energy in the hoist system. Attach
an auxiliary air line and pressurize the brakes
(Movement will occur, as all hoist energy will
be released). Do not press the air solenoid valve in the lube room. This will only temporarily
release/set the brakes. They must remain released for a period of time to equalize the stored
energy.

#2c Remove the air from the hoist sys-

tem to re-engage the hoist brakes.

#2d The gearbox cover is to be installed.

All dowels and bolts are to be installed.

The bolts are to torqued to specification.

#2e The 2nd reduction bearing caps and the top

access covers to the 2nd reduction pinions are to
be removed.

7
#2f Use a feeler gage to
determine the fit-up of the
lid to the bottom of the case.
Check the full circumfer-
ence on each of the four 2nd
reduction bearing’s outer
race to be sure they are
seated tightly in the bores of
the gearbox. There should
be no gaps.

8
Step 3 Prepare the rear pinion for lead wire and the front pinion for blue evaluation

#3a With degreaser, clean all accessible teeth on the rear pinion. These must be dry in order
for the tape to stick. Fully clean at least 7 consecutive teeth.

#3b Place four lead

wires onto the rear pin-
ion. Place two of them
at the prescribed dis-
tance from the end of
the pinion (See SL-ES-
221.xls). For each pair
of lead wires, stagger
them by one tooth. This
means that there will be
actually 6 teeth covered
by lead wire, the first
and last teeth will have
lead wire only on one
face. Rear-Pinion

Note: These rear lead wires were placed onto the gears before
the lid was installed and torqued. If this option is available, it
can save some time.

#3c Use duct tape and

tape them in place by
applying tape to every
tooth except the center
tooth. Since 6 teeth are
covered, there will be 2-
½ spaces to the front
and 2-½ spaces to the
rear. It is the lead wire
in the center space we
want to keep free of
tape. It is also good
practice to apply grease
to the lead wires in this
center space. This al-
lows them to squish
more easily as they go
through the gear mesh.
Rear-Pinion

9
Note: Blue checks on the front pinion will be performed at the same time we perform the lead
checks on the rear pinion. This greatly reduces the process time. Since the pinions do not dip
into the gear oil, this works very well.

#3d With degreaser, clean three accessible teeth near the mesh on the front pinion and the
three matching teeth on the drum gear. In order for the tape to stick, these need to be dry.

#3e On the front pinion, apply a very thin film of

bearing blue to the "LOAD FACE"
on only one of the degreased pin-
ion teeth. If it is too thick, you will
get a false reading.

#3f Apply lead wire to the opposing flank and trim

it at the outside diameter of the pinion. Tape it
down to secure its position. When this goes
through mesh, this lead wire will force the drum
gear to press firmly against the load face of the pinion, thus giving you a picture of the contact
pattern. It is very important that the mating surface on the drum gear be wiped dry, as this will
disturb the blue pattern.

Non-Load
Face
Load Face

Front-Pinion
(Above), The front hoist pinion with a thin film of bearing blue applied to the load face. The op-
posite face has lead wire taped to the face. This ensures that the pinion is forced against the
gear. If this is not done, often times the gears can turn past each other and only contact on the
non-load face. This will not give reliable results.

10
Step 4 – Rotate lead and blue through the mesh

#4a Keep the area clear and apply air to the hoist brakes.

#4b Use the rear input coupling to turn the gear set just enough to ensure that the bearing
blue and lead wire at the front pinion have been drawn down through the mesh, but no more.
Place bolts into the gearbox coupling half only and use a pry bar to turn the coupling. Pinion
rotation direction will be such that the hoist rope will unwind from the hoist drum.

Note: Direction of input pinion rotation is exactly the same as the direction of drum rotation.

Rear shown, reference only

#4c After the front blued gear teeth have cleared the mesh, the rear lead wire still have yet to
reach the underside of the mesh. Now we will switch the driving pinion (stop turning the rear
and move to the front input pinion). Use the same method as in #4b and continue to turn the
drum in the same direction by using the front pinion coupling. Turn until all the lead wire on
the rear pinion have emerged from the underside of the gear mesh.

At this point, the lead wire may stick to the drum gear. Be very careful to peel it off and lay it
back into the pinion root. Stop rotation after all the lead wire is fully accessible and the blue
contact pattern is plainly visible through the access hole.

#4d Remove the air from the hoist brakes to secure the system position.

11
 Load Face

Drum-Gear

Non-Load
Face

Front-Pinion

(Above), The front blue pattern after being run through the mesh and rotated back to the
original position. Note how the lead wire helped the gears press together, generating
the contact pattern. See: Appendix D for evaluation details.

Drum-Gear

Load Face

Non-Load
Face
Rear-Pinion

(Above), This is the rear pinion after the lead wires have been pulled through the mesh and
rotated to the original position. Note how the lead wires in the adjacent teeth provide a
cushion (lead-in / lead-out) for the valuable lead wire on the untapped tooth.

12
Step 5 Documenting results and Clean-up

#5a Harvest the lead wire from the rear

pinion. Use a wire cutter to cut the Drum-Gear
leads free from the pinion. By lifting
only one out at a time, place them onto
a piece of paper. Label this paper to
reflect the letters (E,F,G & H) seen in
the pictures. Match the corresponding
numbers “E-G” and “F-H”.

Note: the locations for “E-G” and “F-H”

are defined on program:
SL-ES-221.xls.

#5b If the procedure was successful,

the compressed lead wire should be Load Face
slender, flat and of a uniform thickness F
for about 1.5” (35mm) in the middle
area. Measure the thickness near the
pitch line using a micrometer or vernier
caliper and record the values on the
piece of paper. Later, we will input
these values into the computer pro- Non-Load H
gram. Again, be sure not to mix up the Face
lead wires or numbers. Rear-Pinion

#5c Use a digital camera to photograph

the blue pattern, measure the length of
the contact pattern and take note of its
Drum-Gear
shape. It is also common to use clear
book tape to document the pattern.
The tape can be placed onto the pattern,
pressed down, peeled off and placed
G H onto a sheet of white paper.
See page #47 for template.

E
F

#5d Clean the teeth. Remove all lead

Rear-Pinion wire and tape from both the front and
rear pinions.

13
Step 6 Prepare the front pinion for lead wire and the rear pinion for blue evaluation

#6a With degreaser, clean all accessible teeth on the front pinion. These must be dry in order
for the tape to stick. Fully clean at least 7 consecutive teeth.

#6b Place four lead wires Drum-Gear

onto the front pinion. Place
two of them at the pre-
scribed distance from the
end of the pinion, same as
was done for the rear pin-
ion. For each pair of leads,
stagger then by one tooth.
This means that there are
actually 6 teeth covered by
lead wire, the first and last
having only one lead.

Front-Pinion

Note: By the time this step comes along, the lid is on and
tight. These front lead wires must be installed and taped
tight through the access cover.

#6c Use duct tape and tape them

in place by applying tape to every
tooth except the center tooth.
Since 6 teeth are covered, there Drum-Gear
will be 2-½ spaces to the front
and 2-½ spaces to the rear. It is
the lead wire in the center space
we want to keep free of tape. It is
also good practice to grease
these lead wires in this center
space. This allows them to
squish more easily as they go
through the gear mesh.

Front-Pinion

14
Note: Blue checks on the rear pinion will be performed at the same time we perform the lead
checks on the front pinion. Again, this greatly reduces the process time. Since the pinion
does not dip into the gear oil, this works very well.

#6d With degreaser, clean three accessible teeth near the mesh on the rear pinion and the
three matching teeth on the drum gear. In order for the tape to stick, these need to be dry.

#6e On the rear pinion, apply a very thin film of bearing blue to the "LOAD
FACE" on only one of the degreased pinion teeth. If it is too thick, you will
get a false reading.

#6f Apply lead wire to the opposing flank and trim it at the outside diameter
of the pinion. Tape it down to secure its position. When this goes through
mesh, this lead wire will force the drum gear to press firmly against the load
face of the pinion, thus giving you a picture of the contact pattern. It is very important that the
mating surface on the drum gear be wiped dry, as this will mess up the blue pattern.

Drum-Gear

Non-Load
Face
Load Face

Rear-Pinion

(Above), The rear hoist pinion with a thin film of blue applied to the load face. The opposite
face has lead wire taped to the flank. This ensures that the pinion presses against the
gear. If this is not done, often times the gears can turn past each other and only contact on
the non-load face. This will not give reliable results.

15
Step 7 – Rotate lead and blue through the mesh

#7a Keep the area clear and apply air to the hoist brakes.
#7b Use the front input coupling to turn the gear set enough to ensure that the bearing blue and
lead wire at the rear pinion have been drawn down through the mesh, but no more. Place bolts
into the gearbox coupling half only and use a pry bar to turn the coupling. Pinion rotation direction
will be such that the hoist rope winds onto the hoist drum.

Note: Direction of input pinion rotation is exactly the same as the direction of drum rotation.

Rear shown, reference only

#7c After the rear blued gear teeth have cleared the mesh, the front lead wires still have yet
to reach the underside of the mesh. Now we will switch the driving pinion (stop turning the
front and move to the rear input pinion). Use the same method as in #7b and continue to turn
the drum in the same direction by using the rear pinion. Turn until all the lead wire has
emerged from the underside of the front gear mesh.

At this point, the lead wire may stick to the drum gear. Be very careful to peel it off and lay it
back into the pinion root. Stop rotation after both the lead wire is fully accessible and the blue
contact pattern is plainly visible through the access hole.

#7d Remove the air from the hoist brakes to secure the system position.

16
 Non-Load (Left/below), The rear
Face pinion blue pattern after
Drum-Gear
being run through the
mesh and rotated back to
the original position.
Although poor contact,
note how the lead wire
helped the gears press
together, generating the
contact pattern. See
Appendix E for evalua-
tion details.

Load Face Non-Load

Rear-Pinion
Face

(Below), This is the front pinion after

the lead wires have been pulled
through the mesh and rotated to the
original position. Note how the lead
wires in the adjacent teeth provide a
cushion (lead-in / lead-out) for the
valuable lead wire on the untapped Rear-Pinion
tooth. Load Face

Drum-Gear Non-Load
Face

Load Face

Drum-Gear
Front-Pinion

17
Step 8 Documenting results and Clean-up

#8a Harvest the lead wire from the front pinion. Use a wire cutter to cut the leads free from the
pinion. By lifting only one out at a time, place them onto a piece of paper. Label the paper to
reflect the letters (A,B,C &D) seen in the pictures. Match the crushed lead wire to the corre-
sponding numbers “A-C” and “B-D”.
Note: the locations for “A-C” and “B-D” are defined on program: SL-ES-221.xls.

Drum-Gear

Load Face
C

D
Non-Load
Face
Front-Pinion Front-Pinion

#8b If the procedure was successful, the compressed lead wire should be slender, flat and of
a uniform thickness for about 1.5” (35mm) in the middle area. Measure the thickness near the
pitch line using a micrometer or vernier caliper and record them directly onto the paper. Later,
we will input these values into the computer program. Again, be sure not to mix up the lead
wires or numbers.

#8c Use a digital camera to photograph the blue pattern, measure the length of the contact
pattern and take note of the shape. It is also common to use clear book tape to use a piece of
clear book tape to document the pattern. The tape is placed over the pattern, pressed down,
peeled off and placed onto a sheet of white paper. See page #47 for template.

#8d Clean the teeth. Remove all lead wire and tape from both the front and rear pinions.

18
Step 9 Evaluate the “Blue” and Alignment Program Operation
(refer to SL-ES-221-Ver01.xls)

Contact patterns can be very good at showing:

• Which direction we are out of alignment.
• If we have a good contact pattern.
They are not good at determining:
• Exactly how far to move the side-stand.
• If it is cross or parallel axis misalignment or both.

Lead wire (Solder) can be very good at determining:

• If we have cross or parallel axis misalignment or both.
• Exactly how much we are out of alignment.
• What direction of side-stand movement corrects for the error.
And they are not very good at showing:
• Contact patterns.

This is the exact reason we perform both bearing blue and lead wire checks. Combining the
two can show us which direction we are off, and tell us exactly how much adjustment is re-
quired. It is good to have two methods to confirm our observations.

In order for a gear-set to be acceptable, it must have both an acceptable contact pattern and
acceptable cross axis misalignment “Lead-Error”. See appendix D for acceptable contact pat-
terns. Acceptable Lead-Error for various shovel models will be stated in SL-ES-221.xls.

The program is set up in three parts (3-spread sheets). The first sheet will be to determine the
adjustment required for the rear pinion, as if it stood alone. The second sheet will be to deter-
mine the adjustment required for the front pinion, as if it stood alone. Then the third sheet
automatically takes both the front and rear pinion, combines their affects and determines
which direction the side-stand should be moved in order to compensate for both pinions. It de-
termines the average horizontal and vertical adjustment to minimize the gearing error.

The whole intent for breaking the

spreadsheet into these three sec-
tions was to allow the inspector to
better visualize each pinions contri-
Vertical
bution to the alignment. Often, we
Adjustment
find that the gearbox is somewhat
Location
twisted and in the past we could not
easily determine which pinion was
causing the most grief.

We will elaborate on this in

Appendix E.

(Right), This would be the typical Horizontal

hoist drum side-stand adjustment Adjustment
Location

19
#9a On sheet “Effects of REAR pinion only” Enter thickness values for E, F, G and H. For
every location we have two readings, take the average and place into the spreadsheet. From
this, we can determine which direction the side stand should be moved to correct for the mis-
alignment induced by the rear pinion only.

20
#9b On sheet “Effects of FRONT pinion only” Enter thickness values for A, B, C and D. For
every location we have two readings, take the average and place into the spreadsheet. From
this, we can determine which direction the side stand should be moved to correct for the mis-
alignment induced by the front pinion only.

C
B

21
#9c Go to sheet “Total of Both Pinion Effects” and it calculates for you, the average amount the
side stand needs to be moved in order to maximize the alignment between both pinions.
It “Splits the Difference” of all the recorded measurements.

All of the values in this third sheet are pulled from the first two sheets. Depending on the
model of shovel being evaluated, the horizontal and vertical adjustment requirements are dis-
played in the corresponding cell.

Step 10 Adjust the shim pack under and in front of the bearing block.

#10a Remove the side stand bolts, the weld attaching the bearing block to the side stand and
use a hydraulic ram to lift the drum assembly. Lift on the side stand end only.

#10b Add or remove shims as required in the front and under the side stand to the nearest
.005”. Be sure they are clean and not bent.

#10c Lower the drum, push it tight against shear ledge (front of machine) and reinstall the
bolts. Tighten, but do not retorque at this time.

Step #11 Redo analysis

#11a Perform steps 3 through 10 again to verify results or make necessary side stand altera-
tions.

Step #12 Reassemble machine (please reference the shop manual for specific details)
#12a Torque the side-stand rod bolts.
#12b Weld the side stand bearing block into position.
#12c Reinstall the hoist gear case inspection covers.
#12d Realign the hoist motors (if applicable).
#12e Reinstall and tighten hoist motor coupling bolts.

22
 Appendix A
Gearbox Wedge Adjustment
Gearbox wedge adjustment
Currently, for pinned hoist gearboxes, there are two types of gearbox wedge systems in use:
Part #1 An inclined wedge type that is kept in place with keepers
Applicable to all models except the 4100XPB.
Part #2 A vertical jack screw with a locking nut.
Applicable to the 4100XPB only.

For both systems, we will use a 50t hydraulic ram to lift the weight of the gearbox and then
adjust the wedges or jack screws. Currently we are developing a new system that will re-
place Part #2 with Part #3 (stated later in this section). This system will not require the use
of a hydraulic ram. It will be able to generate the required vertical force by simply torquing up
a single bolt at each corner of the gearbox. We will revise this procedure after completion of
the design.

Part #1: The following procedure is to readjust and tighten the inclined
wedge style gearbox keepers (100N3200F1).

Step 1, Assess the condition and presence of all 4 gearbox wedges.

(Left & Below), Front and rear gearbox

wedges look like this. Due to the small
contact area, they bear down hard and
fret the contacting surfaces. This even-
tually will allow the gearbox to move.

23
(Below & Right), Grease and
dirt can often be an issue
when working in this area.

Step 2, Remove the wedges.

Scarf off the welds that are keeping the wedges in place.

24
(Above), Use a 50 ton hydraulic ram, similar to the one shown, to lift the weight of the gearbox.
This will release the pressure on the wedges.

(Above), Remove the wedges, degrease and clean the entire area.
Then ,grind smooth the welded areas on the revolving frame.

25
Step 3, Clean and prepare the wedges for reinstallation.

(Above), Wedges
as removed from
the gearbox.

(Right), Evidence
of movement
“fretting” will often
be visible on all
the wedges.

(Left), Hand finish / polish the

wedges and remove all burs
and metal flow. These wedges
were originally flame cut and
as such need to be hand fin-
ished as shown.

The wedges will be reinstalled

with the fretted side facing the
revolving frame (down).

26
Step 4, Jack up the gearbox.

(Above), To reinstall the wedges, use a 50 ton ram to jack up the

gearbox. Gently place the refinished wedges under the gearbox.
Center them on the gearbox ribs. (Right), Dial indicators at the pin
bores should be used to documented the movement. When the
gearbox stops going up, you have enough pressure on the ram.
This same procedure is used for both the front and rear wedges.

(Left / Right)
These are
examples of
typical gear-
box move-
ment, before
and after
jacking.

27
Step 5, Install the wedges under the gearbox.

(Above, left & below), With jack load applied, a 3

inch (80mm) round bar, or similar, can be used
as a battering ram to pound the wedges into po-
sition. When the wedge comes tight, the assem-
bly will ring like a bell. All four corners are to be
pounded tight in a similar fashion.

28
(Right), Retainer clips are to
be re-welded in place as per
100N3200F1. This photo
would be similar to a rein-
stallation in each corner of
the gearbox.

Part #2: The following procedure is to readjust and tighten the jack screw
style gearbox keepers (R35356F1).

Step 1, Assess the condition and presence of all 4 blocks, bolts and lock nuts.

(Right) Typical jack

bolt that has been in-
stalled on a 4100XPB
hoist gearbox.

Note, the nut and

the bolt are tack
welded to the gear-
box.

29
Step 2, Remove tack welds from the bolt and nut on the rear two assemblies.

Step 3, Similar to the wedge style, vertically jack the gearbox with a 50 ton hydraulic ram

Step 4, Adjust the bolt and lock down the jack nut to eliminate any gaps.

Step 5, Tack weld the nut and the bolt in place at each location.

Step 6, Repeat the process for the front of the gearbox.

(Right), Be sure the bolt is centered under

the gearbox main plate. Not as shown.
Also, please review the new design shown
on the opposite page.
(Below), For a wedge system, be sure the
wedge is centered under the gearbox rib
plate. Not as shown here.

Left, Mix and matching the two

types of systems (inclined wedge
versus jack bolt) could yield mixed
results.

30
Part #3: Latest Development in Jacking Systems.
The 4100XPB and the 4100BOSS vertical jack bolt system will be superseded to an incline
wedge type system R57939F1. This new system has a bolt that is torqued to spec and that’s
it. A keeper has been added to ensure that the bolt does not unwind. Below are preliminary
pictures of the final design. For all 4100XPB and 4100BOSS machines, please use and install
this type of jack bolt system. The instructions are on the drawing.

31
 Appendix B
Side-Stand Bearing Block Alterations
When a new machine is assembled, everything would be ideal and there should be enough ad-
justability designed into the side-stand to allow for accurate alignment of the hoist gearing.

However, as a machine gets up in hours and may have had crack repairs or there may have
been changes in the operating parameters, it is often found that there is not enough adjustabil-
ity in the side-stand.

For example: Lets say, the alignment program indicated that the side stand should be moved
downward by .040” and towards the front of the machine by .030” to correct for the observed
misalignment. After inspection of the side stand, we determine that, currently, there weren't
any shims present under nor in front of the side stand. What do we do?

Very often we are in a pinch for time and we just send the machine back to work. However, we
should take action and mill some material off of the bearing block adjusting faces.

(Above), This is a 4100XPB hoist drum bearing block showing the

bottom and the front portions that may require shim adjustment.

32
For a new machine, we recommend no action.

For a used machine, we recommend having material machined off of the bottom and the front
of the side stand bearing block.

This should be preformed in parallel with other repair work being performed on the hoist sys-
tem. This only needs to be performed once per machine.

Typical Side Stand Bearing Block

Front Surface

Bottom Surface

From each surface, remove .140” ±.020”

For each face, manufacture a suitable shim out of a single piece of either 11ga (.1196) or 3mm
sheet steel depending on location).
• Bottom shim similar to the other shims used on your model of machine.
• Front shim will be a simple rectangle.

Warning, when installing the drum and bearing block back into the machine, be sure to have
the bottom thick shim installed before setting down the drum. If it is not installed, the gearing
will bind and may cause tooth fracture due to the huge cantilevered load.

33
 Appendix C
Pre-bending lead wire and
needed equipment list

By reaching through the tiny access hole, it is

very difficult to bend the lead wire around the contour
of second reduction pinions teeth.

The best practice is to pre-bend the lead wire

around the teeth on either an old or a spare second
reduction hoist pinion that has the same part number
as the one you will be evaluating on the machine.
Typical Access hole in Gearbox

Old, new or rebuilt

second reduction shaft
assemblies are great
for the formation of the
pre-bent lead wire.

34
(Above), This illustrates the preforming of the 1/8” (3mm) lead wire before the hoist case cover
was installed. Make enough pre-bent lead wires to do each pinion twice, IE: two sets for each
pinion or 16 individual pieces. The leads should be long enough to cover a total of five teeth.

(Right), Note, the

prebent wire covers
five complete con-
secutive teeth.

A computer is also
seen in the photo. It
was running the
alignment program
which was ready for
data input.

35
General Tool List
Materials Required to perform the hoist drum gear alignment:

• Lead wire or solder - 5 rolls

( 1/8” diameter solid - for best results, avoid using hollow core or acid core)

• Dykem Hi-Spot Blue 107, Bearing (Prussian) Blue or PT-650 Tooth Marking Grease -1 tube

• Tape, clear book type tape (2 ½ - 3” wide) - 1 roll

• Duct tape - 1 roll

• Degreaser for cleaning gear teeth

• Rags - Large bag

• Shims for hoist drum side-stand (vertical and horizontal directions)

• Round bar if required, for bumping wedges into place. See Appendix A

• Digital camera

• Magnetic base dial indicators - 2 required

• Vernier Caliper

• Computer with Excel for operating the program

• General mechanics tools

• Sockets & ratchet
• Open end wrenches
• Hydraulic ram (50T) and associated equipment
• Pry bar
• Portable light for inspection

• General Welders tools

• Gouger
• Chipper
• Welder
• Grinder
• Suitable safety equipment (PPE)

36
 Appendix D
Interpret Readings & Case Studies
Contact Patterns & Lead Measurements

Contact patterns are a great visual method for determining gearing alignment. The only draw-
back is that when the patterns are unacceptable, it is very difficult to determine how far to ad-
just the side stand to correct the errors.

When performing the procedure in this document, you will have a contact pattern for the front
and one for the rear pinion. Both the front and the rear must meet the minimum requirements
for contact patters. Anything less would be unacceptable. Please see illustration below.

The pinion teeth are crowned and have tip relief. This is why we should get an ovular contact
pattern as shown in the top three. It can be centered or shifted to the side. In the more se-
vere case, the contact pattern is actually triangular, as shown in the bottom two. These indi-
cate cross axis misalignment and are generally bad. This is why we require at least 80% of the
face contact when observed.

Often, each pinion will exhibit a different pattern and a compromise between aligning one pin-
ion to misalign the other will have to be made. In this case, we generally end up with at least
one triangular pattern and one ovular pattern.

37
(Above), This is a new machine assembly. Both are ovular and centered.
(Below), This too is of a new machine assembly. Both are ovular and centered.
These represent ideal alignment conditions. Being the pinion is barrel crowned and has tip
relief, this pattern will contact only about 40%-50% of the face length. Lead readings would be
nearly equal in all of these cases.

38
Extreme cases:
(Above), This is a new pinion installed onto a gearbox in which the gears had been replaced
due to short life. This is a triangular contact pattern that only covered 20% of the length. The
lead readings indicated it was out by .012” over the entire face. This is not only unacceptable,
but an investigation of the complete hoist gearbox system should be performed to understand
why this is happening.

(Below), Pinions can have perfect alignment and still have scoring (generally, there should be
no spalling). This is a lube viscosity issue. The minimum standard of 400cst at operating
temperature is probably not being maintained.

39
 Case Study #1

Load Face Load Face

(Above & Below), These are the same gearset. It was also a new machine assembly.
Note, the rear is ovular and shifted right and the front is ovular and also shifted right. The rear
was out by .003” and the front was out by .002” over the face length. Both of these are accept-
able contact patterns.

E
F

B
A

40
This is the lead data for the patterns shown on the previous page. Above, note the rear pinion
leads indicate that the side stand needs to be moved down by .0272” and forward by .0315”.
Below, note how the front pinion leads indicate that the side stand should be moved down
by .0326” and no movement in the front/back direction. Luckily for us, both the front and rear
pinions are out in the same direction. This situation is nearly 100% fixable. See next page:

41
Above, This sheet represents the combined affects of both pinions. Note the side stand is to
be moved down by .0299” and forward by .0159”. If we did nothing, this would be just within
the allowable tolerance. Since the two pinions are out in the same direction, this is nearly fully
correctable and as a minimum, .030” of shim should be removed from under the side-stand.
There were no shims present in front of the side stand, therefore no movement could have
been achieved in the forward direction.

Hoist gearing alignment procedure to be redone to confirm results.

The blue patterns should always be in direct agreement with the lead measurements. IE: The
blue pattern should be shifted in the direction where the smaller load-side lead thickness was
recorded (thinner lead contacts first). And they do agree.

42
 Case Study #2

Load Face

Both pictures, same machine 44,500hrs. First we performed a pre-evaluation using blue only.
(Above), Rear mesh had heavy spalling had been observed on the inboard end. Blue check
revealed that the contact pattern was triangular and stretched 45% of the face width. As we
can see this yields an unacceptable life (shown with about 6000hrs). The contact was not
seen around the spalled area due to material departure from both the pinion and the drum
gear.
(Below), Front mesh had the ideal ovular and generally centered contact pattern. There was
no spalling on this pinion. In this case, the box must be twisted. The good alignment with the
drum gear in the front would have to be compromised in order to get better alignment in the
rear.

Load Face

43
 Load Face

Drum-Gear

Non-Load
Face

Front-Pinion

Non-Load (Above,Left & Below),

Face This was the same gear-
Drum-Gear
box after new gears had
been installed. No side
stand adjustments had
been made.

Above, the front is ovular

and shifted slightly to the
left.

Load Face Non-Load

Rear-Pinion
Face
(Above & Right), The rear pinion
contact pattern was obviously trian-
gular and there was only about
45% of the face length in contact.
This is unacceptable.

Note, as we would expect, chang-

ing the gears alone does little to
nothing in changing the contact
patterns.

Load Face Rear-Pinion

44
This is the lead data for the patterns shown on the previous page. Above, note the rear pinion
leads indicate that the side stand needs to be moved down by .0850” and rearward by .0420”.
This pinion had poor contact pattern and indeed, the thinner lead was on the heavier contact
end.
Below, note how the front pinion leads indicate that the side stand should be moved up
by .0100” and rearward by .0280”. Unluckily for us, both the front and rear pinions are out in
the opposite direction. The best we can do is to split the difference and compromise the
gearing. See next page:

45
The third sheet in the program takes all this into consideration. The first two sheets were de-
signed to allow the user to better understand what they are seeing and measuring.

The rear pinion is off by .007 and the front is off only .002. If we were to make the front per-
fect. The rear would be out by .009”. The best we could ever do, would be to force both the
front and rear mesh to be off by .0035”. These will be out in opposite directions and the gear-
box was obviously twisted.

By the book, if we were to remove .0375” from under the side stand and move the side stand
back by .0350”, we should be good. Our allowable is .004” per pinion. We should then redo
the hoist alignment procedure to verify the results.

However, at this alignment, there were no shims present under the side stand and the bearing
block would have to be machined. As luck would have it, time prevented us from doing any-
thing and the machine was put back to work.

Our short term recommendation was to adjust the bearing block at the next maintenance op-
portunity and at that time redo the hoist alignment procedure.

For the long term, we recommended reline-boring the gearbox’s rear 1st and 2nd reduction
bores. This can be done on the machine or sent out to a machine shop. It may be easiest to
have a service exchange gearbox and bearing block. Then redo the hoist alignment proce-
dure.

46
 Please print or photocopy onto 11” x 17” paper and use this to document the blue patterns

47
 This page is
intentionally left blank.

48
 Appendix E
Past Issues with Gearbox Alignments
When aligning a hoist drum, unexpected issues can often arise. In this section we will review
some of the historical issues and try to interpret and review steps that were or should have been
taken to rectify the situation.

#1Bearing bore weld distortion.

(Below), Prior weld rebuilds of the bearing bores can leave residual stress. Although after final
machining, the bore measures to correct specifications, after it goes into service, the stress can
be released allowing the bore to pull in. The result is a bore that is too tight at the split line of
the gearbox. In the pictures, scuffing is plainly visible at the split line of the gearcase and on
the mating portions on
the outer race of the
bearing. For a weld re-
paired bore, it is good
practice to relieve these
areas on the gearbox
after final machining. A
flapper sander or similar
device can be used.

49
#2 Sprung Gearbox Cover.
(Below), Broken rod bolts left unrepaired can lead
to permanent structural gearbox distortion. The
gearbox shown here had been left broken for some
time.
(Right), During repair of the box, it was found that
the lid did not sit down properly. Without any bolts,
these gaps were all recorded. The gearbox should
be removed and be fully reconditioned. It is difficult
to take the twist out of a gearbox cover.

For early 4100/4100A hoist boxes, the intermediate

bearing block rod bolts 20T9740D7 that fail are to
be replaced with R45815D1.

NEW
R45815D1

50
#3 Shaft breakage (2nd reduction
pinion) has left the gearbox spread
by at least .25”. When reinstalling
the dowels that hold the bearing, one
did not line up. The dowel retaining
the outer race of the floating bearing
was ground (shaved) to have a flat
side to allow the bearing to be seated
in the bore. After about
6000 hours, the bearing
failed.
Exact cause of bearing
failure is not known. The
gearbox was rebuilt and
put back to work. In the
future, this gearbox will
need to be removed to
be reline-bored and
milled back to original
size.

#4 Mechanical damage to
bearing bores.
(Right), The mechanical im-
pact damage prevented the
bearing from being seated
firmly in the bore. These
need to be finished smooth.

51
#5 Structural cracking in revolving frame mounting
lugs. (Above, Right), Be sure to fully inspect the mount-
ing lugs. These often develop cracks. Cracking will of-
ten, not affect your alignment, however the weld repairs
required to fix the cracks will. SL-ES-112 can assist in
lug repairs.
(Right), Tremendous forces can be generated in these
main pins. This may be a sign of poor pin concen-
tricity, perhaps welding distortions.
(Below), Cracks can run along the floor and over
the weld.

52
#6 Structural cracking in
gearbox lugs.
(Above, Below), Be sure to inspect for
structural cracking in and around the
gearbox mounting bores. If cracking ex-
ists, it will affect your gearing alignment.
Generally, the gearbox must be removed
to be repaired.

These are often rebuilt by: Removing

the pin & lifting the drum and the care
together. The cracks are repaired and
all 4 bushings are removed. The case
is then set back into position

and a boring bar is used to gage the final

position. All four lugs are then bored
oversize and new oversize bushings are
installed. Then the standard pin is re-
turned to the assembly. This is all done
without support under the counterweight.
The side-stand is also to be modified per
Appendix B.

53
 #7 Structural cracking in gearbox
parting faces.
(Below), Be sure to inspect for struc-
tural cracking around the parting faces.
If cracking exists, it will affect your
alignment. Again, the gearbox must
be removed to perform a proper repair.

54
#8 Bearing dowels.
(Above & Right), Be sure the
dowel hole is free of all debris.
As debris collected in the hole,
under the dowel, it has been lifted
up. Also, note the flattened de-
bris that had been under the
outer race of the bearing.
(Below), The height of these
dowels is very critical. For exam-
ple, the 4100A has two lengths of
dowels, Here the hole had not
been drilled deep enough and the
bearing race had squashed the
dowel. Note the mushroomed
shape. Be very careful that the
dowels fit freely into the counter-
sunk holes in the bearing outer
races.

55
 (Above), Front of bearing bore with blue contact pattern.

#9 Twisted bearing bores, gearcase.

(Both Pages), Be sure to inspect the
bores for good bearing fit-up. Install
the gears and use a feeler gage to de-
termine if the bearing is seated prop-
erly. If not seated, you can remove the
assembly and blue the bores. This will
be a good visual indicator as to what is
happening.

(Right), This bore was twisted within

the gearbox structure. Even with the lid
bolted tight, It prevented the bearing
from being seated.

56
(Above), Rear of bearing bore with
blue contact pattern.

(Right), Arrows indicate which direc-

tion the bearing was making contact.
The only solution is to reline-bore
this shaft.

On this machine, both the inboard

and outboard rear bores were
twisted in the same direction.

The front second reduction bores

were in perfect condition.

57
#10 Field machining issues.
Many scenarios can exist, however we have one scenario worth mentioning. A lot of time and
effort had been avoided with this procedure.

Historical scenario: The front deck and gearbox lugs were all OK. The rear lugs in the gear-
box were cracked and there were cracks in the rear revolving frame deck lugs. The gearbox
required removal and all cracks needed to be repaired.

There are two options: Restore all bores to original factory specifications or perform minimal
machining that will allow the gearbox to be realigned in the field.

In order to restore to factory condition, the gearbox and deck lugs would have to be held to
very accurate length tolerances. As we know, the lengths are fairly long and even with the best
field machinists, this can be very difficult task. In the end, in the best scenarios, the rear gear-
box pin will need to be pounded in. This distorts the gearbox and can cause misalignment in
the hoist gearing.

A far better alternative would be to field bore the rear gearbox pin bores onsite. Here is a re-
cent scenario that was played out for just this situation.

General Procedure:
• Remove the gearbox and repair the cracked lug in the workshop.
(no machining to be performed).
• Set up a boring bar through the rear revolving frame deck lugs.
(install auxiliary plates and dial the bar in on the deck lugs).
• Perform all deck lug repairs.
(use jacks and strong-backs to limit weld distortion).
• Reinstall the gearbox.
(Pin the front, rock the rear down and use the boring bar to dial in the rear bore).
• Cut the gearbox and deck lug bores to an oversize condition.
• Install oversize bushings and the standard sized gearbox retention pin.
• Perform gear alignment procedure stated in this document.

#11 Gearbox mounting pins

Installing and removing the pins can often be a challenge.
The gearbox and the revolving frame are designed and machined without any structural deflec-
tions. In the real world, when the boom is on and the counterweight is filled, the gearbox pin
bores are deflected. For installation, we have all seen one gearbox pin go in easy and the
second had to be pounded in. For removal, we have also seen one pin lanced out and the
second pin removed easily. This is all due to structural deflections.

It is best practice to apply hydraulic pressure under the counterweight when installing or re-
moving these hoist gearbox mounting pins. You will often find, that at the exact pressure, the
pins slide right in/out (200-500ton is typically required).

Due to this added unknown loading of the hoist gearbox and revolving frame lugs, some cus-
tomers have allowed the structures to naturally deflect and then line-bore (oversize) one pair of
the revolving frame deck lugs. This way there is no residual stress in the lugs. We have little
feedback as to how well it has worked, but it would be reasonable to assume that it would pro-
vide better life.

58
 Appendix F
Questions and Answers
Q1: Can we blue the gear and get the pattern onto the pinion instead of the gear?

A1: Yes, you can apply bearing blue to the gear tooth (see steps 3d,e,f and 6d,e,f). Degrease
the gear teeth and apply bearing blue to one of the load faces on the drum gear. For the
matching position on the pinion, tape lead wire to the non-load face. When you turn it through
mesh, the lead wire will, again, ensure the pinion is pressed firmly against the drum gear. We
place the lead wire on the pinion, because this is the only way we can remove it from the box.
If it were on the gear, it would end up down under the oil some place.

Q2: Why do we need to place two solder or lead wires on each side of the pinion and not just
one lead wire on each side?

A2: The weight of the turning gears can over crush single lead wires, giving a false reading. It
is bad if the lead wire is thick on one end and then pinched off to nothing at the other end. The
lead wire should be thin and slender for about 1.5” (35mm).

Q3: Why do we have to turn the front pinion when we take lead readings on the rear and visa
versa?

A3: The pressure on the gear teeth is very critical for getting accurate lead readings. It takes
a lot of torque to turn the drum and we want to minimize the torque applied anytime lead wire is
being pushed through the mesh. When lead is going through mesh, we turn the other side in-
put pinion. This is why we remove the motor coupling bolts, it reduces the gear pressure.

Q4: Why can’t I just place lead wire on the load side of the teeth?

A4: If the readings were only taken from the load side, all we could determine is “cross-axis”
misalignment. This would indicate how far to move the side-stand up or down. Solder or lead
wire needs to be run through both the load and non-load sides of the teeth for all 4 positions.
This gives us 4 readings for the front pinion (A/C, B/D) and 4 readings for the rear pinion (E/G,
F/H). It is this non-load side information that tells us which way to move the bearing block
front to rear. Accurate readings from all 8 positions is required.

Q5: Why do we string it over 5 teeth? Why not only one tooth?

A5: Each lead should be long enough to cover 5 teeth. This provides a smooth "lead in" and
"lead out" of the bull gear to protect lead wire in the middle tooth location. This is the tooth that
we will be measuring the thickness.

Q6: Why do we lead the rear pinion first?

A6: We do the rear pinion first for two reasons: It unwinds the hoist rope and prevents lead
wire from falling into the oil after exiting the gear mesh. This way, they rotate up from the un-
derside.

59
 Q7: For visual inspection, why must I wipe
the oil off of the teeth.

A7: It is impossible to asses the gearing

condition with oil present. Light scoring or
spalling can not be seen. Here are oil cov-
ered gears, can you see the damage?

Q8: Why is the procedure so long?

A8: Maybe it’s not printed on double sided paper.

Good luck, I hope this was not only a procedure, but an educational tool as well.

60