HItachi Design Flaw??

Hey guys, follow along as I make some temporary/permanent repairs to this Hitachi excavator track frame. Im not too familiar with these machines but I am not a big fan of this design. Is it me or does it look shortsighted?
Leave a comment below. Thanks for your support in advance. You don't have to Subscribe, but it would be cool. Also don't forget to like. it kinda helps.

[@jerryleejohnsonjr1377]

The only people who dont make mistakes are people who dont do anything, thanks for showing the real world. Great job as usual!

[@kristianskov4841]

I only ever made one mistake..... This one time I admitted to having made a mistake....... turns out I was wrong....😎🙂

[@markfryer9880]

On the money there Jerry Lee. Sometimes no matter how hard you try, you still end up making a mistake. That can come about due to fatigue, rushing for a deadline, the list is endless. It's how you recover from a mistake that makes the difference! Failing that, if it is too far gone, then owning up to the mistake is all that you can do.

[@benz-share9058]

What an amazing combination of attitude and skill! Given the variety and novelty of situations you face, you make very few mistakes. And you just recognize them, solve the problem and move on. I'm an amateur at welding and you're an inspiration to me.

[@tinaredington1292]

Im a retired master goldsmith and 50 years ago l was told "youre going to make mistakes. The secret to being a great goldsmith is knowing how to fix your mistakes." If someone tells you they never make mistakes, run away. You are your own worst critic and thats a sign of a great metalsmith. Love your videos.

[@markfryer9880]

Spot on Tina! If someone tells you that they don't make mistakes, check to see if their nose is growing and get a couple of clean cotton tips to help clean their bullshit out your ears. If that doesn't work, tell them to GTFO and don't let the door hit them on their arse on the way out.

[@DavidSmith-ib5jl]

If you are not making a few mistakes you are not learning anything.

[@duncandmcgrath6290]

I make at least 15 mistakes a day and I catch at least 10 …. I learn from them all

[@bendavison222]

Watching your videos always reminds me of two things. 1) slowing down and being careful almost always leads to a better and faster job. 2) everything is a chipping hammer! Great work. Thank you for teaching us.

[@edwardcarberry1095]

The Old Expression/s. The faster I go the further I get behind. I have two speeds, you won't like the other one.

[@localcrew]

That measurement snafu isn’t really a big mistake. Now if you had welded both 3/4” pieces in place and the idler wouldn’t go in and you had to gouge them off and wait for new pieces - THAT would have been a mistake!

[@mshort7087]

I’m feeling a bit insecure about my skills. This man cuts with a torch and leaves a smoother finish than I do with a grinder😂. I salute you, Sir. Thanks for posting your work and sharing your skills with us backyard warriors.

[@markfryer9880]

Isaac is just showing you the benchmark to aim for! If you watch his techniques carefully you will learn how he goes about things and with practice you can replicate his actions.

[@markfryer9880]

Did you notice just how he was going about cutting away the projection of the lower plate on the right-hand side? He would bite off a piece and then go back and cut closer to the lower parent metal on the second pass. Watch it again as it was an interesting technique.

[@TheDennisZb]

Your torch work is like no one else man... the way that plate came off after you just cut the weld is amazing. Great work as usual Isaac 👍🏻

[@pamike4873]

Agreed. The first video of Isaacs's I watched was his torch work, and I was blown away. Then I watched him replacing a kingpin on an equipment trailer and that was it. He really is one of the best welders I've seen. I've learned a heck of a lot watching his videos. Truly amazing stuff.

[@dc6233]

I STILL can't cut very well with a torch, I guess I don't do it enough. But, this dude is very good at his craft and it's pretty easy for him, he knows exactly what he wants to do and he does amazing work. One job that will never go away is the field repair of equipment, robots and AI will never be able to do that...

[@MustObeyTheRules]

It’s easy. Anybody can do it

[@pamike4873]

@@MustObeyTheRules LOLOLOL...uh huh. A monkey could cut a piece of steel with a torch, but it takes a heck of a lot of experience to do it at the level Isaac does.

[@MustObeyTheRules]

@@pamike4873 you know what, you’re right. a chimpanzee could definitely learn how to run a torch.

[@thebegrsshow]

I've worked on several EC 400's that had the same issues. The only thing we did different was once the wear surfaces were gouged out, we took 5/8" grade 100 chain from outside rail to outside rail with ratchet binders to tension them, and then used a 30 ton ram stretched between the inside rails to straighten them. We put AR 500 plate back in place to help reduce future wear. So far no call backs. You did a nice job the way you did it also.👍

[@deadslow201]

How about lengthening that slider which is in the wheel assembly? The original one is so short that it creates a pivot point, and the wheel can wobble around almost in any direction/ creates forces which pushes those plates up and down and side to side. Make the slider as long as the groove in the frame, then the whole length of the frame box and plates will take the forces, and not the short area of the plate which was now worn out.

[@Welder-4956]

I was also thinking AR500 would be a good choice for this repair while watching the video.

[@joebuckley9940]

There was nothing easy about this job, in spite of the setbacks you managed to deliver in the clutch! Well done and thanks for another informative tutorial.

[@davidkenworthy7548]

Been a welder all my life, after all these years I'm still learning from you & you validate my work. Thank you. Your torch work is simply amazing

[@dangoodwin5954]

World class rig welder getting it done right there. Knock out major repairs in an afternoon and do a good job of it. Not everything always goes as planned but the important part is you learn from it and get it done right. I hope the people in your work area properly recognize the value of what's at their disposal. Top notch 👍

[@peternicholsonu6090]

Dare to say we all love your work. These days peasants aren’t allowed in workshops but you bring us right in and make us feel we belong...you are a treasure Thankyou for sharing your days with us...we feel your pride of workmanship whatever background we have...we become a tiny bit of your experience...many will know what I’m trying to say....

[@markfryer9880]

Well said Peter!

[@milotorres6894]

All the better , in a day , for life , some are just a pleasure to watch working his skills of retro repair on the fly...✌️👍🙏🤔💎

[@bigmotter001]

I was told once at the beginning of my career "if a salesman is not in trouble he is not doing anything to sell"! I learned over 32 years in sales that was !))% accurate. Nice repair and recovery for the mistake. Thanks for posting and take care!

[@jimsvideos7201]

I don't think anyone would watch you work and think that it is easy, but watching you I can see that it is _possible._

[@medcon85]

You make me see how weak and feeble I am at cutting and welding! That was artwork .I am glad Scrappy mentioned your channel on one of his videos. I am going to be learning how real welders do it now! Thank you and becareful out there.

[@PAYNEKILLER..]

That piece to pop off like that without having to start the torch 27 times is pretty cool to watch.

[@MrSaemichlaus]

Back when I was a kid, I imagined everything everywhere runs perfectly and everything is accounted for. When I grew up, I realized that everything has to be pounded and bent and negotiated into place, in contrast to what many people make it look. Thanks for being real with us. Work is like road racing. You can practice your line and you may qualify 1st, but the race will be in the rain, on worn tires and with 10 guys in your rear view mirror.

[@brucemitch928]

Brings back memories, had the same job on a 330 that worked in a granite quarry on the west coast of Scotland, two of us had a van, welder/genny on a trailer and some one inch hardox plate. Same as you the inside track box was bent in, out of line. It was a very remote location and the weather was crap….so as you did we started to gas axe away the worn guide plate then realised the upper and lower plates were different thicknesses and the hardox we had was thicker than both. Long story shortened, our fix was to cut a slot thru the track box full length of the wear plate, set the idler on the chain to it’s original height…ish 😎 cut the hardox to size and push it thru into position using wedges and a jack, tacked in the four plates, pulled out the idler and finished off the welding.

[@michaelvangundy226]

At least you're out in the open air. As a commercial plumber I was inside for about 3/4 of my life. Once it was in a hundred year old building. Under an unused area with a million cobwebs and old insulation hanging down. I had to run the pipes for a new bathroom. After crawling and sliding my stuff in a hundred feet I got to work. I fired up my torch and started soldering. The flux smoke pissed off every spider in the place. They were crawling all over me while I'm laying on my back burning away, trying not to get the paper backing on fire. I envy your worksite.

[@lewisbradford3305]

Im not a fabricator or welder professionally but I do like to run a bead from time to time. Not only have I learned techniques from you I've also been exposed to tools that I didn't know existed

[@edwarddavis507]

Great video Isaac! Thank You for showing the washing tip on the oxy-acetylene. Very cool! If you remember you used that because it doesn’t heat the metal up as much as the arc gouging. That’s important to know. Watching you I have learned a lot about heating the metal and in this case it was smart to use the oxy-acetylene on the warped side. You will probably get more hours out of that repair since you chose that route because you didn’t jeopardize the tempered steel that’s already weakened. Just a theory.

[@curtisroberts9137]

Not bad for a rookie he says. Probably the most skilled torch man on KZbin.

[@livingalaskan2926]

Very satisfying watching you knock that lower plate off with ease!

[@stevenm3141]

Even Michelangelo had bad days. And still became famous and is concidered a genius! It's looking good so far. Just a little bit with the one piece and you got it.😊

[@nmopzzz]

Thanks for the videos. Looking back in my life I wouldn't have mindd becoming a welder/fabricator/repair guy like you. The only issue would have been finding good mentors like your son has. Ended up going down the Electronics which has made my family happy.

[@thegoodthebadandtheugly9920]

I imagine the hiccups and video uploads get overwhelming, but do know, we all highly appreciate watching your craftsmanship. 🙏

[@eastunder55]

You are the first person on KZbin that I've seen use a washing tip on your torch. We called them rivet washing tips. They were the cats meow for removing badly rusted bolt heads on engine exhaust flanges without damaging the base metal. I often yell at the computer screen "get a rivet washing tip" to guys burning off bolt heads or nuts and damaging the area around a bolt by using a regular cutting tip. Thanks for posting your videos. I like all the different project you tackle.

[@jamesa7506]

"Some days you're the pigeon, some days you're the statue. " Well said sir.

[@timothyosborne8285]

You are a true master with that cutting torch.

[@miket2055]

Just gotta laugh those days off just like you did 👍🏼

[@oldenslo4141]

Thanks for thinking of us, I hate seeing a job unfinished. This was great.

[@1555yodude]

we had a day like that at camp the other day snowing like crazy ripped my jacket the loaders windshield wiper failed they fixed that then the bucket broke what a mess keep on keeping on man

[@theoldbigmoose]

Isaac God gave you "golden hands!" Thank you for sharing your skill and techniques.

[@chrissmith9365]

Sir Isaac, King of the Gas Axe

[@almac2598]

I haven't seen engine cooking for years. A forgotten art.

[@cat637d]

That was the tastiest smelling truck on the job site!

[@mitchgray8413]

You're cutting and welding skills are unmatched. You know, I thought I made a mistake once but I was wrong.

[@Lucas12v]

At least you caught the mistake before you welded the 3/4 plate in. Lots of guys have mistakes bigger than that on their good days. Thanks for another good video.

[@Rprecision]

Man I have had those days! Thanks for sharing

[@sammypettit6438]

Glad you showed the finished job 👍🏻. I would have lost a lot of sleep not knowing how it turned out !!! Great job as usual

[@jimsmith1946]

Its a pleasure watching a professional work

[@johnblecker4206]

That angled cutting tip sure most come in handy when your in tight spaces. You sir are a Artist with that torch.

[@sanjaysami4315]

This man’s torch skills are insane !

[@Jimmy_in_Mexico]

Grabs lunch off the manefold Like a boss. Some days it goes in like it's slick, and others like it's sick. But you're still the boss. Don't beat yourself up,it's better than I could do.

[@jeffjenkins8303]

Thank you for producing this video. It is always great watching a very good tradesman go about his work especially more so in difficult situations. A top end product in the finish and the machine is ready to go again!

[@clintonwolf1171]

I have to say that you are truly a master. Especially with a torch. I learn something from every video I watch. Thank you

[@Borderweldingservices]

I've kept foiled foods hot on the engine just like that for years. Works well! God bless!

[@RambozoClown]

You are a real artist with both the torch and the arc gouger. I learn something from every job you do.

[@kasperhauser3731]

I m amazed at the intricate jobs you take in the field. True welder!!!

[@tda2806]

👍 and 👏, thank you for taking the time to share your work with us

[@davedavedave52]

You are a phenomenal welder . Making corrections on the fly with obviously a vast experience base. And intellect enough to do it well.

[@jmorgan5856]

Issac thanks for showing everything!

[@aaronwilson3952]

As a Farrier the forge works well for lunch too! Well done. That's how I prefer it. When I worked in sandblasting we used the Ingersoll Rand engines for the burrito 🌯. Love your skill level.

[@alansmead4516]

You don't get as good as you are without making mistakes along the way! No matter how long you've been doing it! It's how we all learn! I've seen a lot of welders in the kind of work I used to do! You are one of the best I've seen! Thanks for keeping it real!

[@sparksmobilerepair4025]

That's a good repair. Cool to see other guys take on repair work. Always a good watch!

[@garybaughman7099]

Great repair job. There are fewer and fewer people like you that can show up estimate what it will take to repair the problem then perform the work and return the equipment to use. Again,you do great work! I’m impressed!

[@tomdouglas8945]

Used to warm MREs that way when I was in the Army. Nice work. I appreciate your skill.

[@joegilly1523]

Comment #501 never seen this Chanel before but they called the correct guy to go this Job. Nice work sir.

[@ICWeld]

Welcome aboard!

[@Boss302ATC]

For a guy who made a lot of mistakes, he has a great attitude! Such an awesome person, always learning!

[@RobertWilliams-mk8pl]

Nice, I always learn something watching your channel. I have the most respect for someone who shows their mistakes when they could be edited out. That's why I'm a subscriber

[@Mad.Man.Marine]

Seen a lot of torch cutting over the years. You are right up there in the top five. Slick man. Absolutely slick!! Nice to see this as my jd 70 d has the same problem. It isn’t hucking tracks yet. But it’s very sloppy. What you did was exactly what I saw doing in my head. Thanks.

[@zachshoop9711]

Brother you are my Hero! I have never met anyone as positive as you are. Your son is a lucky man.

[@1954jeremiah]

Watching you cut steel with a torch,was like watching a surgeon cutting skin,clean,fine cuts,just amazing to watch you work!! And then to have the description of how,and why you make the repairs always great additions to the video's!!😎😎😎

[@rick_3.50]

All this time I didnt think you were Human. Thanks for proving me wrong.

[@patrickspringer6534]

That is some fine torch work.

[@glenngosline3303]

Thank you for sharing your talent.

[@philvaughan4091]

I was taught those issues are called “learning experiences”,,,, after you work through them you should never experience that one again AND everyone is susceptible to them… 😁… I’ll bet you and your son had a conversation about how not to have this occur… great video… y’all stay safe…

[@craigkeller]

Good to see a master at work.

[@hectorgutierrez3239]

Amazing job, thanks for sharing!!!

[@arjones57]

Good job Issac! We miss seeing you and your son working together.

[@davidwulf288]

Awesome torch skills!!!

[@wth82]

This was a sneaky problem hitachi and Deere never told any one. They had a detach memo that I got from my Deere dealer. They were supposed to fix them but dealers had the final say. Of course they never volunteered. I have 7 Deere machines ranging in size from 200 to 350 and every one of them spread. The heavy machines spread so wide that the idler fell between the guides. Thanks so much for teaching me how to repair these.

[@ICWeld]

wow , I didn't know that either.

[@shedrankit]

Skill, knowledge And Craftsmanship. Thanks for the Vid!

[@forrestanderson2652]

South Texas Lunche......done that many, many times ! . Thanks for the great videos... Dale Gas !.

[@hsbhsb]

Excellent torch work..impressive

[@DaleDirt]

Isaac , Every since the first time I saw your video's and repairs ,I have admired and respected your craftsmanship and mastery of your trade ..... and even more so after I was trying to gouge and torch some 1/2 plate from my dumptruck in some , what I thought tight and inconvenient locations . It's been 3 days and I am still not finished yet . I am in awe , of your work . The complexity of this job was baffling . You saved this machine , put it back in service and now someone has a job . That's what I call awesome .

[@philipspencer1834]

Isaac, you are an artist with the torch. Amazing work and a great save from a small mistake. Thanks for taking us along. 😎👍

[@bostedtap8399]

Near impossible job, excellent work. Thanks for sharing

[@jackgreen412]

Always enjoy your work ethic and honesty!

[@adnacraigo6590]

We need more guys like you.

[@petermccuskey1832]

Keep on trucking. I like your philosophical outlook using the statue and the pigeon.

[@dans_Learning_Curve]

Lunch break! Great warmer!

[@oby-1607]

This is probably caused by 3 tip turns on the idlers instead of the drives. Puts tremendous strain on the framework. I didn't blink all the time you were cutting out the metal. You cut metal better than I butter my bread.

[@dennymarreesr6187]

As usual another extremely good video! You are truly a surgeon with that torch Isaac! Thanks for sharing!

[@tomogletree1]

Your torch work is amazing

[@deanl2427]

Excellent job Isaac! Thank you for the video.

[@logdog8920]

I will salute U 4 that rebuild. Dats better than factory. The first time around we build up the bottom slides with hardfacing, and mabe shim the top with flat steel, but its only a bandaid.

[@georgetarabini6552]

I love the fact that you love/live for a challenge, and take it on not knowing, great video

[@ICWeld]

Always!

[@chadclark2070]

It can't always be a gravy train with biscuit wheels. A bad day for you looks like a win for me!!! Keep up the great work.

[@darinwilson8663]

Thanks for sharing this video, we have exactly the same machine with exactly the same problem. After watching you fix the problem, I feel less apprehension about repairing ours. I'm going to do the same thing as you did to get ours back in good shape. Thanks again for the help! 👍

[@davidmunro1469]

Thank you for sharing. Man that is some fancy cutting and welding. Well done.

[@sweetpeaz61]

We all have off days, but it works out in the end, nice job

[@scottwilke3966]

Magnificent you sir are a surgeon with a gas axe your freehand torching is like a machine torch rock steady clean cutting thank you for the lesson i enjoy your work

[@Hey_Its_That_Guy]

We're not going anywhere, Isaac. Thanks for taking us along!

[@jonfar5995]

you are the master !!!! this time i get to blink. in the time you took to weld the new pieces in all that was needed was to build up the top ones, to bring idlar down and narrower. buildup bearing cap and hit it all with grinder! this time you brought it back to factory. this system is way easier than a d8k. but you did show me a better way to replace those strips you truly are admired by me

[@alasdairmunro1953]

Thanks for showing us Isaac, looks fine to me. I get lots of days like that!👍🏼👍🏼😀

[@paulpipitone8357]

The only truth about making mistakes is that watching your videos is never a mistake.... keep up the great work.....

[@cat637d]

I wish I could have come up with that, Excellent truth!

[@salvadorgudino1253]

Sometimes Arc gouging is the way to go on repairs in tight areas. It is always great to see someone els that also takes pride it all of his repairs and making them look as close and some times even better then the original peace. Great Job man keep up the good work 👏 one day i hope to be doing something like you are doing with a rig and all. For now im stuck at a heavy equipment company making repairs and lots of fabrication. Have a blessed day 🙏

[@joelhart9020]

Yep arc gouging sucks but pretty hard to beat for accuracy and accessibility

[@ferguson20diesel49]

Hitachi Ex200 dash 5. Great machines. A lot of dash 5s still at work here in Ireland. 3 Ex800 dash 5s still working in our local quarry

[@daniel01m]

Awesome work,, reminds me of the days when we used to tare down , haul, and reup equiptment

[@peterbremer30]

Hi Isaac, why most of your videos are considered good is because we all appreciate a nice piece of work.

[@MrUtubeobia]

I enjoy watching your videos. Real world. A welder must be very confident in himself and his equipment’s capabilites before attempting something like this.