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That week my 2004 Cat 320 bucket pin sheared off on a Tuesday and it cost me $1,800
I was digging footings for a shop pad outside Amarillo when the bucket pin let go and the whole bucket dropped right into the trench. My operator Ray said it was the worst bang he'd heard in 20 years, and we spent two days fishing it out with a come along and a chain. The part itself ran me $1,800 and I lost the whole week of work. Has this happened to anyone else, and do you swap pins on a schedule or just wait for the squeal?
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wesleyburns20d ago
A sheared pin usually means it was already worn or the bushing was shot, not that it just let go out of nowhere. On a 320 that bucket pin should get greased every 50 hours and checked for play at the same time. If you can wiggle the bucket side to side by hand, the pin and bushing are done and you're running on borrowed time. Waiting for the squeal is how you end up with a bucket in the trench. Pull the pins every 2,000 hours or so, look for flat spots and rust lines, and swap them before they cost you a week.
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