M101A1 Drop Down Leg Height Adjuster Question

[latvius]

I am unable to adjust the height, when I turn the crank the gears move about an 1/8th of turn then stop. Looking down at the gears both move, so they don't seem stuck. I guess their is some type of screw inside the tube that is stuck.
Has anyone ever taken this apart?
I tried to hammer out the pin that goes through the top gear but it doesn't want to move.
I thought now would be a good time to ask before I break something.

 

[rosco]

I have never had one apart, but somebody puts them together - so it ought to come apart. The pinion gear there is probably fixed to the shaft with a roll pin. They can be a bugger to get out & the trick is to find it. Its important to use a drift punch on them, the full diameter of the pin. Also be careful using a hammer on the shafts. A press is the best, but maybe a brass hammer. Below, on the screw part, a pin is probably sheared. Water gets in them/freezes, then a gurrellia get on them & breaks stuff. They otherwise work well, with a full travel of about 9.5", as I remember.

 

[gimpyrobb]

I have had similar issues with m101a3 landing legs. The screw in the tube rusts from lack of usage. Submerge it in a vat of atf, or pour it in the leg openings liberally. Turn it over to distribute the best you can. Punch the roll pin out of the side gear in your 1st pic, slide out the round shaft, and remove gear. I the slide the shaft back into its original place. With the side gear out of the way you can now get a pry bar on both sides of the shaft, and insert the tip into the remaining gear's teeth.

This will be a painfully slow process! use the two pry bars to spin the gear till the leg is extended. The 2 pry bars exert more force, and even force on the screw to free it up. Work it till it moves freely, add lube along the way. I have been tempted to drill a hole in the top, next to the remaining gear to allow better lube insertion, but haven't done so yet.

Good luck.

 

[dmetalmiki]

Tap ( THUMP!) on the Foot while winding down. And use liberal amounts of wd40 or similar. Work it up and down, try to get the "feel" of it moving. It may move only be a little at a time..just take your time. The pins are difficult to remove and as mentioned use a correct size punch. Only If the previous fails.

 

[latvius]

Great thank you all so much!! I did not see a roll pin in the gear, I'll clean it better and look for it now that I know one is their.
I have tried beating on the foot but I can't get anything to budge.

If I drilled a whole next to the bottom gear and sprayed PB blaster in it would that reach the rusted screw?

I am trying to avoid removing the whole leg so I can turn it upside down.

 

[gimpyrobb]

Do yourself a favor and remove the leg to work on it. Its one bolt!

I haven't been into one past what I posted. If I were to drill an extra hole, I'd make sure I found a plug that would fit to keep junk out.

 

[latvius]

OK, thx again for the help! I'll pull the leg off, I thought it was more involved than just one bolt.

 

[gimpyrobb]

Well, you'll probably have to pull the pin that lets it swivel, but that doesn't need to be removed, just pull it to let go.

 

[latvius]

OK will do, thanks again it's really great you all are willing to share your knowledge

 

[gimpyrobb]

Your doing the hard stuff, I'm just happy to tell you what has worked for me.

 

[zarathustra]

I took one apart about a year ago and it isn't all that hard. The main screw in mine was bent and I straightened it out with a vise and some "selective" forming. It was actually very straightforward, and was able to turn a landing leg that wouldn't work at all to one that works pretty nicely.

I put the tongue on jack stands and removed it from the trailer to work on it.

 

[latvius]

Need some more help, I soaked it in T-fluid until today, I tried using crowbars as Grumpy suggested and no-go other than chipping some teeth. This trailer is from Florida and I believe it was near the coast, so lots of rust.
Since a a replacement sells for $150+ on ebay I decided to cut it open and see what I could do. I have sprayed it down with pb blaster now that I can get to the screw and will keep trying to break it free but in the meantime I wanted to see if anyone could help me figure out how to further take it apart.
I am unable to figure out how they put it together, I am hoping someone could look at the pictures and explain it to me. I was also surprised to see the pin in the lower leg tube right below the metal plate the screw turns in. I wonder what that pin is for?

Any help is appreciated

 

[gimpyrobb]

I wonder if the "screw nut" is pinned to the inner "tube". Any pics of farther "down"? How far down did you cut?

 

[latvius]

I cut the upper part of the leg all the way off on one side but did not touch the bottom part. I can take some more pictures.

What I can't figure out is how it was assembled. If the gear in the picture has a pin in it, that would have to be attached before the screw assembly was put inside the leg. If that was the case then how did they get the other parts on?
I am contemplating popping that pin out of the "screw nut" to see if that helps any, but my fear is their is a matching on on the other side.

I wonder if the "screw nut" is pinned to the inner "tube". Any pics of farther "down"? How far down did you cut?

 

[quickfarms]

What Is the distance from the end of the outer tube to the foot?

What is the distance of the exposed screw from the nut to the gear?

I am wondering if the foot was welded on last and may be covering a pin or stop of some type that was put on before the foot was welded on

 

[latvius]

I got it!, luckily I tried to pry "up" on the gear and it has a hidden roll pin under it. I am uploading pics now that will explain it all.

 

[latvius]

So all one needs to do is remove the top gear, pull the shaft it is attached too, once that is out of the way you pull up on the lower gear to expose the hidden pin underneath and viola you can now pull the entire lower leg out pop out the two pins that hold the "screw nut" to the lower leg and you have access to the screw and it's nut.

 

[latvius]

I got the nut broke free, I set the square nut on an anvil and whacked it with a big hammer which broke up the rust. I put the screw on the wire wheel and the nut spins like a top now
I just finished welding up the tube, wish I had known how this went together before hand would have saved me a bit of work.

Good news is now I and anyone who reads this knows how to take it apart, clean and re-grease the screw.

 

[gimpyrobb]

So the "top gear" in your first pic(post #17) just sits on top the metal rod with the pin through it?!

Edit, I see I guessed right, the screw nut is pinned to the lower leg. Sweet thread, thank you!

 

[latvius]

Yes the gear in the pic (sit under the gear that is sideways) just sits/rests/lays on the pin. It makes sense as it won't go anywhere once you install the sideways gear with the pin through it. You're welcome and thanks to all for their input to get me through it.

So the "top gear" in your first pic(post #17) just sits on top the metal rod with the pin through it?!

Edit, I see I guessed right, the screw nut is pinned to the lower leg. Sweet thread, thank you!