1965 450 crawler dozer

[RMAC]

I just purchased a 1965 450 crawler dozer at an auction for 4,700.00, it seems to run fine although it blows a little black smoke, I put about 1,100.00 into it this week (commercial battery, muffler, seat cushions, battery cables, light switch, and assorted bolts) it has what i believe to be a hydraulic leak in one of the steel lines, (part#au40011) My question is how to remove that line for inspection without contaminating the fluid, it appears to be coupled at the front and rear, and if it is defective can I leave the line off until a new one comes in or do I risk contamination leaving it open.also what's the best way to get it out. I also have some type of toggle switch just above the light switch that is so corroded I cannot tell what it was , the dealer says it might be for the instrument panel lights, and there is a green wire behind the instrument panel that is disconnected any idea what it is for? the headlights work and the ignition starts the machine but won't shut it off, I have to throttle all the way down to do that. The winch needs to be rebuilt but I imagine that will be extremely expensive. The bolts that go into the clutch housing are 7/8"x3-1/2" and seem to be stripped, I was going to install a longer bolt and see if I could catch somne thread, it appears it will take about a 5" bolt, will ths interfere with anything in there? Any info anyone can give me would be appreciated, this is my first crawler and I always wanted a John Deere but I'm unsure as to wether or not I paid to much for it or if I'm throwing away money trying to get it in some type of decent shape, the previous owners really juryrigged this machine and I want to do it right with original parts.

[KenP]

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[RMAC]

Thanks Ken,
I have the parts catalog PC-918 and the original descriptions and specifictions manual, I also sent away for an operators manual thru the internet, I also live in NH and purchased my parts from Nortrax which as you probably know is quite expensive, I have a call into PB&H in Antrim to locate some additional parts, I've been told they're a good source for hard to find items. The bolts I spoke of go to the clutch housing thru the frame, I just tried the longer bolts and they seem to catch when they're inserted 3/4 of the way, I haven't completely torqued them all the way down yet, as I neend some washers and thread lock before final installation, hopefully it will work. I was told the previous owner put in new steering clutches but I have no brakes when the brake pedal is applied, I can stop if I pull back on the steering levers simultaneously, it looks like it is going to be a work in progress for the forseeable future.

[KenP]

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