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Just Joined the Forklift Club :smokin:

years ago i bought a Toyota #3500 capacity electric 3 wheel forklift ran it for 4 years then the battery went south, called a guy in to " recondition " the battery and it extended the life for another 3 to 4 months . i had another 5k lift ( propane) and the electric realy didn't see enough use to spend %k on a new battery so i did a little fab work and made a rack that would hold 4 group 31 batteries and wired them up for 24 volt out put and ran it like that for 5 years ! the lift was sold 4 years ago and although it has a new set of 31s in it it runs great to this day , it only gets used 2 hrs max a day but works as it should but with a shorter run time . this might be a good option for you !
 
Delivered today.

Get ready for a million questions!

Specs:

Overall width 38 inches=50% of the skidsteer width (very happy about this!)
Lift height is 10 foot 10 inches (exactly the same as the skidsteer)
Forget what the overall length was
42 inch forks, 5 inches wide, almost 3 inches thick (chunky forks, tips look flame cut/tapered so maybe they used to be longer)
6'8" overall height (fits under my mezzanine!)
Steering is fully manual, no hydraulic and no assist.
Manual clutch, single speed fwd/rev, no side shift (all as expected).

I lifted the ass of the new holland and the forklift was able to get it's back wheels off the ground, the lifted it from the side (see pic).

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Engine oil is milky, which I think is common for propane motors. Previous owner said he's had it for 5 years and done exactly zero maintenance.

I can't see anything that looks like a spin-on engine oil filter. Is it cartridge style like an atv (or unimog) or is it non-existant?
10-30 or 15-40 for engine oil?

Transmission fluid is low.

What fluid does the transmission use? It's red like ATF.

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Drive wheels are ok, although they're not exactly the same and the right side one is chunked up worse that the other. They are the same diameter.

Definitely isn't a narrowed truck rear axle. Looks like a transaxle to me.

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Owner showed me this cap and said it's the gas tank, but he's never ran it on gas.

Pretty fucking sure dual fuel wasn't optioned on this one. I don't see anything that looks like a carb, just a propane thingy and a choke.

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Muckin_Slusher said:
Drive wheels are ok, although they're not exactly the same and the right side one is chunked up worse that the other. They are the same diameter.

Definitely isn't a narrowed truck rear axle. Looks like a transaxle to me.
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It's a split diff (like a Chevy IFS or old Timken) and some planetary or spur gear reduction wheel ends. It looks like spur gear in your case, note the forward offset of the wheels relative to the rest of it. That's a pretty common arrangement for heavy equipment. Yours just happens to be so narrow there's basically no tube. The wheel ends may use seperate lube. Take the wheels off, check for drain plugs and ensure they're not empty.
 
So, I've got an engine oil filter coming in tomorrow, just finished draining the yogurt out of the motor.

In my last pic (two posts up) is the propane solenoid and whatever gets propane into the motor. I can't get this thing to rev up like it should. It will start and idle fine, rev up just a little bit, but any more throttle and it dies.

Wasn't sure if it was the low propane level, so filled the tank this morning, same thing.

Where do I start? I've read that propane lines could be clogged with goo, diaphragm stiff, or it could be ignition (this thing has points). I think my next move will be to replace the spark plugs and clean the points.
 
Way back in 1993 we had a POS forklift that would do the same shit every winter. 2 things were always the issue. There was this sliding guillotine thing that would stop working right. Carb cleaned that every year. Then there was this tube that went from the propane "carb" vapor magic maker down to the other gas carb. It was always filled with this nasty goo. I got tired of cleaning that shit and cut a bunch of hoses and just put a new one on every season. On the big bitch 30k hyster we had some dummy would put the propane bottle on wrong and that one sucked liquid not vapor. So it would kinda start but had nothing else. It's probably not that on the little guy.
 
MattS said:
Way back in 1993 we had a POS forklift that would do the same shit every winter. 2 things were always the issue. There was this sliding guillotine thing that would stop working right. Carb cleaned that every year. Then there was this tube that went from the propane "carb" vapor magic maker down to the other gas carb. It was always filled with this nasty goo. I got tired of cleaning that shit and cut a bunch of hoses and just put a new one on every season. On the big bitch 30k hyster we had some dummy would put the propane bottle on wrong and that one sucked liquid not vapor. So it would kinda start but had nothing else. It's probably not that on the little guy.
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Mine's a dual fuel and had a venturi carb thingy on the intake, upstream of the gas carb. Basically the air passing over it would open the valve more. More air, more propane. Pretty simple. I replaced mine because it was sticky....right after dropping $180 on that, I found the rebuild kits for $40. :homer:
 
You'll be amazed at how many uses you find for it once you get it going.

I needed something to suspend my loader adapter for paint the other day....

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Looks like a winner and the tuning should be pretty straightforward. Definitely address the points and plugs, probably plan to replace the regulator diaphragm due to age, and clean out the lines and vaporizer. Then see how it goes.

Oh and keep an eye out for parts to grab when they pop up. Even better, if you see another unit being sold for cheap (inoperable, dead engine, etc) snag it for parts.
 
And for the potential gravel crossings, scrounge up some old steel plates to cut into 1ft wide strips. Thick plywood could also work if the gravel is really flat.
 
Yotota said:
And for the potential gravel crossings, scrounge up some old steel plates to cut into 1ft wide strips. Thick plywood could also work if the gravel is really flat.
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Me and all the neighborhood kids have been driving this thing around my dirt yard, with no load.

Not even close to stuck yet! This is good conditions though, well packed and dry...
 
Ok, new engine oil and filter. New spark plugs. I have to get one of those gapping tools, or break out the feeler gauges...

Started up and was able to rev it up. Went for a rip up and down the street and the wasn't able to rev up anymore.

Parked it and took apart all three propane lines, all blew air through easily, looked clear. So I took apart this thing. Internal diaphragms look fine, flexible and no holes. Cleaned the orifices and needles. Nothing looks like a problem.

Put everything back together and same same.

Coolant was a bit low so I added about a liter. Same same.

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I opened up the distributor cap. I do indeed have points and rotor. They look well worn.

I see pertronix has a complete swap out distributor including electronic ignition for less than $200.

Pertronix D41-01A Waukesha D155G D176G VRG220 4 Cylinder Distributor 1970-1992

Pertronix D41-01A Waukesha D155G D176G VRG220 4 Cylinder Distributor 1970-1992
www.kmjperformance.com

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I also found these guys who have complete swap out replacement propane stuff:

pngtec.ecwid.com

Clark Partial LPG kit

Partial LPG kit for Clark forklift Model # C500-30/355/40/45/50/55/Y355/560 Engine Waukesha D155/D155G/D176
pngtec.ecwid.com

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Any input on what I should take apart or test next?

I didn't fuck with the regulator yet, so I guess I should connect a pressure gauge in line and see what pressure the carb is getting. I think the carb had 12 psi max stamped on it. The regulator is connected to something that also has coolant in it, so I think it needs the heat from the coolant to vaporize the propane (which is why I added coolant...).

Seems like the fact that it revved good when first started should be a big fucking clue.
 
May as well attack the ignition and upgrade as needed. That needs to at least be at a good baseline in order to determine if anything else is wrong.
 
Yotota said:
May as well attack the ignition and upgrade as needed. That needs to at least be at a good baseline in order to determine if anything else is wrong.
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On it. I'd like to be sure of what engine I have. The pertronix website shows:

Clark: 1636495 2372353
Delco: 1111700 1112685
Mallory: YL-664A
Prestolite: IBT-4105A IDU-4403A IDU-4403B
Waukesha: 60262K 69748A

Engine Fitment:

Waukesha (1970-1992): D155G D176G VRG220
​
I'm going to see if there's any numbers on the distributor that match above. If not, here's a pic of the numbers cast into the block:
I think it's either a Waukesha 15 or 17

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Forgot to add, another thing I haven't dicked with is the lockout solenoid, so my next move is to bypass it with a little plumbing, along with the pressure gauge and see what that tells me.
 
You could hit it with a couple squirts of carb cleaner to see if it's a fuel or spark issue.
 
Muckin_Slusher said:
Is the service manual gonna berate me and make fun of my life choices? Didn't think so. I'm here for the abuse.

Besides, are you not entertained?
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I'm pretty sure that you are going to get the verbal assult here

Just trying to save you a little pain, I was there a few years back. Knowing what this does, that goes where, is that the right filter, where is the filter....all in the book

nice little machine you got :beer:
 
MattS said:
You could hit it with a couple squirts of carb cleaner to see if it's a fuel or spark issue.
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I'd do this.

With what you've done so far, I'd clean or rebuild the propane carb and diaphragm.
 
MattS said:
You could hit it with a couple squirts of carb cleaner to see if it's a fuel or spark issue.
Click to expand...
Winner!

Tried this and she spun right up.

Only thing left was the regulator. The carb said 12 psi max so I plumbed in a 0-60 gauge and it read 0.

Took the thing apart, simple as a hammer, diaphragm/spring/valve, all gooed up. Sprayed some of that carb cleaner in there, which liquified everything. and voila RPMs!

I think the biggest problem was the needle wasn't free in the hole in that aluminum disk, pretty gummed up.


Just for the record (and for the next guy) the carb cleaner turned that black sticky goo into a very light liquid, didn't even need to wipe, just blew it all away.

I've washed my hands a dozen times and still all I can smell is ethyl mercaptain.

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I have a CAT GC25 lift at work that wouldn't rev out . Mine had rotted the core of the muffler and was blocked up.
 
Rebuild kits for that should be really cheap. Not sure how that rubber diaphragm will hold up to carb cleaner so you may want to go ahead and source one now. :laughing:
 
I like points distributors
they just work, it isn't questionable since you can see all the little bits in there and they just make intuitive sense
especially now that it runs good
file them maybe, but don't put in transistorized shit that you'll never be able to find parts for ever again
 
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