By hayob on Unrecorded Date: Edit

Hi Richard,
I have 98 maxII which i purchased used with factory tracks it has about 100 hrs from the dealer. After 8-10 hours of use I tried to adjust chains. Found front final drive chain on brake pedal side very loose only on the bottom almost dragging on the body the top is very tight. I couldn't get the adjuster to move by hand, so I released it with a screw driver and the adjuster moved to top of bracket and I can't move it back down, with the top side of chain being so tight. Any idea why the chain is like this. Front chain on opposite side is fine.
Thanks, Gary

By Fred Sowerwine, Montana's Max Dealer (Fred4dot) on Unrecorded Date: Edit

Gary, 1st off you need to have the machine off the ground so all wheels on a side can move freely. Having the tracks mounted creates a problem because the track keeps the tires from moving independantly. You will have to move the middle tire By lifting the track off it to get the slack out of the front chain (hope the slack is opposite in the rear chain so both front and rear chains will be OK; if not, you will have to remove the track to adjust the chains and then remount the tracks.

Your chain is/was probably OK, it is normal for one side to be tight and the opposite side loose when the tires are in contact with the ground - that is why it is imperative to have the wheels off the ground. As soon as you take the pressure off and the wheels are able to turn independently (No chain tension, No track tension) the adjuster will work just fine. Be sure to adjust the chain at the tight spot - Chains that are too tight will wear parts fast and rob your machine of power.

I always adjust the chains before I mount the tracks which keeps the chains pretty much in balance. Chains don't stretch much when tracks are being used because the track acts as another chain.

By gary obrien (Hayob) on Unrecorded Date: Edit

Thanks fred i will give this a try.