BATTERY-BUTTON 9U6696 - Caterpillar

The information supplied in this service letter may not be valid after the termination date of this program. Do not perform the work outlined in this Service Letter after the termination date without first contacting your Caterpillar product analyst.
This Program can be administered either before or after a failure.In either case the decision whether to apply the Program is made by the dealer.When reporting the repair, use "PS8352" as the Part Number and "7755" as the Group Number.If administered before failure, use "56" as the Warranty Claim Description Code and use "T" as the SIMS Description Code.If administered after failure, use "96" as the Warranty Claim Description Code and use "Z" as the SIMS Description Code.
Termination Date
June 30, 1998Problem
The proper surface finish and contact area may not exist on the steering arm(s) and/or the t-bar tapers of certain 793 Trucks.Parts that do not conform can be reworked and/or replaced with those provided by the program.
Affected Product
Model & Identification Number
793 (3SJ1-56)
793B (1HL1-276)
Parts Needed
8 -3J6899 Nut-self Loc6 -8X9620 Ballstud (6 Est. as avg. - 0-8 use as required)2 - 1236672 Ballstud (2 est. as avg. - 0-8 use as required)8X0906 Arm-Steering (Two per dealer for seed stock)8X0973 Arm-Steering (One per dealer for seed stock)Action Required
See the attached procedure.
Service Claim Allowances
This is a 25-hour job in addition to the time required to rework the tapers.Where necessary, a maximum of $360.00 U.S. will be allowed to rework each of the tapers.
Parts Disposition
Handle the parts in accordance with your Warranty Bulletin on warranty parts handling.
Attach.(1-Rework Procedure)Rework Procedure
1. Disassemble the 8X9620 Ballstuds from the mating 8X0906 Steering Arms, 8X0973 Steering Arm (T-Bar) and steering cylinders to frame. Eight total, 4 in 8X0906, 2 in 8X0973 and 2 in steering cylinder to frame joint.2. Check the surface finish of the tapers in the 8X0906 and 8X0973 Steering Arms. Use the 9A1593 Comparison Gauge for checking the finish. The finish must be a Class "F" or better over the entire surface.3. Check the taper contact area using a new 8X9620 Ballstud, with a "G" at the end of the part number - 8X9620G, as a gauge. The ballstuds with a "G" at the end of the part number have been taper ground and will have a shiny appearance compared to those without a "G".Apply Prussian Blueing: Mix a couple of drops of oil with the blueing to spread easier and then spread evenly with fingers or a rag to cover the entire ballstud taper.
Insert the ballstud into the taper of the steering arm soon after applying the blueing before it is dry. Force the ballstud into the taper by hand, rotate the ballstud turn followed by a rocking motion. The ballstud should not rock.
Remove the ballstud and visually check the contact surface of the taper. Blueing will transfer from the ballstud to the taper in the arm at the areas of contact. Steering arm and t-bar tapers must show a minimum of 75% contact area when checked with the 8X9620G Ballstud used as a gauge.