In Chapter 13 of Insider Secrets to Hydraulics, I explain how to check the straightness of a hydraulic cylinder rod and calculate allowable run-out. This is an essential task when repairing any hydraulic cylinder, because if a bent rod gets put back in, the life of the rod seal(s) is compromised and the cost of the repair largely wasted.… Read more

Hydraulics Pro Club member Rich Catalo sent me this tragic story:

“We deal with a very large dock and dredge company. They have many pieces of hydraulic equipment from different manufacturers. The last call I received was due to a tech who removed a hydraulic cylinder that was in need of a re-seal. The tech did OK removing the cylinder … Read more

In response to my previous post about troubleshooting hydraulic cylinder drift, a couple of our members thought the influence of valve-spool configuration on cylinder drift warranted discussion. Charlie Field from Perry Slingsby Systems in the UK sent me this message:

“By far the most common reason for cylinder drift is the DCV controlling it. Closed to actuator spools almost … Read more