My D7 3T appears to have  been well maintained by the previous owner. But when I was checking fluids I had to add 14 gallons of gear oil in the transmission before I got oil on the end of the dip stick. Then it occurred to me that maybe it's the wrong dipstick and I overfilled the transmission. The dip stick is 12 inches long and has no markings. The dip stick on my D7 17A is 22 inches long and has a "full" mark 2-5/8 inches from the bottom. But that dip stick only goes down half way in the 3T before bottoming out.
???

Parts book says refill capacity is 10.75 gallons.

What Part Number is on your Plunger Assemblies.
Alas the only Parts Books I have are a late 7M4325 to 7M9999 (which I believe became the 3T when the 7M S/No range reached 7M9999) and a 17A 11879-up Parts Books and they both give the Plunger Assembly as P/No 8B2280.
I stand to be corrected.
As said above the oil volume is the best starting point but you will need to allow +/- a little for case volume variations--Cat says these volumes are approximate for this reason. They will get you close enough to double check your actual fill volume against the Plunger Assemblies you have in hand for certainty.
Cheers,
Eddie B.

Plunger for all the 3T's is also 8B2280. It may have gotten worn off, check the end. Plunger should be 21.5 inches in length.

Rome wrote:

Plunger for all the 3T's is also 8B2280. It may have gotten worn off, check the end. Plunger should be 21.5 inches in length.
BUT, the 21.5 inch dip stick from the 17A only goes in half way and hits bottom or something solid, just won't go in all the way.
did something slip out of place that would wear the original down a foot and then block a new one from going in??
I'm mystified.

 

The plunger is close to a gear and if the tube is bent some the plunger gets worn right though. No Neil, the transmission and bevel gear case share the same oil.

Hi Team,
the plunger tube bolts to the top cover of the Transmission case--it is angled to miss the gears etc. inside--if it is fitted facing the wrong way 180# out then the plunger may not go all the way into the tube.
I once had to troubleshoot a U Series D4 with a tingly sound when in a particular gear --it was the plunger tube being 180# out of alignment--removed and rotated the tube and all was well.
Cheers,
Eddie B.

all very interesting comments and thanks to everybody!
I went down just now to do some more poking and took some pics.
the "correct" plunger (l love that term for a dipstick!) only goes down about half way no matter how much "plunging" and twisting. It's definitely hitting something solid, although at times it gets lightly stuck, like in a crack or crevice.  A wire goes all the way in and keeps going into the interior. The end of the short plunger is nicely rounded, appears to have been made that way (not worn off etc), but it has no number or any other marking.
The former owner is deceased or he could no doubt clear it up.He was a farmer and according to his daughters, who were very reluctant to let it go for a long time, it was his favorite machine and he took good care of it.

The next question is where did all that oil go (assuming that it already had enough before I added 14 gallons) and more to the point, what do I do with it? Is there any harm to just leaving it? If I need to drain it I can't tell from the manual where the drains are.
Thanks!
 

I keep looking at the picture of the "plunger" and to me it looks as if there is brazing material on the plunger along a ragged edge where a break occurred. This would explain why another plunger can't go all the way in; the brazing failed and the broken lower part of the original plunger is in the way.
Craig