The Fordson Tractor Pages Forum

...I looked all over this NET early on and could not find a pattern for the gear shifting.

...I still haven't figured how to get from low to hi but remember, I'm a novice.

...Still playing with this thing and I'll soon have it down.

...Everyone says I'll get used to the front loader but now I have trouble seeing the load. I have a Mickey Mouse guide for showing me the attitude but don't know how full it is. Camera??

...My gear shift pattern:



0le FUZZY

Hi, you should have a secondary gear lever that sticks out to the right of the dash. It shifts up and down (high and low), it goes 1st 2nd and 5th in low, then 3rd 4th and 6th in high.
If its anything like mine, it will grate and crunch a bit when changing between high and low. Ive found its better to do it with the engine in lower revs.
Hope this helps a bit

...Thanks Nick for taking your time.
...Will it shift with the engine off?
...I have been working in high all this time and thinking it should go slower HEE! HEE! Silly me. I thought that was it but was afraid to change it for fear of messing something up.
...I wish the low and reverse were opposite each other rather that over and up/down.
...Sorry for being so simple minded on all of this but believe me I tried to find this stuff out and just couldn't find it in all my searches.
...On my video you can tell I don't have a clue!! (first time for everything).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mevHFlKtSgY

0le FUZZY

5 and 6 are road gears.
It's easier to use the H/L than changing from 3 low to 2 low.
You have to use double clutch for changing the H/L on the move down: Slow down, press the clutch and shift H/L free in the middle, relief clutch, give a lot of throttle up and then down (works nice with a foot pedal) ,press the clutch and change gear. If it's done right it will slide in easy without the crunch. I have learned a while ago. You have to practice a bit.

...Thank you Henk, I do need more practice and with your help I have some confidence. It's hard getting used to a new ride.
...My uncle Clyde would have been proud (anybody know what kind of tractor he is on?)'




0le FUZZY

Hi Ole Fuzzy.
At great risk of ending up involved in a nasty hunting accident on the fordson forum, I would say its a green and yellow tractor that we don't talk about on here of JD origin .
I worked in a shop once and welded a center in a wheel rim for a customer that looked very similar. think it was an M , H, or L or something close it was 10 years ago and not seen one since.
Regards Robert

Do not worry, the gearbox was not designed to be shifted on the move like a car, although it can be done. There is no kind of synchromesh on any gears and they are hard to move cleanly. You are moving and engaging gears on shafts, not slip rings and couplers as in the modern gearbox.

A transmission hand brake will also make engaging gears, even when stopped, a little difficult at times. Changing from High to Low and Low to High on the range shift is the easiest move, you can start off in the 5th position with the lever in Low, then once moving, drop the revs a little and change to High.

However, remember that on this change, you are moving "dog" couplers, not gears and these will wear, causing the tractor to slip out of High or Low when under load. (But we all do it)

Low is up and high is down on a standard tractor. High is up and low is down on a live PTO tractor. Which one do you have?

Uncle Clyde is on a John Deere Model LA. Don't ask me how I know that

Brian wrote:
However, remember that on this change, you are moving "dog" couplers, not gears and these will wear, causing the tractor to slip out of High or Low when under load.

Please explain in more detail as I have that problem, and it seems to be slowly getting worse. With my steep hills, it is something I need to address

Kiwi Kev

JC wrote: Uncle Clyde is on a John Deere Model LA. Don't ask me how I know that

Yup. L and LA were close but a few diferences are that the L had the larger 7/8ths spark plugs and 22 inch rear rubber. The LA came with 24 inch rear rubber if my memory serves me right. I do not see a starter in the hole by the air cleaner which leads me to believe it is an L as it is a hand start tractor. We have had a few though the years, and I restored an LA for a friend seveal years back that has electric start. These sure are not a favorite of mine. I think JD built these to compete with the Farmall Cub, which was a much better tractor in my opinion. Now back to the Gray, Orange, and Blue which we all know on here is the Rolls Royce of tractors. Dandy Dave!

Kev,

The "teeth" are really castellations that fit together when you shift. Instead of being sharp right angles in profile, they develop a "slope" which, under pressure causes the two halves to slide apart.

Other problems that could cause your fault.

1. Gearbox bearings.
2. Loose pulley drive gear on the top shaft. Look in through the pulley hole and see if the retaining nut is loose. The tabs on the lock tab break off and the nut comes loose.
3. Worn selector shaft or interlocks.

Low is up and high is down on a standard tractor. High is up and low is down on a live PTO tractor. Which one do you have?

...JC!!!!! now I'm confused. I have the 1959 Fordson Power Major with PTO.

...I need to know what position it is in (hi or low) and if I can change it with the engine off or does it need to be running and do I have to double clutch it standing still or should it be moving.





P.S. Thank you Dave and JC on the JD info. I promise not to type about that Brand X again here.


0le FUZZY

Fuzzy,

Don't panic.
Use double clutch only when slow moving. The speed should be not faster than about 30% of the 3 low gear before shifting back.
What JC means is: normal PTO, Low is up and high is down. With a live PTO version it's the other way around. High is up and low is down.
So you have to check if you have Live PTO or Live Drive.
Live PTO means pressing the clutch halfway down, the tractor stops but the PTO is still turning. Clutch all the way down the PTO also stops.

...Thanks Henk. As confusing as it is I believe I have the live PTO so I am in low.
...Man I have never seen any of this in my book or on these forums.
...It's 106° out here now but I will check it all when it gets cooler. Thanks again.

0le FUZZY

If you have "Live" PTO your picture shows it in High. Go to the Wiki on here (password "fordsontractorpages" and "dotty") and check the Operators Handbook which gives all the details. You can also print it off for future reference.

...Looked for a half hour and cannot find "WIKI" but thanks anyway Brian.
...I feel like a pest now so I'll just find out on my own later when it cools off.
...Thanks again guys!



0le FUZZY

The Wiki access is on the main site page and if you look on "Miscellaneous" you will find a link to it, the first topic, but my brain dropped out of gear, the handbooks are not there.

The site main page gets you to Operators Handbooks for nearly all the tractors. There is also links to Workshop Manuals, all free. http://www.fordsontractorpages.nl, Click the heading on the banner at the top.

...Thanks Brian. You guys are so good. I guess I'll just have to live with the fact that my Power Major is a rare breed. It sure is here in the states. Nobody I know has ever seen one except Tim (the guy I bought it from).
...I sure wish there was some way to see my load in the bucket.
...Two things I wish I could change:
-----I have to push down on starter handle and turn key at the same time due to a wiring change by someone in the past.
-----This Fordson has an electric fuel pump which has a switch on the lower right firewall and I keep forgetting to turn it off.
...Oh well, it's all good because it runs so good.

...Oh I forgot to show you the visitor I had overnight while I had the water pump out.



0le FUZZY

You are welcome!

All front loaders are the same,you cannot see the bucket/forks very well. You develop a feel for them eventually.

Just drive into your heap and lift. If you are loading from a heap, do not start at the bottom and try to lift, take a bit from half way up. If she will not lift, back out a little way and try again. You may find you have to dump the bucket load and start again, this time not going in too far, it takes practise.

If you are loading muck from a cattle yard work in the same way, drive in and lift. Sometimes you will get too much and have to back out, other time it will not be enough. Its all trial and error.