Ford 1710 rear hydraulics slow/not working

   / Ford 1710 rear hydraulics slow/not working #1  

Minorhero

New member
Joined
Feb 9, 2010
Messages
8
Hello,

I'm in Maryland right now and we have quite a bit of snow on the ground with more on the way. I'm house sitting for my parents and the only way I can get out of here is with my fathers tractor. Specifically a Ford 1710. It has rear hydraulics with a blade attached. It also currently has a really annoying problem. If when I turn the tractor off with the blade on the ground when I go to turn it back on the blade will not raise, if I then leave the hydraulics control lever in the raised position turn it off and go away for a few hours when I come back and turn it on the blade will raise.

The blade then works "ok" for around 30 minutes before it slows down and stops working completely, at which point the process is repeated. Even when the blade is working its sluggish to respond and jerks as it is being raised. I thought it was the hydraulic fluid level and checked that to find it was quite low (very bottom of the gauge) so I poured more in, this did not fix the problem. I read elsewhere on this forum about a fellow who had front hydraulics that had a similar issue. He was able to bleed air out of the system to fix the problem. I have no idea where I might bleed air out of the rear hydraulics (assuming that is also my issue).

As is probably obvious I do not know a lot about tractors. As a side hobby I rebuild old woodworking machines, but when it comes to tractors my knowledge is limited to my father's crash course before he left town.

Any help on this would be greatly appreciated.
 
   / Ford 1710 rear hydraulics slow/not working #2  
The system is vented and should bleed the air naturally so I wouldn't worry about this being the issue. When you checked the fluid level was the hydraulic fluid milky looking? If so, it may have some moisture in it which is freezing and not allowing it to pass through the systems hydraulic filter or screen. What is the temp there currently? If The fluid was milky and you can get it into a heated garage where it can sit for a few hours to thaw out(or cover the tractor with a tarp and use a torpedo heater etc), you can see if this is the problem ( after the moisture thaws the hydraulics will work OK again). If so, change the fluid and clean out the filter/screen and it should take care of the problem.

This could also be a symptom of a debris clogging the filter or screen. Look for the hydraulic suction line, it is the larger of the 2 lines that connect to the hydraulic pump ( probably located on the side of the engine) and the filter or screen will be plumbed inline with it. The screen can be cleaned. If you suspect the filter is clogged with debris, it needs to be replaced.

It could possibly be bigger issues but start with the easy stuff, it is probably something basic as mentioned. Hopefully, someone who is more familiar with the 1710 will chime in soon. Let us know what happens.
 
   / Ford 1710 rear hydraulics slow/not working
  • Thread Starter
#3  
It is quite cold here. I have in the past couple of days heated it up to see if that made it work better. But even if I heated it up to say around 40 or 50 degrees it was still not working as well as it used to. I suppose that may just still be too cold.

There is a cylinder on the left side of the tractor under the seat (from the perspective if you are sitting in the seat and facing forward) Is this the filter or the pump or both? I can take pictures if that helps.
 
   / Ford 1710 rear hydraulics slow/not working #4  
I am not familiar enough with the 1700 series to say if it's the filter, definitely not the pump though. A picture wouldn't hurt. Might just be crud clogging the filter. I looked at messicks tractor site and it appears like the 1710 has either 1 or 2 hydraulic filters (depending on which model 1710) and I don't see a screen New Holland 1710O 3 Cyl Compact Tractor Offset (1/85-12/87) Parts Catalogs ( look at hydraulic pump 1510,1710). The schematic doesn't give a good picture of how the lines "actually look" ( to me) on the tractor though.

I have had similar issues with my tractor before and it was simply a clogged suction screen....in your case I think it would be a clogged filter since I don't see a screen on the schematic. Unfortunately, I can tell you, I have also had tractors with similar issues that had debris in the relief valve and control valve that required disassembly of those parts which can be no fun. I would think that 40-50 degrees for a 4-5 hours would be warm enough to thaw any moisture so I think that can be ruled out at this point. I think now I would look at a clogged filter. Does your dad have an extra one there at the house?
 
   / Ford 1710 rear hydraulics slow/not working
  • Thread Starter
#5  
Here are some pictures of the tractor. I took a closeup of the cylinder. Is the filter inside that thing something I could buy at an auto parts store or is this a tractor only part? Theres quite a few auto parts stores around here but for tractors there is only a John Deere dealer and I'm not sure how well he is stocked.

Thank you in advance for any clues on this.











 
   / Ford 1710 rear hydraulics slow/not working #6  
I assume the third pic is the cylinder you are referring to. That is the hydraulic filter. It shoud be a spin on affair although it looks a little differnt than most I have seen ( not sure what the nut looking thing is on the end). You can probably match it up to a simialr filter at one of the local stores, might want to call around first and ask if they carry hyd filters first.

I'm going to back track for a second here. When you said that after the tractor sat in the "warm" garage for a while and '''But even if I heated it up to say around 40 or 50 degrees it was still not working as well as it used to""", does this mean that you did see some improvement in how the 3 point worked for a while after it sat in the garage? The reason I ask is if it was just 40-45 degrees and the tractor had been really cold, it might take a really long time for it to fully thaw out. Maybe it partally thawed and when you got it back out in the cold temps it didn't take long for the ice to collect in the filter and clog things up again.

Try to take the filter off and warm it up and see what comes out of it. You might not be able see an actual seperation of oil/water unless you pour it into a container and let it settle. I would also shake it and see if you can hear anything rattle around like some ice inside???????? Just throwing some ideas out there.

EDIT: Looking at the filter again, maybe the filter isn't a spin on and the "nut" on the end holds the filter on....I'm not sure. I have not seen a filter like this before and I'm just mentioning this. You may have to turn the nut to take the filter of or the filter may be a spin on??????
 
   / Ford 1710 rear hydraulics slow/not working
  • Thread Starter
#7  
The first thing I tried was warming the tractor up. Its in the high to low 20's outside (depending on if its day or night). At first I thought that this was my only issue. However even when left to heat over night the 3 point system on the back (while functional) was still sluggish. I talked to my father and he said the filter has never been replaced. So right now I'm going with that being the culprit and also possibly the temp.

When I remove the filter do I first need to drain the hydraulic fluid? If so I assume I do this by removing the lowest bolt shown in the second picture that is attached to a half circle metal piece? Sorry I don't know the names, basically its the lowest bolt on the tractor.

What kind of hydraulic fluid should I put back in it?
 
   / Ford 1710 rear hydraulics slow/not working #8  
japanese fords are notorious for drawing water into the sump , and should work relatively fine mine has some moisture in itno mater what I do, look at the top of the case centered below the seat there should be a knob or a screw try turning it counter clockwise 1/2 turn this is the restrictor or "speed"
control, fyi , when my tractor is really cold say 8-20 degrees the hydraulic system doesnt work until it is thouroughly warmed, the fluid is pumped through the pump fine but the valves stick for me it has never been an intermitant problem it either works or doesnt , also does the engine rpm affect the performance? if so you may have a bad pump.
 
   / Ford 1710 rear hydraulics slow/not working #9  
also use utf (universal transmission fluid) to replace oil
 
   / Ford 1710 rear hydraulics slow/not working #10  
That is a cartridge filter, call NAPA and ask if they have a filter make sure you get gaskets for it, If the gaskets do not seal well you will suck in air and that can also cause the problem.as everyone else said check the condition of the oil if its bad change it and make sure you find all of the drains I think there is 4 on that tractor.
 
 
Top