Deere 855 - third hydraulic function

   / Deere 855 - third hydraulic function #21  
Mine is a meteor. It's middle of the road but has done what I expect of it for many years now and has suffered no damage other than shear pins despite eating rocks chain rope firewood ice and at least one brick over the years.

When considering a brand here are some things to consider.

Impeller diameter equals distance equals horsepower. The bigger the impeller the faster the tip speed and the further the snow will throw but the more horsepower consumed doing it. 3 4 or more blades on the impeller are not going to make much difference. 3 will just carry more per blade but the same amount overall as will 4. The horsepower needs are more affected by impeller size even than width. Bigger is not necessarily better. With mine in a deep snow the auger will overcome the impeller and snow will pile up. I slow down until the impeller catches up. I can't overload the 855 but with a bigger impeller j could. With more power bigger would be better.

Auger fighting should be well supported. You will hit something eventually. Look for strong flighting.

Shear pins. Find them and make sure they are easy to get to and easy to replace. Mine are simple bolts. I buy a bag before each season by the pound. I specially buy grade 3 instead of 5. Bolts are cheaper than tractor parts.

Scraper edge. High end might be replaceable. Mine isn't but it is solid.

Shoes. For paved not much to worry about but for gravel you want wide shoes that can be set to leave a base of snow especially that first snowfall before the ground is frozen. Mine did not have so I made my own.

Chute. Look for an adjustable top as well as at least 225 degree rotation. Look at the rotation mechanism and think what it will be like when frozen up. You should be able to rotate the chute with one hand from the seat. Chute top adjustment doesn't need to be done from the seat.

Maintenance and lubrication. Zerks chain tension gearbox oil level and auger bearings should be easy to access and lube. Also the chute rotation mechanism.

Weight. More is usually stronger but not always necessary. You want strong enough not overkill.

I haven't looked at specific brands for years so won't comment there. Do your research and ask around then buy from a dealer with a solid reputation. With proper care you'll get years of service with no issues and will be able to recover most of your investment later if circumstances change.
 
   / Deere 855 - third hydraulic function
  • Thread Starter
#22  
Not sure what auger flighting means... but I think I got all the rest. I bought a brand new Woods SB64S on Saturday. It has electric chute rotator and deflector options, but I ordered it with manual controls to see how that works, before putting money on the electrics.

Thanks for all the advice!
 
   / Deere 855 - third hydraulic function
  • Thread Starter
#23  
The kit is still available. If you look it up on the JD parts website, it says NLA... but don't believe it. It comes up that way because it is a "bundle" part and bundles don't show up on the website. If you call you dealer and ask for a price, he can pull it up and price it for you. I just did this about 6 months ago... the kit was about $250.

Bringing back an old one, today. I have a new need for the Power Beyond kit, and ran into two issues:

1. My local dealer tells me it's no longer available for the 855.
2. I found two versions of the kit, for different serial number ranges, and neither range includes my tractor.

Kit BM16762 for sn range 800001-820000 includes a hydraulic cylinder cap and extra oil line not included in the later kit. Kit BM16763 for sn range 820001- does not include these parts, but is otherwise similar. All references I find to folks installing Power Beyond on 855's are using the latter kit.

However, my 1986 MFWD 855 with SCV has sn 366633. Not in either of the listed ranges. In fact, I'm not seeing any 855 tractor year falling into these ranges, when I check TractorData.com. What am I missing?
 
   / Deere 855 - third hydraulic function
  • Thread Starter
#24  
Well, I figured out this serial no. referred not to the tractor serial number, found on the plate below the PTO, but to the transaxle serial number. This is stamped in a place one cannot easily read without disassembly, but after some craning and creative lighting, I think I read it as 801705. If correct, it looks like I need the the less common BM16762 kit. Figures, this is a first model year 855.

If anyone has any advice on buying this kit, I'm all ears. My dealer tells me it's NLA. I may try a salvage yard, but I suspect all I'll find is the 16763 kits. I might have to buy this kit thru parts, or piece together a 16763 kit with the few odd parts I need from 16762.
 
   / Deere 855 - third hydraulic function #25  
The kit listed for the early trans adds the housing the PB ports actually screw into. I imagine the labor operation for that would make the whole thing scarry enough to consider buying a different tractor.

The later trans has the ports and the main thing needed would be the 90 degree ports. The later kit would most likely only require the seat bracket to be removed.

I haven't looked in the service manual but it would be nice if someone had install instructions for both kits.
 
   / Deere 855 - third hydraulic function
  • Thread Starter
#26  
Power Beyond kits BM16762 and BM16763 are no longer available from Deere, nor are they showing up on ebay anymore. I was able to piece together my own BM16762 for my early-model 855, with the exception of one of the two hoses (AM105470), item 15 in the diagram linked below.

MP5864_________UN01JAN94.gif

I'm thinking of having one made, either flexible hose or hard steel line that I can bend (I have benders) to fit, but I need an estimate on length. If anyone knows whether or not a flexible hose would work there (will it pinch? chafe? is there enough room for a 1/2" ID (> 3/4" OD) hose?), that'd be good to know, too.

Anyone got access to one they can measure? This is the same as the more common BM16763 kit, the only differences are items 4 and 16 in the linked diagram. I'm thinking of having a hard line made up at 12" length, which I can bend to shorten and fit as necessary.

Thanks!

The kit listed for the early trans adds the housing the PB ports actually screw into. I imagine the labor operation for that would make the whole thing scarry enough to consider buying a different tractor.

The later trans has the ports and the main thing needed would be the 90 degree ports. The later kit would most likely only require the seat bracket to be removed.

I haven't looked in the service manual but it would be nice if someone had install instructions for both kits.
Instructions for installation are the same as the more common 16763 kit, used on the later tractors. There's just the one extra step of swapping on that cylinder cap, which isn't the biggest part of the job. Several folks have posted it took them 4 hours to do their 16763 kits, so I'd expect this one to take maybe 4-1/2 hours.

New tractor? What the heck? This one is just getting broken in! :laughing:
 
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