My new Ford 4000! -First time Tractor Owner

[hatch789]

Hi Guys,

I just purchased a Ford 4000 Tractor with front end loader and backhoe. I was told it was a ford 4000 with the original engine. The guy said it's yellow because it was an industrial unit. In fact it still has a license plate on the back.

I am rather handy with stuff and will be doing everything within reason to get this working in good order.

It's a 4 cylinder gasoline engine. I believe from my research it has a 713 backhoe and 723 loader. I am just going off of my research though so I may be wrong.



Some of the challenges I'm already running up against are:

1. I need to clean the fuel tank out. Large chunks of sediment are in there and occasionally clog the fuel intake. I have a fuel filter in line but the clog happens at the tank where the fuel line meets the tank. So I'm thinking I will fill and siphon the fuel out repeatedly running it through a strainer / filter to remove the crap. Suggestions are welcome.

2. What RPM range should I be running at to use the backhoe? I was told by the previous owner that he was popping hydraulic lines when he was running at higher RPM's to get more power. So he said he runs at just above idle RPM for doing backhoe work and never popped a line after that. -Is this true or bunk? I can't imagine it will have any power at that low RPM range for digging? Do I just need to replace all of the bad lines to stop the problem?

3. My brakes work very poorly. I would like to adjust them to engage more strongly and it looks like there's an adjustment nut on the bar so I can simply increase the angle of attack on the brake pedals. I am also considering retrofitting a plate across both brakes so they engage together. I don't have much use for the separate brakes and it seems like a safer option to have them both apply at the same time.

4. My steering wheel does not work. It's just spinning there doing nothing. The guy I got it from used some lever to the left of the steering wheel to turn the front tires. That does work but it's dangerous. The steering issue coupled with the bad brakes caused me to drift into things 2 times now. Nothing serious but I'd hate to be around my house or something like another vehicle and have this problem. Instinct makes you turn the wheel and it does nothing. LOL

5. My backhoe controls are all the same height. I will take a picture of them to show you, but the guy has the 2 feet levers pushed down 180 degrees from the arm controls. So they're sticking up and the feet controls are sticking down. This is fine but I can't get full extension on the feet with them in the down position. Putting them in the up position (pushing past the mid-point they point upwards) they interfere with the 2 inner arm control levers.

6. The backhoe seems rather "jerky" and it's hard to be smooth. Maybe this will just take some practice but it's much more "herky-jerky" than a newer excavator would be for instance. Obviously I know it's a very old machine, but I bet there is something I can do to help smooth things out a bit. These were state of the art in their time after all.

For now that's what I'll start with. Hello everyone and thank you for helping me out if you reply to my post. I'm looking to connect with other Ford 4000 owners to collaborate our information and help each other.

 

[Soundguy]

looks like one of the industrials with the cast front nose piece.

here's a few things.

as rpm goes up.. pump hyd FLOW goes up.

a pump should make it's max pressure at lower rpms, even if flow is lower.

I dig with my hoe on an 850 at just above idle. any higher and the thing shakes and lurches too much.

for steering.. check to see if your unit has the infamous cable steering setup... I bet it does.. er.. or did!

brakes are drum.. has star adjusters. assuming you have shoe and drum left and do not have leaky seals. jack up a side at a time and adjust till it just drags, then back off a click.

 

[hatch789]

OK So the shaking, lurching (I called it herkey-jerkey) is normal for this model machine? If so I will just learn to be smoother with it. And I will keep it at lower RPM's as you suggest.

Any answer to my backhoe controls question? The 2 that control the feet? I saw a pic on the computer screen at Messick's Farm Equipment, that those 2 controls in the middle should point upwards but they are shorter ...only perhaps 2/3 the height of the other controls and therefore the next 2 controls moving out from center, will not hit the foot controls. So I'm thinking of of cutting mine off a few inches lower and welding a knob or something smooth on them to put my hands on. I think that will do the trick and allow me the proper throw while at the same time no longer interfering with my next 2 control levers. I will have to take a pic of how it looks now.

Yes I think I remember the guy saying to me that it had a steering cable on it, but that broke. So he just uses the lever (to the left of the wheel) now to steer. -That's great if you have a long time to practice with it and train yourself to use it. But when you grab the wheel instinctively and it does nothing... that's pretty scary! So is there an easy way to get the steering wheel working again? Perhaps someone can post a pic of a working cable steering mechanism for me?

The brakes ...yes I hope I have shoe and drum left. They do work, they are just worn a bit I believe. Is my idea of connecting both pedals together with a plate or something, a bad idea? I can drill a little 1/4" hole and use a nut & bolt to hold the plate on ...that way I can remove it if I ever want it off. But to me, it just seems a lot safer to step on one nice big break and have some good positive stopping force. As it is now, even a slight downhill grade is dangerous for me because it does not stop well at all and coupled with the steering issue ...scared the crap out of me 2 times already.

Anyone have any good suggestions on cleaning out the gas tank? Or is my idea of using a ball valve siphon sufficient to get the job done?

 

[Soundguy]

the herky jerky is just a function of pump volume / flow and cyl reaction. running at lower rpm will make it less jerky.

can't help ont he pedals.

as for the steering. unless you repalce the cable setup.. the only other options are converting to a regualr or ps setup from another machine.

user RICKb and ultradog can help you there. there is a thread on a similar problem on another board about this cable steering issue.

 

[hatch789]

well I think for starters then I will hook up the cable steering again if it's not too much trouble. Any links or help pointing me in the right direction for that would be appreciated. I will start searching myself after dinner tonight to see what I can find on the forums about it. The thread you're thinking of... is it specific to ford 4000's or just general cable steering setup stuff?

 

[Soundguy]

the cable steering was a very limited deal ont he industrials. was such a good idea.. it didn't get used much

start with a service manual, and at least the exploded parts diagrams...

 

[hatch789]

OK got my numbers from my Tractor! Here they are!

1841-S
54575

There is a little "diamond" on the left and on the right of the lower number.
Oddly it seems as though the original paint was RED and then the yellow was applied on top of the red. I will have to look some more to be sure of that.


So where will the identification be for my Backhoe and Front End loaders so I can get their numbers also?

 

[Soundguy]

well.. it' the industrial 1841 and has a sherman.. . think of it as an 841 ie.. 172ci engine, and a 4spd, late series ( 01, ).. but industrial front end and different steering.

 

[hatch789]

Sherman transmission means what exactly? Are they good ...bad or something else? LOL. So what year was my 1841 ...are you guys able to tell by my number? And were they originally RED as that appears to be the first coat of paint... maybe that's just a red primer?

I tried to look for the star gear on the breaks to adjust them as suggested, but couldn't find anything like the description given. I will take pictures of the brakes tomorrow as well.

I guess at this point it would help to have a service manual as well as a user manual. Especially since I now know the exact model.

Also, there is a little rubber stopper in the main block of the body under the seat on the left side. The liquid inside looks like engine oil but has a milky appearance so I would guess that some water got into this reservoir? Should I be worried about that?

I

 

[hatch789]

OK Here are some pictures for everyone.

Looks like I have some different stuff than Kirk was expecting? Not sure though so I'll be interested in feedback. I still need to figure out how to adjust the breaks. I found what I think is a small 1.5 inch slot on the inside cover plate for my break drum but I can't really get to it. What do I do with (in) that slot to adjust the breaks? Or do I just adjust the axle collars that go around the horizontal shaft leading into the breaks?

It also looks like my backhoe is not driven by the PTO. That is in the back with the cover over the PTO shaft under the backhoe. It appears that I have a non-Ford Backhoe.