Traction Branson 3510 4x4 issue

[tman53]

Over the past few years my (now 15 yr old) Branson 3510 has reduced power when in 4 wheel drive. Almost feels like the brakes are hanging up, once I take it out of 4X4 the tractor is fine. Anyone experience this or have any ideas on what to look for to fix it?

 

[LouNY]

If it has a loader pickup the front wheels and with it in two wheel drive try rotating the tires,
if the take the same effort on each side, block one tire from rotating and try the other, then switch and try again.
If with both tires in the air one rotates opposite the other the differential is most likely good,
with one tire blocked and rotating the other tire every component on that side of the front drive is being checked,
if both sides feel the same it's time to suspect something in the tractor. If one side is harder to turn then the other
the harder to turn side has a problem usually.

 

[tman53]

Thanks I'll give this a try

 

[tman53]

Thanks LouNY.....Gave it a try diff seems to be working fine I have no idea what to check next :-(

 

[LouNY]

Sorry to hear that, how hard is it to remove the driveshaft to the front?
You could remove the driveshaft and then try 4wd if it pulls down then it is definitely in the tractor,
It sounds like it may be, I have tried to attach a pdf of the parts

View attachment 3510 4wd parts.pdf

 

[tman53]

I'll check that out and look deeper. may take me a while before I get time but will get back to you once I figure it out. Thanks a bunch for the insight and the pdf

 

[Brucester]

How many hours is on the machine..?

 

[tman53]

It has 256 hrs....not much for the age of the machine I would say.

 

[Brucester]

It has 256 hrs....not much for the age of the machine I would say.

I'd take it to a tractor repair place or see if someone could come by your place if you can't transport it and let them figure it out.

This is mine after 10 years of self employment with it.

 

[Texasmark]

When is the last time you changed the oil? What are the conditions of the front and rear tires? Are the OEM tires still on the machine? If the ratio of the rolling diameters, not actual diameters is something other than equal, one or the other of the axles will drag on the other.

To do the math yourself and check it you need the gear ratios for the front and rear to be added to the tires rolling circumferences (tires squat a little sitting on the ground).

The other thing is to check straight ahead in 4wd and then in a hard turn. Hard turns aggravate the unbalance. If on a soft surface and the front end digs ruts in the soil where the lugs touch it, you are out of sync. Had a buddy with a Ford 4wd pu with monster mudders and on a hard surface, hard turn, the front end would hop.