354 (2005 vintage) three point hitch not working

[DonRina]

I can’t seem to get my three point hitch to lower or raise. Right now it’s in the up position and doesn’t want to move. My 354 has the two levers on the right side by the seat, either seems to do anything. When I bought it the owner advised that you have to rev it up a bit to get the three point to work. This did work once but now not so much. I did remove the seat and top plate and flushed and cleaned out the three point reservoir. I also found lots of gunk so cleaned everything I could get at. The filter screen was completely clogged. Added new fluid and still no joy on this. The power steering and fel work fine so I’m thinking I still have some issues in the three point area. The front, between the seat, knob was frozen but I’ve loosened it up. There is a mystery bolt with a plunger on the block inside the case which I have no clue what it does. Any ideas on what I should be looking for now?

 

[piper184]

The bolt with the plunger is likely the differential lock and would have nothing to do with the 3 point.
Since your FEL is working the pump and lines are probably not part of the problem.

Most often when a 3 point gets stuck in the up position it is the knob under the seat is turned all the way in and won't let it come down.
The 3 point is raised by a one way piston that can only provide "up" pressure. It goes down only by the weight of the implement and the arms.

The knob is connected to a needle valve. When you put the lever in the "lower" or "down" position it opens a passage from the cylinder, through the needle valve, through the control valve and back to the tank. All the fluid in the cylinder must exit through the needle valve. If it is screwed in all the way, or blocked, the fluid can not exit the cylinder and the arms can not lower.

However, the pump can still supply fluid to the cylinder through the control valve, bypassing the needle valve. The purpose of the needle valve is to regulate how fast the implement will lower to the ground. It has no effect on how fast it will raise up.

The chances are that you have a closed or plugged needle valve.

The other possibility is that the cylinder was over extended towards up and the piston has come out of the cylinder at the top end. This is rare, but is know to happen.

Take a look at the exploded parts diagrams to get an idea about what pieces are located where and how to get them apart.

You are off to a good start with your troubleshooting. Just take it to the next level by making sure the needle valve isn't the issue.

Let us know if you have any questions. And please let us know what the solution is once you find it. It will help others when they search on this subject.

Good job on posting the pictures and a good description of the problem.

Looking forward to hearing how it turns out.

 

[DonRina]

This all makes sense. The front knob which ends up pushing a cylinder in the control block (that’s what I call it anyway) did seem a little sticky so maybe it’s still got some crud in it. I’ll drain the fluid and remove the seat, cover plate and maybe remove the cylinder in the block and try to flush out any remaining crud. There just has to be blockage some where in the control block. So I think I need to clean up the crud on this part with the eight bolts on the top.

 

[DonRina]

Removed control block and cleaned it all out. Replaced feeder tube to rear hyd take off and jointer o ring. Mapped function of left adjuster bolt as per photo, note this is the inside face. Next I’ll try to take off the input hyd fluid tube and block to check for blockage. This is the same area where the needle valve goes in.

 

[piper184]

When you removed that control block, did the 3 point lower itself?
If not, there may be something physical blocking it.

 

[DonRina]

Checked intake valuing and could not find anything that would impede any function. I did slightly adjust the float so it just touches the rear valve for the pto. Replaced some of the o rings and spray cleaned the valving. Really couldn’t see anything amiss.

 

[piper184]

It is a little hard to tell but in the pictures it looks like the piston is retracted into the cylinder.
Did the lift arms settle all the way down?
If they did go down, then maybe you can use a little air pressure into the port at the bottom of the cylinder and see if it will push the piston and raise the arms. If that doesn't work, try blocking the arms up a little way and use air again and see if the piston moves in the cylinder.

IF you can't get it to move or if it is still stuck in the up position it might be just as easy to remove the cylinder since you are already that far into it. I haven't found any parts diagrams on the cylinder for the 354 and it is definitely different than the smaller 200 series tractor that I have.

Also, the end of the control knob speed valve looks like it is flat. I wonder if it works like a gate valve rather than a needle valve.

 

[DonRina]

It is a little hard to tell but in the pictures it looks like the piston is retracted into the cylinder.
Did the lift arms settle all the way down?
If they did go down, then maybe you can use a little air pressure into the port at the bottom of the cylinder and see if it will push the piston and raise the arms. If that doesn't work, try blocking the arms up a little way and use air again and see if the piston moves in the cylinder.

IF you can't get it to move or if it is still stuck in the up position it might be just as easy to remove the cylinder since you are already that far into it. I haven't found any parts diagrams on the cylinder for the 354 and it is definitely different than the smaller 200 series tractor that I have.

Also, the end of the control knob speed valve looks like it is flat. I wonder if it works like a gate valve rather than a needle valve.

Well the arms did lift up and down but I found the operation of them very erratic, sometimes they worked and sometimes not at all. Given they did work..sometimes, I could see no faults in the piston, valves etc and given the very sludgy/junky mess I had cleaned out including filter I decided a full flush would be my next course of action.

The flushing fluid I used was 1 liter of atf, 1 liter of 90% rubbing alcohol and the balance diesel. All this was mixed and then poured into the previously drained hydraulic sump.

Ran the tractor warming it up then ran the FEL through its range of motion several times and then tried the three point arms and, lo and behold, they worked great! Cycled everything about ten times and had zero issues. Drained the flushing solution and it had a junky look. Refilled the sump with pure diesel and repeated the range of motion. Filled with hydraulic fluid did one more flush, drain and refill.

Buttoned everything up and I’m calling this done.

Not sure what to do with all the crappy diesel, maybe fire starter.

Thanks to all for your insight. Like usual it’s my fault for not compleating the task (proper flushing) correctly but I am new to these beasts.

 

[piper184]

That' great news. You did a fantastic job.
Welcome to tractor ownership and maintenance.
Thank you for the update and the pictures. It is sure to help someone else in the future.

 

[DonRina]

Well The arms did work but I felt they still were not as easy to raise as should be. I decided to bypass the fel valve and hooked up the quick connect to bypass the fel and go directly to the three point. There was no change from the original connection through the fel, hence there must still be something amiss in the three point system.

I ended up draining the hyd fluid and then removing the two valve blocks. The first one I had previously removed and cleaned out. The second one which is the smaller one on the right side then came off. Upon disassembly I found some crud in the middle valve assembly which prevented fluid flow to the piston. I cleaned the whole assembly and replaced all, filled it back up.

The arms now raise very well. No reving the engine and jiggling the fel is required. I think this is how the arms are designed to work.

Sorry no pics this time…too oily!