3-Point Hitch MF 2660 3 pt. lift will not operate

[JWR]

To maybe make this a little clearer, when I say the position control is "stiff" I mean that it is VERY difficult to move the control lever, almost as if the input shaft is locked out. My first thought was that the problem was in the quadrant and that control lever itself was rusted or too tight at the pivot. However, but when I disconnected the linkage rod that connects the lever and the control handle moves freely, so apparently it is either the input shaft (actually a tube) or something down in the bowels of the tractor. I'm heading to my farm this weekend and will try cycling the combined flow valve.

Ouch! Sorry to hear that. Certainly the position lever is an hydraulic valve control and I am not at all familiar with the internals. It sure sounds like something is stuck or has failed inside the chassis. Let's hope that cycling the combiner valve lever will free things but I'll be surprised if it does.

 

[UncleBuck1]

I had a chance to spend some quality time with my tractor and burn some diesel this weekend and, unfortunately, cycling the combined flow valve did nothing to free up the position control.... so I'm back to square one!

 

[JWR]

I had a chance to spend some quality time with my tractor and burn some diesel this weekend and, unfortunately, cycling the combined flow valve did nothing to free up the position control.... so I'm back to square one!

Not good. I do not know what I'd do next. Probably get it to a shop with experienced Massey mechanics. Whatever the problem is I do NOT think it is unique to your 2660 and probably mechanics familiar with MF tractors of many different years can debug it. You may be able to get on the phone with a service manager willing to connect you to a mechanic or have some suggestions what to try before hauling it to a shop.

 

[UncleBuck1]

The nearest MF dealer/shop is 75 miles away so having it looked at by someone familiar with MF hydraulic systems is going to be a major undertaking - maybe I will try and find a sympathetic service manager who can give me some guidance on trouble shooting my problem over the phone.

 

[JWR]

The nearest MF dealer/shop is 75 miles away so having it looked at by someone familiar with MF hydraulic systems is going to be a major undertaking - maybe I will try and find a sympathetic service manager who can give me some guidance on trouble shooting my problem over the phone.

Yep, good idea. Don't know about Baton Rouge but in WV and in MD there are very competent tractor mechanics who I think could debug this without being MF dealer connected. Pick the most experienced one close to you regardless of brand. I'm yakking a little to you on the other thread about trans fluids too...
By the way -- do you have ability to haul the MF 1660 yourself or stuck hiring that ?

 

[UncleBuck1]

By the way -- do you have ability to haul the MF 1660 yourself or stuck hiring that ?

I don't have a trailer heavy enough for the tractor and doubt my F150 eco-boost would pull it!

 

[JWR]

I don't have a trailer heavy enough for the tractor and doubt my F150 eco-boost would pull it!

Well, more commonalities ! I too have an F-150 ecoboost. I have used it to tow a Pequea 21ft heavy trailer and the MF2660 for 25 mile trips to/from a non-Massey dealer to install some things. To report on that: there are some pretty hefty hills in the 25 miles. The F-150 is a 3.5 liter twin turbo (2015) that actually puts out nearly 100hp more than the old F-250 V-10 it replaced. And the torque figures are almost the same (!) You would have no trouble pulling it. Where you have trouble is stopping it and controlling it ! The weight of the truck matters a whole bunch. My F-150 is right at 1000 lbs less than the old F-250 was. I towed the MF2660 on an even heavier trailer more than 300 miles when I bought it (much of which was in the mountains) and again in tougher higher mountains on the nice Pequea for 80 miles each way using the F-250. I would NOT do that with the F-150 because of it being light in the loafers and control issues, not for lack of power. I will use the F-150 and Pequea trailer to move the 2660 only in near-emergencies and then very gingerly...

 

[UncleBuck1]

Please indulge me as I talk this through and give some more information on my situation....

First, back to basics: my problem is that the position control lever is stiff, almost as if its rusted in place. It's so stiff that you can't move the lever while seated - although I can make it move if I stand on the lift arms and put some muscle into it. However, the draft control lever moves easily.

Fortunately I have the full 2660 service manual and I've been studying the schematics for the hydraulic system; they're not real clear on the differences between oil flow when the draft or position levers are engaged, but it appears that both operate the same hydraulic valve and that the only real difference is that when using draft control the hydraulic fluid also flows through a load-sensing relief valve while position control bypasses the relief valve - again, its not very clearly explained in the manual. Assuming that's correct I take it to mean that the problem is not with the hydraulic system- if it was, I would be having the same resistance with both draft and position control. That in turn leads me to think that the problem is something mechanical. The position control linkage is a tube that enters the body of the tractor under the seat; the draft control linkage is a rod that passes through the position control tube - perhaps the tube got tweaked somehow which is preventing it from rotating or maybe some trash worked its way into the housing? Does any of this make sense?

One more (possible) piece of the puzzle. When fiddling around with the tractor this weekend I tried to adjust the "response control" which controls how quickly a load on the 3-point system drops. I never though much about response control, never bothered to change it and it may well be where it was set when the tractor left the factory. But when I did try to move it this weekend it wouldn't budge. What's concerns me is that notwithstanding the thought process I went through above, this might be an indication that there is some problem within the hydraulic system.

In other words..... I have no idea what's going on!!!!

 

[JWR]

Gladly indulge you ! I too have the full set of manuals and easily get lost in them, where more often than not the shop manual seems ambiguous or leaves you hanging with partial information. Numerous things simply left out.

I have not yet looked at the manual regarding the response control for the 3pt lowering speed. You may want to try to turn that control in various states of rising (high , low , middle) and see if that affects the ability to adjust it. It may need some lube and probably rarely gets turned or adjusted. Liberal WD-40 ain't going to hurt it (if you can get in close to the actual mechanism.) My knob seems to work fine and does adjust the lowering.

I sure tend to agree that the stuck position lever is probably some kind of debris, obstruction or bent member. I had said early on I'd guess that and hope it is true & not internal stuff. If (as described below with correction in red) the position linkage is a tube outside of the draft control rod linkage -- maybe the tube got crimped or bent preventing it from sliding along the rod ? Or the rod bent which would also obstruct the tube sliding.

You said in post #18 that "The position control linkage is a tube that enters the body of the tractor under the seat; the draft control linkage is a rod that passes through the draft control tube ..." I think you must mean through the position control tube, right ? You had said the position control link was a tube. I am not familiar with those, but apparently the position control actuation is done via a tube while the draft control is via a rod within that tube... if I understood you correctly.

I need to do homework and study the book but when you said "but it appears that both operate the same hydraulic valve and that the only real difference is that when using draft control the hydraulic fluid also flows through a load-sensing relief valve while position control bypasses the relief valve" that makes huge sense to me and fits with how it works and what I have been told about it. I never had that good an explanation but it sure fits.

I did learn one time that (in the words of an old very experienced MF man) the draft lever being fully up desensitizes the effect of the tension on the top link but does not totally take it out of the picture. That is why you can have an excessively heavy load/tension on your top link making it seem that the 3pt lift hydraulics is dead and not working (when in fact the excessive top link load has forced the draft control to take over.) That happened to me once when I had a 2700lb arm cutter on the 3pt lift (whose stabilizer bars inadvertently multiplied the tension on the top link besides it being very heavy.) That incident had the 3pt lift appearing to be dead and not working and fooled one of the top MF mechanics in the region. He was baffled and this other guy explained "desensitizing compared to disabling."

I have since fitted a kit to my 2660 that mechanically bypasses the top link force input to that fat spring behind the seat. Just a glorified clevis that anchors the top link base to the rear axle housing rather than to the big draft control spring core. MF sells the kit intended for those who have no use for draft control.

 

[UncleBuck1]

You said in post #18 that "The position control linkage is a tube that enters the body of the tractor under the seat; the draft control linkage is a rod that passes through the draft control tube ..." I think you must mean through the position control tube, right ? You had said the position control link was a tube. I am not familiar with those, but apparently the position control actuation is done via a tube while the draft control is via a rod within that tube... if I understood you correctly.

You are correct - the draft control is via a rod that passes through the position control tube. Apparently I was typing faster than I was thinking.

And to be clear, the control rod and control tube don't slide, they rotate... which is why I speculated that perhaps the rod was bent ever so slightly causing resistance as it rotates in the bore of the transmission/hydraulic housing.