Replacing the forward reverse shuttle in a montana 3040 and clutch

[spokane 1]

Well we did this this summer nice weather. The Montana 3040 was all locked up in the clutch and the F-R gear set was useless.
I didn't know what to encounter while separating this but actually happy to notify you its not as hard as the manual says. just 2 items exist that require the hands of a piano maker.
while separating the clutch section everything is just like a 55 chev. remove bolt and back out the trans. flop done.
but things get a little hairy when the forward shuttle is removed from the rear trans. There is a couplet inside that will fall in the back axle. this thing looks like something from automatic transmission clutch.a 2 tier gear set...no tools can save it it just plunks.
resetting this gear take a bit of doing...its difficult to get it ALL the way back in....but its necessary to wiggle it and set the teeth all properly before insertion and continue down this rucked path until your certain its past all these flat plate clutches, when you can rotate the part and it quits rocking you know your home. This couplet connects the main shaft to the pump in the trans axle.

then the other section is the F-R set that will give you problems only on install.

for the sake of simplification and talking to the useless......drive out the pin in the forward reverse shifting fork use a felt marker to mark the forks location on the shaft. and place the fork on the gear set outside the transmission prior to reinstalling the cast iron shuttle to the trans axle.
reset the pin in 1/8th and prep to hammer it in the in once your shuttle is married and bolted to the trans axle. pinning this fork is difficult but rapid little blows while wiggling the shaft to and frow will find the hole......its considered a rch hole.

the removal of the forward and reverse gears is simple....if you can get this far you can figure out the replacements... as for tightening or loosening the main bolt on the reverse gear i used a heavy cloth and a BIG pipe wrench and caveman crescent with diligence on the gear set just behind . BE Careful not to mar the gears.

my best advice is photograph your way in and study those photos on the way out..........lay everything directional on cardboard (while not talking)......! and you wont blow a 16 grand tractor.
some guys use spray paint on the gear sets prior to disassembly. then is a rat comes to visit the,,,, red gears all are red to red shaft. seems like the factory leaves marks like this inside as well.

Its also wise to walk in the shuttle into the new clutch set prior to marriage to the trans axle. The parts guy in the Midwest does not give you alignment spud.

Montana tractor guy that sells parts in the midwest (he sells to many to give you specific advice)... there is no need for the manual to do this job. but you should have a good buddies with you that has at least 2-3 tractor splits in his background.
and be prepared to see a engineering flop in your forward reverse gears.........Montana tractor forward and reverse gears only shift onto 1/8th of the gear sets. The couplet slider is the part that will become damaged rather than the gears only 1/8th of a inch has to wear off of it and the entire reverse becomes useless.
I was just astonished at the lack of gear couple on the over shiftier........I told my buddy who owns the tractor you may want to get a different tractor.........
DO NOT use you Montana tractor like a 580 in reverse. this thing is built like a pinto with a match up its arse!

if you have questions just hit the mailer....I usually have time to comment.

 

[bones1]

This is excellent information. I have to do this as well but am leery of starting. So the rear wheels don't have to be removed or the loader that's good to know. What part is the transaxle you refer too?. Thank You and I'll most likely contact you later on this. The 4th picture with the long bar in it scares me. I just split this tractor last week and put a clutch assy in it to no avail. That was fun.

 

[spokane 1]

This is excellent information. I have to do this as well but am leery of starting. So the rear wheels don't have to be removed or the loader that's good to know. What part is the transaxle you refer too?. Thank You and I'll most likely contact you later on this. The 4th picture with the long bar in it scares me. I just split this tractor last week and put a clutch assy in it to no avail. That was fun.

Can I ask how much schooling you have before you dig in this?......I recommend you need at least 3 months of transmission school or some farm experience for years before you attempt a F-R shuttle replace.
you can seriously mess up a tractor if you didn't do some school.

The 4th picture is a long pry bar that is resetting a drive gear into a layered multi clutch plate drive, in the rear trans axle transmission....this gear will slide out when you decouple the front shuttle from the rear transmission. Its built just like a automatic transmission clutch. and has to be reinstalled via a long bar. seating it completely ,,,,is a art only known by experience tranny people.

Ive gone thru plenty of transmissions.....and have formal school. this is just one of the hazards you will encounter.

 

[bones1]

Never been inside a tractor trans but been an automotive and heavy equipment mechanic since the 70's. There is nobody anywhere near me that will work on this Farmtrac so I am up.I will remove the rear fenders today and look further.I took the cover off the trans and found a large very fine threaded nut, about 3 in in diameter that had unscrewed and behind that i fished out half of a broken shift fork. My concern is mating it back to the rear transaxle transmission when going back. The tractor is useless to me now, wont move forward or reverse so I don't have much choice in trying to fix it. Or I could roll in down in the gully. Thanks for the help and if ok can I ask you more questions later?.

 

[spokane 1]

Never been inside a tractor trans but been an automotive and heavy equipment mechanic since the 70's. There is nobody anywhere near me that will work on this Farmtrac so I am up.I will remove the rear fenders today and look further.I took the cover off the trans and found a large very fine threaded nut, about 3 in in diameter that had unscrewed and behind that i fished out half of a broken shift fork. My concern is mating it back to the rear transaxle transmission when going back. The tractor is useless to me now, wont move forward or reverse so I don't have much choice in trying to fix it. Or I could roll in down in the gully. Thanks for the help and if ok can I ask you more questions later?.View attachment 508694

I don't recall a 3 inch nut except on the end of the lower shafts inside the 3040......yeppers you got plenty of mechanic time in. GO for it.
if the nut backed of the end of the shaft.. look for damage where ever it was... . (((this is out of sequence but a tip... the end shaft nut must be loosened on any shaft where your going to pop a c-clip off) they (c-clips) are loaded with torque pressure in the journal on the shaft.)

don't worry about remarriage of the front shuttle to the back transmission i can help you thru it....it took me a few times too. plan for renting a transmission lift where you can tip the table ( like in the photos) and carefully restab units together.........the reverse shiftier fork will have to be removed and placed on the rear transmission going back together. the pin has to be 1/8th set ready to hammer via long brass tool. trying to find that bitty shiftier rail hole after its fully married and 2 bolts installed... while the reverse shiftier fork blinds you from seeing the hole. is a *****. but its all you can do.

make sure when the units come apart go very slowly because the shiftier fork will hang up and the over shift couplet will fall out ((make sure)) you check orientation or premark with a black felt marker prior to disassembly for orientation. front ///back is all you worry about. 1/2 of the reverse gear is on the front shuttle and the other 1/2 of the reverse gear stays with the back tranny.The over shiftier is the only thing that couples them at full assembly. ((this has to be right at assembly))


take diggy cam photos ((because parts and reassembly are months away.)) if you haven't ordered parts it takes a LONG time.

sounds like the f-r shiftier is broken too? this means you must order a front rubber plug for the shaft closest to the shiftier rail and slip the shaft out to be able to remove the broken shiftier.
or for that matter reinstall the new shiftier. ((your doing the exact repair I did.)).

what shiftier broke? it appears you have both tall shiftier posts still intact.....your 1-2/3-4 shifter has the tool in it. and the F-R shifter is closest to the viewer of the photo.
each of these shifters have a inch long cast with a ball on the end......1-2/3-4 shifter is removable from the top...
the F-R shiftier is not able to come out the top (if the ball is broken off you can)
the only way to get this shifter out or to replace it with new one... is to yank the rubber plug up front and remove the large nut off the interior end of the shaft
slide the shaft out of the casing while chasing it with a pinch bar from the back half of the transmission..((you must first have the two transmissions separated)
the pinch bar keeps all the gears in order but allows the gears to slip around enough to slide your new shiftier in.
after the new shiftier is installed and you find the pocket it rides in..you can then reinstall the shaft while inching your pinch bar backwards as well insert rubber plug. when done.

there is a second way (to remove the F_R shiftier) but it involves a die grinder i don't recommend it unless this is your only problem.

let me know how your doing on the project ...Im building a cabin in Idaho so if your hung up or afraid of busting crap JUST STOP..text me...wait for me at pacific time 5pm to check in ...those parts take tons of time to get so don't bust anything.
I assume the large nut you found belongs to the end of the F-R gear shaft. or the back side of the lower counter shaft. send me good photos taken from the top of trans and ill see if it can see where its from.

 

[spokane 1]

 

[bones1]

Thanks for all your help so far. I was not going to do this until I stumbled across you post with the pictures. Neither shifter is broken but the f/r is frozen in position. I have not ordered any parts yet, wanna wait until I get it apart and see whats up. I'll try to get some better pictures of that nut that backed off. Good luck with your cabin, I envy you that. I've been trying to get one going in North Carolina for years.

 

[spokane 1]

 

[spokane 1]

if your F-R shifter is stuck....its probably the cast iron ball at the end of your shiftier has popped out of its shiftier socket. the shiftier rod can rotate by hand as you move the lower shiftier rod with a screwdriver. it may find the pocket again.....look strait down the rod that connects to your hand shiftier and spin it....(oil has to be removed) to see the ball. In the proper position the ball should be aiming at the transmission wall seated fully in the lower shift rod pocket.

if you found a large nut...inside loose....this is alarming to me can you take a photo of it.....this maybe off the end of a shaft inside....this would leave your gears lose to slide around on the shaft and also bind up your shiftier..

 

[bones1]

Excellent info ThankYou. The big nut is on the bottom center shaft and was completely loose when I took the cover off.It was not bouncing around, it has a shaft through the center of it.Ill get some pics tomorrow. If you blow this pic up, it's the piece of metal angled toward the rear of the tractor on the bottom with a shaft going through it.The screwdriver is covering most of it.