Stiff Levers on a TC35

[doug219]

I have had to crank down on the drive, PTO and 4WD levers to get them to work. Is this the standard on these models? I have a 2004 TC35D Hydrostat, and when it's running I enjoy the heck out of it, but it's the getting it running that annoys me. Any suggestions?

 

[GATC35]

My range select and 4 WD levers are sometimes hard to engage. With the range lever I hold slight pressure and just tap the reverse hydro pedal. It goes right in gear. With the 4 WD lever I basically do the same thing but let the tractor just slighyly move and coast to a stop. This lets all the gears mesh together and she slides right into place. I think this is fairly common for small tractors. My father-in-laws Ford-NH 1920 does the same exact thing. I have never had a problem with my PTO lever. I always engage/disengage at low RPM's with no load on the driven attachment.

I'm in such a habit of doing this it's now second nature and I don't even have to think about it anymore.

Hope this helps.

 

[jinman]

Doug, all your levers on the left side share a common pivot shaft below the left console. If you can get some spray lube on that shaft it might help. I think our tractors may sit several weeks on a dealer's lot (or somewhere at the factory) and rain and moisture can collect in the area of the pivot shaft. That leads to slight corrosion enough to cause binding. The best long term solution is to try to remember to engage/disengage 4WD and the PTO each time you use your tractor. That keeps the pivot points from becoming too tight. As Mark indicated, I've never had any problem with my range selector or PTO lever. I do have to exercise my 4WD lever on a regular basis to keep it operating freely. I believe I've actually lubed the pivot shaft a couple of times in the four years I've owned my tractor.

 

[SWB]

I have a 2004 Case DX35, essentially the same tractor in red. The problem with getting in and out of 4wd I understand is a problem with all of them. You have to play with it a little and it helps if you are moving forward a bit as you are engaging or disengaging. However, I have not had that problem with the PTO lever or the drive lever.