334 tractor transmission fluid

[Roger Meredith]

can i use this fluid in hydrulic,differnal, and transmission in my 860 five speed just do manily garden and mowing don't usally run it more than 45 min. to hour at the time.

 

[mhb@ufe]

It should be fine.

 

[Sean in PA]

From a Google Search. It is Google AI response so take it with a grain of salt, but I wouldn't use anything that didn't say on the label that it meets or exceeds the Ford/New Holland M2C134D specification:

While 334 fluid is designed for older tractor applications, it is often considered an "economy" fluid (sometimes associated with older "303" type specifications) that lacks the advanced additives required for the M2C134D standard, which is designed for higher-pressure, modern hydraulic systems

 

[sotxbill]

can i use this fluid in hydrulic,differnal, and transmission in my 860 five speed just do manily garden and mowing don't usally run it more than 45 min. to hour at the time.

Manual calls for anything that meets or exceeds mild EP sae 80 fluid in the 5 speed. But it may be cheaper actually cheaper to bump up to the better m2c134 hydraulic fluids when on sale at tractor supply. JD "303" tractor rated fluids also exceed the m2c-41d hydraulic fluid of that era, and are on sale occasionally. You do NOT need to buy the fully synthetic super high temp "G" fluids at a much much higher price that is required in the '90s and later tractors. Or stay with the mild extreme pressure 80 wt fluids. Now days you will probably find an 80-90 wt or even a 80-100 wt mild ep fluid. Manual trans can have an ep additives where tractors with wet brakes or wet clutches do not tolerate friction modifiers as they will make the clutches slip..

 

[TheOldHokie]

Manual calls for anything that meets or exceeds mild EP sae 80 fluid in the 5 speed. But it may be cheaper actually cheaper to bump up to the better m2c134 hydraulic fluids when on sale at tractor supply. JD "303" tractor rated fluids also exceed the m2c-41d hydraulic fluid of that era, and are on sale occasionally. You do NOT need to buy the fully synthetic super high temp "G" fluids at a much much higher price that is required in the '90s and later tractors. Or stay with the mild extreme pressure 80 wt fluids. Now days you will probably find an 80-90 wt or even a 80-100 wt mild ep fluid. Manual trans can have an ep additives where tractors with wet brakes or wet clutches do not tolerate friction modifiers as they will make the clutches slip..

Whoa there. Any J20C/M2C-134x/HYTRAN type universal tractor transmission fluid is a mild EP SAE 80 GL-4 gear oil. They contain the EP additives needed for GL-4 level service and are expressly formulated for use with wet brakes and clutches. They have a KV100 around 10 cSt and a viscosity index around. 140 making them good all-season lubricants.and hydraulic fluids. The vast majority are formulated using conventional Group I and II base stocks.

TOH

 

[sotxbill]

Whoa there. Any J20C/M2C-134x/HYTRAN type universal tractor transmission fluid is a mild EP SAE 80 GL-4 gear oil. They contain the EP additives needed for GL-4 level service and are expressly formulated for use with wet brakes and clutches. They have a KV100 around 10 cSt and a viscosity index around. 140 making them good all-season lubricants.and hydraulic fluids. The vast majority are formulated using conventional Group I and II base stocks.

TOH

 

[sotxbill]

Whoa there, the Ford M-4864-A/B 80wt/90wt gear oil is/was not the same as the ford m2c41 20wt hydraulic oil of the same period. thus the different specs from Ford in the same time period. ie '53 to '64

 

[TheOldHokie]

Whoa there, the Ford M-4864-A/B 80wt/90wt gear oil is/was not the same as the ford m2c41 20wt hydraulic oil of the same period. thus the different specs from Ford in the same time period. ie '53 to '64

I never said it was.

M4864A/B was Ford's designstion for an ordinary monograde SAE 80 or SAE 90 "mild EP" gear oil. It The stuff we put in automotive transmissions and differentials for decades.

M2C41 was a slightly lower viscosity oil used primarily as a PS fluid.

Both of those specifications were superceded by M2C'134 which could be used in both applications.

Today a quality UTTO covers J20C, UDT. HYGARD, M2C134x, M2C41. and a host of other OEM specifications.

The yellow bucket stuff labeled "303" today cannot meet JD 303 or any of those other specifications. Its a junk oil made from leftovers. After being sued and paying millions in damages the formulators stopped making it and it pretty much disappeared from the market.

TOH

 

[sotxbill]

I never said it was.

M4864A/B was Ford's designstion for an ordinary monograde SAE 80 or SAE 90 "mild EP" gear oil. It The stuff we put in automotive transmissions and differentials for decades.

M2C41 was a slightly lower viscosity oil used primarily as a PS fluid.

Both of those specifications were superceded by M2C'134 which could be used in both applications.

Today a quality UTTO covers J20C, UDT. HYGARD, M2C134x, M2C41. and a host of other OEM specifications.

The yellow bucket stuff labeled "303" today cannot meet JD 303 or any of those other specifications. Its a junk oil made from leftovers. After being sued and paying millions in damages the formulators stopped making it and it pretty much disappeared from the market.

TOH

Dont confuse john deere 303 oil with the counterfit transformer oil.

 

[sotxbill]

m2c41 was and is early automatic trans fluid used in cars of the period, and used in power steering, and the SOS autotrans as specified by ford. Was a 20wt base with a red dye by the offical spec that replaced the earlier gm spec for type A automatic trans fluids. And you are correct that the 860 speced out M4864A ep 90 wt for the 5 speed transmission above 10 degrees.... And as the jd spec 303 crossed over to the original134 fluid it far exceeded any fluid of that period up to 1978 ... Again, dont confuse john deere 303 spec oil with the counterfit transformer oil. The counterfit oil has been removed from the market. AND... 303 oil and 134 a oil were "ended" due to the '78 world wide treaty to avoid further use of whale oil as a viscosity stabilizer.. With green peace protesters chasing Japanese whale boats... This caused lots of auto trans fluids to be reformulated. ie 134 was born.. DID you follow the J20 upgrades that paraelled the ford 134 upgrades almost to the month and were direct crossovers for each other?? anyways after 1978, other viscosity stabilizers had to be used. Thus that also brought us the multiweight fluids do to viscosity stabilizers. All of those oils m2c48, m2c51, m2c134 exceeded the m2c41 spec auto fluids and while not a gear oil, could be used to replace the gear oil in favor of a better suited hydraulic oil and then later the 134a and same jd 303 oils and newer.. The 134 fluid now allowed the farmers to used one fluid in the rearends, hydraulics and transmissions. This need for the better fluids later was brought on by the higher hydraulic pressures creating more heat, and the need to combine all 3 reservoirs to keep heat under 280 degrees to avoid fluid breakdown. Higher pressure pumps gave higher volumes and much higher heat. 3 gpm and even 9 gpm hydraulic systems no longer would do the job. Even hydraulic oil coolers were added to help control the max oil temperatures to avoid breakdowns with the newer oils. Back to the OPs original question, yes, you can substitute your 90w oil for a m2c41, an m2c 48, m2c51,and m2c134, m2c134a, b, c, d etc,, but no need to buy fully synthetic G rated oil at fantastic prices required in the super high heat of the post '90s tractors with megaflow hydraulics and 28 speed trannies. Sometimes the seals would leak a bit more with the "AW" fluids that some tried to substitute as the detergents "cleaned" up the worn seals and made them leak faster. The op's 860 does not over heat or over pump the fluids, so the need for advanced fluids does not exist. But there can be some concerns if you have leaks. Remember that the OP's 860 trans does not require the tractor rated hydraulic fluid, that must have limit wear additives as this transmission has no wet cluthes or wet brakes, so other fluids that reduce wear and friction, so other fluids other than limit friction and ep additives could be used if there are no leaks. You could even run 15w-40 motor oil in the trans.... but probably more expensive.... AND remember tractor supply still has the higher than m2c41, (303) fluids on sale for $38 for 5 gallons or did last month. This oil will work in most tractors up to the late '80s or mid 90s pending on which trans or 28 speed wonder box you purchased. If you DO have the newer wonder boxes, dont use the lower speced oils and pray that rats will not eat up your wiring from the trans controller to the wonder box.... Or the software to calibrate your clutches no longer exists...

 

[TheOldHokie]

Dont confuse john deere 303 oil with the counterfit transformer oil.

Repeat after me.

"There is no such thing as John Deere 303 oil".

JD 303 was based on sperm whale oil which was outlawed along with many other similar oils when Richard Nixon signed The Endangered Species Act in 1973.

John Deere stopped making it 50+ years ago and has made that perfectly clear. They have publicly disavowed any and all products claiming to be a JD 303 oil.

TOH

 

[Jim.ME]

Dont confuse john deere 303 oil with the counterfit transformer oil.

As has been posted many times; Since the Endangered Species Act of 1974 there has been no John Deere 303 Special Purpose Oil.

Sperm whale oil was an ingredient of 303, which was more a proprietary formula than a spec to be met, like the current J20C fluid has. I don't see how you can think any fluid currently saying it is 303 is anything but counterfeit , given the required sperm whale oil component of the formula.

The later JD Hy Gard fluids (J14A thru the J20c) are backwards compatible to 303, by using different formulation and specifications. The newer fluids being backwards compatible to replace the 303 SPO is not saying they are 303.

 

[TheOldHokie]

As has been posted many times; Since the Endangered Species Act of 1974 there has been no John Deere 303 Special Purpose Oil.

Sperm whale oil was an ingredient of 303, which was more a proprietary formula than a spec to be met, like the current J20C fluid has. I don't see how you can think any fluid currently saying it is 303 is anything but counterfeit , given the required sperm whale oil component of the formula.

The later JD Hy Gard fluids (J14A thru the J20c) are backwards compatible to 303, by using different formulation and specifications. The newer fluids being backwards compatible to replace the 303 SPO is not saying they are 303.

And there is no shortsge of cheap J20C formulations. They may not be as "good" as more expensive products but certainly more trustworthy than the yellow bucket mystery oil. This is currently $40 at RK and CAM2 actually has a published datasheet for it.

CAM2 PROMAX™ Tractor Hydraulic J20 C Oil, 5 Gallon - 565298 | Rural King

CAM2 PROMAX™ Tractor Hydraulic J20 C Oil, 5 Gallon - 565298

www.ruralking.com

TOH

 

[Jim.ME]

And there is no shortsge of cheap J20C formulations. They may not be as "good" as more expensive products but certainly more trustworthy than the yellow bucket mystery oil. This is currently $40 at RK and CAM2 actually has a published datasheet for it.

CAM2 PROMAX™ Tractor Hydraulic J20 C Oil, 5 Gallon - 565298 | Rural King

CAM2 PROMAX™ Tractor Hydraulic J20 C Oil, 5 Gallon - 565298

www.ruralking.com

TOH

And I have seen at least one for "vintage" equipment only claiming to meet the only the J14A spec, which would be better than any claiming to be 303.

 

[TheOldHokie]

And I have seen at least one for "vintage" equipment only claiming to meet the only the J14A spec, which would be better than any claiming to be 303.

If you look closely at the Xtreme 334 its just a relabeled 303 mystery oil but still in the yellow bucket. The fine print - "Not suitable for use in equipment made after 1974"

It is aso available at RK for $35 in a 4.8 Gallon bucket and probably stacked right next to the CAM2. Nothing shady here.

TOH

 

[Jim.ME]

If you look closely at the Xtreme 334 its just a relabeled 303 mystery oil but still in the yellow bucket. The fine print - "Not suitable for use in equipment made after 1974"

It is aso available at RK for $35 in a 4.8 Gallon bucket and probably stacked right next to the CAM2. Nothing shady here.

TOH

As far as I am concerned, buy the current spec fluid that is backwards compatable. Saving a few dollars on the fluid can cost many times the savings in damage.