6000 3-point

[Bern]

Anyone here with a 6000 with a 3-point that moves freely, as in you can pull the lift arms up by hand? Mine is so stuck I have to use a loader bucket to push the rear arms down. It takes so much force it squats the rear tires. I attempted to solve the problem today by removing the lift arms and pushing the shaft out a 10-ton porta power wouldnt budge it. Looks like Ill have to take the cover completely off the tractor and put it in a 50-ton press.

I noticed that Ford took the time to drill the lift housing for 1/4 pipe threads, and theres drillings which go to grooved bushings presumably for greasing. However, both top covers of mine have pipe plugs in the holes as shown. Service manual, owners manual, and parts book all show nothing. Anyone here put grease fittings in yours and did you get any grease pumped into them? The one cover I have I pulled apart and the groove was so full of crap theres no way grease would get in there if I tried.

 

[Dieseltech]

I have two 6000 diesels, both tractors the lift arms will raise easily by hand. Both have square head pipe plugs that don't appear to have ever been out. I have a 1000 RPM PTO shaft too, but have not tried installing it yet and shifting the gearbox as needed.

 

[Bern]

Good to know that not all of those 3-points are seized. Maybe it's because mine sat for so long?

Shifting the PTO gearbox is easy. Getting the 540 shaft out is a different story, at least it was for me. Of course, if your PTO shaft is as loose as your 3-point you might not have an issue.

 

[KCTractors]

My 6000 is the same way. I plowed for 30 hours with a 3-pt plow and the arms are still stiff.

 

[Tom in Mo.]

I don't have a 6000 but all the tractors I've had, the lift arms get easier to lift over the years and not harder. There might be more to this issue.
The plugs would be for zerks to screw in, grease, and then replace the plugs. Keeps the zerks from getting sheared off. JD does this for the rear axle bearings on a lot of older tractors.

 

[Jake Collie]

My 6000 lift arms were stuck tight when I got it. I was able to free them up with a Porta power and they eventually started working freely. I put a grease zerk on the left side but the right side needs the guard for the 3 point lift quadrant removed to get at the zero so I greased that side up and put the plug back in.

 

[Bern]

I think the issue is simply that whatever grease was installed from the factory 50+ years ago has turned into a sticky nasty paste that has literally gummed up the bushings and shaft. Whenever I push down on the arms with a loader bucket, and then go to raise them again with the hydraulics, I hear no unusual creaking or popping noises, and there is no jerky movements like you might get with metal-to-metal seizure.

I can understand why JD removed the zerk fittings on the rear axles of their older tractors, however I can see no reason why Ford would have felt the need to do this on the top cover. As it stands right now, I can't even get the plug on the RH side out because of interference with the linkage bracket. Seems like Ford didn't put a lot of thought into this. Unfortunately this is the case with many other things on the 6000 as well.

 

[Bern]

I have the same problem on mine with the plug on the RH side. My plan is to take a pencil grinder and make a notch in the guard, then install a 1/4 to 1/8 pipe bushing in the hole, followed by a 45-degree 1/8 NPT grease zerk. I have already tried this on the LH side and there is clearance to do it.

 

[Tom in Mo.]

I was just thinking if it's old grease turned to glue, how about a couple of days of your favorite penetrating oil. I have freed up two stuck engines just by soaking and patience. Every time you walk by, give it a squirt and it should loosen up.

 

[Bern]

It's probably not a bad idea, but my plan for now is to completely disassemble that top cover and put it in a 50-ton press to force the shaft out so I can get things completely cleaned up and properly greased. The lift control handle shaft as well as the draft/position levers are all suffering from the same malady anyways.

I've been doing a complete restoration on this tractor, and the 3-point is one area I haven't gotten into yet, so I'd like to make it right.

 

[Jake Collie]

I greased mine up good 7 years ago and it still moves up and down freely by hand. I don't use it that much either. I rebuilt the lift piston a few years ago. If you get that far there is some information on my old posts on what I did.