strange mf 35 steering problem

[gotmeatractor]

This is an odd one. I put my 35 away for the winter in october, everything was working fine. Had to move it out of the barn in december to get something else out. When i went to move it the steering wheel would turn all the way one direction, but would turn only 1/2 rotation of the steering wheel the other direction, no matter how hard i cranked on it.Pulled it back in the barn and left it, thinking i was going to have to get back to it later. Went back last week, and now it turns both directions like it should. It was warm in october, maybey 20 degrees when i tried it in december, but was around 45 degrees last week when i tried it.

The tractor does NOT have power steering. Is it possible to get moisture in the steering box and it could freeze, not allowing it to turn very far in one direction? Any other ideas or suggestions. I don't really use it much in the winter and i just bought it this spring, so the history of the problem and the tractor is pretty unknown.

Any suggestions or thoughts would be ghreatly appreciated.

 

[Anonymous-0]

Hi, this is a strange problem. I'm going to take a guess here and say that you could not turn the steering wheel to the left. If this is the case having water or grease/oil with a high water content could well be the cause. Do you have a large syringe (cattle treatment perhaps) of some sort that you could connect to some clear plastic tube? Remove the filler plug and insert the tube to the bottom of the box. Draw the bottom contents up the tube and you'll see what you have got. You could suck it out yourself VERY SLOWLY.
There is no guaranteed way to clean the box other than to remove the side cover or do this with the box removed.
DavidP, South Wales

 

[Aaron Ford]

The gear lube in my steering sector was completely hardened. It came out with a putty knife. I would guess that it was as old as the tractor. I can only imagine that if yours is in any way similar, that the near solid, contaminated gear lube solidified enough to prevent the movement. This is what it looked like in my 65 after much cleaning. It took narly an hour after this pic was taken to finish the cleanout. When I took the cover off, it looked like there was a second cover, but it was only the hardened gear oil imprinted by the cover. I have heard that the 35s and 135s have to be timed if any gears are removed. Hopefully you can get in and out without disturbing anything. Aaron

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[Anonymous-0]

Hello Aaron,
Interesting. Yes the is timing involved (but not as we know it Jim) It is essential that the rocker shafts are meshed so that they are allowed to turn full travel but the teeth remain in full engagement. The cover cannot be removed without first removing the drop arm with the use of a puller. The rocker shaft is prevented from coming out by the steering column shaft.
DavidP, South Wales

 

[JJ. in B.C.]

My guess is water/ice in the steering box,
my 135 did the same thing first winter i
had it. I followed David's advice, sucked out all the "gunk" and refilled, problem solved.

 

[gotmeatractor]

Yes, it was when attempting to turn to the left that i had the problem. It will be a couple of weeks before i can get back over there to check on it, but i think you guys have it nailed. THanks for the tip about timing the gears and for the picture, i will be careful if i have to take it apart. I will try to see if i can suck anything out of it first.

Thanks!!!