# Transmission work on the MX150



## Gearclash

The forward clutch started dragging on this tractor. Hydraulic pressure test verified that there was zero pressure on the F circuit in neutral so that almost certainly means the forward clutch is burned and warped. So now we get to do a rear trans split to renew the F clutch, most likely do the R clutch at the same time. I will try to post pictures as I go.


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## Gearclash

Rear end on blocks for now and wheels are off. In their infinite wisdom CIH chose to use a unicorn metric thread for the stand mounting holes on the bottom of the transmission housings. I am waiting for bolts to come, then I can get the rear end on stands.


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## Ox76

Geez, what a nightmare. I'll be following you on your horrible journey. I wish you luck.


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## stack em up

Geez Gearclash, I don’t understand how you can possibly get anything repaired in that so-called “shop” without the $350,000 RV and the basketball hoop. That tractor is in the way of getting some real work done! Lol, giving you crap. I saw on NAT you were looking for those bolts but am glad you found some. Good luck on the project. Shouldn’t be baling stalks till about mid-December if my calculations are correct.


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## paoutdoorsman

That's a good project Gearclash. Too bad it didn't hang in there to finish out the season for you. What unicorn metric thread did you need?


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## Gearclash

paoutdoorsman said:


> That's a good project Gearclash. Too bad it didn't hang in there to finish out the season for you. * What unicorn metric thread did you need?*


Some dingbat in CIH thought it would be cool to spec M20-2.0 for the holes under the transmission housing.

Actually, this tractor hasn't started the season yet. The clutch took a dump last winter and I have finally started on it. Will need it in 6 weeks or so.


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## Gearclash

stack em up said:


> Geez Gearclash, *I don't understand how you can possibly get anything repaired in that so-called "shop" without the $350,000 RV and the basketball hoop.* That tractor is in the way of getting some real work done! Lol, giving you crap. I saw on NAT you were looking for those bolts but am glad you found some. Good luck on the project. Shouldn't be baling stalks till about mid-December if my calculations are correct.


Hah, ya, not much in the way of fancy here. Building needs quite a bit of work yet and I'm already about 20 grand into it. Some people on agtalk are daft. They either think you need a half million dollar shop if you want to change oil in your lawnmower or they think having a $5,000 dollar shack to fix things in is a sinful luxury.


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## slowzuki

M20-2 is one of the two normal fine pitch threads for metric, used in Europe and UK. The other fine pitch is 1.5 which I think is more common in Japan, China etc



Gearclash said:


> Some dingbat in CIH thought it would be cool to spec M20-2.0 for the holes under the transmission housing.
> 
> Actually, this tractor hasn't started the season yet. The clutch took a dump last winter and I have finally started on it. Will need it in 6 weeks or so.


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## Gearclash

M20-1.5 is far easier to come by in the US than M20-2.0. Almost every supplier that lists M20-2.0 doesn’t have it in stock. I just ordered some from McMaster-Carr, hopefully they are the right thing.


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## slowzuki

We have more metric hardware available in Canada than in the US but still can be a pain. Most of my bolt collection is small sizes of Japanese fine thread metric, which is useless working on anything but Japanese cars it seems.

EDIT And my big buckets of heavy equipment metric hardware that is European thread. Bought out a shop that was closing and got 200 lbs of mixed metric bolts. Leaves me with a bit hole between m12 and about m18 sizes where you have to try 5 stores to find a fastener in stock.


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## Gearclash

Fuel tank off and some other stuff off. Cleaned about 5 lbs of crap off the trans housings. Really not a bad job so far.


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## paoutdoorsman

Good work Gearclash. I need to post updates to my project as well. I just pulled the trans on my JD 7420 last week. Quite a different process.


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## Gearclash

paoutdoorsman said:


> Good work Gearclash. I need to post updates to my project as well. I just pulled the trans on my JD 7420 last week. Quite a different process.


I would like to see pictures and commentary of your project. What was the problem with it?


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## paoutdoorsman

Gearclash said:


> I would like to see pictures and commentary of your project. What was the problem with it?


I'll get some posted soon. IVT trans with the C1 clutches toasted. The previous owner put oversized tires on the front, took out the MFWD and subsequently overheated/starved the trans of fluid.


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## Gearclash

Hydraulic oil drained, on stands, a few things to disconnect yet then time to split.













There is a sizable access plate in the floor of these cabs.


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## slowzuki

Obviously not your first rodeo with that splitting stand!


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## Gearclash

slowzuki said:


> Obviously not your first rodeo with that splitting stand!


Actually it is. Just made it for this deal. I haven't done a split like this before either.


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## slowzuki

Well nice job planning, lots of home splitting gear not near as thought out.


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## r82230

slowzuki said:


> Obviously not your first rodeo with that splitting stand!


I thought the same thing, BTW, nice looking sit up Gear.

Larry


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## Gearclash

And it is apart. Looks like I have to remove the bearing carrier from range transmission yet. Also noticed a cracked hydraulic pipe in the speed trans that needs to be checked out. Another problem that needs to be fixed is the rear axle seals. One seeps a little, the other leaks badly. I think I am going to pull the axle assy off and have another shop do that as these are flange axles and the axle and housing have to be disassembled to replace the seals. I'm not sure I can get the bearing preload set right if I do it my self.


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## Wethay

The older 'Deere's were axles were easy enough to do. Have no Idea about red painted axles, or later models.


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## swmnhay

Gearclash said:


> Hah, ya, not much in the way of fancy here. Building needs quite a bit of work yet and I'm already about 20 grand into it. Some people on agtalk are daft. They either think you need a half million dollar shop if you want to change oil in your lawnmower or they think having a $5,000 dollar shack to fix things in is a sinful luxury.


Talking with hired man of BTO one night in the bar.He said they take the tractors to town because the BTO is afraid they might spill some oil on the floor.The shop is fully equipped with tools that are never used.

But he did get in Farm Journal magazine in a article about farm shops.


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## Gearclash

Update. After 2 weeks of making hay and corn silage, back to the fun. First picture is with the bearing carrier housing removed. The forward and reverse clutches are the top shaft in the rear housing. Second picture is the forward and reverse clutch shaft assembly.


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## Gearclash

Do not use open flame to heat bearings for installation. I suspect that is what happened to these two bearings.


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## Wethay

Looks like maybe somebody did use an open flame on those. I used to do more of that stuff and used a deep fat fryer filled with hydraulic oil. Put the bearings in cool oil with a wire on them so they could be fished out and they got heated evenly and to a set temp.


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## Gearclash

Back to work on this project. Never did get it finished last year, ran into some problems that needed to be addressed before the transmission got wheeled back together. The worse of the two problems was a worn bore where the MFD output shaft comes out of the transmission housing. Where the bearing cups ride the housing is worn more than .020 over size. Planning to bore the housing to accept a bearing with a bigger cup OD. Need to recut the snap ring grooves also. Not a real expensive deal but going to be time consuming.


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## slowzuki

Can you get a mobile pin welder guy to drop in to build it up and rebore it?


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## Gearclash

slowzuki said:


> Can you get a mobile pin welder guy to drop in to build it up and rebore it?


I suppose but

1) why not just cut the bore oversize in the first place as the bearings to do so are readily available and the bore will have to be re cut anyway if it is welded up and

2) I'm not sure it will work to weld a bore in an iron housing.


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## slowzuki

1) I agree mostly but can be a pain in future for someone else to work on with non-standard parts. Not a huge deal though.

2) Will work but you're right, huge pain to clean/weld oil impregnated cast.



Gearclash said:


> I suppose but
> 
> 1) why not just cut the bore oversize in the first place as the bearings to do so are readily available and the bore will have to be re cut anyway if it is welded up and
> 
> 2) I'm not sure it will work to weld a bore in an iron housing.


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## mlappin

I've actually taken a cast housing, chucked it in the lathe, turned it out then used another piece of cast iron to turn a bushing then press the bushing into the original housing with plenty of sleeve lock on it then reinstall the original bearing.


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## Gearclash

More pictures of the trans work on the MX150. Reboring the MFD outpost shaft bearing bore. First picture is some of the frame for the boring bar setup. Second picture is
closer up to the bore, shows the Enco automatic boring head. Third picture is the finished product, honed to final size.


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## Gearclash

Then on the other end of this axis, the bore that serves to supply the oil pressure for the MFD clutch has to be redone also. Something bad must have happened to the original bore, and some ham fisted wrench thrower took a twist drill and hacked the bore larger (see the chatter marks around the pilot hole at the rear of the bore), cut a crude sleeve, and glued it in with Loctite. That sleeve was worn, and its straightness and concentricity were suspect, so time to rebore it and make a new sleeve. 
First picture is after being rebored.
Second picture is the setup. The support for the MFD clutch shaft was used to support one end of a pilot, the other end was in the counterbore of the main housing.
Third picture is the components used to do the boring; a pilot sleeve, a spindle to fit in it, a end mill to do the actual boring, and a drill adapter to drive the spindle and end mill. Took days to make the parts, minutes to do the actual rebore. 
Fourth picture is the new sleeve. Made of stress proof steel.
Last picture is sleeve installed. Little bit of interference fit plus some Loctite 680.


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## chevytaHOE5674

Always enjoy opening something up and noticing that someone has "repaired" a precision fit up with some weld, twist drill, tin shim, braze, etc. 

Quite the project but when its done it'll be done right and probably outlast the rest of the tractor.


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## Gearclash

The MX150 is back at work. For some reason I never mentioned that the forward clutch dragging was not caused by a fried clutch pack/warped plates. They were due for replacement but not destroyed. Apparently the problem was a tooth broken off a friction disc had lodged in a hole of the clutch drum which prevented the full release of the clutch pack.


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## Ox76

Good deal!


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