Brakes lock up

[TVZ]

My two-year-old MF 1726EL has a couple of times had the brake pedals lock up in the depressed position. Of course, that means the brakes are engaged. It seems to happen when for some reason I stepped very hard on them to come to a quick stop while going downhill. I have since avoided the problem by not stepping on them so hard; but I知 afraid that some day it will happen again. I don稚 even know how exactly I finally got them to release. I just tried stepping on and kicking the pedals every way I could, taking it out of 4-wheel drive, etc., and they finally released.

I inquired with my dealer and they couldn稚 think of any cause for this. Does anyone have any idea what might be going on here?

 

[radios1]

it's possible the pedals need to be greased, it's also possible that the brakes need to be adjusted, too much play could cause that, and they could be rusted too, so a few things could cause this. does this tractor sit outside to rust away, or does it go into a shed?.

 

[Wagtail]

I'd spray the entire linkage with a lanolin-based product, including the 'hand brake' linkage.

The pedal may have a grease nipple underneath.

 

[TVZ]

I'd spray the entire linkage with a lanolin-based product, including the 'hand brake' linkage.


The pedal may have a grease nipple underneath.

Thanks guys.

I keep it under a roof, but I suspect that it sat out at the dealership for a year or more before I bought it.

Would rust and/or lack of lubrication cause it to lock up solidly such that I could not pull the pedals up? Or would that just cause friction that might prevent them from releasing on their own (suggesting that the problem here is the adjustment)? (I don't really know anything about modern tractor brake systems.)

 

[radios1]

Thanks guys.

I keep it under a roof, but I suspect that it sat out at the dealership for a year or more before I bought it.

Would rust and/or lack of lubrication cause it to lock up solidly such that I could not pull the pedals up? Or would that just cause friction that might prevent them from releasing on their own (suggesting that the problem here is the adjustment)? (I don't really know anything about modern tractor brake systems.)

your tractor has wet disc brakes, so the problem is not rust in the brakes, but rather most likely lack of lubrication in the pedals or linkage. it is possible that the linkage is so far out of adjustment that it essentially locks up because it's not supposed to travel that far as it is..

 

[TVZ]

your tractor has wet disc brakes, so the problem is not rust in the brakes, but rather most likely lack of lubrication in the pedals or linkage. it is possible that the linkage is so far out of adjustment that it essentially locks up because it's not supposed to travel that far as it is..

Can I lubricate it by just oiling or spraying WD40 on the joints, pivots, etc., that I can see? Or does it need to be taken apart or something? (The pedals and linkage move quite freely normally. It's just when I press down hard on the pedal that something catches.)

 

[JWR]

I'm not as familiar with the 1726 size machines but the larger ones (e.g. 2660HD, etc.) have had various brake issues internal to the rear axle, not something you could lube and make go away. See posts by Sawtooth and by me. My 2 cent advice is to document the problem with your dealer. The dealer also can do a look-up and see if any similar issue has been reported among the dealers regarding 1726's and they should be willing to share that with you. At the same time I would not be surprised if it just "went away" and may not be a serious concern so long as the brakes work OK.

 

[TVZ]

I'm not as familiar with the 1726 size machines but the larger ones (e.g. 2660HD, etc.) have had various brake issues internal to the rear axle, not something you could lube and make go away. See posts by Sawtooth and by me. My 2 cent advice is to document the problem with your dealer. The dealer also can do a look-up and see if any similar issue has been reported among the dealers regarding 1726's and they should be willing to share that with you. At the same time I would not be surprised if it just "went away" and may not be a serious concern so long as the brakes work OK.

Thnx JWR. The warrantee runs out in a few weeks so maybe I should try stepping on the brake hard to see if it causes a problem now, rather than find it happening again when I have to pay for it.

If it does happen, do you have any idea of a specific maneuver that might release it (so I can then load it on a trailer to bring in for service) if it's the "internal to the rear axle" problem?

 

[JWR]

Gosh, good question. I think if you tap the brakes and let up quickly it will probably come loose. If it does not the first try, tap it harder and try again. You won't hurt anything. Might also try forward/backward jerky motion for just a foot or two. I'm betting one of those two methods will knock it loose. Just try every possible combo to get it loose long enough to get it on the trailer at least.

Of course one issue that MAY crop up is "Can you make it do it ?" when you get it to the dealer.


And darn good idea to get it on record with the dealer before your guarantee runs out.

 

[TVZ]

Thanks again, JWR! I'll try your ideas.

 

[TVZ]

Thanks again, JWR! I'll try your ideas.

So I have figured out that it's the left brake pedal that is the issue. And I figured out that if I pull back on the lever that normally serves as a parking brake (although it has not been in use during these incidents), it causes the brake pedal to release. I can't see why.

I called my dealership about that, and they were quite interested, but no one has yet indicated that they understand why it is happening that way. They're still thinking about it.

Do you happen to have any ideas on this?

 

[JWR]

No, that is puzzling. Might track the linkage from the parking brake lever down underneath and see how it operates. Wouldn't know what else to do.

 

[radios1]

post pictures underneath the tractor where the pedals and parking brake are. that might help. maybe the parking brake lever is actuating by itself when you press hard on the brakes?.

 

[JWR]

At least on the larger tractors there is a cable pulled by the lever which activates the regular brakes (by mechanism underneath that I cannot recall details of.) It has a ratchet and stays activated when you pull it up, then releases with a pushbotton on vthe lever that releases the ratchet. You'll just have to inspect the linkage and see how it is connected (or find a shop manual if you can and study that.)