Diff lock stuck on?

[Turbo Goat]

Hi all,

I have a nearly new Mahindra 6110 with about 40 hours on it. When trying to drain some tire ballast to reduce weight (long story) I found that I couldn't rotate the rear wheels independently of each other. I figure that with a rear differential I should be able to jack up one wheel, release the parking break, put it in neutral, and spin the raised wheel. If not I should at least be able to turn the raised wheel with engine power. No go in both cases. The tractor wants to spin both wheels. I've also noticed that the thing has a pretty large turning radius and the steering brakes appear to be useless as I just drag the locked wheel around a large radius.

I'm wondering if the diff lock is stuck. What do you guys think? Do I not understand how a tractor diff works? Is it a limited slip type?

Your input is appreciated.

 

[puckgrinder85]

Should be painfully obvious if doing a sharp turn, the inner wheel will dig the crap out of the surface if its gravel or softer. On blacktop or concrete there is going to be a lot of resistance to turn it sharp.

 

[crankshaft21]

The spider gears in the rear end is what separates the axils and lets them turn separate. If they go, then it will lock both wheels together. But it sounds like maybe your differential lock is still engaged.

 

[Reverser]

My diff lock stuck one time after I used it while dragging a log in soft dirt. After I stepped on the diff lock petal, it stuck down and didn't want to come back up. Meanwhile, the tractor wanted to keep going straight and scoot the front wheels as I was turning them. I moved the tractor back and forth and played with the diff lock petal until it finally came loose.

I was told next time it happens to just stop the tractor and pry the petal back up and squirt some oil on it. Apparently the pedal mechanism gets dry/rusty and needs a little oil to keep it working free. He said that's more common than you think, although I hadn't heard of that happening before.

Your tractor is a different brand and is a lot newer than mine, but check and see if your diff lock pedal is stuck down. Yours may engage with a solenoid or some other way of engagement. Hopefully it will be an easy fix

 

[stephan]

I got a stick caught in mine that held it on.

 

[Turbo Goat]

Thanks for the replies.

The pedal has a separate spring return and that works fine. But come to think of it, I'm not sure if I feel any resistance on the pedal other than it's own return spring. I should take another look at the linkage. Maybe the plunger under the cab is stuck.