Ford 4000 Broken Front Hydraulic Shaft

newtraditionsfarm · Apr 4, 2012

Today I was working on my tractor (tilling) and noticed a strange burning smell, similar to straw or grass. I looked down at the hood of my tractor, and noticed a good amount of smoke coming from around the front hydraulic pump. When I stopped to investigate, I noticed that the shaft had split in two and was (obviously) no longer turning the pump. I fished out the broken part of the shaft and posted the pictures below.

I'm wondering whether I can replace just the shaft or whether the smoke means that the pump is shot as well. Also, is this a repair that a novice can attempt on their own?

Also, when I looked in the hydraulic reservoir I noticed that it was mostly empty. Is it possible that the pump seized up due to lack of fluid and cause the shaft to break?

Ultradog MN · Apr 5, 2012

Hard to tell from here. Can you turn the pump over by hand or with a channel locks? If it doesn't turn freely then my guess is that you ran it out of oil and it froze up, seized and something had to give, that being the shaft.

newtraditionsfarm · Apr 5, 2012

That's about what I thought. Seems like a pretty simple repair? I guess the difficult part will be deciding which replacement pump and shaft are appropriate. (For instance, I can't seem to located a hub with three points like mine: Hydraulic parts Ford 4000 3 cylinder through 4835)

Any suggestions?