HELP! I'M STUCK IN REVERSE!

[Massey_lover]

I got my atv stuck in the last little bit of snow around here two nights ago, it was dark so I left it and walked home. Yesterday afternoon, I got the old MF-50 out to go pull my bike home, got down to where I'm stuck no problem. Turned around, still no problems. Halfway up the hill that I was stuck at the bottom of, tractor starts to spin, so I stop and try to back down. ATV's aren't long enough to back up like a trailer. I got jack-knifed on the hill so I just shut the tractor down, unhooked the four-wheeler and rode it to the bottom. Anyway, I started the tractor back up, tried to shift into first so I could get straightened back out on the road, and my shifter wont move!
H-N-L still works fine, clutch still stops tractor, PTO and Hydraulics all work, trans won't shift at all. I'm wondering if it could be my shifter has disengaged itself from the rails inside the transmission? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Bradlyk]

Try to disengange the H/L lever and the 1/2/3/4 levers if you have them then let the tractor roll a bit then see if you can get it in forward after

 

[Massey_lover]

I got it to shift again. Now I just need to get the hill I'm stuck on to thaw so I can bring it home.

 

[Al 2]

I'm not at all familiar with your tractor but this happened to me and I think it was on my MF 35. The 35 has an oil fill hole next to the shift lever and all I did was take a long screw driver and stick it thru the oil fill hole and I was able to pry on one of sliding gears and it moved easily.
Al

 

[JerryG]

Be sure to not lift or pull up on the shifter. Always push down on it when shifting. If you shift this way, it won't jam between gears again.

 

[Massey_lover]

yeah, thanks for the advice. I guess sometimes you just have to learn things the hard way. But, I'm only 16, so I have lots of time left to learn. Kinda funny, it took me longer to drive the pin out of the shifter so I could put it back in place than it did to put it in and get the pin back through it. And then I got to put my ice chains on it. While it was stuck on an icy hill. Good times.

 

[Dill]

I'm not at all familiar with your tractor but this happened to me and I think it was on my MF 35. The 35 has an oil fill hole next to the shift lever and all I did was take a long screw driver and stick it thru the oil fill hole and I was able to pry on one of sliding gears and it moved easily.
Al

Exactly, I've had this issue with both my 265 and my 271 xe. You don't have to pull the shifter, its accessible through the oil fill. And its much easier to do than it sounds. Just a long screwdriver a little pop and your good to go. Oddly enough I always get stuck in reverse as well.

 

[nspec]

If it's like the old Farmalls, the end of the shift lever gets worn, and it won't disengage the shift forks. The red tractors would actually get stuck in two gears at the same time! The first gear wouldn't disengage, but the next would engage. Tractor would stall as soon as you let out the clutch.

The solution is to pull the shift lever, build the material back up on the end with a welder, and grind it back into shape. It doesn't have to be exact. It's more trial and error, but the shifter will feel like the day it was new when you are done.

 

[deerseeker001]

i agree had to do the same with my farmall h worked good after the tip of the shifter was built up.

 

[Sharpcounty]

Try to disengange the H/L lever and the 1/2/3/4 levers if you have them then let the tractor roll a bit then see if you can get it in forward after

Ford 6640 stuck in reverse. Hi lo works

 

[banjodunn]

G'day and :welcome: you will have a plate in the floor that you can pull out and you will see the control cables going in the top of the trans, prob find that the 2 small capscrews have come out. If not you can then pull the cover plate off just in front of them (6 bolts from memory) and see the shift forks. Hope this helps
Let us know what you find

Jon

 

[mitchboucher]

I got my atv stuck in the last little bit of snow around here two nights ago, it was dark so I left it and walked home. Yesterday afternoon, I got the old MF-50 out to go pull my bike home, got down to where I'm stuck no problem. Turned around, still no problems. Halfway up the hill that I was stuck at the bottom of, tractor starts to spin, so I stop and try to back down. ATV's aren't long enough to back up like a trailer. I got jack-knifed on the hill so I just shut the tractor down, unhooked the four-wheeler and rode it to the bottom. Anyway, I started the tractor back up, tried to shift into first so I could get straightened back out on the road, and my shifter wont move!
H-N-L still works fine, clutch still stops tractor, PTO and Hydraulics all work, trans won't shift at all. I'm wondering if it could be my shifter has disengaged itself from the rails inside the transmission? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Hi: All the posts below are right. My MF 50 just stuck in reverse, and your posts helped me fix it--so I wanted to contribute to help others. The access can be made right through the hydraulic oil fill plug. Big plug left of the shifter. Inside you will see 1 large gear directly below, and one smaller gear lower to the rear of the tractor. Put the tractor H/L in N. Depress the clutch--I help mine down with a quick grip. Simply put a long screw driver into the fill hole and slide the large gear to the front of the tractor. (When I read the other posts I was thinking turn the gear--but thats not it) put your screw driver behind the gear (rear of the tractor is behind) and slide to the front. It will move forward on it's shaft. This will release the plate that is holding it. It literally takes 5 minutes. You do not have to push hard on the gear if you have the clutch depressed. slide forward if stuck in reverse, slide rearward if stuck in fwd gear. Thanks all and happy farming.

 

[CKWilcox]

My farmall h is stuck in reverse, can someone tell me how to get it unstuck? How do I get shifter out to look inside?