I need Help, and lots of it!!!

gregsons · Apr 21, 2010

I own a Ford 3500 tractor with a loader. i bought it over a year ago and put alot of work into it im into it about $6000 + . i just found out the the transmission is going on it. the tractor has a 8 speed seloct o speed tranny. ( i found out about there problems after i bought the tractor). the forward gears run good but the two reverse gears seem to feel like the brakes are on when i go into them about 70% of the time. I was told by a old time tracter mech. that he would not work on it dont wanna get that involved with the tranny.

im on a limited budget. what do i do try to sell it to someone and hope it works well the day he test drives it and feel bad about screwing him over later . The if the new buyer dont notice the tranny problem i might get $4000 for it.

or try to fix it either fix the select o speed or replace with a manual. if i do that where could i get a used tranny how much would they cost could i do this myself? someone please help. the tractor runs good except for that and its the right size for what i need .

I cant buy a new tractor at this point in mylife so dont try that route. I WISH

Johndeere3720 · Apr 21, 2010

Thats a tough one. I would just fix it myself and save a bunch of $$$ rather than hiring someone to fix it.

BWBrown · Apr 22, 2010

Ah, the good ol' Select-O-Speed.

You MUST ALWAYS REMEMBER that a couple of the forward gears (and if I remember correctly one reverse) do not hold back on a hill - can make for some exciting rides!
I've safely and effectively used select-o-speed tractors. Even owned one - for about three weeks.

Recently sold one for a friend, was able to get only 2k for a good condition 861. He had the transmission worked on a couple years ago by a retired NH mechanic in the New Holland area (of PA). It worked as good as new after the rebuild. My friend has since passed away, so can't really ask him who the mechanic was. Maybe someone on the board knows of him?

It's like an older car. You either sell it as is and cut your losses, or you fix it, enjoy it, and move on.
Best of luck.
Bob

gregsons · Apr 22, 2010

Yeah i have a old car that i enjoy wasting money on already.

. I like the slectospeed when it works. yesterdat the tractor took about a 7 mile road ride and starting and stopping at the stopsigns it was great. I have been looking online and found two places that i planned to call. One is Alexanders in texas. and the other Place is in PA the name is maybe Aurthers or somthing like that. anybody know baout theses places?

oldnslo · Apr 22, 2010

Another option to find a good manual transmission and swap out the trannies. I did this on 5000 ford. Removed the Jerk-O-Matic and put in the manual. The Jerk-O-Matic has LOTS of very expensive parts in them and require a fairly extensive mechanical knowledge to repair and adjust properly. From memory back in 84. I bought the complete tractor with blown engine for $1500 and parts to fix the Jerk-O-matic was over $4000. I did all of the work myself so labor was reasonable.

If you have a good dealer mechanic in your area you may want to confirm the bolt patterns etc are interchangeable before going this route though.

best of luck

Roy

jinman · Apr 22, 2010

Select-O-Speed (SOS) transmissions seem to work well or they are a nightmare. I "lovingly" called mine Select-O-Leak. Mine was on an industrial 4000 tractor with no PTO. I checked with Alexander Tractor and found I could buy a whole gear transmission for about $2500 in 1998. That was more money than I wanted to invest since the engine needed overhaul and the power steering was a nightmare. While shopping for my NH TC45D, I met a fellow who was interested in buying my tractor. I told him that I'd sell it to him for $1000 as-is. He bought it, and I locked my gate when he pulled out of my driveway.:thumbsup:

I paid $3000 when I bought that old 4000 because it had a loader and boxblade. In the three years I owned it, I cleaned up a closed mobile home park, did lots of dirtwork and clearing on my property, and killed every mosquito in my end of the county because of all the smoke.

I surely got my money out of it, but I was sure happy to see it go. I kept the boxblade and still use it often.

sld · Apr 22, 2010

Johndeere3720 said:
Thats a tough one. I would just fix it myself and save a bunch of $$$ rather than hiring someone to fix it.

You sure have been 14 years old for a long time!:laughing:

gregsons · Apr 22, 2010

I think i may try to put a manual tranny in it. I can hold on to it for a while and see if anything shows up on craigslist or something

gregsons · Apr 24, 2010

Can anyone tell me if this is something i can do im my garage with basic hand tools. i have done some work on my cars / trucks in the past but never a transmission.

jinman · Apr 25, 2010

gregsons said:
Can anyone tell me if this is something i can do im my garage with basic hand tools. i have done some work on my cars / trucks in the past but never a transmission.

My suggestion is no. Your SOS transmission has a shifter on the cowling under the steering wheel and that would have to go. You will split the tractor and take a chance of things not matching up and have to make adapters. For example: I took an engine off a car with automatic transmission and installed it in a car with a standard transmission. I was shocked to learn that the crankshaft from the automatic had no means to install a pilot bushing for the transmission pilot shaft that goes through the clutch and into the back of the crankshaft. That was a wake-up call for me since I was 16 years old.

You will not only have to replace the transmission, but also install a clutch type bell housing and a clutch pedal on your tractor since you currently only have an inching pedal on the SOS. Who knows what issues you will have trying to bolt on that clutch flywheel and housing to the rear of your current engine. If you don't know exactly what to expect, I'd avoid it like the plague.

I'm sure there are other issues, but this job would surely be an exercise in frustration in my opinion. I think you either need to fix your SOS or trade for another tractor. Cut your loses and move on. Don't throw good money after bad. I wish you the best of luck, but I wouldn't recommend it.:thumbdown: