John Deere 950 light grinding into gear

[Jcichy71]

I have a 1987 JD 950, two stage clutch, owned it about a year, put about 30 hours on it. I am prepping a site for a garage build, moving alot of stone… lots of short drives and shifting.

Anyways, I have noticed when shifting gears it will often grind slightly going into gear. It shifts into all the gear, the clutch works as it should so far as pushing it in I stop moving and let it out it go’s.

Wondering if this is normal, if there’s an adjustment that needs to be made, or if my clutch is on the way out?

Pretty handy, I’ve replaced the clutch in my jeep on my driveway… I just don’t know much about tractors.

Thanks in advance

 

[Roadworthy]

Be sure tractor is fully stopped before selecting or shifting into a gear. Check clutch adjustment - normally about an inch of free play before feeling clutch. If you have too much free play the clutch may not be disengaging. Replacing a clutch would be a last choice not a first one. You generally must separate the front of the tractor from the back, supporting both halves as you roll them apart. It's not quite as easy as a Jeep clutch replacement in the driveway.

 

[Jcichy71]

Be sure tractor is fully stopped before selecting or shifting into a gear. Check clutch adjustment - normally about an inch of free play before feeling clutch. If you have too much free play the clutch may not be disengaging. Replacing a clutch would be a last choice not a first one. You generally must separate the front of the tractor from the back, supporting both halves as you roll them apart. It's not quite as easy as a Jeep clutch replacement in the driveway.

I measured it best I could, seems to be about an inch and a quarter freeplay from my measurement. Should I try to tighten it up?

 

[jaxs]

I would check the shop manual for clutch adjustment (not just the pedal travel adj) before doing anything major.

 

[CalG]

Slight grinding is ABSOLUTELY NORMAL! Most tractors do not have synchros. (my Hurlimann does ;-)

If it rubs and grinds so much you can not make the shift, that's time to look into the clutch.

The other thing is the condition of the transmission fluid. If it's all full of water (green) , or too thick, or low , the gears can drag.

Tractors are NOT cars. Take your time, double clutch if you need to. I actually prefer to shift while the tractor is still moving a little on the Fordson E27n. But don't be going the wrong way when doing the FWD/REV shift. It'll rattle your bones!

 

[Jims1025R]

I had a JD 650 for 25 years, and it was the same way. Not as advanced a transmission as my VW Golf! Certainly check the clutch freeplay, and transmission fluid level, but otherwise just go easy when shifting. The light grinding isn't really doing any meaningful damage, it's just annoying for those of us used to a really nice syncromesh transmission!

When I once had the top cover of the shifter off, to clean out the sump of the transmission, I looked at the gears, and they did not show any signs of distress after a decade of grinding a bit while I shifted.

 

[Jcichy71]

Awesome, thanks for the replies!

 

[bmaverick]

Awesome, thanks for the replies!

Keep with the J20C hydraulic fluid. Both Deere and Yanmar worked extensively on this fluid. Yanmar calls it TF500A. IF the old fluid has a nasty smell, then it's time to change it out along with cleaning the re-usable filter with diesel and a soft toothbrush.

My machine is built on the JD950 frame and fenders, yet with the JD850 3T80 engine. The 3T90 is a rare engine with fewer support part options. The JD850 has all kinds of parts support.