Pasquali 988 Clutch issue

[mpilihp]

Looking for help with my Pasquali's clutch. Recently when shifting it would grind the gears, IE I have the clutch depressed, shift into neutral and then trying to go into the next gear it catches and grinds. So I tightened up the clutch cable at the clutch pedal end. Well it will be fine for a use or two but again it starts to catch when trying to shift.

Looking at it closer I see the one main clutch cable moves TWO levers. The cable from the clutch pedal goes to a lever on the left side of the transmission and then from that lever another cable goes around to the other side of the transmission and moves another lever. Im thinking that one lever moves a clutch for the SPEED Range selector IE LOW MEDIUM and FAST ranges and the other lever is actually the clutch for the gears, IE first reverse second and third.

So im thinking the cable between the two levers which actually goes to the second lever is the gear selecting lever and its that cable that needs to be tighten??

So, in short if there is anyone familiar with Pasqualis and knows the process to adjust the clutches Id appreciate your help.

Thanks

~ Phil

 

[mpilihp]

OK I did some looking and the second cable appears to only go to an indent mechanism that when pulled by the second clutch cable allows to move the gear shift lever.

So im stumped why the clutch isnt fully activating, I tightend the cable up and again its not fully activating the release of the clutch. It could be the cable is stretching but I dont know. I dont want to keep tightening it and possible causing a larger issue.


Thanks

~ Phil

 

[DavidNPro]

I have a Pasquali also and noted they have an interesting clutch mechanism with the indent to keep it from jumping out of gear. How far does the pedal travel before you can feel it starting to engage into the pressure plate? Mine only movies a small amount before the resistance starts to increase.

 

[mpilihp]

Hi David right now with the pedal fully depressed it moves slightly when in gear so its not fully dis-engaging the clutch. I just tightened it up on Saturday and used it for several hours on Saturday and again an hour or so on Sunday. It was fully dis-engaging after I tightened the clutch on Saturday.

I replaced the cable with a piece of Stainless high strength cable. Its rating was high, I purchased the cable for my tower for tilting it over, I forget its rating but its high, its 1/8 thickness, looked like the same size as the original cable.

I at first thought it was stretching some so I wasn't keeping track of where the lever on the transmission was at rest but Im wondering if its being pulled more and more as I tighten it. My reason is the clutch safety switch broke, looks like its been pulled too far out, IE I tightened the cable too much. So Im fearing something inside is bending??

Any ideas??

 

[mpilihp]

Did some digging in the paperwork I got with the tractor and it talks about adjusting the clutch play via a access port on the side and says it needs 2mm play. Doesnt say much else such as do it with the clutch not depressed or with clutch pressed in?? DOnt know, does that sound familiar? Ill look for this access port tomorrow. Then I need to know how to reset the original cable adjustment as I think Ive over tightened it.

Thanks

~ Phil

 

[DavidNPro]

I am trying to remember, as it has been a few years since I worked on mine. I think that when I adjusted mine, I took out the battery and the battery box. That gave me access right to the top of the bellhousing. From there I was able to "wiggle" the fork forward and backwards. I adjusted it mostly by feel, but we were able to use our fingers and feel when the bearing was beginning to touch the pressure plate. We made sure it had some movement, perhaps that is the 2mm???? This movement would allow for the bearing to stop running when the clutch was not pushed it, preventing premature bearing failure.

Will continue thinking about it also....

 

[DavidNPro]

Did some digging in the paperwork I got with the tractor and it talks about adjusting the clutch play via a access port on the side and says it needs 2mm play. Doesnt say much else such as do it with the clutch not depressed or with clutch pressed in?? DOnt know, does that sound familiar? Ill look for this access port tomorrow. Then I need to know how to reset the original cable adjustment as I think Ive over tightened it.

Thanks

~ Phil

Also, as a side note....

We rebuilt essentially both rearends (front/back) and all of the components in them without a book and pretty much just went by feel and memory. So unfortunately I cannot consult my book and provide any extra help to you about the documentation you have.

 

[mpilihp]

OK thanks for your help, its very wierd, I just went and moved it around tonight and now its even worse, With the clutch all the way int it starts to move as soon as the engine is started. I always thought when a clutch went bad it would not engage and would just slip so the vehicle would not move.

Any ideas on what is wrong when the clutch wont disengage the engine?

~ Phil

 

[DavidNPro]

Only other immediate thing that I can think of other than the cable stretching/moving or the fork bending deals with rust. Is it possible that there was water inside the bellhousing and the pilot shaft is a little rusty? This could possibly cause the clutch disk to get stuck and not "float" away from the flywheel correctly.

 

[mpilihp]

Hi Dave that is a possibility, I do store it outside under a tarp. Ive been reading other posts about clutch failures and it sounds like its possible I over tighten the clutch cable causing it to be partially pushed in all the time and that caused the fingers on the clutch plate to get bent? Or I saw another post that talked about a clutch not disengaging because the throwout bearing failed?

Im mechanically inclined but Ive never delted with a manual clutch before, so its all new to me. Its sounding like an expensive endevor thats for sure. Main problem is there isnt anyone handy that knows Pasqualis. I live in central Maine and I am not aware of anyone that works or has parts for them near by.

~ Phil

 

[DavidNPro]

I just noticed your other post. Believe it or not, if your tractor is like mine you should be able to get into the clutch without splitting it. The way mine is setup, if you take off the hood and the front of the tractor there are like 6 or 8 bolts that hold the motor to the bellhousing. Thus, on mine the motor has to be removed to get to the clutch, assuming your is similar to mine.

The only reason I had to split mine was to get access to the back half of the transmission. If its really a clutch issue, and I am positive it is just as you are saying, there probably is no need to split it unless I am missing something with your model.

 

[DavidNPro]

Also as far as parts, there is a gentelmen named Jack Speake in NH and he was the only source of parts I could find readily available in the US. He is a good guy and very easy to talk to. Sometimes it takes him along while to ship parts though, fyi.

American Pasquali | 4-wheel drive tractors for sale

That is his business website, I can also look up the number I used if you need me to.

 

[mpilihp]

Hi Dave thanks yes I agree with you, I made that comment about splitting it after reading other posts from people with clutch issues on tractors. Your right the motor is hung off of the front of the transmission so it looks like you can take the hood off, disconnect all connections to the motor and then support the motor and unhook 6-8 bolts that hold it on and move it forward.

I have an FEL on it so that may make it difficult Id hate to have to pull th at off first. Ill have to see about a engine hoist with a long extention to reach past the FEL??

Also, so that I have ALL the parts I may potential need, do you know what parts I need to request from Jack? IE Clutch, pressure plate, throwout bearing? I know those terms but dont know if there are other small parts needed as well.

Thanks for your help Dave

~ Phil

 

[mpilihp]

Hi Dave an update for you, I spoke to Jack at American Pasquali and he has a updated clutch assembly/kit and it includes a new bearing for inside the transmission and seal. Looks expensive, $650.00 for the whole thing. Im planning on ordering, hopefully I get it in a couple weeks.

Doesnt sound too back to tear apart, sounds like a 6 hour job for someone who knows what they are doing, so thats a full weekend for me.

Ill keep you posted on it, maybe If I remember Ill take some pictures and document what I do.

~ Phil

 

[DavidNPro]

Thats good, I figured he would have the parts or be able to get them for you. Also, from what I remember the installation shouldn't be too awful bad.

One thought though, if you dont need the tractor regularly, you could possibll tear it apart and see whats going on in there before ordering parts. Its possible that you may not need a whole new everything. Other thing is though if you can swing the money, might as well replace everything while having it apart I suppose.

Please do take pics as you progress along, will be interested to see how it goes for you!

 

[mpilihp]

Hi Dave the last time I ordered parts it took about 5 months, Im really hoping it wont take more than a month. Also in talking with Jack I agree its best to swap everything including the bearing in the transmission while its all apart.

Jack had some good ideas such as positioning the FEL and bucket so the arms are up high enough so you can put a pipe across and a comalong to support the engine and just slide it forward to swap out the clutch. Also he suggested using extra long bolts in the engine to align it and get it to slide over the shaft and then put the correct bolts back in.
~ Phil

 

[ponderingjunkman]

I too am anxious to see how this turns out! Hope it goes well:thumbsup:

 

[mpilihp]

Well the check is in the mail, we'll see how long it takes to get the clutch kit so I can start. I may get it in the garage in a week and start tearing it apart so Im ready to drop the clutch in when it arrives. THey say it takes 6 hours to do, so for me its probably more like 12. Im thinking I may find other things to deal with while I tear it apart so may be worth while.

~ Phil

 

[JoeZZ]

Here are a few of the clutch fork pics I took when I had my 997 apart a few years ago. I had to take it all apart again to repair the broken shaft...it is a very typical set up...

The shaft seal in the third pic can be replaced by a nipple from a calf feeding bottle - available at farm stores...according to Ray S. from CT.

Joe

 

[mpilihp]

Hi All I have an update on my Pasquali clutch issue, its still an issue.

Basically after waiting months after sending the money to American Pasquali and receiving nothing and no responses to my requests I got a message from another member (I think from this site) pointing me to a different source of parts, italiantractors.com who sent me a new clutch and pressure plate up front without having to first send a check. HE didnt have a throwout bearing so I tore it apart thinking it may be fine but of course it was not. Because it was August and Europe goes on HOLIDAY he had to wait till September to order it. There was an unusual long delay in shipment from Italy but I finally got the throw out bearing last week. The part unfortunately was wrong (I have a 988.30 and it appears that has a slightly different bearing) I decided to file the surface of the throwout bearing down to smooth out the groove the fingers had created in it.

So, I followed the instructions from the manual and from the guidance from Tom at Italiantractors.com and finally got it assembled. I fired it up and attempted to shift it into gear and all I got was GRIND. Yes it appears the clutch is not dis-engaging the engine enough to allow shifting.

So, this is basically the original problem I had and I kept tightening the clutch cable to make it work and that ends up causing the fingers on the pressure plate to collapse and fail, which I do not want to do with my new one.

The clutch peddle is supposed to be adjusted so there is only 3-5 mm of play in it before the throwout bearing touches the fingers on the pressure plate. At that setting the clutch does not dis-engage the engine, I tightened it a bit more so there is no play and it still does not allow shifting without grinding. Actually it grinds so much I cannot get it into gear.

The only questionable part was the adjusting of the pressure plate fingers and I fear that is where I went wrong. It said to use the SUPPLIED tool but also said the fingers needed to be adjusted to 20mm, but 20mm to what? From what I understood from Tom it was to the surface of the pressure plate, is that correct?

Its getting close to winter and I really need to get it working so I can plow, any suggestions will be greatly appreciated!

Thanks

~ Phil