I have a John Deere 790. I've had to replace the mfwd gears more than once. The last time was a couple months ago and they just started popping again. My question is, can I remove a particular component to allow the front wheels to just roll freely? I can't afford to fix right now, but still have work that needs to be done that doesn't require 4wd.
Tired of spending money!
- Thread starter JTaylor77
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Roadworthy
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The previous answer sounds logical to me. If I were you I'd wonder why the front drive continues to self destruct. I thought my Kubota was 4WD and this is the first I've heard of MWD. It appears that's what most compact tractors have. Okay. I found it's an assist not a full time thing. Okay. I disengage mine when not in use and never run on pavement when in "4wd". Can you disengage your MFWD rather than removing gears?
K5lwq
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Do you by chance have this lever circled in red? That engages and disengages the 4wd.
Henro
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That lever only cuts off power to the front drivetrain. The gears, etc, always turn when the front wheels turn…the OP needed to do something that mimics unlocking front hubs on a 4WD road vehicle.
mcfarmall
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A true 4WD has front and rear wheels the same size. Yours, mine and most of the others on this forum are technically Front Wheel Assist in which the front wheels are smaller than the rear and actually turn at a slightly higher rate than the rears. This helps with turning the tractor sharply.
Henro
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I believe that is by definition, as used when talking about tractors.
But really, all things considered, does it really make any difference in operation of the tractor at the tire contact patch, if the wheels/tires are different diameters or not? I don’t think so, except that larger diameter tires on the front are probably better than smaller ones.
Actually, I see the answer when I look at my tractors. They both have OEM 4WD decals on them! The manufacturer should know what he built and sold, right? My tractors are 4WD!
So it has now been proven that my FWA tractors are REALLY 4WD tractors!
I’ll sleep better tonight! ROFL...
sea2summit
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What?
I think some are equipped to make the front wheels turn faster for turning in some applications but that would be an add on or luxury item. Otherwise the tire size/ratio makes them turn at the same rate when in 4WD.
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CoyPatton
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Educate yourself on the entire subject of rolling circumference and front to rear tire rotation.
Bottom line is that front and rear tires of differing sizes do not turn at the same rates. This is why when 4wd is used on hard pack surfaces, you find an issue with binding of the gears and troubles in getting out of 4wd. There is lots of information on these topics and the need for slippage (non hard pack surfaces).
