Tractor refuses tp run straight

[angaadi]

Hello all,
I own a 1983 Masey ferguson whicd does not have any markings on the body and fairly rough used. From the registration records(I am in India and the Tractor is an indian male) I can say that it is a MF 1035 model, 3 cylinder,diesel. Thoguh it was a wreck, I bought it as means were limited and the vehicle has been running good. I am told it has an IMT engine. My problem now is, the tractor refuses to run on a straight line however carefully I drive and most of the time it gets stuck in the sand and a lot of force has to be used to bring the wheels straight and run again.The oils are good and the filters etc also have been changed.
Mine is a red soil and have gone into mulberry cultivation in which maintaining a near accurate row system is a must or else the labour costs for weeding shall be very high. The mechanic says all the front side parts have to be taken out and some foundry work has to be done. I was wondering if I could get some advise from the members as to what to do in my situation. The starting and running is fine and the hydraulics are functional. Shall be thankful for the help on the topic.

 

[Don87]

Hello all,
I own a 1983 Masey ferguson whicd does not have any markings on the body and fairly rough used. From the registration records(I am in India and the Tractor is an indian male) I can say that it is a MF 1035 model, 3 cylinder,diesel. Thoguh it was a wreck, I bought it as means were limited and the vehicle has been running good. I am told it has an IMT engine. My problem now is, the tractor refuses to run on a straight line however carefully I drive and most of the time it gets stuck in the sand and a lot of force has to be used to bring the wheels straight and run again.The oils are good and the filters etc also have been changed.
Mine is a red soil and have gone into mulberry cultivation in which maintaining a near accurate row system is a must or else the labour costs for weeding shall be very high. The mechanic says all the front side parts have to be taken out and some foundry work has to be done. I was wondering if I could get some advise from the members as to what to do in my situation. The starting and running is fine and the hydraulics are functional. Shall be thankful for the help on the topic.

Tractordata.com doesn't list the MF 1035 being built before 1986:

TractorData.com Massey Ferguson 1035 tractor information

But anyway...........I'm assuming you have a 2WD tractor. If you go down a dry road or field, does the tractor hold a fairly straight line?

The reason I ask, is because ............if you are in sand.........and considering that only 1 rear wheel will turn(unless the differential lock is engaged), the tractor will veer off the course you intended(the one wheel that spins will turn the tractor).

 

[angaadi]

Thank you for the message. It is running fairly well when I am not using the tractor for ploughing .Both the wheels are turning and the brakes hold the vehicle. However, I ran the vehicle for short distances just to remove the vehicles from one end of an of an 8 acre bit to the other end.

 

[MarkV]

I would check that your tire pressure is the same in both tires, I know it sounds simple but it makes a difference. If you can jack the rear of the tractor up see if both rear tires will spin freely in neutral. If not you may have one brake out of adjustment. Good luck.

MarkV

 

[Don87]

Tractordata.com doesn't list the MF 1035 being built before 1986:

TractorData.com Massey Ferguson 1035 tractor information

But anyway...........I'm assuming you have a 2WD tractor. If you go down a dry road or field, does the tractor hold a fairly straight line?

The reason I ask, is because ............if you are in sand.........and considering that only 1 rear wheel will turn(unless the differential lock is engaged), the tractor will veer off the course you intended(the one wheel that spins will turn the tractor).

I guess the way I should have staed it is:

Only one rear wheel will have power to it all the time, unless the differential lock is engaged which will supply power to both wheels at the same time.

 

[kensnelling]

I'll presume you have ag tires with good lugs and not turf tires. Have you tried brake steering? Sometimes in soft soils that is a better choice than using the steering wheel.

Ken

 

[Rock knocker]

Hello all,
I am in India and the Tractor is an indian male

So you looked under the hood?

 

[Rustyiron]

I had this trouble when I was a Kid, grandpapa said that it was "the loose nut behind the wheel":laughing:

I hope this translates as intended Thanks for giving me a chance to use a fun old (American) saying.

 

[angaadi]

Thank you Mark for your kind attention to my issue and helping me. I have checked all the tires pressure and rotating the rear wheels using a jack.All seem to be alright. However, when I am ploughing the two front wheels turn excessively either to the right or left, depending on the direction and in any angle the turning and the positioning of the wheels look extreme and from this position, it becomes difficult to bring back the steering/front wheels to the straight line. I have also observed that there is a play at the bushing,on the left side.(I am not too familiar with the parts names and hence I might try to describe and kindly do not misunderstand the description).I am referring to the long rod at the left side running from the foot to the front wheel, I think connecting to the tie rod ends.

 

[angaadi]

Hai,
The lugs are fine and the tyres can work for a few more months. They are the usual tractor tyres. We do not use surf tyres here in India, as maintaining a good set of tyres itself is a very costly proposition. Most of the time the local farmers get the tyres retreaded over and over.

 

[angaadi]

Hai,
sorry for the fauxpas. I meant an Indian make and not the other word, that I observed only after posting. I am using a laptop and for some reason neither the mouse pad nor the key board wants to live in harmony with me. The mouse goes all over the screen and just like a monkey goes on destroying every thing on the screen forcing me to redo the things. The key pad, as it appears, is too sensitive and likes the ways of mouse and keeps company to it. However I have put an end to this by putting external mouse and key board.

 

[DJ54]

Sounds somewhat like a toe-in problem. The fronts of the front tires should be a bit narrower than the rear. With the worn bushings, one side may be toed out, while the other side may be running somewhat straight, and causing it to pull to one side. Just a nudge on the steering wheel to correct direction may totally reverse the situation, going in the other direction.

If the front end has been widened, or narrowed, they may have not gotten the toe in set/adjusted properly. Could be just the worn bushings allowing it to wallow that far. Not sure what the exact toe in should be, but guessing between 1/8" and 3/8" should be fine.

 

[shona13]

G'day angaadi.
Firstly let me welcome you to the forum and i am sure we can solve your problem ,Consider it like going to the Doctor ,the more information you give the easier it will be to diagnose,after reading your comments I tend to agree with DJ54 The front wheels should be for the purpose of the exercise be parallel that is if you measure the distance between the front of the front tyres at the horizontal position and then measure the same at the rear of the front tyres they should be the same or a little bit less at the front.
If you jack up the front axle and check the wheel bearings they should rotate freely and there should be no or very little looseness in the bearing if there is remove the cap in the centre of the wheel and take the split pin out and tighten the bearing not to tight the wheel should turn freely at all times,this done replace the split pin and fill the cap with grease and refit also grease up the steering KingPin that is the grease nipple that is half way up the shaft which the steering turns on fill it up then do the same the other side, there is also a grease nipple underneath this one allows the front axle to swivel when going over uneven ground.
Try all of this and let us know how you go .
Happy Days .
Hutch.:thumbsup:

 

[banjodunn]

G'day do you have a link from the steering box under the steering wheel to the front axle or do you have hydraulic hoses going from the bottom of the steering wheel to a hyd cyl at the front of the tractor? The reason I ask is depending on what type of steering you have got will have a bearing on how to fix it, Is there any chance you can post some photo's of your steering?


Jon

 

[angaadi]

G'day angaadi.
Firstly let me welcome you to the forum and i am sure we can solve your problem ,Consider it like going to the Doctor ,the more information you give the easier it will be to diagnose,after reading your comments I tend to agree with DJ54 The front wheels should be for the purpose of the exercise be parallel that is if you measure the distance between the front of the front tyres at the horizontal position and then measure the same at the rear of the front tyres they should be the same or a little bit less at the front.
If you jack up the front axle and check the wheel bearings they should rotate freely and there should be no or very little looseness in the bearing if there is remove the cap in the centre of the wheel and take the split pin out and tighten the bearing not to tight the wheel should turn freely at all times,this done replace the split pin and fill the cap with grease and refit also grease up the steering KingPin that is the grease nipple that is half way up the shaft which the steering turns on fill it up then do the same the other side, there is also a grease nipple underneath this one allows the front axle to swivel when going over uneven ground.
Try all of this and let us know how you go .
Happy Days .
Hutch.:thumbsup:

Thank you very much for the message. I am away from my land and would be going over there in a few days time. In fact, we are in the midst of a cyclone(it is common to us in this part of India) and should be going over to my land in about 5 days time. Though I am not quite knowledgeable to answer the questions asked here on my topic, I am making the best possible efforts. Fortunately I could buy a manual from ebay uk and my goodness, it changed my level of confidence, say on a scale of 1 to 10, from pre manual-2 to post manual 4 and would be at atleast 6 as the manual is extremely informative and works like a real guide.The manual is not exactly for my tractor model but appears to be very much nearer to it. Equipped with this, I should be in a position to give the good samaritans here, a near accurate picture of my problem and hopefully resolve it myself. The local mechanic estimated the cost of doing this job at around Indian rupees 7,000/(About $120) but I do not want to spend that kind of money and I intend to do it myself. Thanks to all for their replies.

 

[Bwana64]

I too have a Massey Ferguson 230 which has steering problems. Mine has the hydraulic cylinder type steering. This thing wanders all around. I will try tightening the bearings.
Tom

 

[BigBoyinMS]

This drawing shows toe-in. It may help you understand better.

 

[angaadi]

Thanks for the drawing and shall try to use this to rectify the problem in my tractor. Thanks also for the quote. However,I beg to reason that for some people this is the situation,to be really honest. I should not be discussing this as this is not the forums arena and am only responding because there is a quote.
In my country we have a great man,Baba Amte, who said, charity destroys character. If only we believed in this, but unfortunately it is not the situation.