B-80 Rearend

[spoonman 0]

My 74 B-80 is broke, this time I think it is major(well for me anyway).

Heres the deal, I bought this tractor probably 5 years ago. It was beat when I got it but it worked and I needed something to cut the grass so I paid the $350 for it.

I know the 42" deck and the 42" snow/dozer blade were probably never meant to be used on this small tractor but they came with it. thats the beauty of wheel horse lots of stuff is interchangeable.

Anyways I ended up buying a new JD lt160 in 04 or 05 for the mowing so my wheel horse has been the grunt since then (I would not dare do the things with my JD that I do with my horse) It plows snow,dirt,gravel.I use it to clear all the overgrowth around my house, it doubles as a grader,a bulldozer,Im sure if I put the deck on it it would be happy to mow the lawn for me too...I lover my little b-80 man. the problem is I think it is tired of the abuse (and I cant blame it).

This past winter my snowblower broke down so I broke out the trusty Wheel horse,when I was pushing the last blade full of snow it stopped moving,engine still runs(whole other story I love Kohler too, that thing still kickin with basically no compression). Well I just parked the tractor and finished the winter out with the shovel .

Now I have about 6 yards of fill dirt I need to push around and truck loads more coming this summer and my horse is broke, so I'm hoping you guys can help me.

It will go into all gears like normal with the clutch pushed in but nothing happens,if you rock the tractor sometimes it will catch but then will make a clunk sound in the rear end and stop moving again, hubs and drive pulley are tight on their shafts although there is a little play in both axles and the drive pulley shaft if you push and pull an them.

what do you guys think it is?

Given the life this tractor has been forced to lead I'm not surprised it is broke but I would like to fix it If I can do so with out spending a fortune.

maybe its time to retire it and beat my JD up a little but I'm sure I wont get the service length out of my $3000 recycled pop can JD.

I have always wanted to put a 8 speed in it if anybody has one now will probably be the best time to do that

by the way here's the model number off of the tractor since I think there are 2 different ones for 74 B-80 according to parts tree.com 1-0145

Any help or ideas will be appreciated

:whistle:

[Rideawaysenior 25]

Spoonman,

Thats really not working that machine that hard, it was what it was intended to do although the 42in deck is a little bigger then I would have run on it but it should still do it. Your pulleys may be in tight I'll bet you broke a woodruff key on the pulley or one of the hubs. I would check there first. It not on the outside, I'd place your problem with the differential which still is not a difficult fix. I've split many of these cases for rebuilds only not repairs and it is not a difficult process. If you have the parts manual and service manual which is available from TORO's website it will make it even easier. Some dealers may have NOS parts if not there are plenty of resources here to help you get back going. If you determine the problem to be the diff, you may also consider picking up a spare trans. They are plentiful in Ebay depending on the model of tranny you have. Adding an 8 speed is not a difficult task if you have one handy.

Jack

[TT-(Moderator) 1,127]

This is a good PM tip for those of us who use our Horses for pushing or pulling and are concerned about the woodruff keys in the wheel hubs. It doesn't require anything more than a visual check prior to the operation of the tractor.

This is a little trick we used on the Raymond side loaders where I used to work. They were notorious for the wheel lock nuts loosening up, so we would put a stripe across the end of the spindle and the locknut with a contrasting color of paint or marker. If the nut started to loosen, the stripe would no longer be lined up.

If you need to check for sheared axle keys, put a mark across the end of the axle with a Sharpie marker or a paint pen, etc. (a piece of tape works equally well)

If there is slippage at the axle, the mark will shift, or the tape will have peeled loose. It sure beats trying to watch the end of the axle while the tractor is moving or trying to move!

[spoonman 0]

Thanks for the tips guys!

I do know that the hubs and drive pulley are not slipping they are tight on the shafts and other than a little play in and out motion they are not going anywhere.

it must be broke inside somewhere but I don't have any experience messing with the insides of transmissions and actually the thought of messing with all the parts in there scares me, I don't want to pull it apart and never get it back together again. but I guess if I want to keep the tractor I'll have to crack the case to see what is broke. not to mention that most of the main component aren't available.

anybody know of a 8 speed for sale at a reasonable price? if ya see one please let me know I would be a lot happier with the low gear option, would work much better for all the bulldozing

thanks

[Sparky-(Admin) 19,543]

Where ya located? Unidrives are shippable but very heavy and would probably be expensive.

Mike............

[MaineDad 85]

Could the shifter fork come loose? There is a set screw at the base of the shifter near the top of the tranny. I have had the same thing happen and it was just the fix.

[spoonman 0]

mike I'm located in Jamestown Ny 14701.

Ya got somethin for me?

:whistle:

[Teddy da Bear 11]

I got a second 8 speed tranny when the one on the B-100 lost hi-lo.

It was $50 at the Mentone swap meet.

Sure does pay to have at least one spare! Guys....this could be a lesson learned. Go get that spare tranny "before" the one on the tractor goes out.

Don't ever think it can't happen to you.

[Rideawaysenior 25]

Spoonman,

I have a few spares. I could toss one in the trunk when I head out to upstate next week. I'll be in the Syracuse area. I know that is still a bit away from you but if it helps, I'm willing to do it for you. Forgot to mention I have 8speeds only.

Jack

[combatmp29r 27]

Teddy thats why I have 2 spares for the Vert commandos and 1 spare for the vert chargers. Those vertical s haft uni-drives don't just hang out all over like the horizontal ones do.

[Teddy da Bear 11]

I never had a vertical shaft engine....so I never knew.

[combatmp29r 27]

The V7/V8s and CGs used a cast iron Uni-drive verticalshaft. Then in 74 WH went to the aluminum peerless and foote transmissions like crapsman and JD used

[spoonman 0]

jack did you get the message I sent you?

[Curmudgeon 28]

IF it is indeed the differential, which it sounds like it is. Get the Mechanical Transmission Repair Manual and have it. Properly taken apart, as shown in the manual, will mean none of the gears inside need be touched. You simply lift off one side of the case, leaving the other side with all gears in place. Then just lift the axle out as an assembly. The differentials are very simple affairs, and the manual will walk you through that too.

[spoonman 0]

thirdroc17 is the manual downloadable some where online or on this forum?

Thanks

Mark

[Curmudgeon 28]

I think it's downloadable from Toro, go to https://lookup3.toro.com/partdex/index.cfm?xCaller=Toro enter your ID number and see what's available. Mine I bought for ten bucks and keep it on the shelf with tons of other manuals. It's part number 492-4004.

[spoonman 0]

thanks for the pn thirdroc17