5th Gear

Here's the way to get it into 5th without any grinding:

You MUST be on a hard surface, and one that's level or slightly downhill - so the tractor can coast without slowing for the several seconds it takes to complete the following. (It won't work going uphill or on soft ground...)

First get the tractor rolling at fast as it will go in 4th gear.

Now in quick succession depress the clutch, move the throttle to idle, and move the shift lever to neutral.

Listen to the RPMs and the instant the engine reaches idle speed, quickly release and depress again the clutch, then immediately pull the shift lever into 5th. (If you do it right the lever will drop right into the 5 slot with nary a sound).

Finally release the clutch, open the throttle and enjoy the ride!!

It sounds complicated at first, but once you get the hang of it's actually pretty straightforward. Like anything else practice is key - do it a few times on a slight down grade until you get comfortable with it.

In my experience with new Farmalls 300 and 560, 40 to 50 year ago, I never shifted from 4th to 5th on the move. Those tractors would start away on level or down grade, in low side of TA in 5th gear, with any load they could pull in 5th gear along the road. If you were on the upgrade, you contented yourself to 4th until you reached top of hill.

These afterall where tractors, primarily designed for pulling plows, cultivators, mowers, balers, drills, corn planters, etc. They were not race cars, automoblies, motorcycles or trucks.

In my opinion the new breed of users have destroyed the most efficient drawbar tractors we ever farmed with. Rather than a rugged transmissions and engines with big displacment and high torque, they wanted smooth shifting, power shifting, etc. They turned every tractor into a loader tractor or something to chase the cows with. I can remember the days when you put a Farmall in gear in morning, 12 hours later you were still in same gear. It lugged through all the tough spots without shifting.

I have driven new tractors in the past 5 years, tractors all the way from 40 to 250 hp, all makes, they've got no torque, you need a minamum of 4 power shifts to do anything. You compare the cost of one of these new transmissions with your 300 (same size tractor), then compare the return on the commodities they produce 1950s prices with 2005 prices.

Following this thread with some interest...I've got a 400D that has a lot of the same behavior getting into 5th. All the posts have been great. Quick question though: is it ok to start out with the TA engaged?

I have in my head that that's a no-no, but I may be thinking about engaging it while going downhill to slow the tractor...

Thanks,

- David