Ford 4000 Backhoe Problem

arnie.henderson · Oct 19, 2017

Thanks for reading my post. I need some help. Bought a 4000 Backhoe in great shape. 1 problem On the Hoe, the Main/ big cylinder moves far too fast. A slight move of the lever and it moves fast. If you move the lever the way you move the rest of the levers this one SLAMS to the end of extension. Anybody encounter this problem before.

rlp in Co. · Oct 19, 2017

Fast is actually kinda good. I can out dig a john Deere with my 550 ford. I but even so, my swing was too fast. I made a restrictor and put it in the line to slow it down. Wish I had made it a little bit smaller.

Sean in PA · Oct 20, 2017

Hi, and welcome. It's best to provide as much information as possible. Ford made two different tractors that they called a 4000. One was made from 1961-1964 and had a 4 cylinder engine. The other was made from 1967-1974 and had a 3 cylinder engine. It's best to specify which one you have. They also made a number of different backhoes that could mount onto either of the 4000 model tractors, and there were several third party made backhoes that wee added to some 4000 tractors over the years, so it is best to tell us which exact backhoe model it is as well.

With all of that being said, it sounds like something is worn inside the control valve for that spool. To fix it you would need to remove the control valve from the backhoe and have it rebuilt. It probably doesn't matter much for the fix, but I'm curious, does it do it in both directions? You only mention it going to full extension too fast, how about when retracting it?

Andy Wickiser · Oct 20, 2017

Sean in PA is right, an accurate description of what tractor model, backhoe model, and symptoms would be helpful.

That said, if this is the older 4000-series (four cylinder engine), and the Ford 723 backhoe attachment (the standard at that time), and the boom slamming downward that might be normal. I have this behavior with my Ford 713 backhoe (almost the same as a 723). Others have also asked about this "problem" on this board. I've looked at the hydraulic circuitry in the service manual and it seems there is no restrictor in the boom-down circuit to regulate the movement. Therefore the weight of the boom, dipper, and bucket slams the boom down really fast. This can be kind of risky if working around rocks or concrete as you can knock off a tooth or shatter a bucket pin or otherwise cause wear and tear on the hoe. The answer is to adapt and feather the boom-down lever carefully while operating. I suppose if you were ambitious you could put a restrictor in the boom-down circuit.

Ford 4000 Backhoe Problem

arnie.henderson

New User

rlp in Co.

Well-known Member

Sean in PA

Well-known Member

Andy Wickiser

Member

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