69 3500 4x4 TC

On my 69 3500 4x4 TC I seem to be having the opposite problem as many others. I can barely get it to stop when it's in gear. If I stand on the brake it will stop but it takes all I can do to keep it stopped. I've changed the fluid. What came out was not bad, a little dark no signs of water.

I had a the same problem with a john deere 1010. The clutch was not releasing. My
tractor sat for years and developed alot of rust on the clutch assembly. i had to
stand on the brakes to break the clutch loose... very dangerous to not be able to
stop!

Your control lever may not be centering the shift valve. Try adjusting the linkage. Also if you are using Low Bid Sid hydraulic transmission fluid you may have the friction material swelling or coming off the clutch packs. Used to see it at least once a year, guy would save $20 on a pail of oil and spend $2000 redoing his clutch packs.

I just got it. The guy said it had been sitting for years. I live in Arizona not a lot of rust here and no signs of rust in the trany. Where are the clutch packs? Behind the pump? If so and they are sticking would filling it up to the bearing so the fluid gets right onto the clutch packs maybe help them slip? That is if they aren't coming apart. I'll try adjusting the shift linkage. I really don't want to have to split it to change the clutch packs.

Clutch packs are supplied oil from the charge pump on the front of the transmission driven by the torque converter. There is one for forward, and one for reverse, when you move the lever the control valve energizes one or the other and USUALLY away you go. If they are not releasing it can be cheap or expensive to fix.
clutch pack breakdown page

It is more than just splitting to work on the clutch packs, pretty much gut and feather the transmission, and if the lining is coming off the friction plates there will be itsy bitsy pieces of them through the whole system. This site sells a reproduction manual for the industrials, but it ain't cheap. The $40 +/- books do NOT cover the industrials. And I don't remember if there were some special tools needed when working on them.

To be clear, are you throttling down and shifting the F-N-R selector to neutral when applying the brakes? IIRC a 3500 has external dry drum brakes at the axle ends and never did have much braking power compared to the Ford tractors with double reduction rear axles with internal wet disc brakes.

UPFord,
Yes, I put it in neutral when I stop. Yes, it has external dry drum brakes. Let's say I have a bucket of dirt and want to put it into a dump truck. I can't ease up to the truck even with the throttle at idle (600 RPMs). It won't slow down enough to keep from running into the truck or lunging each time I put it in Forward to move up a little. If I stand on the brakes I can get it to stop but even the slightest bit of letting off it will jump forward. From what I'm gathering the torque converter is kinda like an automotive automatic I should be able to inch it forward by letting the brake up a little and stop with it in gear without having to put the brakes on as hard as I can. The clutch pack breakdown IanC showed me looks exactly like a clutch packs in a automatic trany from a car I'm sure it's stronger than a car but same principle. Backing up is worse, the brakes aren't as strong in reverse. Let's say I want to back up to a fence with the blade. I play hell getting to the point I want, going from N to R and back. it's NOT like I can feather the clutch to move. It has no foot clutch.

IanC,
When I drained the fluid from the trany it didn't look like there was any signs of the clutch plates coming apart. there was a little metallic in the fluid but nothing I would consider bad. The magnet on the drain plug had NO pieces on it. Sticking my finger in the drain hole found nothing as far as evidence that the frictions were coming apart. I used a borescope to look inside and didn't see and foreign objects. If the frictions are coming apart the pieces are staying in the clutch housing. The only other thought was that the pistons are stuck. But on second thought if both pistons are stuck it wouldn't go either direction would it. It does stop in gear but it's all I can do to get it to stay still.

I think UPFord has it, brakes on that machine are wimpy at best. Yes at idle RPM the converter should slip and allow you to inch up to the truck, but you would need to leave it in gear and use the brakes or else you will get a jump when you shift the clutch pack. Somebody before you could have put the wrong stall speed converter in it too, but that is not likely your problem.

Doesn't look like it's ever been apart so I don't think it has the wrong torque converter. I have an idea probably won't work. I 'll overfill the case so the clutch packs are soaking in fluid. Let it sit then try to get them to loosen. Won't hurt it's already broke.

(quoted from post at 07:00:50 08/27/18) On my 69 3500 4x4 TC I seem to be having the opposite problem as many others. I can barely get it to stop when it's in gear. If I stand on the brake it will stop but it takes all I can do to keep it stopped. I've changed the fluid. What came out was not bad, a little dark no signs of water.

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Is your 3500 gas or diesel? It won't stop when it's in gear. That means to you it's in F or R and your 4spd is in gear. Have you shifted the shuttle to N when you wanted to stop? Have you tried running in 4th instead of 1st or 2nd. If you're in F or R and the tractor won't stop, I don't understand why there would be something wrong with the clutch packs. Motion is coming from the TC, not the clutch pack. Now, if the shuttle is in N and the 4spd in gear and she won't stop, then the clutch pack may be the culprit.