Massey Ferguson Governor Problem

DS43812

Member
I recently rebuilt the Continental Z-134 engine of my Massey Ferguson 35 tractor and have since broken it in and everything runs perfectly except for the governor, which is also new.

At first I suspected that the carburetor may have been causing a lack of power so I careflly dialed it in and the engine has plenty of power with no hesitation at idl or full throttle.

Since then, I've carefully adjusted the goveror several times while following instructions found both in the OEM manual and on the FENA website since my governor is identical to those found on the older Ferguson tractors.

The governor and throttle linkage is free moving and does not bind, but no matter what I try I can't seem to get it to work properly. If I manually push the governor lever to increase RPM's it does push back against my finger and it does seem to work at higher RPM's >2000 but that won't do me much good at typical engine operating speeds.

Suggestions?
 
Go over to the Ferguson board and find John (uk). He is a retired Ferguson/ Massey Ferguson mechanic. Send him an email and he will send you the procedure for adjusting the governor. His method is a little simpler than the shop manual method. I used his method and mine works great. You might want to replace the governor compensating spring because they lose their tension after all these years. Make sure you don't have the bumper screw turned too far in because that will keep the governor from working. Just back it off and unless your governor surges leave it backed off.
 

Thanks for the suggestion, I'll create a post in the Ferguson forum and see if he responds.

I forgot to mention that I had also backed out the bumber screw and ensured that it was not contacting the bumber spring so I'm fairly confident that it's not causing my problem.
 
He hasn't been posting on the board in a while but he still responds to emails. I have his directions saved and I had sent them to a few people needing them but somebody a while back said something on the board about people sending his directions to other people without his permission so I quit doing that. If you are on the tractor and you have it in high gear and hold the brake and let the clutch out does the governor arm move? If the bearing on the governor arm inside the timing cover goes bad it won't let the governor work like it supposed to. Did you orient the tab on the governor correctly before you put the timing cover back on?
 

The bearing on the governor arm is new and was properly lubricated prior to assembly. The governor arm itself moves freely with no hint of binding.

When seated on the tractor I tried observing the governor arm movements as per the instructions but I honestly can't tel if it's moving or not. My eyes tell me it's not moving but my view is restricted by the manifold heat shield so I can't say for certain either way. Tomorrow I'm going to have my wife video the governor arm as I lock the brakes and shift it into high gear to bog the engine down very briefly a couple of times to see if it moves or not.

Regardless, the tractor slows down considerably when a sudden load like a plow or box blade is applied by engaging soil, or by going from a level surface onto a slope. My first thoughts were carb and/or timing but they have both ben carefully checked and found to be withing spec.

It's got me stumped.
 
I forgot to mention that both the compensating spring and governor lever spring appear to be in good condition.

Also, I saw mention that the oil vent hole in the camshaft could cause problems, but the camshaft is new and the vent hole was confirmed to be present and free of obstructions. For those who may not be aware of it, the vent hole is drilled just behind the first camshaft lobe and is there to relieve oil pressure behind the governor race (cone) shaft that goes into the camahaft.
 
Oh, and when I nentoned that the tractor slows down considerably when a load is applied, I forgot to mention that applying the thtottle (giving it some gas) easily compensates, so it has plenty of power. In fact, it'll do wheelies if I'm not careful. :)
 
I videoed the governor arm as I set the brake and shifted into high gear and slowly released the clutch to bog down the engine. I did this at three engine speeds and noted the difference in the governor arm movement at each speed. The governor is clearly working but movement is almost imperceptable at lower engine speeds.

The results are as follows:

1000 RPM = 1/32" movement (almost imperceptable)
1500 RPM = 1/4" movement
2000 RPM = 1" movement (maybe a little more)
 
After checking everything imaginable, I've come to the inescapable conclusion that the bumper spring must be what is causing my low speed governor problem. After carefully checking it per the instructions found at FENA, a small amount of bumper spring action was noted at the idle position which will require removing the timing cover to bend the bumber spring back slightly.

However, this has proven to be a blessing in disquise. As I was draining the radiator and preparing to remove the crankshaft pulley, I noticed that one of it's three webs or spokes is cracked. This explains a previously unidentified vibration I experienced at certain throttle speeds. Thankfully the crankshaft pulley came off somewhat easily, so I won't have to remove the entire front of the tractor to remove the timing cover.
 
I finally managed to get the timing cover off and the governor bumper spring did appear to be bent outward a little to far so I bent it back as much as possible while still alowing the bumper adjustment screw to pass under the edge of the spring if needed. When assembling the engine I used permatex aviation gasket sealer so removing the timing cover without breaking it was anything but easy.

Now I only need to wait for a new timing cover gasket and crankshaft pulley to arrive and I should be back in business, or at least I'll have a running tractor again. Whether or not the governor will work properly remains to be seen.
 
Where did you order the gasket from? Any auto parts store that sells Fel Pro either has them or can get them. I had a lower crank pulley split in the key way once. You do know you will have to recheck the end play in the crank again don"t you? If the crank pulley is a few thousanths different it will change the end play and will require reshimming or it could beat the thrust washers out. While I was at it I would order a new governor compensating spring. It will help the governor open up.
 
Where did you order the gasket from? Any auto parts store that sells Fel Pro either has them or can get them. I had a lower crank pulley split in the key way once. You do know you will have to recheck the end play in the crank again don"t you? If the crank pulley is a few thousanths different it will change the end play and will require reshimming or it could beat the thrust washers out. While I was at it I would order a new governor compensating spring. It will help the governor open up.

I plan to order the parts from my local dealer tomorrow.

My Continental Z-134 engine doesn't use thrust washers, it uses a flanged center main bearing to control crankshaft end play.
 
Oh yeah. I keep forgetting that they changed that on the Z134 where as the Z120 and Z129 used the thrust washers and shims. Whatever you do don't let anyone sell you Tisco gaskets. Cheap quality and fit horrible. Some dealers stock those instead of Agco gaskets.
 
Oh yeah. I keep forgetting that they changed that on the Z134 where as the Z120 and Z129 used the thrust washers and shims. Whatever you do don't let anyone sell you Tisco gaskets. Cheap quality and fit horrible. Some dealers stock those instead of Agco gaskets.

Yeah, the quality of many aftermarket parts is often hit and miss. It seems that parts made in Turkey or China are usually crap and India is so so. Parts made in the U.S.A. (impossible to find) or in the U.K. are usually the best.

Regarding the bumper spring, the way it was bent leads me to believe that a previous owner had turned the bumper screw in as far as it would go. The spring had an upward curved shape to it, with the mid point of the spring being higher than either end. Getting it straightened out required patience and a bit of ingenuity but it seems to be ok now. After I get the new timing cover gasket I'll do a dry test fit to be sure the bumper spring is ok before I install the timing cover permanantly using gasket sealer.
 
Today I priced a new crankshaft pulley at a local MF stealership and the price they wanted was over $400 so I politely told them "not in this lifetime" and proceeded to order one made by Sparex from an alternate source for a little over $50. Seriously, I can understand the need for stealerships to make a profit, but to think I'm going to be dumb enough to pay that much for a pulley for a 50+ year old tractor is insane.

Assuming that my parts order is processed in a timely manner (yeah right), I should have my tractor going again in a week or so. Then we shall see if the governor works as expected.
 
As you may have guessed, I orered the parts I needed from Yesterday's Tractor Co. but it took them three days to process my order, and as if to add insult to injury, I just learned that UPS delivered my parts order to the wrong address without verifying it was correct, and there is nothing I can do about it until tomorrow because Yesterday's Tractor's parts department is closed. If they would have used USPS Priority Mail as I requested instead of insisting on UPS, this would not have happened.

At this rate, who knows when my tractor will be fixed. Ordering online is rapidly becoming more trouble than it's worth.
 

We sell tractor parts! We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today.

Back
Top