FORD 555A NEED INFO ON TRANNY AND FLOOR CONTROLS

my 87 y/o dad just gave me his old ford tractor. it's a 555A backhoe as stated above. here is a short video of it https://youtu.be/Ool4AZl-sQ4


what is the main gear shift pattern? (the gear shifter coming out of the floor) it has the "shuttle shift" handle for forward and reverse on the column. i think it is an "H" pattern and the left top of the "H" is 4th, the right top of the "H" is 1rst, and the left bottom of the "H" is 2nd.

if the bottom left is 2nd, we recently had a problem with it popping out of gear, back into neutral after driving it for maybe 4-5 seconds. is this common or is it a somewhat easy fix? i was just going to put a bungee on it.

he was really grinding the hell out of the gears trying to put it into gear.

question, once in forward, can i shift from first, into second, into third, in 4th fluidly,, as in are there synchro's in there?

also, at about 13 seconds into the video, it shows some controls on the floor just below the seat, i think one is a differential lock but not sure on other.

also noticed the alternator shaking really badly while engine was running. normal? or not. here is video of it shaking https://youtu.be/dzATSRxwYVI

he is getting pretty bad with dimensia and doesn't remember a lot of things about. i have a couple of old manuals for it but strangely, they are not very helpful.

thanks for any help. i am bringing down to my place in chino valley, az to do some yard work

This post was edited by rockwind1 on 12/02/2021 at 04:59 pm.

Welcome to the forums. The Ford forum below will also be a good place to get answers and info on your Ford.

Not always, but in many cases new users have to have 5 or more posts on record before the site lets them post pictures/videos (or links), due to site spam filters. Another option is to go down to the Site Comments Forum and ask YT Support for permission to post prior to that. You can try going down to the Test Forum and making several posts there to get your post count up, trying to attach your pictures to each post. That may work after you make several posts. Then make your post here again. It may not work immediately after you get past the 5 posts, if not, you might try logging out and back in at that point. There is a size limit as well, I think it is a total of 7mb per post (be it one picture or the total of several). Some pictures, often taken with phones, are too large and have to be reduced before they will post.

555A's were great backhoes, torque converter transmissions in the A were not synchronized, but people tended to drive them like they were and that didn't help shifter forks and gear edges

the shift pattern is as the dash decal below. Alternator should not shake at all, check for loose/bad belt, water pump bearing on the way out etc

floor should have a pull up and turn T handle for parking brake.(step on brakes, then pull up and turn to lock)
A diff lock pedal, and it will also have a small round pedal to disconnect the tranny from the engine so the loader will raise faster

joe, thanks! i've been googling and looking at pics trying to find that. but i would have thought 2 and 3 were switched the way it was acting. i could actually do a little work in 3.

so my new question is,, when it is third and i start to go or push a little dirt, it pops out of gear. like the gear shift lever goes upward! what do you think that is?

This post was edited by rockwind1 on 12/02/2021 at 05:05 pm.

hi joe, what does the diff lock pedal look like? i wish i could post my video!

also. at the bottom of the decal it say sto depress pedal to disconnect hydraulic clutch,, which pedal are they talking about?

This post was edited by rockwind1 on 12/02/2021 at 05:04 pm.

thanks jim,, do you mean a whole nother website for fords,, or the ford sub category on this one?

here is that alternator shaking, does it look normal?

https://youtu.be/dzATSRxwYVI

This post was edited by rockwind1 on 12/02/2021 at 05:01 pm.

mind you it's been 20 years since I sat in one, but I believe both the diff lock and hydro disconnect were round pedals, I believe the diff lick is the one farther to the right by your right heel. the disconnect was for putting the full RPM's and power to the loader valve to quickly raise the loader arms as you approached things like a dump truck bead

my email is open if I can post pictures for you

(quoted from post at 20:56:05 12/02/21)
thanks jim,, do you mean a whole nother website for fords,, or the ford sub category on this one?

Click to expand...

This site has a number of forums for different brands and topics.

The shaking alternator is not normal.

Something is obviously loose or broken.

It needs to be taken off and the mount inspected. If nothing is broken or worn,
as in the holes in the bracket wallowed, the pivot hole through the alternator
wallowed, or the bolt worn down, it might can just be tightened.

It should never have any shake. Continuing to run it that way will eventually
result in it breaking completely.

Once everything is corrected, and the belt is tight, the bottom bolt must be
tightened securely. That should result in a completely rigid mount, with
everything aligned and tight, no shake at all!

i was able to put the web address of my video's on youtube but i think someone would have to copy and paste them into their browser to get there,, they do not appear in blue letter for some reason

but i agree of course,, i was wondering how bad you thought it was.

(quoted from post at 00:29:49 12/03/21)
but i agree of course,, i was wondering how bad you thought it was.

Click to expand...

It is bad enough that you need to find the problem and fix it before it gets worse. The bottom bracket needs to be checked/repaired as others posted. To me the top bracket doesn't look right either. That might be because of the material(?) covering the wires (I think). The belt appears to be wrong, or worn out, as it is deep in the alternator pulley. It could be the wrong alternator pulley. The width of the pulley should match the other pulleys the belt runs around.

You should obtain copies of the Operator's and Service manuals for it (and a parts book would be good also). eBay is a good place to find pre-owned OEM Manuals. Quality of those used will be better than most any "new" reprints. There are several on eBay currently.