68 Ford 4500 tbl transmission type

chuckinnc

Member
I have a old Ford 4500 tlb, old one that has combined hyd and power steering fluid tank. Its not running because the power steering is dead, however I am trying to figure out the type of transmission it has. Web say there were 3 types, mine has 2 levers ontop the transmission case [nothing marked] one on right side only moves fwd or backward
the one on the left side appears to have 3 or 4 positions. I am guessing it maybe 3 spd w reverse & hi/lo ? It
does have a clutch pedal, Tractor data.com says clutch type is a 6 speed with 4 reverse, somehow this dosen't add up to the positions on the gear shift? assuming the right side lever is a Hi/Lo.
 
I have a 4500 with backhoe/loader. Right side stick is hi/lo, left side is forward gears and two reverse gears. The two reverse gears are upper right. Funny, I'm having problems with power steering also.
 
Oh, and there are three forward gears, so 6 gears forward, 4 reverse. I've had this tractor for about 35 years and never used it in 2 or 3 high - doesn't have enough brakes.
 

My 4500 is a 69 model with same steering.
Normally these early models came with the 6x4 manual reverser transmission but a 4x4 manual reverser was available at that time also.
Here's the shift patterns.

mvphoto47484.jpg


Look for the hand stamped numbers on the clutch housing behind the starter, these tell the model and how it came equipped as well as the build date and serial number.
Should look something like this.
mvphoto47485.jpg


Post that info and we'll decode it for you.
 

Power steering issues on these tractors is normally from wear and looseness in the control valve linkage which is part of the steering cylinder mounted in the front bolster. To access and repair the steering cylinder and linkage you'll need to drain the hydraulics, remove the grill shell (very heavy), remove the hydraulic pump and drive shaft that connects to the crank pulley.
 
Yep, that explains it, the transmission is a 4x4, will get the serial numbers later today. I did buy a used
4500 service manual off ebay, however when I turned to the power steering section there was nothing there just a page that said " See Ford 5000 tractor service manual for power steering " so I guess this book was for the 4500 version that copied the 5000 Ford farm tractors steering? Either way I bought a service manual that had everything but what I needed.
 

The 4400 has the same steering as a 5000, the 4500 steering is similar as it's located in the front bolster but there are some differences.
I have the factory service manuals, Volume 3 contains info on the Ag axles including the 5000, but Volume 4 contains Parts 18-23 for servicing components the industrial models have that are not normally found on Ag models.
Pretty much need both volumes to work on the 4500's steering as the majority of the info is in the 5000 axle section but the differences in the 4500 steering is referred to in volume 4.
Not sure if there's a good aftermarket book on the 4500's steering.
 
Hi, For about 45 yr I've had a Sept-Oct '69 4500 TLB. It has the 2 stick, rt Hi-Lo, Lt 3 fwd, 2 R, & I guess that makes it a 6 speed.
The PS has been mostly non functional for last couple-few yrs. I can adj the little "turnbuckle" adj. on the small cyl (the one up front close to right side of the hyd pump) that activates the PS. Adj this a small bit either way and the PS works one way or the other, depending which way I adj it. I know what my PS problem is..... everything else is worn out & too much slack to let the PS engage. I need to rebush bunch stuff in all PS linkage, new tie-rod ends, etc, etc.

It has the combined Hyd-PowerSteering reservoir set-up. I've had other type set-ups with the separate PS pump/reservoir, & must say that I like the combined system much better.
 
Thanks for all the replies, my system uses the same resivor for both. I am guessing it's the earlier version, with the information here I should be able to start to understand it. The 4500s are so old, no one around here remembers anything about them & the old mechanics are either dead or retired so I have to do this on my on.
 

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