Multi-Power-When & How?

I shift multi-power any time. Stopped and out of gear is the best time, because the transmission is easier to shift in low range. I high range the multipower acts as a "hill holder" ala Studebaker cars. e.g. it holds the tractor, but that puts pressure on the transmission gears making it very hard or impossible to shift out of gear.

M-P is a large version of a Sturmey-Archer planetary bicycle transmission. Its got to be toughest on it to shift with full throttle and full load (e.g. plowing when encountering tough dirt), but that's when its needed and what its made for, I believe. There are no restrictions mentioned in the MF-135 owner's manuals that I have. I definitely can hear the ratchet palls catch with a click.

On the other hand, I hear that parts are nearly impossible to buy, and that makes fixing M-P more than a little difficult.

On my MF-135 I seem to have a control valve leak that adds oil to the clutch bell housing when in high range. But I keep using it. Its so handy splitting speeds to 12 gears forward to match the ground speed to the work in progress while keeping up the PTO speed.

Gerald

Any suggestions?

: Any suggestions?

My MF-135 has a triple valve under the seat. There's a MF part number for it. The left lever selects internal or external and de tents in the internal position. I can't operate the three point at the exact same time as a loader on the auxiliary valves. But the MF-236 loader I have came with its own hydraulic system, using a pedestal post as the reservoir, and a PTO pump. I've since changed to a front engine driven pump after some lowlife stole the PTO pump. (I HOPE it continues to leak!) A loader on the MF-135 internal pump would be on the slow side because its only rated at 4 gpm. The last pump I put on the front was 5 gpm and leisurely but not impossibly bad and definitely didn't require much loader operator finesse. The 10 or 20 gpm PTO pump required finesse to not jerk the tractor around with the empty loader.

I've since put the MF loader on my JD 4020 and tapped its hydraulic system. Its pump is 21 gpm and there's a priority valve for steering and brakes so I put a flow control needle valve in the power tap to the loader's valve and it all works fine. With that much tractor under the loader it digs like a bull dozer. That loader was too big for the MF-135.

Gerald

Just move the lever when ever you want to (you often have to pull it back to get the tractor out of gaer on a hill) and leave the tales to the old wives. :-)