Gear oil for a MF 30

: I am posting this for my 82 year old grandfather who just bought a : MF 30 (B, I think) from the highway department. It : was made in 1974 and has a loader on it. It looks
: like it had a backhoe at one time. He bought it at
: auction and did not get any manuals with it.
: He has asked around and no one seems to know what : weight or type of gear oil he should use in the : transmission and differential. He said it holds
: 8 gallons and I think he said that it is run by a 3 : cylinder Perkins diesel engine. If someone could tell
: me whether it is hydraulic or 90 weight or what
: ever, it would sure make an old man happy. : Thanks, Lee

I also show 10.5 gallons for the manual transmission and 12 gallons for the instant reverse. The same stuff is called out for the axle planetaries. Power steering uses M-1129A. Loader uses MF Multiguard.

Hope this helps.

Kurt

Oil in transmission on MF is as follows:

If you have drumbreakes at the end of each rear axle housings you use SAE 15W-40 engine oil. Also possible to use gear oil SAE 80, NO HYPOID type oil. NO EP oil.

If you have dry (older) disc brakes you can use the same oil as mentioned above, (engine oil or gear oil)

If you have wet disc brakes you need either a special oil, or a special oil additive for wet brakes.
Do never attempt to fill regular engine or gear oil on wet brakes, you destroy them.

To identify if you have disc brakes you shall find a disc between the differential (center) housing and each rear axle housings (left and right side)

IMPORTANT !!!!! !!

Stay behind the tractor and take a look at the axle housing and look at the disc between the centerhousing and rear axle housing. If the edge of the disc is plain you have the old dry type disc brkaes. If you see some notches in them, 3-5 or so you have the wet type brakes. Count the notches and you know how many discs your tractor have.

This disc I mention is not the brake in itself, it is a disk that on the inner side holds the outer ball bearing cone for the differential and on the outer side act as a plate for the disc brake to trust against during braking.
The other side for the disc brake to trust is a machined surface in the rear axle housing itself. Between all the brake discs there is 2 activating discs that move away from each other when you press the brake pedal, and therefor press the brake discs to each side. In a way the same that happens in a cars disc brakes, only that the rotating parts has the brake liners on, and the steel disc is the fixed discs.

Hope this can help you and also others to find out what type of oil you need and also what type of brakes you have.

Sorry, your grandfather have.

PS: If the tractor has disc brakes, it is most likely wet brakes if it is a 1974 model. Wet brakes came around 1972-1973.

The wet brake transmission oil should be found from any oil company as they go for all kinds of heavy machinery too, with wet brakes.
Also, a lot of oil companies makes a transmission oil for agriculture machinery. Often a multi purpose oil to use on differential, hydraulic system, transmission, wet brakes, engine ++.
I will not recommend these oils on engine, a pure engine oil is always best for engines. But the rest of the tractor can use it.
In most cases these multi purpose oils are rather cheap to buy.

Bill Brox

In my MF-135 they want MF 1129A oil. I find Farmland Coop Super HTP hydraulic and transmission oil works a little better. It foams less and with no MF dealer in 50 miles its a whole lot easier to acquire. There's a mesh filter on the pump inlet accessible through the left side (after taking off the PTO lever cover) that needs cleaning while changing the transmission/hydraulic oil. Last time I tried, MF supplied operators and parts manual very reasonably. I called their old Des Moines HQ and they gave me a Wisconsin phone number to get the books. Today you'd probably have to start with AGCO HQ in Kansas City. You can't find all the lubrication points or gears without an owner's manual.