Tried & true tricks to unstick a clutch- Ford8n?

[greybeard]

Brother came down yesterday and tried to use his Ford 8n for the first time since Christmas and found the clutch stuck. Pedal works but the disc won't disengage from the flywheel. We already tried jacking up one wheel and letting it run in gear for a while and tried driving it around the pasture, applying brakes etc and No Go.
We were going to hook up a bush hog and try that till it started pouring rain.
Anyone know another way to free one up?

 

[Kingfisher]

Put it in reverse gear and drag it. I've done it with cars. It'll make a pop when it comes loose

 

[1982vett]

Brother came down yesterday and tried to use his Ford 8n for the first time since Christmas and found the clutch stuck. Pedal works but the disc won't disengage from the flywheel. We already tried jacking up one wheel and letting it run in gear for a while and tried driving it around the pasture, applying brakes etc and No Go.
We were going to hook up a bush hog and try that till it started pouring rain.
Anyone know another way to free one up?

Load it up and bring it over here....


I can't fix it but I could use the rain. :kid:

 

[greybeard]

Brother came down yesterday and tried to use his Ford 8n for the first time since Christmas and found the clutch stuck. Pedal works but the disc won't disengage from the flywheel. We already tried jacking up one wheel and letting it run in gear for a while and tried driving it around the pasture, applying brakes etc and No Go.
We were going to hook up a bush hog and try that till it started pouring rain.
Anyone know another way to free one up?

Load it up and bring it over here....


I can't fix it but I could use the rain. :kid:

There's more to that than ya know, but it ain't the tractor--it's brother dearest. Brother lives in Arkansas and has a house on Bolivar Peninsula Texas as well as property adjacent to me here--and has had for years. He has become infamous over the time for dragging rain along with him every time he crosses the Red River--to the point, that all the folks on that Bolivar Peninsula web page groan every time he mentions he is heading down that way, and I and my sisters don't even bother planning any kind of outside activity if we know he is coming.
I need to find a way to rent him out.

Kingfisher, we'll give that a try, but ground is so muddy now, I don't know if it'll work..

 

[Red Bull Breeder]

Put her in high gear and crank on the starter with the clutch petal mashed down.

 

[greybeard]

Did that, it starts and runs. Tried it with the brake pedals locked, burned the battery cable off of it. Replaced that, started it with it in gear. Bush hogged for an hour with the clutch pedal down--it never skipped a beat. Pulled it in reverse--which just cranked the engine over for about 300 yards. I dunno, guess we'll have to split it after we get that old Dearborn fel off of it.

 

[dieselbeef]

sure the pedal is pushin on the pressure plate? might git something thru the insp cover to help pry it off if the pedal is pushing the fingers in

 

[greybeard]

I'm not aware of any inspection cover on a 8 or 9n, other than the starter bore, and even then, you can't see anything except a little of the cross rod that the fork sits on.
Brother had to go back North this afternoon, so I guess he will look into it when ever he returns.
"Might" be able to see something with the steering sector removed--I just can't remember.

 

[Ouachita]

Put her in high gear and crank on the starter with the clutch petal mashed down.

Yep. Or if you have good brakes, start it and drive it in high gear and stomp the brakes (both at the same time ).

 

[dun]

If the clutch is truly frozen to the flywheel in order for it to work right and not wear things out to fast you're going to need to remove it and clean up the flywheel.

 

[Bigfoot]

The only time I'm happy that I have dinky little equipment is, when I have to crack it open.

 

[Kingfisher]

Did that, it starts and runs. Tried it with the brake pedals locked, burned the battery cable off of it. Replaced that, started it with it in gear. Bush hogged for an hour with the clutch pedal down--it never skipped a beat. Pulled it in reverse--which just cranked the engine over for about 300 yards. I dunno, guess we'll have to split it after we get that old Dearborn fel off of it.

300 yards!?! Lol. I hope I didn't lead you astray....think about what's going on if you think the disc is "stuck". It probably needs a good clutch job any way buddy. Might be why it's "stuck" after sitting for a lil bit.

 

[Dwayne Oxford]

Never had 8N to stick, did have old Case backhoe to stick. We'd free it by running into gravel pile in high gear while holding clutch down.

 

[jltrent]

If it has a drain hole in the bottom stick a can of penetrating oil straw in and empty the direction of the clutch. If some will get on the clutch/pressure plate and soak that might free it up. That stuff will about instantly free dually wheels stuck together mounted on a truck.

I noticed the thread was 7 years old, so if it is not unstuck by now split and use a jack hammer.

 

[Redgully]

If it has a drain hole in the bottom stick a can of penetrating oil straw in and empty the direction of the clutch. If some will get on the clutch/pressure plate and soak that might free it up. That stuff will about instantly free dually wheels stuck together mounted on a truck.

I noticed the thread was 7 years old, so if it is not unstuck by now split and use a jack hammer.

But how would oil effect the operation of the clutch after in came free?

 

[wbvs58]

Well, tell us GB, how did you end up getting it sorted?

Ken

 

[jltrent]

If it has a drain hole in the bottom stick a can of penetrating oil straw in and empty the direction of the clutch. If some will get on the clutch/pressure plate and soak that might free it up. That stuff will about instantly free dually wheels stuck together mounted on a truck.

I noticed the thread was 7 years old, so if it is not unstuck by now split and use a jack hammer.

But how would oil effect the operation of the clutch after in came free?

No expert on freeing clutches, but I believe the thin oil if clutch slippage would burn off quick unlike motor oil.

 

[Releaseme!]

Put it in reverse gear and drag it. I've done it with cars. It'll make a pop when it comes loose

i tried this today and now i have no pedal and clutch is still stuck.

 

[greybeard]

Well, tell us GB, how did you end up getting it sorted?

Ken

3 years after you asked and I guess 10 years after I asked, and 3 years after brother departed this mortal coil....I'll answer.
(bear in mind, brother and I were booth mechanics, having broke our teeth on flathead Fords in the late 50s-early 60s, can both weld, drill and tap threads so this quick fix was low risk for us if it didn't work and we had to go back to sq 1. )
By carefully measuring where the starter gear engaged the flywheel, we were able to determine exactly where the clutch disc came in contact with the back of the flywheel. Using an off the shelf 1" hole saw in a good drill, we drilled a hole in the opposite side of the flywheel housing. With me holding the clutch pedal down, it only took a couple whacks with a big screwdriver or chisel (been too long ago) for the disc to separate from the pressure plate surface and it came loose from the flywheel the first time we drove it.
Then I tapped NPT treads in the bore and put a plug in it.
(not the actual engine, we didn't want to take that fel off and split the tractor.)


That 2 part Dearborn loader wasn't something that you get off in a few minutes like modern loaders are.