Farmall Cub

Hi Everyone,
I'm new to the forum and was hoping you all could help me with a problem I'm having with my 185 Lo-Boy. I just purchased the tractor a couple of days ago, the wife a I just got 2 acres that has been in disrepair for years and the cub came with a loader, dozer blade and a mower deck. The machine runs beautifully, the hydraulics all work great and everything is fine except for the shifter. It flops all over the place and you can get first and reverse most anywhere, 2nd and 3rd are tough to find, but they are there. The most annoying aspect of this problem is that it pops out of reverse constantly. Light (very light) pressure on the shifter keeps this from happening. I'm hoping others are familiar with this problem and know the fix. I'm guessing the ball on the bottom of the shifter is worn or the shift fork(s) are bad.
Any info would be very helpful and Thanks,
Jeff

Welcome to the forum, Jeff! You'll need to pull the top off the trans. and have a look around. Common problems are the ball you mentioned, cracked/broken/loose shift forks and the bottom portion of the shift tower, which has the guide for the lever may have come loose. Whatever you find, it will likely be an easy fix.

From my little/past experience, you'll be acres ahead if you pull the fenders/seat support and associated sheet metal. The IPTO shaft makes it a little tough to wrestle off the top of the tranny even with the sheetmetal off. It's also MUCH easier with the rear tires off even though it's extra work. Get the seat off and the battery out and all the sheetmetal can be lifted off in one piece.

Jeff, welcome. To add to Gary and Phazer, here's an old post detailing the probable shifter issue. http://www.farmallcub.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=54956&p=454087&hilit=loose+shifter#p454087 It's a common issue with cubs. Your's will be slighly different than a regular cub because your lever is curved and has a guide pin to keep the shifter from rotating around in circles(like the regular cubs can), but the curved disk still breaks loose on the numbered series cubs.

Keep us informed and keep coming back,
Rick

Welcome to the forum. If you need any parts i would checkout TM tractor parts for new parts or "hamiltonbobscubs" on ebay at the "154cub" list of used parts.

On my 154 it was jumping out of reverse too. I found the fork loose so i tightened the shifter fork bolt and did the welded trick on the fork since it wasn't welded yet. It welds the upper section of the fork to the lower section of the fork so its solid and can't work loose again. It makes the bended halves one peice. I would check to see if its welded on the top of the fork too. Most cub trannies i check have been welded already. The first thing i do now is to pull the shifter cover assembly to check the forks for being tight on the guide rods and see if the 1st & reverse fork is welded. Then i know the tranny won't give me "od ji ta" down the road.

Funny how i just checked out a cub cadet with the same problem which i have to repair too in the near future.

Thank you all for the warm welcome and the great info. The link with the photos was very informative. If the shifter guide has come loose can I tack weld it back to the underside of the cover? Also Bill mentioned welding the shift forks if they are loose, what should I look for as far as them being loose and what exactly do I weld? The more I use this tractor the more I like it, the popping out of reverse issue seems to be improving the more I use it but that may just be wishfull thinking on my part. I kind of stumbled on to this one when I was looking for an older Cub, but really wanted a loader, so this one seems to be perfect. I know you guys haven't seen it but what is the "going rate" for a 185 with a loader, dozer blade and a 60" deck? I gave $2850.00 for it, it's not a beauty queen (yet) but other than the issues we are talking about everything works great.
Thanks again for all the help and I look forward to learning more!
Jeff

From what I've seen, loaders are "FAR AND FEW BETWEEN". And I do mean far . . .

About the only thing rarer, is snowblowers and tillers.

I'll give posting a photo a try. The loader, the dozer blade and the deck are all International pieces. I don't know why the photo came out so small , it kept saying the file was too big and when I down sized it to the recommended size it came out like this - old guys and computers!

Jeff:

Congrats on acquiring your new to you Lo-Boy

Pics... if you use the attachment option here on the forums you are limited to essentially a large thumbnail. If you want a larger pic then I would suggest you utilize the CubFest Photohost which exists for members to upload pics and link to the forums here. These articles might help you :

CBoK wrote:On The Forums

All About Posts and Forum Questions



1. How To Do Neat Stuff In A Post!
   
2. How To Create An Account On The CubFest Photo Server
3. How to Post A Picture For Visual Learners
4. How To Upload Pics To Photobucket For Visual Learners
5. How To More With The Forum Software - FAQ's
6. How To Manipulate Pictures - A Tutorial by Yo's Dad

to Farmallcub.com Forum Family. And you have come to the right place for all things Cub related. If you click on the Site Rules, Regulations, & Important Information, it will point you to the Welcome Wagon wherein you will find links to many useful sites and topics. One of which is the Cub Manual Server. Enjoy!.

I do not have a lot of stuff on the Numbered Series Cub Lo-Boys but I do have these:

International Cub 185 Lo-Boy Operator's Manual 8-75

IH-54 Blade

TC-131 Parts Catalog Revision 8 Index which has a lot of info on the attachments you have ...

IH 1050A Loader and the mower - not sure which one you have but you can figure out which mower you have under the Other Equipment link.

Rick has you covered on the shifter issues.

Rudi,
My gosh! Thanks for all the info! Being able to look at the owners manual is fantastic. I can't say thanks enough for all the help you guys have given me. I'll let you all know what I find when I get to look at things. I'll get the picture thing mastered too.
Thanks again,
Jeff

Hey I got it!