# MF 135 Power Steering Problems



## JJM1953

MF 135, I just bought a big problem. Power steering was pushing oil out the weep hole on the steering column. The weep hole is actually where the bolt holds the spring and plastic steering column cover bracket in place. I replaced the steering valve with a new one. I put a new power steering pump on it. Now with all new parts, the steering jerks back and forth violently with the wheels off the floor because this is the way I was told to bleed the air. Any suggestions besides to get rid of it and suffer my loss or part it out. Pump and lines actually go very hot when bleeding air. Pump stayed full because I checked it often and refilled it as needed.


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## Fedup

New steering valve. The original problem was an oil leak with fluid coming up and out the column somewhere below the steering wheel? Yes/no? Was there some other problem with the steering that indicated a faulty valve at that time? Where did the valve come from and what was included? Did you have a manual with step by step instructions for removal and installation of said valve?


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## JJM1953

Fedup said:


> New steering valve. The original problem was an oil leak with fluid coming up and out the column somewhere below the steering wheel? Yes/no? Was there some other problem with the steering that indicated a faulty valve at that time? Where did the valve come from and what was included? Did you have a manual with step by step instructions for removal and installation of said valve?


Yes, original problem was fluid pushing up the steering column. Once I took the old valve off and checked it, the springs were broken in the valve. New valve from Lowe and Young tractor parts. www.loweandyoung.com/buy-parts/Sparex-Part-S42753-VALVE-ASSE-153667/ Yes manual was used to take off the old valve and replace the new valve. It's a very simple task to tackle. I did replace the column seal with a new one and no fluid coming out of the weep hole. It's just the violent shaking back and forth of the steering and power steering pump and lines getting hot within minutes. I never had this problem with old valve or old pump. Thanks for replying.


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## Fedup

I don't believe I've ever replaced an entire valve assembly. Have had a number of them off and back on, and yes broken springs in the plunger assemblies are rather common. Those I have replaced many of. The most trouble I've had with that type valve is getting the stake nut torqued properly with the thrust bearings properly adjusted so the valve spool travels up and down correctly. I don't think I've ever tried to bleed one with the wheels off the ground. Have you tried it with wheels down?


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## JJM1953

Fedup said:


> New steering valve. The original problem was an oil leak with fluid coming up and out the column somewhere below the steering wheel? Yes/no? Was there some other problem with the steering that indicated a faulty valve at that time? Where did the valve come from and what was included? Did you have a manual with step by step instructions for removal and installation of said valve?


Yes, original problem was fluid pushing up the steering column. Once I took the old valve off and checked it, the springs were broken in the valve. New valve from Lowe and Young tractor parts. www.loweandyoung.com/buy-parts/Sparex-Part-S42753-VALVE-ASSE-153667/ Yes manual was used to take off the old valve and replace the new valve. It's a very simple task to tackle. I did replace the column seal with a new one and no fluid coming out of the weep hole. It's just the violent shaking back and forth of the steering and power steering pump and lines getting hot within minutes. I never had this problem with old valve or old pump. Thanks for replying.


Fedup said:


> I don't believe I've ever replaced an entire valve assembly. Have had a number of them off and back on, and yes broken springs in the plunger assemblies are rather common. Those I have replaced many of. The most trouble I've had with that type valve is getting the stake nut torqued properly with the thrust bearings properly adjusted so the valve spool travels up and down correctly. I don't think I've ever tried to bleed one with the wheels off the ground. Have you tried it with wheels down?


Going to try it with wheels on ground sometime this week. May be taking my wife to a nursing home. Breaking my heart thinking about it if and when I do. Thanks Fedup !


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## JJM1953

Fedup said:


> I don't believe I've ever replaced an entire valve assembly. Have had a number of them off and back on, and yes broken springs in the plunger assemblies are rather common. Those I have replaced many of. The most trouble I've had with that type valve is getting the stake nut torqued properly with the thrust bearings properly adjusted so the valve spool travels up and down correctly. I don't think I've ever tried to bleed one with the wheels off the ground. Have you tried it with wheels down?


Hey Fedup, I don't have the torque specs for the stake nut but I know what you're talking about. Do you have any specs on torqueing the nut ? On mine it only appears that the valve assembly torques the lower thrust bearings and the stake nut torques the upper thrust bearings. I may be wrong but that seems like the way it came off and went back on. First two photos shows the old valve being removed which I took pics with my iPhone so I could make sure the new red one went back on in the correct manner.


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## Fedup

I would imagine there is a "torque spec" for the nut, but I've never looked it up. Due to the stake and unstake action on the nut, the threads on the shaft tend to get slightly damaged every time the nut comes off, so the actual torque required to tighten the nut back down will vary in proportion to the condition of the shaft and the nut. I do it mainly by "feel", similar to wheel bearings. It may help to put a bolt in one of the three holes and snug the body down onto the casting to keep it in place during the process. Put the wheel back on the splines and turn the shaft slightly back and forth while tightening the nut, feeling for a slight resistance on the bearings. If all the pieces, plungers, and springs are in place, the nut/bearings are adjusted, rotating the steering wheel a few inches in one direction will cause the valve spool to rise slightly within the body. Turning the same distance in the other direction will cause the spool to lower slightly an equal distance(more or less). Letting go of the wheel at this point should allow it to return to center and the spool will also return to center. When that feels right I stake the nut and move on. If the spool travel, the wheel travel, and the resistance feel equal in both directions the steering should work. Don't turn the wheel more than just the few inches until the upper tube is bolted back on. 

Don't throw the old valve away. There may well be nothing wrong with it.


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## JJM1953

Fedup said:


> I would imagine there is a "torque spec" for the nut, but I've never looked it up. Due to the stake and unstake action on the nut, the threads on the shaft tend to get slightly damaged every time the nut comes off, so the actual torque required to tighten the nut back down will vary in proportion to the condition of the shaft and the nut. I do it mainly by "feel", similar to wheel bearings. It may help to put a bolt in one of the three holes and snug the body down onto the casting to keep it in place during the process. Put the wheel back on the splines and turn the shaft slightly back and forth while tightening the nut, feeling for a slight resistance on the bearings. If all the pieces, plungers, and springs are in place, the nut/bearings are adjusted, rotating the steering wheel a few inches in one direction will cause the valve spool to rise slightly within the body. Turning the same distance in the other direction will cause the spool to lower slightly an equal distance(more or less). Letting go of the wheel at this point should allow it to return to center and the spool will also return to center. When that feels right I stake the nut and move on. If the spool travel, the wheel travel, and the resistance feel equal in both directions the steering should work. Don't turn the wheel more than just the few inches until the upper tube is bolted back on.
> 
> Don't throw the old valve away. There may well be nothing wrong with it.


Yes I'll keep the old one and thanks for the reply. I'll work on this sometime this week or maybe next week, all depending on my wife. Thanks Fedup and have a great week.


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## caryc

JJM1953 said:


> Yes I'll keep the old one and thanks for the reply. I'll work on this sometime this week or maybe next week, all depending on my wife. Thanks Fedup and have a great week.


Your steering column looks just like mine did on my MG202 which is the industrial version of the MF35. I had power steering fluid spurting out the top of the steering column. I had it apart multiple time trying different things, new seal on column (twice) even tried a speedy sleeve.

I finally got so disgusted, I decided to get rid of the whole column and all it's parts and replace them with new modern parts. Does your tractor have power steering cylinders on each side for the front wheels? I replaced everything for around $600. The result was that I now have a tractor that steers like a Cadillac. I can turn the wheel with one finger even when the tractor is stopped. 

If you would like to see what I did, I wrote up a post on the procedure including pictures. (click on the link at the bottom of the post for pictures. Or you can just click on this link to see the pictures.

http://www.clccustomgrips.com/steeringbuild1.html

You can read the post at this link.

https://www.mytractorforum.com/threads/my-mf202-power-steering-makeover.1339079/


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## JJM1953

caryc said:


> Your steering column looks just like mine did on my MG202 which is the industrial version of the MF35. I had power steering fluid spurting out the top of the steering column. I had it apart multiple time trying different things, new seal on column (twice) even tried a speedy sleeve.
> 
> I finally got so disgusted, I decided to get rid of the whole column and all it's parts and replace them with new modern parts. Does your tractor have power steering cylinders on each side for the front wheels? I replaced everything for around $600. The result was that I now have a tractor that steers like a Cadillac. I can turn the wheel with one finger even when the tractor is stopped.
> 
> If you would like to see what I did, I wrote up a post on the procedure including pictures. (click on the link at the bottom of the post for pictures. Or you can just click on this link to see the pictures.
> 
> http://www.clccustomgrips.com/steeringbuild1.html
> 
> You can read the post at this link.
> 
> https://www.mytractorforum.com/threads/my-mf202-power-steering-makeover.1339079/


caryc, I'm starting to get disgusted with mine. No, it doesn't have the steering cylinders, only the steering valve and pump. I put a new $500.00 valve on it and a new $124.00 power steering pump and $100.00 in new lines. I have tried adjusting the valve stake nut every which way I can and it still has a problem. The IT manual calls for a 30lb. torque and back off 1/4 turn. I have tried from tight to very lose on the stake nut with no avail. The steering, no matter where the stake nut is torqued or lose the steering has a slight jerk in it when I turn the steering wheel, even just a couple of inches. The new pump gets so hot I can't keep my hand on it. I'm going to put my old pump back on it and see if it gets hot and the steering still has that jerk to it when moving the steering wheel. Then I will know if the new pump is bad or not if my old one gets hot like the new one. Thanks and wish I had went that way but was afraid I might have trouble fitting the steering cylinder kit, especially across the front end of the engine.


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## JJM1953

Fedup said:


> I would imagine there is a "torque spec" for the nut, but I've never looked it up. Due to the stake and unstake action on the nut, the threads on the shaft tend to get slightly damaged every time the nut comes off, so the actual torque required to tighten the nut back down will vary in proportion to the condition of the shaft and the nut. I do it mainly by "feel", similar to wheel bearings. It may help to put a bolt in one of the three holes and snug the body down onto the casting to keep it in place during the process. Put the wheel back on the splines and turn the shaft slightly back and forth while tightening the nut, feeling for a slight resistance on the bearings. If all the pieces, plungers, and springs are in place, the nut/bearings are adjusted, rotating the steering wheel a few inches in one direction will cause the valve spool to rise slightly within the body. Turning the same distance in the other direction will cause the spool to lower slightly an equal distance(more or less). Letting go of the wheel at this point should allow it to return to center and the spool will also return to center. When that feels right I stake the nut and move on. If the spool travel, the wheel travel, and the resistance feel equal in both directions the steering should work. Don't turn the wheel more than just the few inches until the upper tube is bolted back on.
> 
> Don't throw the old valve away. There may well be nothing wrong with it.


Fedup, I worked on it some today and this is what I came up with. I put a new $500.00 valve on it and a new $124.00 power steering pump and $100.00 in new lines. I have tried adjusting the valve stake nut every which way I can and it still has a problem. The IT manual calls for a 30 ft. lb. torque and back off 1/4 turn. I have tried from tight to very lose on the stake nut with no avail. The steering, no matter where the stake nut is torqued or lose the steering has a slight jerk in it when I turn the steering wheel, even just a couple of inches. The new pump gets so hot I can't keep my hand on it. I'm going to put my old pump back on it and see if it gets hot and the steering still has that jerk to it when moving the steering wheel. Then I will know if the new pump is bad or not if my old one gets hot like the new one. Thanks


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## Fedup

I would suspect the pump getting hot is not the fault of the pump at all, but more a result of higher than normal pressure through the system whether the steering is being used or not. Just guessing. Beyond that, it seems you've tried most of what can be tried, and I'm not sure what else I can offer "over the phone".


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## JLSteiner

Having worked on these years ago, I am wondering, could you have crossed the hydraulic lines? Or put the valve on upside down, It has been 40 years since I worked on these tractor, and kind of forget some of the problems we had with them.


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## JJM1953

JLSteiner said:


> Having worked on these years ago, I am wondering, could you have crossed the hydraulic lines? Or put the valve on upside down, It has been 40 years since I worked on these tractor, and kind of forget some of the problems we had with them.


The valve will only fit properly one way. The way it was put on is the same way the old one came off. If it were upside down it wouldn't show the RT & PR showing up top like in the pics. The lines aren't crossed at pump because the return is simple to put on and the long L end of the return goes straight down into the pump brass adapter. I'm going to work on it again today, Lord willing and try to get some more results from it. Thanks to all for your thoughts and input which is much appreciated. Anyone or any thoughts are welcome to figure this out and may help someone else even on other forums. God Bless each of you !


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## JJM1953

I found out today the control valve was faulty. Sparex is selling bad parts and Lowe and Young won't man up and pay return shipping. They asked me to contact Sparex and Sparex told me to contact Lowe and Young. Passing the buck back and forth. Oh well, I can live without it if they can live with it. LOL Now to move on to the next plan !!! Thanks all for your thoughts and input !


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## Fedup

What's that? Back to the old valve with new springs?


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## JJM1953

Fedup said:


> What's that? Back to the old valve with new springs?


I found a John Deere 2010 with power steering and I'm trying to buy the control valve off of it, Fedup. If all else fails I will rebuild my old valve or may try a conversion kit.


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## Fedup

If it were mine I would go with the new springs. The valve DID work before all this, right? Just had leaks?


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## JJM1953

Fedup said:


> If it were mine I would go with the new springs. The valve DID work before all this, right? Just had leaks?


Yes it did Fedup. That would be my next cheapest way to go.


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## Just Wondering

JJM1953 ...
I have a MF 135 sitting in the pasture near the barn.
Parked under a tree years ago when the power steering failed.
Dad said (he was alive then) -- you have to pull the entire tractor apart to fix it.
???? say what dad
Husband says --- you have to rebuild the power steering pump, oh and the rear tires are shot and need tubes or to be replaced, and the seat is squishy -- I need a new tractor (oh lordy)
??? bought husband a new tractor

So I stare at the MF 135 every time I go feed the goats.

You've given me hope that I can get it running again and steering. lol
JW

My thoughts and prayers are with you and your wife. Transitions can be hard.


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## deerhide

JW, If that MF135 will run you could use it w/o ps. A pair of used rear tires can't be all that expensive.......I wonder how far it is to n.e. Texas?


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## JJM1953

Just Wondering said:


> JJM1953 ...
> I have a MF 135 sitting in the pasture near the barn.
> Parked under a tree years ago when the power steering failed.
> Dad said (he was alive then) -- you have to pull the entire tractor apart to fix it.
> ???? say what dad
> Husband says --- you have to rebuild the power steering pump, oh and the rear tires are shot and need tubes or to be replaced, and the seat is squishy -- I need a new tractor (oh lordy)
> ??? bought husband a new tractor I stare at the MF 135 every time I go feed the goats.
> 
> You've given me hope that I can get it running again and steering. lol
> JW
> 
> My thoughts and prayers are with you and your wife. Transitions can be hard.


Thank you JW for your thoughts and prayers. They are much appreciated and needed. Ok now JW, that could have been a hint. LOL The 135's are fairly simple to work on if one is mechanically inclined and can find good replacement parts, that's the trouble with aftermarket parts. If I were closer I'd fix it one way or the other for you. I drove 11 hours today to get a steering control valve for mine. Fingers crossed and thank God we made that trip without any problems.


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## Just Wondering

You are a sweety JJM --
I am on a first name basis with the guys that rebuild cylinders and they offered to do the power steering pump for me. Yea!
However,
I have to finish the 330 International before I start another tractor. 
I did buy 2 quarts of caterpillar yellow rustoleum this past weekend, since the 330 International was an municipal/industrial use and not painted red.
A dry day is needed now.

JW


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## JJM1953

Just Wondering said:


> You are a sweety JJM --
> I am on a first name basis with the guys that rebuild cylinders and they offered to do the power steering pump for me. Yea!
> However,
> I have to finish the 330 International before I start another tractor.
> I did buy 2 quarts of caterpillar yellow rustoleum this past weekend, since the 330 International was an municipal/industrial use and not painted red.
> A dry day is needed now.
> JW


Well that's good news. Maybe you'll get that Massey going before summer !!! We just got a down pour here and also need a few dry days. That yellow paint is a definite sign for an Industrial compared to the red and grey on the lil' MF's. I'm hoping to work on mine today and prayers it will get fixed.


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## JJM1953

Update on my MF 135. I found a John Deere 2010 power steering valve for $100.00. Drove 6 hours to get it. Had to have the lines off the JD 2010 also because it didn't use Bolt Banjo's and Banjo fittings. Worked on it all day today and finally, knock on wood, it worked and steering great. It does have a slight jerk when turning back and forth but the stabilizer bars have some wear on them and may need replacing. The system may have some air in it to. Thanks to all your comments and suggestions. Thank God it's working for now !!!


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## JJM1953

caryc said:


> Your steering column looks just like mine did on my MG202 which is the industrial version of the MF35. I had power steering fluid spurting out the top of the steering column. I had it apart multiple time trying different things, new seal on column (twice) even tried a speedy sleeve.
> 
> I finally got so disgusted, I decided to get rid of the whole column and all it's parts and replace them with new modern parts. Does your tractor have power steering cylinders on each side for the front wheels? I replaced everything for around $600. The result was that I now have a tractor that steers like a Cadillac. I can turn the wheel with one finger even when the tractor is stopped.
> 
> If you would like to see what I did, I wrote up a post on the procedure including pictures. (click on the link at the bottom of the post for pictures. Or you can just click on this link to see the pictures.
> 
> http://www.clccustomgrips.com/steeringbuild1.html
> 
> You can read the post at this link.
> 
> https://www.mytractorforum.com/threads/my-mf202-power-steering-makeover.1339079/


cary c, I tried all resources at hand and still didn't fix it from leaking out the column tube. I put the valve on from the JD 2010 and had to rework all of my lines. The Banjo fittings and banjo bolts wouldn't work on the JD valve. I did break a Banjo bolt and not going to try fixing it with an original or aftermarket valve. I don't have the cylinders on the sides like you, so your setup won't work for me. I'm getting ready to post on Market Place for sale or part it out. Standard steering is out of the scene for me. Any other way or ideals appreciated besides retrofitting a new $700.00 steering kit. Thanks


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