# 1957 Ford 861 clutch problem



## Sojourner (Sep 19, 2016)

Hi,
I have my grandfathers Ford 861. It has been sitting in Oklahoma since the late 70s out in the rain so as you can imagine it is rusted in places. It hadn't been used in about 10 years and I've brought it back to the farm. I got it running and have been using it. A week ago, I was brush hogging with it and the clutch was working fine. I parked it in the barn. Yesterday I went to use it and I pushed the clutch down, but it only came up half way. It takes about 10 to 20lbs of pressure to pull the clutch lever back up. The tractor still moves, but the clutch lever is really stiff for the last half of it's travel. I have an IT Shop and Service manual for the 800 series tractor, but the clutch section is very limited. I need two things.
1) What would make the clutch lever move freely on the lower part of the travel and really hard on the upper part of it's travel?
2) What manuals do you recommend? I need a better one. This one doesn't even have a wireing digram in it. Some of the wireing is missing and I want to get my fuel gage and generator not charging light working again, not to mention the clutch.

Thanks in advance!


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## sixbales (May 18, 2011)

Howdy Sojourner,

Welcome to the forum.

I suspect you may have rust and debris buildup on the transmission input shaft housing where the throwout bearing hub rides forward/aft when you push the clutch in and release it. Don't know why it didn't show up earlier? 

Firstly, make certain the weep hole in the bottom of the clutch housing is open. The purpose of this weep hole is to drain off any leakage from the engine rear main seal or from the transmission input shaft seal, so the oil doesn't get on the clutch. It should have a cotter pin sticking out of it to keep it open. Wiggle it around and run a wire up alongside it to ensure it's open.

Try this: Get a can of spray brake cleaner with a spray tube. Pull two base/mounting bolts from one side of the steering gearbox. These holes should give you very limited access to the rear of the clutch housing. Have someone work the clutch as you direct spray thru the holes towards the shaft below, where the throwout bearing rides. See if you can get the clutch to free up.

The brake cleaner will not damage the clutch disc.

Hope this makes sense to you. If not, fire back any questions.

You can get service manuals for your 861 from various sources on the internet. Ebay usually has a good selection. You will get the best bang for your buck by buying a full service manual downloaded onto a CD.


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## Sojourner (Sep 19, 2016)

Thanks! I understand your suggestion. Thanks!


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## Sojourner (Sep 19, 2016)

I finally figured out what the problem is with the clutch. I had been brush hogging with it, and a piece of wood was thrown onto the running board. It got between the rod that goes through the running board and the board. It was just thick enough to cause problems only when the clutch lever started to get close to the end of it's travel. I was working on the wiring trying to get the generator to work, dropped the nut off the terminal block and was looking for it. I was on my knees and looked down at the running board and saw that piece of wood under the clutch rod. I pressed on the clutch, got the wood out and now the clutch works fine! Thanks for all your advice. and suggestions! Sometimes the problem can be the simplest of things.


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