I have been asked to transport a Cub for a friend. He claims the rear wheels are locked up and will not roll when the tractor is in neutral.

To prevent winch-dragging this locked tractor up on the trailer, some research tells me to inspect the transmission for something jamming the bull gear, or the tractor being between two gears.

If before moving it, I am able to remove the top plate and view down in the trans, does anyone have advice or photos that show what the proper neutral gears position is, or how to fix the 'between two gears' issue?

Thank you.

could be a number of things causing the lock up. if you pull the cover, try and center the two shift rods for neutral. could also be ice in the case too. an option to move the tractor without a lot of fooling round is to use a set of skates under the rear tires. we have them on our tow trucks for loading a disabled vehicle where the wheels will not turn. you can build a set with some wood and a couple sheets of smooth steel or tin for a slide surface. here is a link to what skates look like. they work well on hard or soft ground. go jacks are another option, but they need either concrete or blacktop to roll on
tire skates

If it is cold where you are located it could be ice that is causing the problem. Water has a way of getting where it don t belong and will lock up trannys and drop boxes. If there is enough water it will crack cast iron with freezeing expansion.

It's not ice as it apparently had this issue last August.

The tractor has addition problems to deal with, but getting it on the trailer is job 1.

Hey Ken - If it was stuck back in August the problem's most likely the transmission caught in 2 gears at once.

The Cub transmission is pretty simple inside (same 3 speed transmission is used in the early Cub Cadet garden tractors). Removing the top cover should let you quickly figure it out and pop the offending gears back into neutral.

Also....with all the ice/snow we still have here you should be able to winch the Cub aboard a trailer without difficulty, even with the back end locked up solid. A couple smooth planks with a little wet snow on 'em will slide the rear tires very nicely!

Good luck!

Bob

I would remove the top cover then line up the rails mite need to jack up one wheel or push the clutch in to release the pressure but it should be an easy task.

Hi Bob - I hope you're well. Yep, hopefully nothing is already crunched in there, they've already winched it on a trailer once, locked up.

So if I can get into it on the spot, maybe I can locate the jam.

But I'm hoping for a picture that shows the gears in proper neutral, or something to learn from & refer too. Do you have any of those in that image bank of yours?

I hope to see you soon, the newest BO on steel resto resumes in the garage this weekend!

The trans cover removal allows direct view of the shift rails. These have two notches in which the shifter tip moves to put it in gear.
If the lever is in Neutral, the rail slots will be aligned, and near the center. If it is in two gears at once they will be off set from one another, and/or not in the center where neutral should be. Jim

Ken - I have no Cub tranny images in my archives. However you can find one online like this:

Go to http://www.external_link/Index.cfm

At the upper right corner of the home page click on "Online Parts Catalogs"

Now click the "click here" under the Parts-Parts Catalogs-OEM-Case IH banner at about the middle of the page.

Next key in "CUB" in the search box, then click the search button.

Now choose a model from the list (eg 154 CUB GAS TRACTOR (1/47-12/75) and click the box with next to it.

Repeat under DRIVE TRAIN in the dropdown list that appears and select "DRIVE TRAIN, TRANSMISSION".

If the internet gods are willing, a window showing an exploded view of the tranny and the parts list will open.

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But before doing that simply remove the shift lever from the transmission (knock out the lever pivot pin in the cover) and peek inside. The notches in both shifter rails should be centered and opposite each other in the opening. If not (ie both notches are ahead, one is ahead and the other it behind, etc) use a BF screwdriver two pry both rails into the center position. (It may help to have an assistant rock the tractor back and forth as you pry). If there are no other problems inside the tranny, when then rails are both centered the tranny will be in neutral.

Good luck!

PS - Would like to stop over sometime for a peek at your "new" BO!

All else fails, you can easily figure out what "neutral" is by moving the shift forks all the way forward and all the way back.

Half way in between is neutral. Simple.