656 front axle

I need to adjust the width of the front wheels on my Farmall 656. Its got just the straight tubular axle and currently the wheels are all the way in. I need to move each out about 6”. I got the clamps and the pins out but have tried about everything I can think of to break the tubes loose. So far I’ve heated the outer tube with the acetylene torch as hot as I can get it. I can just get a faint redline down one side at a time. Torch just isn’t big enough. I’ve plugged the lower holes and poured tranny fluid in the tube and let it soak for a couple days. I’ve rigged up hydraulic jacks on two sides and jacked them to their capacity (and beyond) trying to slide the tubes apart, all to no avail. Hasn’t budged a fraction! These buggers are really stuck. Oh, I’ve also beaten my brains out with a sledgehammer.
Anyone got any other tricks? Am I possibly missing something? About all I can think to do at this point is completely remove the axle and try to get the thing red hot by some other means. I’ve got one of those big propane weed burner type torches but don’t know if that would work or not. Also worried about ruining any temper in the axle. Don’t know if that’s a concern?
Tim

Have you tried driving it around with the pins removed, and the clamps loosened? Just be ready to hit the brakes when you see things loosening up!

You are on the right track with the torch and sledge hammer. The fact that the extensions are are all the way in just makes it more difficult. Recently changed one on a 1456 from 36" to 30" rows. Sprayed it with penetrating oil, heated it with a torch, beat on it with sledge hammer then let it cool and started again with the penetrating oil. Seemed like I did that dozens of times. Finally I made a bar that would fit in the exposed pin hole and was able to get it to move a little. About 3 hours and several cans of penetraing oil later I could get the extension to move. Since you don't a pin hole exposed this won't work for you. You could remove the spindle from the extension and find a piece of pipe about 8' long that would just fit in the hole. Then try to make the extension turn. If you can make it move at all it will eventually come loose. You will have to decide when it gets to the point that it just is not worth it.

A friend of mine said the hyd. jack method usually works for him with a jack on top and bottom and then rap on the tube with a hammer to break the rust loose. Or you could tie one side to a big tree and try pulling on the other side with another tractor but either way with tension then try heat and banging something should give.

Hook a come-a-long to the bottom of the spindle, hook the other end to the rear axle and then put some tension on it. Douse it liberally with penetrating oil and smack the tube with a big hammer. Eventually it will come loose.

If you go so far as to remove the front Axle from the tractor. You can hang the axle up vertically for a few days with abundant PB Blaster. Take it down and hang with the opposite side up 2 more days. Two more cans of Blaster. Heat and Hammer worked for me.

I'm with Ron 1456: rotating might do the trick, supported by hammering, heating and penetration potions. With pins and bolts removed on one side, drive front wheel (side where pins/bolts are removed) carefully against a solid object; this will put some mighty torque on the extension. So, let the tractor power help you.
Good luck.

I had a similar problem with my 656. I tried penetrating oil and driving it out with a sledge hammer and it never budged at all. Finally, I looked underneath and discovered that the two tubes were welded together. The previous owner had welded them together! Why he did that is beyond me!

Well, I spent another futile night working on the *&$%%#$ % front axle. Its become a personal challenge at this point and somehow I’m gonna eventually win! Just don’t know how yet.
Tonight I heated it with the torch for 1-1/2 hours along with jacking & more hammering. I also added a railcar hopper vibrator clamped to the downtube and let it run hoping it might shake the inner tube loose, along with rigging up an 6 foot “wrench” of sorts to try twisting the inner tube by applying force with a forklift. It just picked up the whole front end. The tube hasn’t budged!
Tomorrow I may try putting the wheels back on and bumping a big concrete retaining wall to try to twist them as has been suggested.
I just got the tractor last year and its funny that it shows no signs of spending much of its life outside in the weather. Everything else I’ve work on has come apart easily.
Tim

(quoted from post at 17:26:28 04/04/12) Well, I spent another futile night working on the *&$%%#$ % front axle. Its become a personal challenge at this point and somehow I’m gonna eventually win! Just don’t know how yet.
Tonight I heated it with the torch for 1-1/2 hours along with jacking & more hammering. I also added a railcar hopper vibrator clamped to the downtube and let it run hoping it might shake the inner tube loose, along with rigging up an 6 foot “wrench” of sorts to try twisting the inner tube by applying force with a forklift. It just picked up the whole front end. The tube hasn’t budged!
Tomorrow I may try putting the wheels back on and bumping a big concrete retaining wall to try to twist them as has been suggested.
I just got the tractor last year and its funny that it shows no signs of spending much of its life outside in the weather. Everything else I’ve work on has come apart easily.
Tim

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If you go with the bumping into a retaining wall method, and end up twisting that whole front end, I'd be more than happy to sell you the new parts needed to fix it.

Still working on adjusting this axle. Pretty much have tried all the suggestions including bumping into a wall & driving it around a while with the clamps & pins removed. Also removed the spindle and replaced it with a 5 foot heavy walled pipe and pulled the end towards the rear axle with a come-along until the pipe was bending. All the while heating and hammering on the tubes. The tubes haven’t budged even a hair.
So finally have removed the entire front axle and stripped it down to just the outer axle tube and the two adjustable insert tubes. Tonight will rig up a better way to heat it and can at least get a good swing at all sides with a sledge now. Then may weld up some brackets so I can use a 20-ton jack to try and push them apart. I blew apart a 12 ton jack already but didn’t have it really squarely aligned hence the need for the brackets.
I’m gonna get this thing apart or die trying!
Tim

Success at last! After removing the axle from the tractor I put a 500,000BTU weed burner torch to it and put some firebricks around it to hold the heat in. That did the trick along with some more sledgehammering. I just hope the axle isn’t compromised because of the heat. The drop tubes where the spindles go didn’t get that hot and the paint didn’t even burn off there. The center never got red hot. Most of the heat was concentrated on where the tubes will still be doubled up even when extended so I’m hoping I will be OK. I don’t think it would ever had come apart without heating it up like that so didn’t have much choice anyway. Now just have to clean it up, paint it and reassemble.
Tim