2003 Case 580SM (Series 1) Gear Shift Problem

[case4u]

Hi, I'm new to the forum.
I frequently have a problem trying to shift from 2nd into 1st gear in particular and it tends to be easier to shift from 1st into 2nd. Once in neutral I may have to try several times to get it into (any) gear and it requires a fair amount of force. It seems as if something were not lining up.
I have the clutch cutout pushbutton on the gear selector fully depressed; I also tried with the clutch cutout pushbutton on the loader control lever (awkward to do).
It tends to be easier trying to get it in gear while the machine is moving. It has a Carraro transmission and is a 4 speed with FNR on the steering column.
I got the machine recently and I'm not very familiar with it yet. Any idea what possible causes could be?
Thanks,

 

[Bootheal]

I have a 580M and shifts similar to what you describe. I’m not a mechanic but I think there are synchronizing gears in this transmission. For my machine, going from 2nd to 1st, have to slow down to almost a stop before being able to put into 1st gear. If machine is stationary and in neutral(gear shift) may need to somehow rock to get into 1st (or try another gear until successful in getting movement either forward or backwards.

I don’t know if the synchronizer gears are damaged causing this. I too don’t like how much force it takes sometime to change from 2nd to 1st. Other changes (up or down) are mostly without issue. Hope this helps and someone with more knowledge will take over. Good luck.

 

[69zfarmer]

I have a 580 SL series 2 and it is very hard to shift range 1-4. I have to really get hard on the shifter and say bad things to get it to go in 90% of the time. Other 10% of the time it just falls in.

 

[redranch]

Mine is a series 2 but same problem going into gear from neutral. Here is how I found out how to do it with out using force. Have transmission in neutral, push cutout on transmission , put selector in reverse. keep letting up and pushing cutout till gears line up, when do put in gear push selector back to neutral.

 

[highwayghost]

For my machine, going from 2nd to 1st, have to slow down to almost a stop before being able to put into 1st gear.

When down shifting, try revving the engine up some while pushing gently into the lower gear.

 

[Bootheal]

Had totally forgot about revving the engine. Have to give that a try. Thanks for suggesting. Sometimes the obvious isn’t so obvious!

 

[case4u]

Hi,
Thanks for all the answers. I drove the backhoe yesterday mostly without issue. I also paid more attention to match engine speed when shifting. The one time I had trouble, I tried what redranch suggested and it worked perfectly. The Operator Manual says it has synchromesh in all 4 gears.

Buying a used machine when you're not familiar is always problematic when you don't know exactly what is considered normal. Just seems odd that a machine that's about 3,500hrs should be hard to shift (at times). So if someone comes across this thread and has an idea what the root cause could be, I would be very interested to know.

 

[JS580SL]

Dont force the gear lever. They do break and it’s a pain in the ass to change out. Had it happen on a 580M turbo years ago.

 

[Tinkerer]

Remember, synchromesh gears do not slide together instantaneously. Especially 1st and 2nd. The brass synchronizer takes a bit of time to speed up the gear.