[AJD] H Tranny

[Karl Olmstead]

It was raining yesterday, so I got a chance to work on that '39 JD-H instead 
of my house.  I spent a few minutes trying to move the shifter forks with no 
success.  They aren't seized up, but the upper fork (1st and reverse) 
appears to be stuck to the left beyond first gear, and it has shoved the 
lower fork into some gear; the net result being that the transmission is in 
two gears at once.  Tractor won't roll.

I finally came to the conclusion that I need to pull the shifter shaft and 
the shifter forks, so that I can reach down below them and re-position the 
sliding gears myself.

As Frank G. warned me, the '39 H tranny is different from later models.  For 
example, later models have a 'shifter shaft bearing' bolted to the left side 
of the transmission case.  The '39 simply has a hole in the side of the 
case.

At any rate, after loosening the set screw and unscrewing the 'lock screw', 
which seems to serve no purpose, I attempted to undo the adjusting screw, 
which screws into the left side of the transmission case and tightens down 
on the end of the shifter shaft.  No go.

I took the opportunity to make a special tool for the job on my vertical 
mill.  3/4" drill rod, with one end milled into the shape of a 1/8" wide 
screwdriver blade, the other end made hexagonal so that I could put a wrench 
on it.  Nothing beats quality time spent using macine tools!  Tried out the 
new tool, but the blade began to bend.  Guess I'll have to take the time to 
heat treat the tool before I try again.  And soak the screw with penetrating 
lube.

Am I headed in the right direction?  I am assuming that the adjusting screw 
has to come out before I can remove the shifter shaft, since the screw 
presses on the end of the shaft (and plugs up the hole through which the 
shaft must pass).

-Karl