I just purchased a 1971 Case 580B backhoe/loader from an old farmer who said that it won't move forward or reverse until it's warmed up. I got the thing home and ran it for a good 30-45 min and it seemed like it wanted to move in 2nd gear but just wouldn't go. The shuttle lever on the column almost seems like it just drifts between F and R if that makes any sense. I really had to push it to get it far enough up or down in order to somewhat lock it into place. The tranny temp was just in the green and as soon as I put it in gear, the temp gauge would just dump back to almost nothing. The previous owner seemed to think it is a problem with the pickup tube/screen...? Should I let the thing run even longer and then check? I've also heard about a filter in front of the radiator housing that might be bad... I literally rolled it off the trailer and then messed with the bucket/backhoe for 30 min. I haven't been able to dive into the tractor at all. I am just scared that something big is wrong, like the clutch or tranny itself is bad... Please help.. Phil, where you at? I know these are your specialty...
Pick the rear tires off the ground, put the machine into 4th gear and put the shuttle into forward. give it some throttle and let it run. The rear tires should start to pick up speed after a few minutes. After they get going slow the engine down and shift into reverse. The colder the oil the longer it takes. If this does not help you will have to deep inside.
check the shuttle oil level, same issue with mine when purchased. ran great when parked, I purchased and couldn;t get it to move to the trailer. got it home and looked it over, dipstick showed oil but only drained out about 2 gallons. found hard line to the front filter was broken and leaking. replaced it and filter and new oil, seems to be working great. on to the next problem, leaky cylinders, broken throttle, and worn out loader pin, probably from improper use of the hydra leveling from what I am seeing.
is that a tranny temp guage, mine is a pressure guage and drops to zero when low on fluid