Trying to revive a 450B... need some direction please

[Labparamour]

Run the pump run to pump out the remaining oil? I don't think I would like to risk running the pump low on oil (why chance ruining it).
there are small access plates (4"x 8" approx.) under the seat, above each steering clutch used for adjustment...they could be removed and a light and mirror or inspection camera might work to look in.
Hardlines with soft lines...that could work. You would need to know if they are pressure or suction line to use right material so line wouldn't collapse if on suction side...also, it'll be thicker so clearance and proximity to hot engine might be an issue. I had some hardlines made at a hydraulic cylinder repair shop.
How much do you invest in this? Heck, isn't this why we all get 'em? We love a challenge and don't know when to stop!!

Keep us posted,
DB

[Mike B]

I had a similar problem when i got my 450.
Since trans was low on fluid it had to have gone some where. Something that I would check is to see if front seal on input shaft is leaking. Crawl underneath and at bottom of bellhousing there is a drain hole. Most times there is a cotter pin in them to help keep the drain from becoming plugged. Make sure that hole is clear and see if there is any oil coming out of it.If so front seal may be out and it oil contaminated the engine dry clutch.
What happened with mine was hole was plugged and oil filled up the bellhousing and ruined clutch disc. It would sometimes grab enough to generate pressure in trans but not hold enough to provide movement thru input shaft on trans while under load.
Mine sat for about 5 years before I got it and the clutch had dried out enough to move it when I first looked at it. When I filled the trans up and started to use it the disc got soaked again and the trans got low but I could not figure out where the oil was going until it got so full it started blowing out the inspection hole cover for the flywheel.
Check that and we will see what we can do from there

[Mike B]

After thinking about your problem for a while I think the next step would be to bypass the hard lines up to the front of machine. You could cut a piece of hydraulic hose and loop it between the 2 nipples on the trans and run it that way to get it loaded. You will have to get the hard lines loose enough to pull them forward enough to get the loop line in there.
Does this tractor still have the belly pan on? If so you will probably have to pull it off to give you access to the bottom because the easiest place to work on the couplers for hard lines is from the bottom.
You could replace the hard lines with good hydraulic line but will have to reroute them because if I remember they run along frame rail between it and bellhousing mount. It is a tight fit between the mount and rail and the hose will be a thicker ID than the steel line. You could probably get used lines out of a wrecking yard if needed.
I noticed that the hard nose is off of tractor so my guess is that line was leaking and the beginning of the repair was started but didn't get finished.
Are you sure the steel line is leaking or could it be the short rubber hose that is between the nipples and hard line?
If you can stop the trans from bleeding even if it doesn't move on its own you can push it out of there with the Hoe itself.
They are a great little tractor and can do an amazing amount of work especially with a 4 in 1 on them. Pretty simple to work on though you would swear that a full size human can't possibly have built them and worked on them, because there is such little room for you arms and hands sometimes.
I was in the same boat as you trying to figure out if I wanted to keep moving forward, but I did and it was very rewarding when I finished.
Mine has done an amazing amount of work up in the woods since I got it done and I'm glad I stuck it with it.
Read my post and you can see what I was up against along the way.
Keep on going and we will try to help you along.

[Jack-the-Ripper]

The 450B has dry steering clutches whose housings and innards are susceptible to rust, even if only from humidity and condensation.
In my case the linkages to the throw out bearings in the steering clutches had frozen. The steering lever actuates an arm within the steering clutch housing that twists a vertical rod that rotates another lower arm that engages the throwout bearing. This vertical rod is supported by two bushings that can get so rusted and corroded that their friction overwhelms the return spring (assuming it hasn't rusted and broken off). So if your steering clutches were engaged when you first started it, you would get a lurch. Then when you pulled them back you disengaged both steering clutches, whose actuator arms, now stuck, hold them in the disengaged position. If you pulled the tractor with another tractor or 4wd pickup and it moved, that might be an indication that the steering clutches were being held open.
In that case, the solution is to remove everything required (rear sprockets, fuel tank and seat, hydraulic and battery boxes, hydraulic hoses, etc) to access and remove the steering clutches. Then beat, spray, lever, curse, until those actuator rods and their ends are movable enough to remove them, then clean the rods and bushings, grease liberally, and reassemble.

In my case, the top lever of the actuator rod showed many witness marks where the former owner had beat on it to loosen it up after a humid winter. Humid air can enter the steering clutch housings, then condense when it freezes. These housings are like the roach motel - humidity can check in but it can't check out. Some have recommended leaving the bottom pugs out of the housings to encourage condensation to drain out, however others have complained about forgetting or not knowing of the removed plug and immersed the tractor in water during work, and rusted out the steering clutches.

When you get an old machine, you have to go through almost everything to make it right and up to date. Then you are very familiar with it and can more easily work on it in the future. At least you know its quirks. I probably spent six weeks solving the clutch rod rust problem and replacing the tracks, rollers, etc. The machine now works reliably like a dream.

Regarding hard tubing and flex hoses, My main steel line from the pump rubbed against the frame and leaked. There was no way to remove it without cutting it in pieces and no way to install a new solid one without pulling the engine and trans. I replaced it with a flexible hose which I was able to thread and coax through the maze - it has worked fine for over 10 years. I carefully held it off of any rubbing points.