A bell went off in my head when I read the post from Sam Mac. One of the things he mentioned was, “3: Wrong or bad filter.”
When I was reassembling the GT3200 Differential the only filter I had on hand was an STP S16. It was listed as an equivalent filter for the Cub Cadet 923-3014 hydraulic filter on
http://www.oilfilter-crossreference....CADET/923-3014 so I used it.
Since I was having no luck getting my hydraulic system purged using the standard procedure I bought a Cub Cadet 923-3014 hydraulic filter and installed it in place of the STP S16 filter. I wasn’t really expecting any change by this filter swap. I then started the tractor and without engaging the bypass valve I first pressed the forward pedal and then the reverse pedal. After about the fourth cycle the rear wheels started turning and I said, “Thank you Lord”. The power steering and the lift cylinder also began working.
I was pleasantly surprised but it left me wondering what the difference was between these two filters.
After topping off the fluid level to the fill mark I then took the GT3200 for a test drive. The tractor had now developed a bucking mode when the forward pedal was pressed. This bucking only occurs when the tractor is accelerating and quits when the cruising speed is reached. The movement was smooth in reverse. I thought this might just be temporary but after I mowed my whole back yard, going backward and forward it hasn’t gotten any better. The tractor did not behave this way before the differential repair.
I thought the problem might be the Damper Cylinder but it is the original one used when the tractor was operating normally. Just to make sure I compared the operation of this Damper to two others that I had on hand by just extending and retracting the plunger by hand and they all worked exactly the same way.
Does anyone know what might be causing this bucking mode when the forward pedal is engaged?
Thanks for all the suggestions for my original problem.