Understanding Powershift Transmissions...

So today I added another gallon to the transmission before giving it another try. I thought it might help to get more oil to the oil pump. After starting the loader and putting it in gear I noticed that the tranny oil pressure did not fluctuate as much, mostly staying in the green if the motor was revved up a bit. So the extra oil did seem to help some. But then after putting it in gear, same problem, still no appreciable torque transfer to the tracks. The motor seemed to run free with no load to it.

But then after really letting it warm up for a bit and struggling with it trying to go back and forth, I noticed that the engine started to take more of a load and the tracks were starting to move more. As I continued to struggle like that I noticed the trans oil temp started going up considerably. Once it got to 240 deg F or so (normally it runs about 200-210, same temp as engine coolant), there was definitely much more power transfer to the tracks. Apparently when the oil temp goes up it either increases the friction in the clutch pack and/or it thins to the point where the converter starts working more effectively.

This is where I have a question. I've seen lots of other posts over the past year where someone has a problem with their powershift machine that is similar to this. Where there is no power transfer at first (or under certain circumstances) but then as things get going suddenly everything starts working properly and there is good power transfer.

Do any of you experts know why this stuff happens? Is it the clutch pack finally getting enough friction together as oil temp goes up, or is it that the converter prefers thinner, hotter oil to really start transferring torque properly?

Oh and by the way, once my machine started moving and getting leveled out (after me doing some shoveling under the tracks), it crawled right out of that mess and ran strong thereafter.

Thanks in advance...

Anyway, as an update I got to thinking more about my transmission oil level. I realized I always checked my oil level by removing the dipstick, cleaning it off, then reinserting it, screwing it all the way on and then removing it again to check the level. After thinking about it I wondered if I was not supposed to thread it back on before checking the level. So I checked in my manual and sure enough it does say NOT to thread the cap back on before checking oil level. So effectively when I was checking my oil level, it made it appear that the level was higher than it actually was because I was threading the cap (and dipstick) into the oil deeper than it should have been. So lesson learned there. And like you said if I am working on slopes or if my machine gets stuck on an angle again, I'll add more oil than normally required and hopefully that'll cure my marginal oil pressure problems once and for all.

Thanks again for all the help,

Sean