JCB 3C III - Lack of Power question

[mbkinsey]

I recently purchased a 1980 JCB 3C Mark III Backhoe. It is diesel powered, and the the engine purrs like a kitten, and smokes very little on startup. However, it does not seem to have much power. I am trying to move very loose dirt (easily hand shoveled), which was dumped via a Triaxle Dump truck recently into a large pile, but can only get a very small fraction of the front bucket full. The unit just stops when the front bucket hits the dirt pile. The back tires do not spin either, so it is not loss of traction (this is a two wheel drive machine). I have tried attacking the dirt pile with a running start, at different angles, etc, but with the same result. I would think a machine of this size would have much more power than this has, so I am figuring something is probably wrong. Any thoughts on what I should look at/fix would be greatly appreciated.

Regards,
Mike

[essexpete]

Do you have a chunky left hand fwd/rev lever with the hand brake also mounted high on left of dash? If the answer is yes then you have the build 5 Powertrain model. If it has a clutch/manual gearbox then it will probably be a slipping clutch.
If the Powertrain type: Does it have plenty of go in reverse? If the answer is yes then you probably have a forward clutch pack damaged in the shuttle box. You could check the shuttle/torque convertor oil. Lift the bonnet and you will see a dip stick going down to the transmission located on the door side of the compartment at the back nearest the bulkhead/tank. The oil is checked after the machine has run for a few minutes. Stop the engine and take a dip reading. Do not overfill and the capacity is quite small.
This would also be an opportunity to look the colour and smell of the oil. If there is any hint of dirty/black and burnt smell then there may have been overheating of the clutch packs.
If it is a shuttle box fault, and ideally a pressure test should be carried out, there are several option open to you.

[diggerjones]

if it were manual, could it be posible hes in too higher gear. think they have high and low range. just a thought.

[newjcb123uk]

Hi Mike and welcome to CMN - when you refer to the machine just stopping do you mean the engine stalls or just the force and pushing power dwindles to nothing???