PTO Shaft Questions

[avc8130]

New to the 3 point world. I picked up a rotary cutter on sale at Tractor Supply last week. I am going to attempt backhoe removal tomorrow and look into setting up the brush hog. One thing I did notice: the PTO driveshaft seems to be a fixed length. I was under the impression that PTO shafts were telescoping. Is that not the case?
ac

 

[Wolfy]

I have never seen a fixed length PTO shaft. They need to telescope as the hitch is lifted.

 

[avc8130]

I have never seen a fixed length PTO shaft. They need to telescope as the hitch is lifted.

Yeah, that was what I was thinking...maybe this thing is just jammed pretty good.

 

[joecdeere]

many companies put a screw through the shield into the inner shield to keep them from coming apart in shipment or on the sales yard

 

[Soundguy]

is it just completely collapsed and stuck from lack of lube?

soundguy

 

[ametcalf]

I would call TSC and ask them about it. They should have given you an owners manual telling you how to cut it off if it needs to be shortened. Make sure you don't mount it until you are sure it will not bottom out when the 3pt hitch is raised and lowered or severe damage to your tractor or mower may result. Also make sure the gear box has oil in it as some are shipped with no oil. If you don't have instructions for cutting the PTO shaft to length do a Google search and you will come up with plenty of hits.
This summer I have had to deal with 2 stuck PTO shafts on used equipment I bought. I used alot of penetrating oil between the inner and outer shafts and then chained one end to a tree. I chained a come-along to the other end and hooked it to another tree and put tension on it while tapping it with a hammer and they both came right apart.

 

[Soundguy]

before you cut.. make sure it is a square in square or triangle in triangle, or lemon in lemon type shaft, not a square into a round that has a square opening. those last ones are a special cut down deal

 

[avc8130]

It came with 2 sets of instructions. 1 for the cutter and 1 for the PTO shaft. Unfortunately, the PTO instructions were zip tied to the shaft...and left outside for quite a while.

It does look like it telescopes and it is just frozen something fierce.

Suggestions?
ac

 

[Don87]

many companies put a screw through the shield into the inner shield to keep them from coming apart in shipment or on the sales yard

Look for a screw or something holding the shaft from sliding during transport, as joe said above...............or lube it up well and beat the crap out of it til it moves..........then go here: How To Video Demos - Implements & Attachments

And watch the video "How to measure and cut a PTO shaft"...........then when ya got time, watch the other vidoes............lot's of good info there.

 

[kebo]

It came with 2 sets of instructions. 1 for the cutter and 1 for the PTO shaft. Unfortunately, the PTO instructions were zip tied to the shaft...and left outside for quite a while.

It does look like it telescopes and it is just frozen something fierce.

Suggestions?
ac

One day I backed my tractor (with the box blade attached) underneath the shed that I keep it parked under, with the rear of the box blade facing the bush hog that was already parked at the rear of the shed. The end of the pto shaft was laying on the floor and the rear blade on box blade was a couple inches above the floor. The blade hit the pto shaft u-joint and shoved that section all the way into the shaft and it jammed up pretty tight, so tight I could not pull it back out by hand.

I wound up having to hook up the bush hog, take it outside and chain the tail wheel to a tree, and unhook the bush hog from the tractor. I then hooked a small chain through the u-joint on the end of the pto shaft, hooked the other end of the chain to the tractor, and was able to pull the two sections of the PTO shaft apart using the tractor. You might have to try that if nothing else works.