Have you done your PM today?

[JimRB]

I was setting up my JD 513 mower to do quick attach and I could not get my pto shaft to stretch out the extra 4 inches. I guess I have not been doing my annual take apart and lube that the manual suggests. Tractor lives outside. Come along attached to the bucket, rope on shaft and it pulled out. I had to scrape the old dried grease off with a screwdriver, scrub the shaft with kerosene before greasing. Smooth as butter now. I had greased all the loader, axle and pedal fittings before I started the welding on the brush cutter.

That task is kind of like changing the air filters in the HVAC unit, vacuuming the condensate tubes under the fridge, vacuuming the dryer outlet and cleaning the vent pipe to the outside, inspecting the termite bait stations and all the other scheduled maintenance I get slack at. I do change the oil in my car every 10,000 miles as per the book though. The other filters I was long overdue. I need to make the other filters on the car at least an annual event. Even if I had an annual spreadsheet of to do's I bet it would be as uyseless as the job jar.

Anyhow this was a partial response to other posts where others were having a hard time getting their pto shafts to pull apart.

 

[gwdixon]

The best thing that I found to do is store the PTO shaft in two pieces. That is, take it apart when storing it for a long period - like over the winter.

It is still lubed while in storage but now there is not the hernia-causing effort to get it to slide again.:laughing:

 

[Ford tractor]

The best thing that I found to do is store the PTO shaft in two pieces. That is, take it apart when storing it for a long period - like over the winter.

It is still lubed while in storage but now there is not the hernia-causing effort to get it to slide again.:laughing:

??

Not for mine! Over winter (late September to Mid May) the parts that are extended will get coated with grit making it a real issue to expand contract. I do the opposite of you, I push them all the way together so the grease isn't able to collect grit.

Different places, different conditions!

 

[gwdixon]

??

Not for mine! Over winter (late September to Mid May) the parts that are extended will get coated with grit making it a real issue to expand contract. I do the opposite of you, I push them all the way together so the grease isn't able to collect grit.

Different places, different conditions!

Not sure about where you are located. It is not in your profile.

My PTO implements are tarped during winter and it is wet enough in Northern CA that grit doesn't seem to fly around. At least not enough to get under tarps.

Sliding the halves all the way together would seem to make it easier to stick since there is much more surface area in contact. However, the bottom line is that if the tubes are kept well lubricated there should not be any problem. That would seem to be the OP's point.

The typical farm response, "if it works, do it" would apply. Many different ways to solve a problem.