Troy bilt PTO horse wheels turn, tines won't

   / Troy bilt PTO horse wheels turn, tines won't #1  

97exc

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Jul 24, 2010
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Ive got a mid-80s? Horse tiller with PTO. Today while tilling in a tight spot, using reverse alot, the tines stopped spinning. Still has power to wheels, drives like normal but the tines aren't being powered.

I can put it in gear and the tines/shaft still turn by hand. According to a troubleshooting manual this could mean a key is missing? If so, what would be the next step?

More info:

The engage/disengage lever for the PTO hasn't worked since Ive owned it, the tines previously would always be spinning if the machine was in forward or reverse. Not sure if this has something to do with the issue now? (There is a possibility that at some point it actually tilled in reverse, due to the tines always spinning- potentially causing damage?)

Also when I tipped the machine up to turn the tines by hand, I noticed a glob of what appears to be gear oil. The oil was on the center housing of the tiller, facing the rock shield. The housing doesn't appear cracked. May have been coming from above somewhere?

If anyone can offer any help that would be great, trying to avoid paying a repair shop if possible. Thanks in advance
 
   / Troy bilt PTO horse wheels turn, tines won't #2  
The first thing I would do is take the complete tine unit off the tiller, 2 bolts that will swing out when loosened, may need spraying to allow the pins to swing, and see if the tine clutch on the transmission side moves when you move the pto lever. You can now see why the lever doesn't work and if your lucky it only needs to be lubed and adjusted and everything will work right. Its a fairly simple set up. See if the clutch spins when you move the tiller, engine running and transmission engaged.

Try the easy stuff first, if that doesn't solve the problem then its time to pull out the service manuals. I think I have some for an 84 horse but I've never had to do major work on the clutch, just lube and adjust.

Let us know what you find
 
   / Troy bilt PTO horse wheels turn, tines won't
  • Thread Starter
#3  
Ok I finally got a chance to mess with this. Took the tine attachment off, nothing wrong with that end. On the tiller side, the PTO teeth rotate when the engine is running, so it appears they are still being driven.

When I move the engage/disengage lever, I can see what looks like a set screw move in towards the PTO part. However, it doesn't actually contact anything. There is no resistance when moving this lever. Does anyone know what is supposed to be happening when I use the engagement lever?
 
   / Troy bilt PTO horse wheels turn, tines won't
  • Thread Starter
#4  
I actually took the lever out and the problem appears to be the shaft that goes in towards the PTO tunnel. It has a rod type of thing on the end of an arm that fits into the PTO head and moves it forward and back when the shaft is turned (by way of the lever). On mine, it is too loose. Turning the shaft does not always move the arm enough to move the PTO. It seems like it is slipping.

I'm still messing with it, hopefully I can come up with something other than buying a replacement.
 
   / Troy bilt PTO horse wheels turn, tines won't
  • Thread Starter
#5  
After looking at parts diagrams, the shaft I am dealing with is:
Troy-Bilt GW-2461 (replaces 2461)
Eccentric-shaft, tines/PTO clutch leverx
Part 29 on the manual diagram

This shaft is sliding too far out from:
Troy-Bilt 741-04008 (replaces 2123)
Bushing-tines/PTO clutch lever eccentric shaft
Part 27 on the diagram (looks like a big oil plug with the middle drilled out for the shaft to pass through)
 
   / Troy bilt PTO horse wheels turn, tines won't #6  
You have gone deeper into the clutch than I ever have so i'm just going by the parts manual.

When you say 'the whole shaft (part29) is sliding along the big nut/plug (part 27)' are the 2 retaining rings (#28 snap rings) still on the shaft AND tight?

I'll try and look at my pto tomorrow and see just what happens when engaged and disengaged.
 
   / Troy bilt PTO horse wheels turn, tines won't
  • Thread Starter
#7  
I finally got it, what I did was put a new retaining ring on in a different position to prevent the "arm" from sliding too far out. Not sure how permanent the fix will be but has been working to this point.
 
 
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