Question on PTO Engagement:Century

[frankv]

I've had my Centruy 3045 for about a year and this is the first time I've tried to use a PTO powered implement. I rented a rotiller to try it out on a new garden area.

My question is on the proper method to engage the PTO. I depressed the clutch, in gear, not in gear, shuttle in neutral, not in neutral....and in all instances when trying to engage the PTO lever it grinded the gears....this was in 540 and worse in 1000 rpm's.

What am I doing wrong?

 

[Stimw]

Did you push the clutch all the way to the bottom? You have a double clutch and you have to go full to the bottom. If you have never used the PTO the clutch might need to wear in. Just engage it carefully and see if it gets better. I have 9 hours on my 3510 and I grind a little because I forget to wait a few seconds for the shaft to stop before engaging. tim

 

[frankv]

Thanks for the reply.

Yea I buried the clutch to the floor, maybe I need to wait longer for the shaft to stop spinning? I waited 5-10 seconds...

 

[dancce]

Make sure the engine RPM's are as low as possible and the rototiller is off the ground, when engaging the PTO.
Unlike the transmission, the PTO is not a syncronized shift----you will feel it engage.

dancce

 

[frankv]

Dancce,

Thanks...sounds like I was doing it right then..I was concerned about feeling it engaging.....

 

[KYMike]

When I first got my Branson 3510, I couldn't keep the PTO from grinding no matter how hard or long I pushed in the clutch. Adjusted the clutch pedal free play (the verticle shaft going through the floor board just below the shuttle shift lever) from 5/8" to 3/8" and haven't had a problem in the 40 hours since.

 

[MicroPilot]

I'll second this solution. My PTO engagment lever started to "grind" and I solved it be adjusting the clutch free play. This is a very simple procedure and is described in the owners manual.