Caroni finish mower pto shaft help!

bigdogmax1 · Mar 17, 2015

As my usual luck, something went wrong when I tried to cut grass. I have a caroni 5 ft finish mower, tc590. I went to hook up the driveshaft to the tractor and the two piece shaft wouldn't budge. The shaft, which connects the mower gear box to the tractor output pto shaft, normally slides in and out. It's a triangular shaft with couplers on each end. I tried every penetrating liquid known to man and still no go. Hooked up one end to a steel post and the other to the tractor to pull it loose. Nope. Tried my truck. Almost pulled the steel post out of the concrete. Hooked to a tree and my truck. Broke a chain. Now what? Are these things universal? If so how the heck would I know what length to buy since I can't pull the thing apart? Agrisupply suggested one, but I don't think they'd know what length I'd need. Suggestions welcome!

LouieJunior · Mar 17, 2015

They are easy to shorten with a hack saw. see YouTube.

You can measure length (max and min) raising & lowering the hitch. Shortest distance is usually with the two yokes lined up horizontally. Always make sure there is minimum 1/3 overlap when the shaft is extended. Fitted these many times and I am no mechanic!

Poopdeck Pappy · Mar 17, 2015

Have you tried using Kroil to penetrate and break it loose? Kroil is the best penetrant I know of.

Baby Grand · Mar 18, 2015

^ +1 for Kroil.
If you can't find any locally, you can try some home brew penetrant: equal parts ATF & acetone.
It's supposed to be the cat's whiskers for freeing up stuff.
Another tactic:
Apply your penetrant of choice.
Strap one end to a tree or other fixed object.
Apply force: tie the other end to your truck or tractor drawbar - or use a come-a-long, if you have one.
Apply some pulling force and walk away (set the parking brake if using your truck or tractor ).
Optional: use a "heat wrench", gently heating the outer shaft.
You want enough heat to expand the outer shaft a little, but not so much heat that you "coke" the oil.
Let it set a stew for awhile.
A PTO shaft is a stubborn, contrary device - it needs to figure out that it wants to come apart for itself.

Gunny · Mar 18, 2015

Every time I fought a PTO shaft over this issue all I did was spend a few useless hours, got dirty and tired and the shaft was still stuck when I walked away. Most of the time when I attacked it the next day, it pretty much slid off though a few needed just a little assistance to get going.

Now I just soak them down pretty good with penetrating oil, maybe a little heat if they're close to the shop, a light tapping with a small hammer is they're far away, give them another shot of oil and let it sit at least overnight. It's amazing how much easier they are to pull apart the next day, then clean and oil everything and slap it back together.

I guess that penetrating oil takes a good while to do its thing

I just finished working on one shaft that had set out in the weather for two years. I put it in a trough filled with diesel fuel and let it set for two days. I did have to take a small ball peen hammer to encourage it, but it slid apart with about five minutes work.

bigdogmax1 · Mar 18, 2015

Gunny said:
Every time I fought a PTO shaft over this issue all I did was spend a few useless hours, got dirty and tired and the shaft was still stuck when I walked away. Most of the time when I attacked it the next day, it pretty much slid off though a few needed just a little assistance to get going.

Now I just soak them down pretty good with penetrating oil, maybe a little heat if they're close to the shop, a light tapping with a small hammer is they're far away, give them another shot of oil and let it sit at least overnight. It's amazing how much easier they are to pull apart the next day, then clean and oil everything and slap it back together.

I guess that penetrating oil takes a good while to do its thing

I just finished working on one shaft that had set out in the weather for two years. I put it in a trough filled with diesel fuel and let it set for two days. I did have to take a small ball peen hammer to encourage it, but it slid apart with about five minutes work.

Thanks for all the help!! I actually used an industrial penetrating oil called the buster. It's pretty awesome. Let it sit overnight. Still noluck. Going for a new one today.