Ford 5610 PTO Seal Replacement

cjah · Dec 28, 2018

Need to replace the PTO seal on my Ford 5610, but was told if I pull the PTO shaft I would have to break the tractor in half as a thrust bearing would drop when I pulled the shaft. Does anyone know of an easier way to replace the PTO seal? Can it just be picked out from the rear without pulling the shaft? If so, do you have to remove the 4 bolts holding the shaft plate in place, or should those be left alone? Very much appreciate any tips and advice you can offer.

ovrszd · Dec 28, 2018

Do you have the new seal yet? A quick look at the seal and the tractor should clear this up. I'm guessing it's a simple task of prying the old one out and driving in the new one?

cjah · Dec 28, 2018

ovrszd said:
Do you have the new seal yet? A quick look at the seal and the tractor should clear this up. I'm guessing it's a simple task of prying the old one out and driving in the new one?

Don't have the seal yet, but will get one and see how it looks. Got to be an easier way to do this than breaking the tractor in half.

ovrszd · Dec 29, 2018

Maybe go on the CNH parts website and find the seal
In that search you will see detailed parts diagrams. The diagram will show whether the seal installs from the outside or inside.

cjah · Dec 29, 2018

ovrszd said:
Maybe go on the CNH parts website and find the seal
In that search you will see detailed parts diagrams. The diagram will show whether the seal installs from the outside or inside.

On the diagram, the seal is #35. Looks like I would have to remove the retainer #33 to get to it, but not sure if the whole PTO shaft would come out when I pull #33. Hard to tell what is pressed onto or into what.

ovrszd · Dec 29, 2018

Looks like you can remove the cover, replace seal, reattach cover. I'd be cautious about the shaft coming out. Hold it in place while removing cover. You can probably elevate the rear of the tractor and minimize oil loss.

Pot pics on this thread when you do the repair. This thread will then be a good reference for anyone in the future.

cjah · Dec 29, 2018

ovrszd said:
Looks like you can remove the cover, replace seal, reattach cover. I'd be cautious about the shaft coming out. Hold it in place while removing cover. You can probably elevate the rear of the tractor and minimize oil loss.

Pot pics on this thread when you do the repair. This thread will then be a good reference for anyone in the future.

Will do. Appreciate the advice. Charlie

cjah · Jan 4, 2019

I appreciate all the great help I get on this website, so following up with some photos and notes:

- First step was to drain some oil. I got a couple of 5 gallon buckets from Walmart and drained 8 gallons which brought the fluid level just down below my PTO shaft. The 1st photo shows the drain plug location for a 4wd model. The maintenance manual says the drain plug for the 2wd is in the center of rear axle.

- I removed the 3 bolts that hold what's left of a PTO safety guard that also holds the PTO shaft retainer plate. The 4th bolt for the PTO retainer plate is underneath the safety guard (red arrow).

- With the guard out of the way, I threaded 2 of the bolts back in leaving about 1/2 inch gap between the bolt head and retainer plate. I used a gear puller with the bolt heads to hold the PTO shaft in place so it didn't pull out with the retainer plate. I carefully pried the retainer plate off the PTO shaft and backed the bolts out a little and snugged up the gear puller as needed until the plate was loose from the PTO shaft.

- Once the retainer plate was off, the PTO shaft was pretty loose, so I tied it up with piece of string so it didn't accidentally pull out and let the thrust bearing drop.

- The PTO seal drives out from the rear, past the bearing race in the retainer plate. It turned out that this PTO seal had been recently replaced and looked new. All the leakage was coming from the retainer plate gasket as 3 of the 4 bolts were little more than finger tight. There were no lock washers on the three loose bolts, so guessing they vibrated loose. I just replaced the retainer plate gasket and reused the PTO seal. Note, there should be 3 thin metal shims and one gasket between the retainer plate and the rear end housing. The gasket goes against the rear end housing, then the shims, then the retainer plate. NOTE: I went to two NH dealers and both gave me the wrong gasket for this retainer plate. Apparently, there are two different configurations but the parts list only shows one part number for a larger gasket that will not fit my tractor. They could not identify the correct PTO seal either. I ended up going to the auto parts store and picking up a sheet of rubber gasket material. If you cant find the right gasket, lay the gasket material over the retainer plate and lightly tap around the outline and bolt holes with a hammer to capture the outline. Cut it out with an razor knife any you are good to go...makes a nice gasket.

- What was left of the PTO safety guard served no purpose, so I did not reinstall it. I went to Ace Hardware and got 3 shorter bolts (2 1/2") with lock washers to reassemble the project.

- You may want to consider filtering your hydraulic fluid. Mine has a little trash in it. If you choose to drain all and change it, the book calls for approximately 15 gallons.

Hope this is of some use to you.

cjah · Jan 4, 2019

Follow-up note: I talked to a NH mechanic and he said if the PTO shaft did happen to pull out, the thrust washer may, or may not drop. If it does drop, you can tell as the PTO shaft will not re-insert fully...stops a couple of inches short. If this happens, take a broom handle or paint roller handle and load the end up with heavy grease. Carefully use this to realign the thrust washer. The grease will hold it in place while you reinsert the PTO shaft. It may take 2 or 3 tries with the broom handle and grease, but you'll eventually get there. He said they do this instead of breaking tractors in half.