help installing my pto shaft

Anonymous Poster · Apr 6, 2003

Well here I am again.
I have had a real adventure the last couple of days trying to get everything ready to cut some grass. I have two problems stopping me now. I can't get the standard pto shaft that came with the Howse mower to slide all the way onto the tractor pto and lock. It goes about 1 inch and stops, just about where the two locking balls inside first make contact with the splines on the shaft. Does the YM 2700 take a special pto shaft or do I just need to give it some gentle persuasion with a board and my 10 pound maul? My other problem is the lift arms won't come down far enough for the front wheels of my mower to touch the ground. I've adjusted the stop valve and the slow return valve. I've moved the lift links to the back holes, which helped some but i'm still a couple of inches off the ground with my front wheels. Any recomendations?
Thanks, Marc.

Bird · Apr 6, 2003

Marc, are you holding the spring loaded pin on the implement's PTO driveshaft dpressed all the while you are trying to push it onto the PTO output shaft on the tractor? If not, you do have to do that. You can hold that pin depressed, push it onto the output shaft, and you can actually go too far, but that's OK; just release the pin then and pull back on it until it locks into place.

Anonymous Poster · Apr 6, 2003

Bird,
Thanks for reply. PIN? What pin? The end of my pto shaft has a splined coupling with two steel balls lined up accross from each other in the grooves that mate with the splined pto shaft. On the outside there is a spring loaded plastic collar that slides forward I assume to releave the pressure on the two steel balls so they can depress. I've been pushing, pulling, nudgeing, greasing, cussing but nothing seems to make it budge. I'm open for suggestions.
thanks, Marc.

Bird · Apr 6, 2003

Oops, Marc, my Howse had the type with the spring loaded pin instead of the collar. The principle is the same though (at least on all the ones I'm familiar with). With the collar type, you have to pull the collar back (toward the implement or away from the tractor end) and hold it, instead of holding a pin in, while you slide it onto the PTO output shaft.

blackd · Apr 6, 2003

I guess your lift links are NOT adjustable? Either the links or the lift arms may be too short.

hosejockey2002 · Apr 6, 2003

My Howse mower shaft has a collar that you twist clockwise when facing the tractor. I twist, push it on, and release. Hope this works.

Anonymous Poster · Apr 6, 2003

Bird,
Amazing, as you advised, all I had to do was pull back on the front of the collar and push a little and it slide right on. I've spent most of the day trying to force it on with the collar pushed forward. Now i'm going to crank up and try it out before it gets too dark. I still don't have the front wheels on the ground but thats a job for tomorrow.

Thanks, Marc.

Anonymous Poster · Apr 7, 2003

Goes to show that there is no such thing as a stupid question and sometimes a little knowlege goes a long way. Thats not to say that all attachments are easy to get on as the tiller sometimes takes me half an hour.