Poulan Pro shifter woes

Bear 55 · May 27, 2021

My Poulan Pro 46 has developed a sticky shift issue with the forward and reverse, don't
like to have to stomp on it to get it to shift any ideas out there to cure this illness ??

bmaverick · May 27, 2021

It could be bad gas. Those PoulanPro 46 chainsaws don't like ethanol in the fuel.

RandyT · May 27, 2021

Bear 55 said:
My Poulan Pro 46 has developed a sticky shift issue with the forward and reverse, don't
like to have to stomp on it to get it to shift any ideas out there to cure this illness ??

Does it shift easier if the engine isn't running If so then the drive belt may not be completely disengaging. No different then may need to lube the linkages and possibly also clean the junk off the tranny and lube the shaft going into the transmission

Bear 55 · May 28, 2021

bmaverick said:
It could be bad gas. Those PoulanPro 46 chainsaws don't like ethanol in the fuel.

This is a riding mower and there are no engine /carb issues Thanks Mav.

Bear 55 · May 28, 2021

RANDYT said:
Does it shift easier if the engine isn't running If so then the drive belt may not be completely disengaging. No different then may need to lube the linkages and possibly also clean the junk off the tranny and lube the shaft going into the transmission

Randy; I clean this machine meticulously after use for just that reason.
My local small engine mechanic says that it may be the shift shuttle that it has is plastic and gets sticky,a design flaw that Poulan admits to and has no fix recommendation.
He has found that lubing it helps but it is a bear to get at, he had one that he showed me at his shop for the same issue..........Thanks

RandyT · May 28, 2021

@Bear 55 Some of the peerless transaxles were bad for getting rust on the shift input shaft causing them to bind, and hard shifting. Saw it frequently on Murray mowers. Grass and debris made the issue worse, but in some cases it was just due to moisture collecting around the shifter causing issues.

bmaverick · May 28, 2021

Bear 55 said:
This is a riding mower and there are no engine /carb issues Thanks Mav.

OK because the way it was posted it may have been the PoulanPro 46cc chainsaw with the forward and reverse cut-off bar to keep the chain going on the blade. I know, I have one of these chainsaws.

tomplum · May 30, 2021

I'm guessing you have one of those wonderful General Transmissions. They have some troubleshooting info on their website, or at least used to. No matter how much you clean, lube ect, it will come back to haunt you. Debris shield kits were available for some, but- I'm personally not for plastic transmissions....