53 farmall cub GRINDING PTO

[warr_69]

I just got the cub and greased everything and mowed 5 passes by the yard and popped out of gear, and now will not hold at all. Is this really major.

[Barnyard]

Take the pto assembly out and inspect all the splines. If it is grinding you more than likely have a few ground off. Here is what the inside looks like. If the splines on #10 and #14 look good then you may have stripped the splines on the main shaft in the trans. If that is the problem then it is time to split the Cub. I was unfortunate and had the latter happen to mine.

[Gary Dotson]

Or it might just be a worn pin on the end of the shift lever (#15). The pin engages the sliding collar and should be round,not not worn flat on the front side. Also check for for/aft movement in both the PTO shaft & trans. main shaft. Inspect everything good and you should find the problem.

[mikesloane]

I have a '52 Cub that I restored last year and used with my Mott flail mower.
<http://public.fotki.com/mikesloane/1952-farmall-cub/>

This Spring I am encountering the same problem - the lever engages but then pops forward and grinds. I wonder if there is any way to get at the PTO shifter without splitting the tractor. I haven't dug out the service manual yet, but I am wondering if I can remove the back bearing housing and go in from there? Worst case, I will split the tractor, but I was hoping to avoid that job, as I have a lot of other projects lined up...

Mike

[Barnyard]

Mike, just remove all the bolts around #5 and the whole assembly slides out. The tractor does not have to be split to removbe the PTO.

[mikesloane]

Thanks, Bill - I had a feeling that was the case! I have half a dozen Cubs, and this is the only one that ever had a problem with the PTO, so I never dug into that area of the tractors.

Mike

[Jim Becker]

Here is a more complete answer in the Cub FAQ:
http://www.atis.net/CubFAQ/cub_faq_2.html#q4

[Rick Prentice]

I worked on a guys cub a few years ago that the pto started popping out for him. I went and picked up the cub and brought it home. After I removed the pto assembly and looked inside, I could see the pto lever/shaft pin was worn off on his. This pic from TM shows the area that wears off,his was worn even worse.

I had an extra in my parts and installed it. I put everything back together and things seemed to work fine for me. I returned the cub to the owner. That lasted about a week. He called me and said it was popping out again I went and picked up the cub again and brought it home. Took things apart and this time the pin was ground completely off Since this was my first pto problem of any kind, I was new at it and had to investigate further. That's when I discovered the splines on the back of the tranny shaft. This meant I had to split the cub. Once things were apart, this is a pic of the bad splines on the shaft

I also had a replacement tranny shaft in my parts, so it was installed,along with a new pilot bushing in the end.http://www.tmtractor.com/new/pt/752fp.htm along with a new pto lever/shaft from TMhttp://www.tmtractor.com/new/pt/752fp.htm. You can see in this pic from TM how a good shaft should look

I put everything back together and things again worked fine. I returned the cub. The next year in the middle of the summer, the guy calls me to say it's popping out again Now I'm ticked and I suspect foul play. I went over to his house and drilled him about his technique. Come to find out, he was pushing the clutch pedal in and before the tranny stopped spinning, he would grind the pto into gear , then when he finished mowing, he'd simply reach down while still moving and mowing and slide the lever out of gear

I then told him what he was doing wrong and he was the cause for the failures. I made him buy a new tranny shaft, another new pto lever/shaft and a new pto shaft and collar(http://www.tmtractor.com/new/pt/449-1fp.htm). I also told him I would help him split the cub and show him how to put the new parts in. He saw first hand how things went together. I told him if he grinds the new stuff down, don't call me I haven't heard a peep from him.

I said all that to say this: I'm beginning to think that the worn pin is a direct result from worm tranny splines, which is a direct result from operators not taking the time to take the pto out of gear. Each time you slip the shifter in or out of gear with things still spinning, you're wearing the tranny splines little by little, until eventually things need replaced.
Sorry for the long post,
Rick

[Rick Prentice]

I also forgot to say this was not meant to point a finger at warr_69,, it may be from a past operator through the years, but for all us Cub owners that get in a hurry, including me

Rick

[CPIII]

I started up the Captain yesterday for the first time in months and I noticed a grinding noise. I eventually traced it to the PTO. The PTO shift guide was never installed until after I painted it. So with the guide installed the PTO does not fully engage. Is there anything to adjust? or do i probably have the wearing problem mentioned above in this post? I am thinking of just removing the guide for now and if I need to use the PTO it does engage fully without the guide in place.

[Bigdog]

You can slot the mounting holes on the quadrant and slide it forward to gain some more engagement. It is not the best fix but it will probably get you by for a while and it may prevent more wear from occuring.

[warr_69]

Thanks everybody this sure let's me know more about what i have ahead and should help me fix my new cub. Oh and where is the best place to buy replacement parts like tranny/pto shafts, and shifters.

[bob in CT]

Check with our sponsors below. TM for new parts and JP's and Ralph's for used parts.

That was a good post, Rick.

[CPIII]

There are a few listed at the bottom of this page(JP, Ralph, TM Tractor). i have dealt with most and they are very professional and helpful.

Darn beat by Bob again!

[warr_69]

I have taken the pto out and the pto shaft seems fine, but the sliding collar look fine maybe kind beveled around the trans end is that how it's suppose to look? Also the transmissions shaft is toast. Looks like i'm a have to tear it in half.