B7510/B2733A Front Hitch - Mid PTO Shaft

[NoJacketRequired]

Folks - I'm going to beg your patience here as this post will sound a little scatterbrained at first.
Here's the situation. B7510 tractor with a front-mount snow blower (B2771) with a front hitch of unknown model (sorry, ID tag is there but there is absolutely nothing legible on it so I have no idea which hitch it is, I know it's NOT the B2733 as I have that newer-style hitch on my other B7510). The mid-pto drive shaft is bent. This drive shaft is of the older slip-joint style with a square tube within square tube design which collapses and expands to accommodate the different lengths needed to hook up and unhook the PTO connections. One end has 10 splines, the other 15 splines; in between is a typical PTO shaft with plastic external safety shields.

My problem is this shaft is bent. It was bent when I bought it, likely bent during shipment to me. The total bend deflection is about 1/2". In consultation with two local Kubota dealers as well as one non-Kubota repair shop I've been told that straightening the shaft is a fool's errand with a low probability of success and a high probability of frustration.

I've looked at the newer, simpler PTO shaft arrangement on my newer front hitch (B2733A) - I believe this shaft is p/n 7006002186 and is described as part of the M00400 drive line kit. This shaft does not have a slip joint. Instead the front spline section is longer, allowing it to slide forward and back on the fixed portion of the front hitch, thus accommodating attaching and detaching the shaft from the tractor's mid PTO. This shaft seems like an appropriate replacement for the complex and more expensive shaft assembly that came with the front hitch and which now is bent. I've measured the length difference between these shafts and it appears there's 1/2" difference at the most so I "think" this will work to swap out the old style shaft with the new-style shaft.

My questions to the collective are...
1) has anybody had any success in straightening the old-style slip-joint mid pto shaft? if so, how did you do it?
2) has anybody tried updating their front hitch using the newer, simpler non-slip-joint mid-PTO shaft (p/n 7006002186)?
3) does anybody have a source in Canada for a reasonable price on either one of these shafts or the component parts to replace the "yoke and male shaft assy" and "yoke and female shaft assy" on the old shaft?

Thanks for your helpful replies.

 

[85Hokie]

My questions to the collective are...
1) has anybody had any success in straightening the old-style slip-joint mid pto shaft? if so, how did you do it?
2) has anybody tried updating their front hitch using the newer, simpler non-slip-joint mid-PTO shaft (p/n 7006002186)?
3) does anybody have a source in Canada for a reasonable price on either one of these shafts or the component parts to replace the "yoke and male shaft assy" and "yoke and female shaft assy" on the old shaft?

Thanks for your helpful replies.

Can you upload a picture of the shaft? Bend and all? Is the bend near the joint or away from the joint?

I am no expert at all - but being square and ONLY 4 places mating vs the splined sliding pto - I think it would be able to bend back to a point of usability...... depending where the bend actually is located.

A new shaft to replace original is gonna be expensive as hell - so bending the first one without success would be my first option - if you mess it up worse...... only time has been wasted!

 

[kubotasam]

I had a B2650 snow blower that used the collapsible pto shaft like you are describing. I originally had it mounted on a B7100. It worked great. Then I bought a B2410 (same physical size as your B7510 just a little more HP). The subframe bolted right on the B2410 same as the B7100. The difference was the new tractor was longer so the shaft had to be pulled apart more to get the correct length. When I tried the snow blower the shaft had a bad vibration. Shook the tractor so hard that I was afraid the mid pto would break off the transmission. The shaft was correct for the new tractor. I figured that it was old and the female end must be worn allowing the shaft to flex, giving the vibration. I bought a brand new drive shaft from Kubota. I still had vibration just not as bad. I took the new shaft to a drive line shop and had then lengthen the female side so the spot the two shafts met was not in the center but close to the universal. They also balanced the shaft for me. That did the trick and I used it for a few winters.
Guess what I am trying to tell you is that even with a brand new shaft I still had problems with vibration. I doubt that you can straighten the shaft and get it to work. Maybe take it to a drive line specialist like I did.

 

[NoJacketRequired]

Hmmm I'm thinking kubotasam might have hit the nail on the head... It seems the shaft is right at its mid-point of adjustment in the slip joint. I've rolled the shaft on knife edges and can't see it being bent, but when it's turning on the tractor it very clearly is being thrown off center by about a half inch. I'm beginning to suspect play in the male/female slip joint as being the cause rather than the shaft being truly bent.

Btw kubotasam - I have a pair of B7510's and a B2410. Their rated engine power is just about the same and the amount of work they'll do is just about the same. To my eye, other than a few refinements, the B7510 is pretty much the same tractor, just two generations newer. Great machines and when it comes to moving snow the combination of these little tractors and their mating front-mount blowers is pretty terrific.

 

[kubotasam]

Hmmm I'm thinking kubotasam might have hit the nail on the head... It seems the shaft is right at its mid-point of adjustment in the slip joint. I've rolled the shaft on knife edges and can't see it being bent, but when it's turning on the tractor it very clearly is being thrown off center by about a half inch. I'm beginning to suspect play in the male/female slip joint as being the cause rather than the shaft being truly bent.

Btw kubotasam - I have a pair of B7510's and a B2410. Their rated engine power is just about the same and the amount of work they'll do is just about the same. To my eye, other than a few refinements, the B7510 is pretty much the same tractor, just two generations newer. Great machines and when it comes to moving snow the combination of these little tractors and their mating front-mount blowers is pretty terrific.

Yes that is exactly how mine (even with the new shaft) acted.
I find the combo of a front snow blower and a hydraulic angle back blade to be a great snow removal machine. I have a 4x4 truck with plow and unless I need to just plow the drive quickly I always use the tractor. I also keep my B7500 with the loader and 4 wheel chains if I need to cut through heavy packed snow banks.

 

[Tire Biter]

A good driveshaft repair shop can fix you right up. Try a local 4x4 shop. They are always dealing with custom driveshafts.