Belly Mower won't stay connected to PTO shaft

[brails]

Hey Everybody,
I am a new owner of a used B7500 with front end loader and belly mower. I mowed with my 5' drag type mower for about two hours yesterday, then wanted to test out the belly mower. When I engaged the PTO, it didn't turn the blades.
I got down to look and the yoke had disconnected from the PTO shaft. I can get it to slide right on, but it won't lock into place. I didn't give the yoke a good inspection before, so I'm not sure if something broke off, or what.
I know it worked before because I tested it at the previous owners house, then my mechanic ran it for awhile, too.
What did I do and how do I get it to stay connected!

 

[Rusty46]

brails - It looks like the collar for the PTO coupler for the mmm is in the unlocked position, so that it would not be locked onto the ring groove on the PTO shaft, and could easily fall off. Rotate the collar and it should snap out away from the mmm toward the PTO shaft. If it does not snap out, it may need cleaning and a little oil. Before you clean/oil, verify that it is not already in the locked position by pushing the collar toward the mmm while rotating the collar slightly. Sorry, I don't recall which way the collar rotates to lock and unlock.

 

[Big Kahuna]

Righty tighty, lefty loosen.


Big Kahuna

 

[brails]

Hey Guys,
The collar freely rotates (righty & lefty) whether it's on the PTO or not. I soaked it in WD-40, but still had no luck, though the interior ball bearings move better.
I'm used to banging on my antique tractor to get an implement fully installed on the PTO, but I can't get any leverage under this guy. Do I just need a bigger hammer?

 

[Wbk]

Hey Everybody,
I am a new owner of a used B7500 with front end loader and belly mower. I mowed with my 5' drag type mower for about two hours yesterday, then wanted to test out the belly mower. When I engaged the PTO, it didn't turn the blades.
I got down to look and the yoke had disconnected from the PTO shaft. I can get it to slide right on, but it won't lock into place. I didn't give the yoke a good inspection before, so I'm not sure if something broke off, or what.
I know it worked before because I tested it at the previous owners house, then my mechanic ran it for awhile, too.
What did I do and how do I get it to stay connected!

Hi looking at the 2nd picture it seems that the spring is pushing the release collar back which would put it in the release position causing the shaft to disconnect. Hope this helps Barry

 

[kubotasam]

Ok I am no expert on Kubota mid mount mowers but it seems to me that the spring shown in the pictures is out of place. I just rebuilt the shaft to drive one of my rototillers and it looked a lot like that, except the spring is under the collar pushing the ring outward to lock it.The only problem to my idea is that I can't think of how the spring could have come out from under the collar to be over the top like it is now.

 

[Rusty46]

Ok I am no expert on Kubota mid mount mowers but it seems to me that the spring shown in the pictures is out of place. I just rebuilt the shaft to drive one of my rototillers and it looked a lot like that, except the spring is under the collar pushing the ring outward to lock it.The only problem to my idea is that I can't think of how the spring could have come out from under the collar to be over the top like it is now.

I agree with Wbk & kubotasam, the spring should be pushing the coupler (collar) toward the PTO drive shaft on the tractor, that is, to the locked position. This spring is hidden behind the collar on my mmm, I have never seen it before. Sorry I missed the spring on my first reply. YOU NEED TO GET THE SPRING BACK BEHIND THE COUPLER!

The Operator's Manual for my RCK60-24B doesn't offer much help. In the "MOUNTING THE MOWER TO THE TRACTOR" section, it says,
"9. Mounting the universal joint.
Pull back the coupler of the universal joint.
Slide the universal joint onto the PTO shaft until the coupler locks.
IMPORTANT:
Finally, tug on the universal joint to make sure it is locked on the PTO shaft."

In the "REMOVING THE MOWER DECK" section, it says, "13. Pull back the coupler of the universal joint to unlock the coupler."

Best wishes!

 

[moog]

Judging by what mine looks like there is a piece missing. There should be a piece attached to the locking collar that allows the spring to put constant pressure on the locking collar, it also gives you something to grab onto when you need to take it loose.

 

[brails]

Thanks guys. Does anyone have a pic of a GOOD coupler/collar?

 

[kubotasam]

I am not sure if this will help or not. I was a little confused as to the ends of the PTO shaft on my tiller. The small end that looks like yours does not have the large spring. The larger end is the one that has the coil spring built in. I think Moog has it correct and you are missing a cup shaped piece that the spring fits into.

 

[moog]

Thanks guys. Does anyone have a pic of a GOOD coupler/collar?

I've got a lousy picture on my phone, not really in a position this evening to take it apart so I stuck my phone under there and snapped it. Your welcome to it, just pm me a cell number and I'll send it to you.

Or, separate the shaft and take that end to a Kubota dealer and walk out with the piece you need. They could probably knock the old one off and have the new one put on in less than 30 minutes.

 

[brails]

I've got a "KIT COUPPLER REPAIR" on order from my local dealership, I'll let y'all know if it fixes the problem.

 

[brails]

So I bought the repair kit from Kubota for $117 and had them repair for $27. I put it on the tractor yesterday and it hooked right up, problem solved.

Thanks for the input guys, I'm sure I'll have more questions in the future.

 

[Rusty46]

Congratulations! Happy mowing.