Wet/dry PTO

[TTD]

So... you know those "feel good" stories when you work your ass off, but at the end you sit back and you have a feeling of accomplishment?


Well this ain't one of them!


Spent another 6 hours under the coach today. First 3 spent trying to separate the two items ... at least enough to spray some PB rust remover stuff.

Finally, I conceded that they were not going to separate, so I tried to put the bolts back in and call it a day.

But of course, nothing was going to be easy with this project.

I could either put the two bolts in that attach the PTO to the PUMP... or I could attach the support bracket that connects the PUMP to the transmission (top right bracket in the previous photos)

If I put the two bolts in between the PUMP and the PTO, then extreme pressure is needed to attach the bracket. Conversely, if I mounted the bracket first - then I was unable to get the PTO and PUMP slots to line up... again, not without a ton of pressure (literally, as I had my pump jack under there with me).

Alas - this may be why I am having so much trouble in the first place?

I am wondering if the original installer connected the PUMP and the PTO (probably on a bench?), and then lined up the bracket and hit it with a high pressure air tool... thus torquing the pump so much that the splines were under sideways pressure - and over time this contributed to why they won't pull apart now?

The only good news at this moment is I found a shop a couple of hours away that specializes in PTO's and Hydraulics... and they assure me they can take care of it. They said converting to the PTO wet line kit should be no problem... the only thing that might slow them down is if the spline in the hydraulic pump is shot.

I have a 500 mile trip next weekend... hopefully it holds up for that, and the ride to the shop afterwards.

It's gone over 34000 miles so far, so the odds are good... as long as all the banging and stuff I did hasn't done any damage by loosening up the rust.

Stay tuned! I will definitely post updated results and photos.

[TTD]

UPDATE: I ended up finding a good shop that is close to me. They are located throughout the North East if anyone else is in need of Transmission or PTO work.

Camerota | Drivetrain specialists is their website.

Anyway, because it seemed so hard to separate my pump and PTO, I pre ordered an entirely new WET PTO from Chelsea.

With great effort, the shop was able to get the pump and PTO apart. The splines on the PTO were definitely close to failure. Fortunately, the PUMP splines looked decent enough to not replace yet. I'll separate the two items again in 10 or 15,000 miles to check.

Anyway, I have an ISM 500 Cummins engine and my pump runs just my cooling fans. The power steering shares the same reservoir, but has it's own pump (according to the mechanic that did the work)

Another vote for regardless of your engine, have your dry PTO checked and/or replaced. (I have 34000 miles on mine)