PTO will not stay engaged
 

Weird chain of events that may or may not be coincidental, so bare with me.

I was using my Bercomac 48" snowblower on my Cub Cadet LGTX 1050 and the belt from the PTO to the blower sub frame snapped. It was a belt with less than 20 hours on it. I had just been blowing a relatively heavy section of snow, but I would have expected the sheer bolts to give away first.

I replaced the belt, and now when I engage the PTO it tries to engage, and advances the belt about an inch, then stops. I can push and pull on the PTO switch and it tries to engage every time, but it won't stay engaged.

I've checked the resistance at the PTO and it is 3.3 Ohms, within the 2-4 Ohms in the spec.

I've also run a wire from the negative of the PTO to the ground and the result is the same. I feel like this is telling me that the PTO switch, relay, and related safety switches are working since it tries to engage.

Does anyone have any ideas what my next steps should be?

EDIT: Adding some info. Seat safety switch appears to be working because if I am NOT in the seat then the PTO doesn't even try to engage. If I sit in the seat then it tries to engage.

EDIT2: The reverse safety switch red wire had broken off, but it looks like it has been broken for a while. I did repair both the red/black and green wires but the issue still persists.

PTO
 

Could be the PTO air gap is out of adjustment. Check it with a feeler gauge if the clutch clicks momentarily but doesn't fully engage the pto under load. If out of adjustment it may work with no load (belt off) when tested but not with the belt on under load. :bigthink:

There are several posts about adjusting the air gap on the OCC site. Check them for information on how to adjust it. :biggrin2:

Can you turn the pulley on the snow thrower? Maybe it is bound up somehow.

I would expect the belt to slip or the shear pins to break before the PTO not engaging, but either way even with the blower disconnected the PTO does not turn.

I'm about to head out to the garage again to try two more things. A wire direct from the battery positive to the PTO and direct from the PTO negative to the battery.

- If this fails, the air gap on the PTO is the next step.
- If this works the wiring to the PTO switch, and the PTO switch itself are next on the test list.

I'm amazed at how poorly designed access to these components is. It's almost like they intentionally made stuff hard to get to.

PTO
 

If the PTO pulley doesn't turn freely, its toast! :bigeyes:

This one has a brake on it. It will never turn freely when not engaged. And unfortunately the PTO they use in this model is "maintenance free" which is a fancy way of saying you can't adjust the air gap. You just toss it if its bad.

Someone has suggested before on another post that there could be remnants of the old belt wedged into the PTO. Or that the belt could have torn the electrical wiring. Worth checking.

PTO is dead...

Got it off the mower and on the bench where I could do better testing. When current is applied it only retracts on one side. The internal field magnet is not responding on one side.

Looking online was a shocker. Using the Cub Cadet OEM part number a new one from Cub Cadet and several parts houses was $550 CDN (about $400US these days).

Found some noname brands for $250US

Remanufactured ones for $190US

Label on the PTO says Warner, model 5219-147. Went to Warners web site and got a new one for $122 delivered to a US address. I'm 20 minutes from the border so will drive down and pick it up when it arrives.

Thank you everyone for all the ideas and thoughts.

For what it's worth, I needed an electric PTO for my LT 2180 a couple years ago and found the same thing you found: They are crazy pricey from Cub Cadet!

I found one on Amazon for only about $120 and took a chance on it. Been using it for two years now, so far with no issues. So far, so good.