Slip clutch

[Bsromine]

Quick question on a rcr1860 slip clutch

was trying to replace the friction plates, but for the life of me I can’t get that steel plate fitting that goes between the two friction plates off the gearbox drive shaft. It has apparently rusted on there and PB Blaster didn’t budge it.
Does a gear puller work pulling that thing off?

 

[Elliott in GA]

This might help:

The Land Pride Tech used a hammer.

 

[Bsromine]

I was able to get the sheer bolt out and remove all the bolts and springs. Having done that I can get the PTO shaft off and have access to the tractor side friction plate. The problem is that the steel plate in between the friction disc slides onto the drive coming out of the PTO gearbox. Has that collar on the back that the sheer pin goes through. That’s the part that is frozen onto the gearbox drive shaft. No way to get to the rear friction plate without removing it and I can’t get the dang thing to budge.

 

[Russell King]

Pictures of the problem may help get suggestions.

On my tiller when the drive shaft was rusted to the tiller’s input shaft (which is what I think you are saying), I had to take the yoke apart to gain access to the input shaft. I understand that you may already be that far, mine was not a slip clutch so I don’t understand how that the slip clutch connects to the input shaft. Anyway, I could then spray a rust penetration oil (PB Blaster) onto both the end of the input shaft and the backside of the input shaft. I let it set and sprayed and set for an hour or so. I then tried to pull it off but the force started moving the tiller. So then I resorted to tapping it further onto the input shaft. With a lot of patience and spraying and time I was able to get it to move in a quarter inch or so. Then I was able to spray the outer end of the input shaft and use some wedges to then drive the PTO shaft back to where it started and then a little bit off the shaft. I then sprayed the back side shaft and drove the yoke back onto the input shaft and was able to get it moved about an inch past where it belonged. After that it was just a few more cycles of spray and move both directions before the rust was broken down enough to get the yoke completely off the tiller input shaft.

The secret tip was to try to drive it on before trying off since I could apply more force with the hammer by driving it on, and the penetrating oil was getting into the joint further as I moved the part back and forth.

Good luck.

 

[Bsromine]

Thanks. I already have it back together so I can use it, but the part I’m trying to get off is the part this guy is pulling off at 3:49 in this video. He says he uses pb blaster, but with the big plastic protection cone on mine (missing on his) I can’t tap it with a hammer or anything. Thinking a gear puller might get it.

 

[Russell King]

Thanks. I already have it back together so I can use it, but the part I’m trying to get off is the part this guy is pulling off at 3:49 in this video. He says he uses pb blaster, but with the big plastic protection cone on mine (missing on his) I can’t tap it with a hammer or anything. Thinking a gear puller might get it.

At about the 4:00 minute mark he makes a comment about “nothing else to lock” that part in place. I disagree with that and think there should be a cir-clip on the end of the shaft holding on that part. I think I see a groove in the shaft as he is moving that part on or off the mower shaft.

If the shear pin is not there (sheared into parts) and there is NOT a cir-clip, there is nothing retaining the PTO drive shaft on the implement end. So it could become disconnected from the implement and start swinging around wherever it wants to at 540 RPM. Would you like it getting into the back of your head while moving in a complete circle at 540 RPM?

I know on my shredder with smooth input shaft there is a cir-clip to restrain the PTO shaft when the shear pin is not there. You have to push the yoke towards the gearbox to see it and remove it. I think they have just neglected to install it during the installation of the drive line.

But see the next post (this one is already too long)

 

[Russell King]

I looked at parts lists of your mower and am confused to say the least.

The gearbox shows a groove for the cir-clip!
The driveline for the shaft with only a shear pin (shown below) shows the cir-clip required.
The same driveline with the slip clutch and a shear pin does not show the cir-clip
But you should be able to push yours back and see if there is one there, if you can move it at all.

 

[Bsromine]

Yeah. Can’t move it at all. And I did note in the manual that it shows no clip. Assuming the safety chain is the fail safe in that scenario.
I think next time I have a chance to fool with it I’m just going to soak it with penetrating oil and put a gear puller on it. That yoke is supposed to spin freely on the shaft anyway otherwise the secondary sheet pin is no use.

 

[Bsromine]

 

[Russell King]

Sorry to continue but that is pretty much exactly what I tried to describe getting off my tiller by driving the yoke onto the input shaft further.

In my case the input shaft was splined, so could not rotate. If yours is a smooth shaft, you could try to remove the shear pin and use the mower and see if the torque would work it loose. But don’t use it for long if it spins or you can friction weld them together. I think that is a bad idea unless you know there is a cir-clip installed. I guess you could use a slightly smaller diameter bolt for the shear pin?

Added on edit
I see that your shear pin is a conical dog pin (whatever that means) and they say nothing about the cir-clip. So don’t do anything suggested in this post above.

Why do you need to remove and reinstall #7 Covers? What is under there that is needed to see during drive shaft installation?

 

[Russell King]

@Bsromine
I edited the post above this one (#10)

 

[Bsromine]

The manual is iffy tbh. There is a shear bolt in it and not whatever than conical thing is. And the side covers they talk about are two covered holes on each side of this big plastic shroud that covers the entire slip clutch assembly. They are there so you can access the spring and bolts to slip the clutch. It’s a crap design though because you need child hands to reach in there and they didn’t make the holes big enough so you could measure the spring length upon retightening.

 

[Bsromine]

I’ve got a new mx5400 coming in the morning and was hoping to get that rotary cutter clutch slipped and working correctly so I could use it this week on the MX, assuming the PTO shaft is long enough. If not, I gotta get that thing off anyway to put on a new PTO shaft. OR sell it and buy a new cutter. I’ll figure it out eventually LOL

 

[Elliott in GA]

You want a bigger, stronger cutter for your new MX. LP says an RCF2772 would work - 3 inch rated.

Maybe, the design has changed over the years, I can service my RCR1860 with the shroud on - including measuring the springs, but it has to be done one at a time. Every spring, I mark the friction discs and one spring (to know when I have done them all) with a paint pen, and then I go through the slipping routine.

However, I have never needed to tear down the slip clutch; I guess it is an eventual task - hopefully many years from now.

 

[Bsromine]

You want a bigger, stronger cutter for your new MX. LP says an RCF2772 would work - 3 inch rated.

Maybe, the design has changed over the years, I can service my RCR1860 with the shroud on - including measuring the springs, but it has to be done one at a time. Every spring, I mark the friction discs and one spring (to know when I have done them all) with a paint pen, and then I go through the slipping routine.

However, I have never needed to tear down the slip clutch; I guess it is an eventual task - hopefully many years from now.

maybe a bigger cutter eventually. I don’t really need anything wider than the MX as I only have 13 acres of horse farm. I already had this one so I figure I’d use it. The loader and the grapple I got for downed trees and clearing privet on the overgrown sections is more useful to me than the cutter, although I’d absolutely need the cutter. And the MX had the cab which I wanted badly versus the standard L series which does not.
What length do you have between the outside of the steel plate/friction disc/ steel/friction disc/outside of steel? With the shroud on I can’t see the entire spring so I have mine set at 1.25 inches for the width of the parts above (not the best description I know, but basically the working part of the slip clutch )

 

[Elliott in GA]

maybe a bigger cutter eventually. I don’t really need anything wider than the MX as I only have 13 acres of horse farm. I already had this one so I figure I’d use it. The loader and the grapple I got for downed trees and clearing privet on the overgrown sections is more useful to me than the cutter, although I’d absolutely need the cutter. And the MX had the cab which I wanted badly versus the standard L series which does not.
What length do you have between the outside of the steel plate/friction disc/ steel/friction disc/outside of steel? With the shroud on I can’t see the entire spring so I have mine set at 1.25 inches for the width of the parts above (not the best description I know, but basically the working part of the slip clutch )

I just came back from our property in north Georgia today; my RCR is ~250 miles away. If I remember correctly, the springs are compressed to about 1.3 inches (which is what the manual says). Of course, it is not an exact setting. After I slip mine, I check to see if the plates have moved during normal mowing. Having hit a few things reclaiming about 12 acres, I am confident that it slips when needed.

Good luck with your new MX.

 

[Bsromine]

I just came back from our property in north Georgia today; my RCR is ~250 miles away. If I remember correctly, the springs are compressed to about 1.3 inches (which is what the manual says). Of course, it is not an exact setting. After I slip mine, I check to see if the plates have moved during normal mowing. Having hit a few things reclaiming about 12 acres, I am confident that it slips when needed.

Good luck with your new MX.

Appreciate it man. Hoping I like it. Was a big check to write if I dont lol