8441 pto issues

I have an 8441 that has less than 1100 hours on it. I use it mostly to cut and bale hay. This past fall as I was finishing up baling, I noticed a distinct smell of the clutch burning, and it seemed to be the most intense right under the driver's seat. When checking I noticed that the hand lever cable for the pto clutch still had alot of slack in it when released. I disconnected the linkage under the tractor and could not budge the pto clutch arm by by hand, but I could take a hammer and tap it forward. I reassembled the linkage and did the same thing, which took the slack out of the cable. I have not had a chance to try it yet (still a sloppy winter here in texas), but I summized that the pto was not fully engaging. Could this have been my problem? If so, what do I do to loosen things up? Thanks.

you have most likely fried the pto clutch plate

Thanks. If the pto clutch is trashed, what is involved in replacing it? Do I have to split the tractor to repair it?

Hi

It sounds like the crosshaft for the release fork is siezing. You could try greasing it but I think you'll have to split the tractor to free it off properly. You can replace the plate/s when it is split.

Mike

Thanks. That is what I was afraid of. Is this a common problem with Zetor tractors? I would think the hours on mine would be relatively low compared to some of the others I have seen here? I purchased it new and was expecting much more service out of it before I started to have problems.

The pto clutch plate usually out lasts the tractor,your just unlucky it wasn't getting fully engaged.

It may well be siezing if you're not using the tractor regularly. They don't usually play up if it is greased regularly unless you are near the coast in salty air.

Mike