Fixed one problem created another

[stumppuller]

Hi all, I fixed the notorious bell housing oil leak that so many of us have experienced. Instead of replacing the 2 bell housing gaskets with new ones, I got rid of them totally and used Permatex form-a-gasket. Part of my reasoning was that these original fiber gaskets had compressed to about 1/2 their original thickness and could have contributed to the loosening of all the bolts. Having a cardboard gasket in this critically loaded area just didn't sit right with me. So I torqued her to spec and guess what.....no oil leaks.

The problem now is that the PTO clutch remains engaged full time, while the drive clutch works just fine. I haven't been able to determine if shortening the housing/gearbox lay-up by some 0.090" or so of removed gasket would cause this or not.

Any ideas as to what might have gone wrong?

Bruce

[Rich Waugh]

I suppose that 90 thousandths change could have changed the clutch settings enough to do that. Or you might have a shaft binding, but that's less likely I'd think. I'd start by going through the clutch set-up just as though you were dealing with a new tractor that had never been set-up before. Get everything to factory spec and see how it is.

As for eliminating those gaskets, I wouldn't have (and didn't ) do that. In theory, paper and fiber gaskets are designed to have a certain amount of crush at proper torque and that is taken into account when designing clearances of mated parts. Eliminate the gaskets and you change the clearances. Change the gaskets to ones that have less crush and you get the same effect going the other way. Admittedly, 90% of the time you get away with changing this, but not always. The main reason I change to a different gasket material in a situation like this is to get away from inferior gaskets that tear or shred in use. Then I'll get high-quality gasket material in the appropriate thickness and cut my own gaskets.

When I did the bellhousing leak on my 304, I just went new OEM gaskets and its been fine. The problem was with poor factory assembly, not with the gasket material. All the tearing was due to the fit-up being sloppy so it allowed the two halves to move and destroy the gasket.

Hopefully, doing the clutch alignment will cure your problem. That's definitely where I'd start.

[stumppuller]

If you are suggesting a bench set-up of the clutch pack, it aint gonna happen (at least not now ) My reasoning is that the clutch pack was left untouched when I took it out and when I put it back in...so no clearances were messed with. The drive clutch works just fine with no surprises. The only thing I can think to do is increase the pedal travel which should hopefully complete the dissengagement of both clutches.

Does this make sense? What problem could this create?

[quicksandfarmer]

I had almost the exact same sequence of events. See this thread:
www.tractorbynet.com/forums/chinese-tractors/253904-pto-wont-engage-then-wont.html

If you don't want to read to the end, here's the punchline: I had put the clutch spring for the PTO in backwards. Now, you're probably smarter than I am, and you say you didn't disassemble the clutch stack, so it's probably not your problem, but I thought I'd throw it out.

Removing the gasket will change the clutch adjustment, but it shouldn't be in the way you describe. The clutch is on the flywheel, which is bolted to the end of the crankshaft. The clutch pedeal is mounted to the bell housing. If you reduce the spacing between the bell housing and the engine block, you move the clutch closer to the clutch pedal. That should reduce the clearance between the clutch fork and the release bearing, but otherwise the clutch performance shouldn't change.

While there is no reason the PTO adjustment should have changed, I would look at that first because it's the simplest thing.

Here's instructions for adjusting the clutch pedal travel:
www.ctoa.net/forum/tractor-operation-and-maintenance/clutch-adjustment/