# 861D PTO question????



## dave440 (Sep 11, 2010)

I have a 861 D and when using a 6 foot tiller, sometimes in harder ground the pto shaft will slow or stop turning coming out of tractor. In loser ground does fine. Do I have something going bad in tractor? Does fine with bushhog also. Thanks David


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## Big_T (Dec 1, 2011)

Your PTO clutch is slipping. Your tractor has a live PTO (two stage clutch - Push it halfway down to disengage the transmission clutch & stop the wheels, all the way down to disengage the PTO clutch & stop the PTO).

A 6' tiller is a heavy load. Especially in hard ground. Take smaller bites with the tiller - maybe 2-3" at a time, and make multiple passes, or you are going to kill what's left of your PTO clutch. Also, water the ground before you till to soften it up. My tiller can be adjusted to take smaller bites.


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## dave440 (Sep 11, 2010)

*861 pto clutch how do I fix or adjust it? Thanks*




Big_T said:


> Your PTO clutch is slipping. Your tractor has a live PTO (two stage clutch - Push it halfway down to disengage the transmission clutch & stop the wheels, all the way down to disengage the PTO clutch & stop the PTO).
> 
> A 6' tiller is a heavy load. Especially in hard ground. Take smaller bites with the tiller - maybe 2-3" at a time, and make multiple passes, or you are going to kill what's left of your PTO clutch. Also, water the ground before you till to soften it up. My tiller can be adjusted to take smaller bites.


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## dave440 (Sep 11, 2010)

Thanks Big T, How do I fix or adjust pto clutch?


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## Big_T (Dec 1, 2011)

Can you stop the PTO by depressing the clutch?? If so, does the PTO stop with the clutch fully depressed, or at some point before fully depressed??

You have to split the tractor to replace the clutch. A Ford dealership will probably charge about $2,000 to do the job. More if they find other problems. Their price on a new clutch is very high. You can probably find an independent farm mechanic locally who will do the job for about $1,000 using an aftermarket clutch. He also may find other repairs that need doing.


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## dave440 (Sep 11, 2010)

*861 pto clutch slipping*

Thanks Big T. Pto stops when pedal is all the way down to floor. This afternoon I lowered the shoes on the side of tiller to take smaller bites in dirt. Did not slip any. Also thinking about taking 2 rows of tines off one end, to make it a shorter tiller. What do you think? THANKS David


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## Big_T (Dec 1, 2011)

Excellent idea. Your clutch is adjusted correctly, it just can't handle the 6' tiller load. 

If you are tilling a large area, consider getting a disc harrow and using the other half of the clutch (the main clutch that drives the wheels).


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## beachblu (May 21, 2012)

I just tried my new 5' tiller today, using fairly shallow 3-4" cut in silty/clay, medium dry soil and it worked slick (see photo attached). I've set the slip clutch on the tiller driveshaft to slip long before my PTO clutch would take the beating... just another way to save your PTO clutch..


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## beachblu (May 21, 2012)

Updating on tillers with Ford 861. Have had to tighten slip clutch bolts after smelling clutch while tilling in 2nd gear, 3-4" deep in very dry, but broken up silt, clay soil.


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