Another PTO Clutch Question

[LSU-Mike]

A couple of years ago advice from this forum helped me set the air gap on my Ogura clutch on my Freedom Z. Everything seemed fine until recently when I started hearing a loud "scraping" sound seemingly coming from the clutch when the blades are disengaged. No unusual sound when engaged. I checked the air gap and set all three points to .015. The sound still exists. With the blade belt removed and engine running I hear the sound when there is no power to the clutch. Perfectly quiet when power is applied. I can rotate the clutch back and forth about 5 to 10 degrees and hear a "clanking" sound at the end of travel each way. If I rotate the clutch continuously by hand, I hear the same sort of scraping sound (not nearly as loud of course). This is the original clutch on this 17 year old mower. Am I looking at a clutch replacement, or some other possible solution?

Thanks for replies.

 

[Hammermechanicman]

A couple of years ago advice from this forum helped me set the air gap on my Ogura clutch on my Freedom Z. Everything seemed fine until recently when I started hearing a loud "scraping" sound seemingly coming from the clutch when the blades are disengaged. No unusual sound when engaged. I checked the air gap and set all three points to .015. The sound still exists. With the blade belt removed and engine running I hear the sound when there is no power to the clutch. Perfectly quiet when power is applied. I can rotate the clutch back and forth about 5 to 10 degrees and hear a "clanking" sound at the end of travel each way. If I rotate the clutch continuously by hand, I hear the same sort of scraping sound (not nearly as loud of course). This is the original clutch on this 17 year old mower. Am I looking at a clutch replacement, or some other possible solution?

Thanks for replies.

Remove the deck belt
Engage and disengage the clutch
Does it still make the noise when disengaged?
Does the belt pulley stop spinning when the clutch is disengaged?

If the belt pulley keeps turning when the clutch is disengaged and make the scraping noise the bearing in the clutch is probably bad.

 

[LSU-Mike]

Hammermech - thanks for your reply. Because I've seen on various forums that individuals have different understandings for "engaged" and "disengaged" I'm saying powered vs not powered.
Belt off
Powered - blades turning if belt was on - no noise, pulley turning
Not powered - blades stopped if belt on - noisy, pulley not turning
when not powered and I turn the pulley by hand, I hear the scraping noise and feel some resistance (turns relatively easily by hand).

 

[Hammermechanicman]

If the belt pulley is not turning (power off) and the clutch makes a noise it is probably the bearing in the clutch. With the clutch powered on the bearing doesn't spin so no noise.
I would remove the clutch and check the bearing.

 

[LSU-Mike]

If the belt pulley is not turning (power off) and the clutch makes a noise it is probably the bearing in the clutch. With the clutch powered on the bearing doesn't spin so no noise.
I would remove the clutch and check the bearing.

Bearing failure has been my fear. My next fear is attempting to remove this thing. Is the bearing replaceable? I see that new clutches are rather expensive.

 

[StarTech]

Most are not.

 

[LSU-Mike]

I'm baaack... The old clutch came off without any problem. It's an Ogura ma-gt-dx11cu. I see online prices from $300+ to $100+. Of course the lower prices are on Ebay. I've not had any problems (yet) ordering through Ebay, but ... If allowable on this forum, can anyone suggest a source somewhere between $300 and $100? I don't expect 17 years like the original, but more than one year would be good.

 

[MParr]

Have you looked on xtremeope.com?
They will run you around $200.

Contact Us | Xtreme Outdoor Power Equipment

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xtremeope.com

 

[StarTech]

Have you looked on xtremeope.com?
They will run you around $200.

Contact Us | Xtreme Outdoor Power Equipment

Connect with Xtreme Outdoor Power Equipment's dedicated team through our Contact Us page. We're here to assist you with any inquiries or support you may need.

xtremeope.com

Try around $317

Search Results

xtremeope.com

OX Clutch has it for $250

Replacement for Ogura MA-GT-DX11CU

Ox Clutch Takes the Electric PTO Clutch to the Next Level! Our clutches are designed with durability in mind Industrial/Commercial grade clutch Ultra Cool Bearing & Coil Technology State-of-the-Art Pulley Construction = 50% efficiency gain! Advanced Braking System = 20% faster stop time...

www.oxclutch.com

 

[LSU-Mike]

The Ox Clutch replacement is available on Ebay for $162.95 with free shipping. I guess I'll go for that one. Too bad it has to come all the way from Eugene, OR. My grass and weeds in south Louisiana won't wait so I'll put the old one back on in the meantime.
Thanks folks.