Shredder slip clutch question

[jsm]

All,
I have a relatively new 6' shredder. The other day I was shredding through some bahia and smoked my slip clutch for about 5 sec before I could get it shut down.

Called the dealer and they told me that could happen in bahia and I should take a smaller swath or slow down. I guess I am a bit surprised, as I thought those things should be adjusted to slip only under an extreme load, like hitting a stump.

Should I pull it apart and check the friction disk? I assume if you completely eat up the disk, it would just slip as it would be slick metal on metal (i.e. you cant tear anything else up), right? Otherwise,I was just planning to check the spring length spec and continue using it.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Joseph

 

[highgrit]

The dealer is not much. You should be able to mow grass without any problems. You need to tighten up the slip clutch.
The tractor should bog down a little before the clutch slips.

 

[denvermartinfarms]

The dealer is not much. You should be able to mow grass without any problems. You need to tighten up the slip clutch.
The tractor should bog down a little before the clutch slips.

2X

 

[1982vett]

Usually the problem is the plates are "frozen" and won't slip. Twisted shafts and broken u-joints are no fun....but tightening up a little is probably all you need.

 

[Reloadem]

#1 How much horsepower is your tractor?

#2 How high is the grass? And how low are you cutting?

#3 You should be able to check the disks without disassembly, just remove shield.

#4 If the disks are gone, it won't be slick metal anymore. Only takes seconds to rip them up real bad when the disks are gone.

#5 Good news is most disks are real cheap, so long as you haven't abused it. and not to difficult to replace.

 

[cross_7]

Usually the problem is the plates are "frozen" and won't slip. Twisted shafts and broken u-joints are no fun....but tightening up a little is probably all you need.

X2
plus it can get expensive real quick

by Reloadem » Wed Oct 03, 2012 9:40 pm

#1 How much horsepower is your tractor?

#2 How high is the grass? And how low are you cutting?

#3 You should be able to check the disks without disassembly, just remove shield.

#4 If the disks are gone, it won't be slick metal anymore. Only takes seconds to rip them up real bad when the disks are gone.

#5 Good news is most disks are real cheap, so long as you haven't abused it. and not to difficult to replace.

most of the new ones are weasler torqmaster clutches that are engineered for the size of the mower and driveline.
but it does sound like it is too loose

 

[greybeard]

Well, Bahia 'can' get thick and cause a drop in rpm, but you should be able to cut it without slipping the clutch, unless you are running in high gear and cutting as low as the mower will go. Even then, I would think the tractor would drop rpm and you see just bent over grass before the clutch disks started letting out the magic smoke.

 

[lavacarancher]

Bahia is tough to cut with any mower. As mentioned above, slow down and take smaller swaths. I have a 35 acre hay field with Bahia and it takes me three full days to cut it with a 10' hay mower and even then I have smoked the belts more than once.

I doubt there was any permanent damage done to the slip clutch. Tighten it up a turn or two and you should be OK.

 

[jsm]

Thanks for the replies all. I have a 65HP tractor (57 PTO). I was cutting the bahia about 6" and it was probably 12" tall. I am going to take a look at the clutch this weekend just to make sure my friction disk is OK.

 

[James T]

Thanks for the replies all. I have a 65HP tractor (57 PTO). I was cutting the bahia about 6" and it was probably 12" tall. I am going to take a look at the clutch this weekend just to make sure my friction disk is OK.

JSM, your slip clutch will be alright if you go ahead and check the spring length and then maybe tighten each nut a quarter turn. Give it the mower another try while slowing down but keeping your rpm's up where they were. A lot of folks assume that the dealer will have an implement or tractor ready to go but that is not always the case. Check your mowing height and adjust if necessary. It's easy, on uneven ground, to straddle a high point and nothing kicks a shredder harder than a pile of dirt. Look out for high straddle points when your mowing and lift the shredder over them a little as you go. If the land is nice and flat then your either shredding too low or going a bit fast or both. You''ll get the hang of it pretty quick.

 

[shorty]

Check to make sure your clutch discs are ok then see if you can tighten them a little , if you have an owners manual it might help you in making the adjustment , if not just try a little at a time.

 

[MasseyFerg]

It only takes one or two times of smoking the slip clutches and the disks will need changed. On my 15' batwing, I can replace the disks, set the springs to factory specs, get in some thick bermuda and running 5mph burn up the disks in a heartbeat. U have to look back constantly for either streaks where it's not cutting or smoke coming from the slip clutch. then when u get it so hot that if you spit on it that the spit boils, it will continue to slip until you either let it cool down or tigthen it so tight that the slip clutch isn't even functioning, just don't hit no big rock or stump with it like that.