Mowing Dk40 pto problems

Kodiak45 · May 14, 2024

My dk40 has had this issue for some time now, thankfully I don’t need the pto that much. It seems that the pto only works after the tractor warms up. It rarely/never works when I start the tractor no matter how many times I flip the switch or manipulate manual/auto or anything else.
If I need the pto, I will start the tractor and let it idle for 10 or more minutes or I’ll drive around and do other stuff. If I have the pto switch engaged, it will magically come on at some random point. Otherwise I’ll usually keep trying it periodically until I see the dash light up and then I know it’s working.
To be clear, the dash does not light up until it’s actually working and once it works I can turn it off and on without any issue.
I used to think it was just a short and vibration caused it to eventually work, but that’s not the case. It does the same thing every time, only working after tractor has been running for a few and once it works it turns in and off without issue. I can even shut the tractor down after it starts working and start back up and it works. It only seems to not work when I start it up cold.
Any ideas… best case or worst case scenario?

Harry in Ky · May 14, 2024

BEST case would be a simple electrical problem. That's where I would start anyway. The fact that you see the "dash light up" when the PTO starts working tells me that something isn't getting power as it should until the mystery part involved "warms up".

Not knowing the circuitry of that tractor model, I can't/won't point you to any particular component, but I would probably start by locating the PTO solenoid valve and testing that circuit. First checking for power there when the switch is first turned on (yet the PTO isn't working) and if none is present then adding in 12 volt jumper wire to see if that gets the PTO going. That should pretty much eliminate anything but an electrical problem. Once that has been determined you go back to the circuits and other parts involved. If all else fails, then maybe getting "creative" might be an option.

Robin Veerman · May 14, 2024

How many hours on the tractor, and how many hours on the transmission oil?

Kodiak45 · May 15, 2024

Robin Veerman said:
How many hours on the tractor, and how many hours on the transmission oil?

1000 hrs on tractor. All oil changed last month.

Kodiak45 · Jun 18, 2024

Following up on this. I feel that the PTO clutch is bad or slipping when cold, which is why it only works when warm. Any thoughts on this theory?
At first it didn’t make a lot of sense when someone suggested it, but now I think it does.
Anybody know if the tractor had to be slit to change this?