The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop PTO info

On my 1953 Chev 3600 the four speed tranny has a PTO access cover. Can someone give me some info about this PTO system?

What 'attachments' or accessories can it be used with it? hydraulic pumps?

I assume there is some other PTO assembly that must be added to the tranny - including a cab mounted hand control? Any suggested sources for this equipment?

Can the PTO be operated while the truck is being driven or is this only for stationary use?

Thanks in advance for any information!

My 2-ton uses a Chelsea PTO model 450A to operate the dump bed. You can drive pumps, generators (depending on rpm), winches, etc. from the little drive shafts that come off the PTO box.
Old farmers and tow truck drivers know lots of tricks.
Here is an old Chelsea one for sale now on ebay. "caveat emptor" !!
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/aw-cgi/ebayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=598614579&r=0&t=0

Eaton pto's were also very popular, even a Spicer pto, and a little auxilary transmission called a Brownie could fit in that access plate.

john
1952 coe
1947 coe

[ 12-02-2001: Message edited by: lil' johnny ]

My '48 3/4T also had a PTO. There is a knotch cut out of the driver's side running board. Was that for a gear box? The previous owner left the cable but took the unit. Don't you have to find one that fit the Chevy transmission? The one on E-bay is for a Dodge Power Wagon. (Wragek, I won't bid on it even if it fits a Chevy.)

I just refered to one on ebay for the fast photo.

My limited understanding of pto's is that the gears must mesh with proper clearances or it will trash the box. Thus a pto box gears must mate with proper transmission via shims/gaskets/ or casting flanges/ bolt holes.

SEE this for modern applications; http://www.pto-usa.com/

The floor board cut-outs are usually for a hand lever that often looks like a parking brake.

Example dump bed.... The PTO has a cable pull on the dash that engages/activates the PTO box; the PTO box then turns its' little drive shaft that eventually turns a hydraulic pump box; then the hand lever gets pulled to activate a hydraulic flow from the hydraulic pump to the hydraulic cylinder and thus raises/lowers a dump bed.

In short, PTO boxes turn their own little drive shaft....then ya "activate" whatever accessory hooks up to the little driveshaft.

Look in junk yards on the BIG Chevy/GMC trucks of the 1940s,50s,60, for a used PTO. They are very rugged units and are a good junk yard bet. Some big old dump trucks will even have directions on a dash decal telling how to work the PTO.

With the proper drive shaft and U-joint set up these things could power water pumps, wood cutters, well look at the old tractor sites and see all the stuff they used em' for....
http://www.ytmag.com/cgi-bin/boards.cgi

{I often wondered if the WW2 Army Duck had its propeller driven off a PTO? I rode in one but it was slow and had a hard time ascending a steep shoreline. A little PTO propeller would look real cool on a stovebolt and definalty a useless converstaion piece!} http://normandy.eb.com/normandy/articles/DUKW.html

john
1952 coe
1947 coe

[ 12-03-2001: Message edited by: lil' johnny ]

Thanks for the info. I'll have to check into how universal that tranny was - same as on the 1, 1 1/2, and 2 ton trucks of that era? I wonder if I could find a 'compatibility' list - years/makes/models. My guess is one doesn't exist - NO ONE has that much time on their hands! This will sound stupid but I was wondering if a person could rig a hydraulically driven snowblower (units you usually see on something like a skidsteer ) - to mount on the front of the old beast...a 5-window snow cannon of sorts! The PTO would have to be operating while the tranny is still pushing the truck....

If I get a PTO, I'll hook up a big honking ice cream maker.

The 4 speed tranny is pretty generic on the medium to large AD Chevy trucks.

I checked ebay search engine for "vintage pto" or "old pto" and found lots of stuff. Sometimes you'll find old catalogs of the aforementioned brands (Spicer, Eaton, Chelsea) and they will have crosslistings to tell ya what fits. I dont often buy stuff on ebay, I just like to see what's available.

I imagine almost anything hydraulic can be driven from a pto that can couple to its output shaft. With the right shaft and RPM the 100 HP or so a Stovebolt puts out ought to compare with lots of little bobcats or skidsteers. I even wonder about using some sort of co-axial cable power shaft to make gentle bends in the routing? Also, a simple hydraulic lift gate would be cool to help load stuff....or a log splitter...or.... the "jeep guys" run welders and even hook up chain sprockets to their PTO's ...on & on.

My 1947 COE has a Spicer Model XC-7 PTO that is huge compared to my 1952 COE Chelsea 450A. This makes me wonder what the Spicer PTO was used for on my semi-tractor COE?

Well, maybe somebody who has more experience using the PTO's can relate whether they can be operated when the transmission gear is engaged. I think I have used them "in gear" when I was spreading loads of rock, but I cant remember. Seems I was creeping in 1st gear WITH the PTO lifting the dump bed so its very likely.

john
1952 coe
1947 coe

[ 12-03-2001: Message edited by: lil' johnny ]

PTO's usually run off the countershaft in the transmission, so they are always usable in whatever gear you are in. Some pto's in 4wd vehicle run off the transfer case, in which case you select pto speed/direction using the gears in the tranny. My willys had a pto winch and it ran off the transfer case.

Hey I have an idea, how about hydraulic pumps running off a PTO for lowering the suspension on a cool custom job? It would involve leaving the orignal driveline in the truck but it would definitly be unique!

Gearhead, you don't need a pump to let the vehicle down--you need the pump to raise it back up again

The bad thing about using a pto for power is that it is not independent of the transmission. If you push in the clutch, the PTO gears stop. You can have the PTO running in neutral, or running while the truck is moving, that is it. If, for instance, you had a snow blower hooked up to a pump run with a PTO, every time you stop, the snow blower stops. This would be a major pain. Most hydraulic applications like snow blowers are driven off a crankshaft driven closed center load sensed hydraulic pump.

I was thinking the same thing as Racecart - engaging and disengagint the clutch would make a snowblower-type implement almost impossible to operate. It seems that a hydraulic pump under the hood - belt driven - would be the solution. These pumps are ~ $375 (I think).