This might should be in the lounge, but there is some tech, so...........
Driving through the woods Friday afternoon in my Ford. Looking for turkey tracks.
The area I'm driving through was a mix of sand pine and blackjack oaks. They cut the pines and left most of the oaks. However in getting to the pines, they knocked down plenty of them and a lot of them are in the road.
Blackjacks are small, about 1 to 2 inches in diameter. Most of these have been smashed down into the ruts by log trucks. But every so often, a tire hits one just right, and it flies up and hits under the truck.
No biggie, lots of stuff have hit the underside of that truck over the years.
Suddenly one hits hard, and instantly I feel a vibration.
This is common, means I have a piece hung and its dragging the ground.
I stop and back up. Usually that takes care of it.
Not only does that not fix it, I don't any mark where its dragging.
Start back forward, still feel it. There is a little bit better place to get under up ahead, so I start that way.
Suddenly I start hearing a grinding noise that is getting louder fast.
I stop, get out, look under.
Nothing, no limb, no parts hanging loose, it all looks fine.
Get back in, turn off the fan and radio and roll down both windows. Drive forward listening for trouble.
Seek and ye shall find.
I go maybe 10 feet, and it sounds like something is going to fall off or explode.
I stop and crawl under. Nothing. It looks fine. I see a few little items I need to address, but nothing that could be making that much noise.
If the transfer case (205) were coming apart, I would expect to feel something as I drive.
Weird part is, it sounds like its coming from the front. But does not sound like any wheel bearing I ever heard.
I'm in 2wheel, shift to 4 and back no change.
Shake the driver's side wheel, solid. Check the driver's side hub, disengaged, and will turn to engage and back.
Walk around and check the passenger side hub and wheel. Fine.
But, wait a minute.....ever have that feeling you just missed something important?
Something just does not feel right. Something I saw.....
I walk slowly back around toward the driver door, looking at the truck.
WTF!!!???
The winch cable, which normally has a few loose loops around the roller frame so I can pull someone out without using the winch, is so tight that you could have played it like a violin.
I look in the cab, and sure enough, the PTO knob is sticking up about 6 inches.
That limb somehow came swinging up at just the right angle, in-between the catalytic converter and the PTO, hit the lever just right and engaged it.
The winch was in gear out front so I could use it to back up and pull with. The hydralic lever was in "in" direction because that is where the rod is completely inside the housing.
I leave it that way to keep dirt and rust off the shaft.
I shifted it to "out" and drove forward enough to take the strain off the cable.
Then disengaged the PTO, and it all got quieter.
I have been running a PTO winch set up like that for 31 years. My old Jeep had a PTO too, but it shifted from inside the cab, so I don't count it.
I have run over more trees, stumps, trash than you can imagine, and that has never happened before.
Just when you think you have seen every failure mode........
Even so, it all worked out well. The noise was not serious, and I stopped before it broke the cable.......
Driving through the woods Friday afternoon in my Ford. Looking for turkey tracks.
The area I'm driving through was a mix of sand pine and blackjack oaks. They cut the pines and left most of the oaks. However in getting to the pines, they knocked down plenty of them and a lot of them are in the road.
Blackjacks are small, about 1 to 2 inches in diameter. Most of these have been smashed down into the ruts by log trucks. But every so often, a tire hits one just right, and it flies up and hits under the truck.
No biggie, lots of stuff have hit the underside of that truck over the years.
Suddenly one hits hard, and instantly I feel a vibration.
This is common, means I have a piece hung and its dragging the ground.
I stop and back up. Usually that takes care of it.
Not only does that not fix it, I don't any mark where its dragging.
Start back forward, still feel it. There is a little bit better place to get under up ahead, so I start that way.
Suddenly I start hearing a grinding noise that is getting louder fast.
I stop, get out, look under.
Nothing, no limb, no parts hanging loose, it all looks fine.
Get back in, turn off the fan and radio and roll down both windows. Drive forward listening for trouble.
Seek and ye shall find.
I go maybe 10 feet, and it sounds like something is going to fall off or explode.
I stop and crawl under. Nothing. It looks fine. I see a few little items I need to address, but nothing that could be making that much noise.
If the transfer case (205) were coming apart, I would expect to feel something as I drive.
Weird part is, it sounds like its coming from the front. But does not sound like any wheel bearing I ever heard.
I'm in 2wheel, shift to 4 and back no change.
Shake the driver's side wheel, solid. Check the driver's side hub, disengaged, and will turn to engage and back.
Walk around and check the passenger side hub and wheel. Fine.
But, wait a minute.....ever have that feeling you just missed something important?
Something just does not feel right. Something I saw.....
I walk slowly back around toward the driver door, looking at the truck.
WTF!!!???
The winch cable, which normally has a few loose loops around the roller frame so I can pull someone out without using the winch, is so tight that you could have played it like a violin.
I look in the cab, and sure enough, the PTO knob is sticking up about 6 inches.
That limb somehow came swinging up at just the right angle, in-between the catalytic converter and the PTO, hit the lever just right and engaged it.
The winch was in gear out front so I could use it to back up and pull with. The hydralic lever was in "in" direction because that is where the rod is completely inside the housing.
I leave it that way to keep dirt and rust off the shaft.
I shifted it to "out" and drove forward enough to take the strain off the cable.
Then disengaged the PTO, and it all got quieter.
I have been running a PTO winch set up like that for 31 years. My old Jeep had a PTO too, but it shifted from inside the cab, so I don't count it.
I have run over more trees, stumps, trash than you can imagine, and that has never happened before.
Just when you think you have seen every failure mode........
Even so, it all worked out well. The noise was not serious, and I stopped before it broke the cable.......
after accidentally winching a Land Rover up into a tree.
