PTO/Hydraulic Pump

[davidbrady]

In our BB's chatter isn't the issue. If you look at the spline wear closely you won't find any evidence of a reversing load. My hydraulics shop said the PTO's coming from Asia are poorly built with bad tolerances and bad shaft alignment; couple this the a 7/8" 13T spine which doesn't offer sufficient tooth cross section for our application. Misalignment shows up initially as fretting wear of the spline material as shown by the red-brown discoloration which is fretting debris. From there we have sliding wear which results in material transfer, or galling, from one component to the other. Some owners get over a 100K miles out of the units, while other owners only achieve tens of thousands of miles before replacement. This is due to the sloppiness of the components. Some owners are lucky and have better built units. That's why if you have a good PTO you're probably better off rebuilding it.

BTW, the LXi uses a PWM (pulse width modulated) signal to start the fan. You're taking steps you don't need to by starting the fan early. The LXi automatically starts the fan slowly and ramps up speed gently to minimize shock loads. This is also true for the '97WB, but I don't think its true for any of the earlier Wanderlodges with hydraulic fans.