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Removing a post hole auger bit from power head.

M

Mtjohnso

Member
Have an old, old PTO driven post hole digger that has a leaking seal on the output shaft of the power head. To replace the seal I must remove the auger bit from the output shaft.
The output shaft is 2.5 inch diameter. The auger bit slides over the top of this shaft and has a bolt to hold it in place.
I removed the bolt and then used a homemade pickle fork to get the auger shaft to move about a 1/4 inch.
I have tried to use a acetylene torch to heat it up. Let the torch heat the auger bit collar for about 3 minutes or more. But no more movement when pounding on the pickle fork.
What would you try next?
 
You need to heat for longer than that. You need it to get red partway around the length of the auger collar then try just driving it down on the center of the flighting on the auger. If no joy then reheat and quench in water it will then come off when cool. IT needs to be submersed till cool for it to come off. This would temper your shaft and collar so you may decide not to do that. If you could submerse it in some diesel fuel for a while it would soak it loose. With the bolt out and heated you could always start digging with it and it will spin loose.
 
Lots off majic rust breaker and drive it back on,then repeat. Mine, I just put oil in it everyday I use it.
 
Might want to consider pumping two tubes of gun grease in gearbox then add 00Cotton Picker Spindle Grease 00 and forget about the seal.
 
Get a pail of used motor oil and add a tube of grease to it, and mix it up with a paint mixer. This mix will slow the leak down sufficiently that you can drill for awhile , maybe without the bolt in it , it might break loose. If you have it moving, sounds like success is near.
 
Filling with grease is the way to go, but if you d rather fix the seal more heat is needed. Heat until red.
 
Go out and drill a post hole. If auger doesn't come off, drill another post hole. Put it in use, and sooner or later, it'll come off.

If it comes off while screwed into the ground, simply put it back together using the shear bolt to get it back out.
Once out of the ground, once again remove the shear bolt, and auger will come off and won't be in the ground when it does.
 
on some old post hole augers there is a roll pin that will not allow the auger to fall off if the shear bolt breaks. The one I have did have a roll pin until I remove it.
 
Easiest way would be to fill with cornhead grease and run it and forget the seal. The grease will lubricate the parts and not run out while in use or setting. The cost of gas to do the heating will pay for the cornhead grease. Then with the bolt out using it will loosen it up.
 
All of the above tricks. I have an old Ford and when I got it the bolt had been sheared and the auger spun on the shaft galling things up. All the tricks helped a little. Just keep working on it and be patient.
 
I had the same issue with my auger. I sprayed penetrating oil on it every day and it loosened up after about a week. If it didn't come free, I was going to go dig some holes until it did.
 
Like others say, save your gas on the torch, fill it full of corn head grease and use it without the bolt. I will also add that if it was mine I would spray it with Kroil every time I walked by it for a while before I used it and some more after I used it if it still didn't break loose.
 
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