Cast pulley keyway repair?

tomstractorsandtoys · Apr 13, 2021

I have a Deere 71 corn sheller and on the cleaning shoe drive there is a cast pulley about 15 inches in diameter. At some time before I owned it the pulley came loose and ate the keyway out. Shaft is damaged some as well. Shaft should not be hard to have made as it is just 1 inch shaft. How do I fix the pulley? It has an offset to it so it is not something you are just going to replace with off the shelf parts.It has a bearing on the inside and another part on the outside so just welding the pulley is not an option. I have about 100 bu of corn that needs shelled so wondering what my option are? Thanks Tom

kencombs · Apr 13, 2021

My first choice would be cutting a new keyway in a new position. Or, cut the old one wider and cut a corresponding larger keyway in the replacement shaft.

Jeff NWOH · Apr 13, 2021

I can't picture your setup exactly on the pulley, but would it be possible to just broach another keyway in the bore 90 or 180 degress from the original. I suppose you could also straighten out the key slot on the pulley with a file and use a larger key, especially if you are having a new shaft made anyway..

Jeff NWOH · Apr 13, 2021

Guess we think alike...

Wheat47 · Apr 13, 2021

If there is enough metal at take hub of the sprocket,
Take it to a machine shop and have them bore it out and put in a
steel hub with a keyway in it.

DeltaRed · Apr 13, 2021

The best, correct way is to bore it out and put in a machined steel sleeve. A machine shop can do that job for you. However there are other cheaper ways to do it that are not as good but would probably work.

Steve@Advance · Apr 13, 2021

Is there enough room for one of these, enough diameter of the center boss of the pulley without getting too thin?
QD Bushing

M-MAN · Apr 13, 2021

A picture would really help. I have straightened out the hub keyway with a file to accept a wider key. File down the bottom half to fit the shaft keyway. If you're careful and get a close fit it will be as good as new.

MarkB_MI · Apr 13, 2021

Assuming you don't have access to a machine shop that can cut a new keyway and want to do it yourself, you could braze the damaged keyway and file a new one in the brazed area.

A short-term emergency fix would be to assemble it with a metal-filled epoxy such as Devcon.

37 chief · Apr 13, 2021

McMaster Carr sells ready made one inch shafts with a key way already cut in. Probably cheaper that having a machine shop do the work. A machine shop should be able to cut a keyway as others have mentioned. A picture helps. Stan

flying belgian · Apr 13, 2021

This is going to sound really crude but I bet I'm not the only one here who has done this. If you have say a 3/8 keyway, with the pulley slipped on shaft, drill a 3/8 hole into keyway. Then pound a dowel in. Saw dowel off flush and tack it with welder. Otherwise does the pulley hub stick out enough to drill a hole through hub and shaft anrun a bolt through there?

Cast pulley keyway repair?

tomstractorsandtoys

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kencombs

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Jeff NWOH

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Jeff NWOH

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Wheat47

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DeltaRed

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Steve@Advance

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M-MAN

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MarkB_MI

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37 chief

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flying belgian

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