So, I managed to finally get the PTO Generator I was promised home, and now that it is here, I have more questions than answers. The unit seems to be heavy duty, and is bigger than I thought. It is 20,000 watts, but I thought it was only 60 Amps, but is actually 83 amps...plenty for my house. But in reading the builders plate it says Burden...nothing else...so I looked it up on the internet, and the nearest thing I could come up with was that it it originated from "Burden Surplus Center". As everyone knows, this is was; and still is, a clearing house of no-name and discontinued stuff. I am pretty sure this is the case as this is the type of stuff they do carry. But then the PTO shaft is odd. It is not splined, but is actually has a woodruff key, and shear pin. This would make a person think that it is NOT a PTO generator at all, but the model number specifically says Model 20,000 Power Take Off; they do not even abbreviate it PTO. And there are PTO farming type shields on the unit itself, so I am thinking it might be a PTO/Electric motor combination type generator? Yet despite having a gearbox, it says 3600 rpm on the builders plate. Surely this must be the rpm measured at the generator input shaft and not PTO speed? Anyone run into this before? I was hoping to just go out and buy a PTO shaft and hook it up, but it seems like it will take a bit of working to get it making power. The rest of it looks pretty good. Wiring looks good, fuses are still good, etc. I think I will shim it/bolt it to the concrete floor of my lambing shed, then run the PTO shaft outside through the wall and hook it to my bulldozer. I don't think my 25 hp Kubota would power it well enough, but my John Deere 350D should handle it I would think.
Possibly run off a power unit. The old Rockford style clutch shafts on power units are keyed that way.
So your saying the input shaft isn't splinned? Or the telescopic shaft? What all will you be powering with it?
Winco's have a straight shaft and use an adapter. 3600 (2 pole) is the generator rpm. Frequency x 120 รท no. of poles= synchronous rpm.
Thanks ScrewLoose; what you show in your picture is EXACTLY what I have. Mine says "Burden" on the electrical box cover, but it must have originated from Winco. Any idea on where a person can find an adapter? Any tractor dealership or do you think it is a Winco Only part?
Well I am cheap so I bought a commonly available 1" bore adapter from surplus center and bored it out to the uncommon 1.125 dia. To fit. Maybe eBay ? As a side note take the sheet metal cover off the end of the generator and make sure that the brushes move freely in the holders and the comutator and slip rings corrosion free. Rock solid machine, much better and more reliable than the "brushless" ie "cheap" stuff sold today.
No the other way. What will you be powering with the generator? Not what will be powering the generator.
When WinCo supplied the unit on a trailer the PTO shaft was keyed and pinned on. My plan is to make a 3 point mount so I removed it from the trailer. I still have the shaft and the trailer for that matter. Not sure what shipping would be to you but your welcome to it if it helps. It's a rather long telescoping one with guards. I don't remember any issues with it. 1 3/8" -6 spline.
That is not the most flattering picture of my wife Katie, but when I can, I post a picture of something other than trees and tractors to keep things interesting on here. It is not often you see pink out in the woods though. Thanks for the offer on the trailer, but I was actually thinking of just putting it inside my lambing barn so it is out of the weather, then putting the driveshaft through the wall and powering it with the tractor sitting outside. That is the way most PTO generators are set up for farms here. It would not be portable, but I don't see it needing to be for my needs. Thanks for letting me know how to get and make the adapter. I am a machinist/welder by trade so I can do that as well. I am retired now, but still remember how I think! I got a Supply Center catalog here too, and know them well. I have tried to take the cover off, but sadly the bolts are rusted quite tight. I can get them off eventually, it was just 10 degrees yesterday with a pretty good snowstorm brewing so I figured I would battle it on another day. That was a poor plan; the power went out again today; 3rd time in 3 weeks for extended intervals. Drat! As a way of saying thanks for the adapter and generator advice, here is Merry Christmas too you, but I suspect if you did not see the bulldozer, you might not see the Christmas Tree either! Just so you know, my wife (also known as Mrs Clause) is a good sport and does not mind her picture on here.
Actually I was offering to give you the shaft, figured UPS or mail. Trailer would be cheaper to build than to ship.
My bad, my bad, my bad...I should have known what you meant. To answer your question, just my house. I did a load quiz on Generac's website, and with my heavy use of propane appliances, only came up with around 13 KW for a demand. I am retired, but have a sheep farm which is fortunate because they do not demand a lot of energy...like dairy farms for instance with their vacuum pumps and coolers for the milk. My biggest issue will be amps as I back feed through my welder outlet which at most could take 50 amps. So unless I run a separate wire from the box of the pto generator, and go directly to my main breaker box at the front of my house, I could not get all 83 amps out of this unit anyway. I'll just back feed through the welder outlet of my barn and snap my main breaker so it does not back feed onto the grid. A lot easier to do...
