L6060 Leaking oil from weep hole in bell housing!

[Sawyer Rob]

Maybe, maybe not. Generally the front wheels spin a few percent faster than the rears, 2-5% or so I believe. That helps pull the front end around so it actually steers when in fwa compared to the traction on the rear.

Fronts do wear faster because of their size, slightly faster rotation & because of steering.

While all of that supports the sales guys case I'm still sceptical that isn't anything other than BS.

SO, this is what the dealer told him

He said the smaller front tires wear faster than the rears and the overall gear ratio gets into balance after the tractor breaks in.

I take it that he meant A. after running things will wear in and the gearing will correct itself OR B., after the front tires wear down, the gearing will correct itself...

Personally, I don't like either answer!!

I call BS on A. and if "B" is true, the gearing in the tractor should have been set closer in the first place.

I can show you a pict. of the "original" tires on one of my MFWD tractors that's 19 years old and the front tires did NOT have to "wear in" to correct the F/R gearing!

I do NOT have to raise the front end, to get it out of gear. Backing up a "little" or turning to one side a bit lets it slip right out, just like all my other MFWD tractors.

AND yes it is geared a bit faster in the front end and works perfectly at a MFWD tractor.

SR

 

[JWR]

I hope it works out for you...

I do like Kubota products, I have some, but they aren't the "heavy duty" tractor that some here would have you believe, UNLESS you compare them to home owner products...

Some folks here would be better off buying a "farm" tractor than a higher hp compact tractor, but I guess they either don't know any better or are trying to keep up with the yuppie neighbors...

SR

I think I'll comment before the landslide of Orange fans hits. First, I'm no great expert on tractors and make no implied claim to be one. Intended or not, your comment above is a slap in the face to a lot of people. So far as I can tell it is based on nothing but your opinion... to which you are entitled. My comments are always based on my opinion. I'm at least as old as you are and owned several brands, if that matters. On what do you base your pronouncement that "...they aren't the heavy duty tractor..." ? Historically Kubota has centered in the compact or subcompact tractor sizes. They have a universal reputation (maybe not with you) for being able to handle much larger tasks than their size would seem to justify. In recent years they have brought out larger machines such as the M5 and M6. In what sense are those less "farm" tractors than the other brands? I suggest you compare on paper or in person the M5 and M6 to any comparable size/power Deere, Massey, or New Holland machines. What exactly do you find is deficient? Did you intend your comments only toward the smaller Kubotas? Kubota was the first to standardize on putting skid-steer compatible FELs on the dealer lots long before the others. Deere still has their head in that sand. The Kubota loaders look stronger than their competitors and are more conservatively speced. I can point you to hacked off users with major reliability and service issues on ALL those brands. In fact, in my opinion, a worse and more prevalent set of problems among them than those with the larger Kubotas. Have I misinterpreted your post ?

 

[RedNeckGeek]

I do like Kubota products, I have some, but they aren't the "heavy duty" tractor that some here would have you believe, UNLESS you compare them to home owner products...

Some folks here would be better off buying a "farm" tractor than a higher hp compact tractor, but I guess they either don't know any better or are trying to keep up with the yuppie neighbors...

I thought I did a pretty thorough job of researching before I purchased my Kutota 3240, taking into account the landscaping, tree pulling, mowing, and lifting tasks I anticipated. What I found is that even a small 1 1/2" root snagged by a ripper on the box blade was enough to stop it in its tracks, even in 4WD with the diff lock engaged. And when I tried to push dirt while backing up with that box blade, the stiffeners that are supposed to keep the box centered bent and broke. Side hilling with many loads of gravel in the bucket overloaded the front hub covers and busted out one of the castings, leaving me to limp it back to the shop with the bucket dragging on the ground to keep that end of the axle from digging in. Then there was the time that the splined coupler on one end of the propeller shaft stripped out while I was carrying a bucket full of rocks down a steep hill. With no brakes on the front end, all the back wheels did was make two big drag marks in the dirt while the tractor accelerated for the lake down below. Fortunately I had the presence of mind to drop the bucket and skid to a stop before I got wet or killed. I've also had problems with the loader bushings and mounts, and the propeller shaft seal leaking, and it turns out others with this class Kubota have had similar issues. The service guy at my dealership has been a tremendous help in steering me to the right parts and procedures to do my own repairs, but the sales end of the organization can do nothing but try to blame me for "abusing" the tractor. All I've done is use it the way I see the operators doing things in the TV commercials, and it just hasn't held up well. So from that standpoint I probably would have been much better off with a CAT or Deere backhoe, and left the grass mowing and other light duty stuff to the Kubota.

At the end of the day, though, it's like my neighbor says: "Those little Kubotas and such are good for maintainin' stuff, but not for buildin' stuff". And that's the mistake a lot of city slicker come escape to the country dreamers like me make when they get caught up in the advertising hype and end up with a poor opinion of whatever too little tractor they end up with.

 

[Fallon]

I thought I did a pretty thorough job of researching before I purchased my Kutota 3240, taking into account the landscaping, tree pulling, mowing, and lifting tasks I anticipated. What I found is that even a small 1 1/2" root snagged by a ripper on the box blade was enough to stop it in its tracks, even in 4WD with the diff lock engaged. And when I tried to push dirt while backing up with that box blade, the stiffeners that are supposed to keep the box centered bent and broke. Side hilling with many loads of gravel in the bucket overloaded the front hub covers and busted out one of the castings, leaving me to limp it back to the shop with the bucket dragging on the ground to keep that end of the axle from digging in. Then there was the time that the splined coupler on one end of the propeller shaft stripped out while I was carrying a bucket full of rocks down a steep hill. With no brakes on the front end, all the back wheels did was make two big drag marks in the dirt while the tractor accelerated for the lake down below. Fortunately I had the presence of mind to drop the bucket and skid to a stop before I got wet or killed. I've also had problems with the loader bushings and mounts, and the propeller shaft seal leaking, and it turns out others with this class Kubota have had similar issues. The service guy at my dealership has been a tremendous help in steering me to the right parts and procedures to do my own repairs, but the sales end of the organization can do nothing but try to blame me for "abusing" the tractor. All I've done is use it the way I see the operators doing things in the TV commercials, and it just hasn't held up well. So from that standpoint I probably would have been much better off with a CAT or Deere backhoe, and left the grass mowing and other light duty stuff to the Kubota.

At the end of the day, though, it's like my neighbor says: "Those little Kubotas and such are good for maintainin' stuff, but not for buildin' stuff". And that's the mistake a lot of city slicker come escape to the country dreamers like me make when they get caught up in the advertising hype and end up with a poor opinion of whatever too little tractor they end up with.

I'm all fairness pretty much every tractor in the past 50 years not in 4wd has no brakes on the front axle & would have skidded down the hill like that. Some newer bigger machines automatically pop into 4wd when brakes are touched to get braking on the front axle, but I'm pretty sure no 2wd or fwa tractors have brakes on the front axle.

The 3pt is also designed to pull, not to push. Rods, bars & chains are FAR stronger in tension than in compression. Lots of people of all brands wreck machines pushing stuff backwards with a box blade.

Front axles are expensive complex & relatively weak when compared to any rear axle. That's why manufacturers specify lots of ballast on the 3pt, not just for stability, but to unload the front axle. Kind of stupid to put a heavy loader & heavy engine over a weak axle, but tractors were designed for pulling & slapping a loader on the front was good for visibility & cheap.

 

[JWR]

Actually the Agco-Allis (not sure what year) did have brakes on the front wheels. I know one user who was very upset when he could not find a replacement for his Agco-Allis with 4 wheel brakes.

 

[SDT]

Actually the Agco-Allis (not sure what year) did have brakes on the front wheels. I know one user who was very upset when he could not find a replacement for his Agco-Allis with 4 wheel brakes.

Neighbor has a 10-15 year old FWA AGCO/Allis with 4 wheel brakes. It also has selectable skid steer steering.

SDT

 

[JWR]

Neighbor has a 10-15 year old FWA AGCO/Allis with 4 wheel brakes. It also has selectable skid steer steering.

SDT

Good input SDT. The guy at Tractor Data said he has no info on those tractors in terms of the 4 wheel brakes. The selectable skid steer mode is VERY unique. I had never heard of that.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

There's a bunch of tractors that had front brakes...

It was optional on some SLH tractors and standard on others... IF they were rebranded, then those brands had it too...

SR

 

[MHarryE]

Through the years, especially before buying Massey, AGCO sourced tractors from many different manufacturers. The EU has safety requirements that tractors, and other self propelled equipment, have brakes at every wheel. Consequently if AGCO found their best source for a tractor model to be a Euro model and the quantity was not enough to build a North American version less front brakes, it would have 4 wheel brakes.

 

[DK35vince]

Kubota was the first to standardize on putting skid-steer compatible FELs on the dealer lots long before the others.

They did ?
Around what year did they start.
I ordered my 2001 DK with SSQA 16 years ago when I bought it.