DK40 front axle oil mystery

[CubSteve]

I have a Cub Cadet 8404 (DK40 with a different paint job). I changed the front axle oil for the first time today. According to the manual the front axle should hold 8 Qts. When I drained it I got about 6 Qts. Then when I went to put in the new oil, after putting in only 4 Qts the oil level viewing glass was already to the halfway mark where it should be. I drove the tractor around a little bit thinking maybe the level would drop and I could then add the rest of the oil, but no luck. Can someone please give some thoughts and this discrepency. Should I add more oil even though the oil level is where it should be according to the viewing glass?

 

[Soundguy]

does it have final drives? they likely hold some oil each.

IMHO.. I would not overfill.. that can lead to blown seals.

soundguy

 

[gmsssi]

Gotta be level when checking and it takes time for the oil to settle and equalize across the axle, that oil is thick. You should keep an eye on it for a couple days after the change. It's normal to have to add after the initial change, at least that's what I've found.

 

[northcreek2624]

Kioti originally put tractor fluid in the front axles(same as the rear),I verifed this with their home office.
So even though the manual says gear oil I put in TF,makes sense,why should the front be different than the rear?
Maybe the heavier gear oil is sticking to the sight glass,perhaps you could unscrew the sight glass and if it runs out you'll know that you have the correct level...Mike.

 

[DK35vince]

It takes time for gear oil to settle out in my DK.
Once you start running the tractor it will settle/work its way around and you will likely be adding more oil over the next few uses.

 

[CubSteve]

Thanks for the feedback. I was able to get my hands on a manual for the newer model DK40's and the process is explained better, and had better pictures of what to do in the newer manual than in the manual I had. There is another filling plug at the top of the wheel housing that my manual didn't mention. Once I removed that the oil seemed to settle down more. Maybe there was air stuck in there. I have about 7 Qts in it now and will continue to monitor it over the next few hours of use.

 

[tabacman]

Thanks for bringing this up! I'm getting ready to change my DK40's front axle oil and I will remember the tip...