I wanted to make a bucket level rod just like the one I made for my
B3030 which I really liked and used, but as with the factory bucket level rod and the one I made for the
B3030, you really had to look at it to find the bucket level mark.
The one I made for the Grand L is a little different. You don't have to look.You can see level out of the corner of your eye.
I was going to put the indicator lights inside the cab but that bracket welded to the Fel was left sticking out doing nothing so I used the loop the factory level rod slid through to mount the electronic indicator. Seems to be welded at just the right angle for my indicator. Thanks Kubota
How it was made.
The only modification to the tractor was center drilling and tapping the first 3/8 of the upper fel piston pin for a 5/16 stud.
After looking around for the best box to protect the lights, I thought of an outside electrical metal or plastic box. Not happy with the look of those so I figured I would just make one the way I wanted it to look.
I used a block of aluminum stock, milled it out so the arrow indicator lights would fit. The first one looked a little childish with the red arrows showing so I took the lights apart and that allowed me to have a much smaller box with the same size light affect. I cut a piece of 1/4 smoked plexiglass to cover it. It can be seen very well in direct sunlight as the video below shows.
For the rod and tube assembly I used 5/8 steel tubing and a 5/8 stainless steel rod, three 9/16 18 nuts (turned round and milled out to fit the tube) and three backup light switches.
Once mounted and the bucket was level. I marked and milled a groove in the 5/8 rod where the green light sensor was. Another groove just before level and a groove just after level. The grooves had to be on three different sides of the rod in three different places.
Whenever any of the three sensors hit the milled out section the corresponding light will light up. The 12 volt power goes to the positive wire on the led lights in the light indicator box and the switches work on ground only to make the connection, on and off to ground.
No matter what height the fel arms are, if the green light is lit up, the bucket is level once on the ground. Same as the Kubota level rod.
Does it work
The indicator works really well and It's a far better indicator of level then looking for that little bend to center itself in the loop welded to the fel arm, even though the Kubota factory level works well this can be seen a lot better and without the rattling rod. Besides it complements my central vac system.
When the red UP arrow is lit, the bucket is digging 1 inch, which I use my bucket to scrape and slightly dig often. This is a much clearer indicator of slightly digging then the factory loop just out of the bend.
Will it hold up? Time will tell. I have a large project starting next week at my other house . A new gravel driveway, new turn around and lots of fill and regrade the lawn. So that should put it to the test.
The factory level indicator has an adjustment to adjust whats level, (between different buckets I guess). I was going to thread the 5/8 rod at the end and add like a tie rod end for adjustment. But I used the level rod I made on the
B3030 that was mounted the same way and never had an adjustment issue.
The only thing I use is the bucket and my forks. I don't need to know the level of my forks cause I have my camera for that. I figured I can always add the adjustment if I ever find the need for it. After all, I wanted to keep it a simple Fel indicator, nothing too fancy, so I left the adjustment off.
The video shows it working in full sunlight as you can see it can be seen easily.
