dcdtn
Bronze Member
I promised an introductory post once I got to use my new PT a little, so here goes...
I picked the PT-425 up from Tazewell on 9/2 along with a mini-hoe and stump grinder. The following day, I went to KentT's and picked up his all eight of his T8 attachments that he was selling. I finally got a chance to unload them and check the machine out today... I must say I am pleasantly surprised! It truly is amazing all the work you can get done in such a short amount of time.
I started with the brush cutter. Cleared the side of the driveway and some overgrown areas that needed attention. It worked better than I expected.
Next I used the grapple bucket to move some downed trees, limbs, and a giant thorny bush I cut down with the brush cutter. Again it worked amazingly well... much better than expected.
Next I used the rock bucket to relocate some gravel that had washed to the bottom of the hill. Very pleased with the transit speed for this task.
Now for the not so good...
When unloading the machine last week, I noticed the hour meter was not accumulating. A call to Terry resolved this very quickly. Turns out some one in the warehouse forgot to connect a wire... Easy fix.
After fixing this a noticed a little wetness on the hydraulic pump below the gas tank. The gas tank was leaking from the threads in the plastic fuel line adapter. Terry said to empty tank, remove, and put PVC cement on the threads. Said he would give me a filter for my troubles. I purchased siphon kit, removed tank, and used blue plumbing PVC cement. After giving it time to dry, it was still loose and easily turned. Thinking I had not used the proper product I got a tube of Permatex Form-A-Gasket No. 1 Sealant since it is rated for gasoline.
Long story short the Form-A-Gasket No. 1 Sealant did not work. It was more difficult to turn than the cement but still turnable. After operating the machine for about 3 hours it was leaking so badly that I had to stop. Still not sure what to do? I have some Rector Seal 5 I'm thinking about trying. It's rated for both polyethylene and gasoline.
When I installed the brush cutter, the PTO would not operate. Thought maybe it was a disconnected wire again, but no such luck. Further examination revealed that one of the wires was not properly crimped into the PTO solenoid wiring harness... it was just hanging loose. I was able to get it working, but no way could I make it as good as it should have been from the factory.
Other "concerns" I noticed... At less than 1 hour the paint started to peel of the muffler. Maybe this is normal? Also one of the two loader cylinders has considerably more oil on it than the other. Should this be a concern? Also, I was blowing dust off machine with air nozzle. I was amazed that the cylinder paint would just blow right off!
Now for a couple of pics...
I picked the PT-425 up from Tazewell on 9/2 along with a mini-hoe and stump grinder. The following day, I went to KentT's and picked up his all eight of his T8 attachments that he was selling. I finally got a chance to unload them and check the machine out today... I must say I am pleasantly surprised! It truly is amazing all the work you can get done in such a short amount of time.
I started with the brush cutter. Cleared the side of the driveway and some overgrown areas that needed attention. It worked better than I expected.
Next I used the grapple bucket to move some downed trees, limbs, and a giant thorny bush I cut down with the brush cutter. Again it worked amazingly well... much better than expected.
Next I used the rock bucket to relocate some gravel that had washed to the bottom of the hill. Very pleased with the transit speed for this task.
Now for the not so good...
When unloading the machine last week, I noticed the hour meter was not accumulating. A call to Terry resolved this very quickly. Turns out some one in the warehouse forgot to connect a wire... Easy fix.
After fixing this a noticed a little wetness on the hydraulic pump below the gas tank. The gas tank was leaking from the threads in the plastic fuel line adapter. Terry said to empty tank, remove, and put PVC cement on the threads. Said he would give me a filter for my troubles. I purchased siphon kit, removed tank, and used blue plumbing PVC cement. After giving it time to dry, it was still loose and easily turned. Thinking I had not used the proper product I got a tube of Permatex Form-A-Gasket No. 1 Sealant since it is rated for gasoline.
Long story short the Form-A-Gasket No. 1 Sealant did not work. It was more difficult to turn than the cement but still turnable. After operating the machine for about 3 hours it was leaking so badly that I had to stop. Still not sure what to do? I have some Rector Seal 5 I'm thinking about trying. It's rated for both polyethylene and gasoline.
When I installed the brush cutter, the PTO would not operate. Thought maybe it was a disconnected wire again, but no such luck. Further examination revealed that one of the wires was not properly crimped into the PTO solenoid wiring harness... it was just hanging loose. I was able to get it working, but no way could I make it as good as it should have been from the factory.
Other "concerns" I noticed... At less than 1 hour the paint started to peel of the muffler. Maybe this is normal? Also one of the two loader cylinders has considerably more oil on it than the other. Should this be a concern? Also, I was blowing dust off machine with air nozzle. I was amazed that the cylinder paint would just blow right off!
Now for a couple of pics...