question about wheel spacers to increase width of tractor

   / question about wheel spacers to increase width of tractor #1  

rbtjr

Gold Member
Joined
Sep 7, 2012
Messages
423
Location
Piedmont in NC
Tractor
Kubota MX5800
We will take delivery of a Kubota L3800 Friday. Sold a Kubota M5400. On the M5400, to enhance stability we had the front and rear wheels set out as widely as possible. Worked well. The L3800 is more narrow--a little over 60" outside-to-outside for the rear R4 tires. I am already wondering about the stability of the L3800. We will have fluid in all four tires, a FEL with a pretty heavy 4N1 bucket, and will usually have something low and heavy on the back. However, I saw a reference to wheel spacers in a post on TBN. The poster was kind enough to send me the contact info for the vendor, and here is the vendor's web site: Kubota John Deere Compact Tractor Utility Vehicle Wheel Spacers My questions are whether or not any of you TBN members have installed wheel spacers on your tractor and, if so, (a) what is your opinion of how much the stability of your tractor was improved, (b) what width wheel spacer did you install and why did you chose that particular width, and (c) have you experienced or have you heard of anyone who has experienced any damage to the tractor as a result of the extra strain put on the axles, etc.? Thanks.
 
   / question about wheel spacers to increase width of tractor #2  
I'm curious about this too. My land is nothing but hills. I was looking to add the same ones to my Mahindra 3616.
 
   / question about wheel spacers to increase width of tractor #3  
I have the factory Kubota 1 1/2" spacers on my B3030. They have never caused problems for me and I like the extra three inches of width since my land is all hills. I can't really comment on before and after though, the tractor came that way when I bought it used.
 
   / question about wheel spacers to increase width of tractor #4  
I am with ruren on the safety issue/concern.
 
   / question about wheel spacers to increase width of tractor
  • Thread Starter
#5  
Thanks, ruren. I'll check into what Kubota offers for our L3800. We got the tractor yesterday. It is not as tippy as I thought it might be, but it definitely could use some more width. The rear tires measure 60"outside to outside, with a tread of 45.1" per the manual. This compares with 79"outside to outside on the rear wheels of the M5400 we just sold, on which we had the wheels set for the maximum width and which was very stable. The L3800 manual says "Do not turn front discs out to obtain wider tread". Apparently this is not referring to a spacer, just to the angle at which the front wheels are mounted. For a 4WD like our L3800, the manual shows that the front wheels are perpendicular to the ground, not angled in at the bottom like on a 2WD. We have R4 tires. The wheels on the R1 Ag tires can be adjusted for treads of 43.8", 47.1" and 50.8". The R4 wheels are fixed--i.e., can't be adjusted to provide a wider tread. But, the wheels for the R1 tires put the centerline of the tire--the tread--farther outside the end of the axle than do the R4 wheels. One question is why the R1 wheels are made so they can be adjusted for more width but the R4 wheels are not. Does than mean that Kubota doesn't intend for the R4 wheels to be spaced out for a wider tread, or is that just a manufacturing-simplicity consideration?
 
   / question about wheel spacers to increase width of tractor #6  
I have a JD 3720, 45 HP with larger R4s. I perceived it, real or imaginary, as bouncy and tippy when I got it. I use the loader so the tires had to be loaded for sure. Since then I added 4" of wheel spacers to each rear wheel from Skid Steer for a total of 4". I think they were around $340 a year or so ago. It was the best solution for me because the tractor really feels planted on the ground now. I never had a problem with tippiness and I must have moved a couple thousand yard of dirt since I had them installed. I blue locktited all the read wheel bolts because I didn't want them working loose on me. I did not make the fronts wider. If anyone gets a new tractor, make sure the torque is checked on the rear wheels quite often until everything gets broken in well. They have a tendency to work loose and wear out the holes in the wheels.
 
   / question about wheel spacers to increase width of tractor #7  
Widening the rears, even 1.5" on each rear tire makes an incredible different in perceived stability. Odd that the B series show the rear adaptors in the "Build My Kubota", but such a factory/dealer option is not listed for the L3800.
 
   / question about wheel spacers to increase width of tractor
  • Thread Starter
#8  
I have a JD 3720, 45 HP with larger R4s. I perceived it, real or imaginary, as bouncy and tippy when I got it. I use the loader so the tires had to be loaded for sure. Since then I added 4" of wheel spacers to each rear wheel from Skid Steer for a total of 4". I think they were around $340 a year or so ago. It was the best solution for me because the tractor really feels planted on the ground now. I never had a problem with tippiness and I must have moved a couple thousand yard of dirt since I had them installed. I blue locktited all the read wheel bolts because I didn't want them working loose on me. I did not make the fronts wider. If anyone gets a new tractor, make sure the torque is checked on the rear wheels quite often until everything gets broken in well. They have a tendency to work loose and wear out the holes in the wheels.
Veryinteresting. Thanks for the info. Did you mean to say 8" total additional width (4" on each rear wheel) or 4" total additional width (2" on each wheel)?
 
   / question about wheel spacers to increase width of tractor #9  
Veryinteresting. Thanks for the info. Did you mean to say 8" total additional width (4" on each rear wheel) or 4" total additional width (2" on each wheel)?

Sorry, it wasn't more clear. 4" per wheel for a total or 8" for both. .

I read posts from people being concerned about stressing the rear ends because the wheels are out 4" and how it will void any warranty etc, but I never heard of any rear ends failing or any warranties being denied because of it and I had my tractor to a dealer a few times. I have a 800# weight box for general use and was using a 1500# weight box for some real digging and pushing. Not a problem.
But like I said, make sure the rear wheels are torqued often for the first 6 months or so. More often then the owners manual calls for. I didn't and had to replace all the lug bolts, but I caught it before any major damage to the wheel.

It was after that incident when I put spacers on and locktited everything down. I have had no problems since then and it feels more like a real tractor.
 
   / question about wheel spacers to increase width of tractor
  • Thread Starter
#10  
Thanks again. Good point about checking the torque on the wheels. I'll make sure to do it.
 
 
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