Dealer prep oopsies

[SDT]

On thing to look for on dealer prep is grease zerks that have blobs of grease on them but no actual grease in the joints. Here is why. The zerks are often painted over and the mechanic sticks the grease gun on them but they don't take grease because of the paint. Run you knife blade over them and then grease them. I found some on my Kubota loader when it was delivered. People are often in a hurry or otherwise time compromised and no one will love your new toy like you will love your new toy.

About 8-10 years ago, I bought an EDGE 66" QA grapple. Before delivery, it had been greased both at the factory and by the dealer so I did not grease until after using it a couple of times. I could not get one of the zerks to take even with a zerk hammer or after replacing the zerk.

I didn't use the grapple for several years and forgot about it for awhile. One day while walking through the barn I noticed it and decided to have a closer look since it was raining and I had little to do. Turns out that the threaded hole into which the zerk was installed had not been drilled fully through the collar for the pin. It was not easy to determine this until I removed the pin and inserted a drill bit into the hole.

Obviously, both the person at the manufacturer and the person at the dealer who had greased the grapple, simply decided to move on to the next zerk, ignoring the one that would not take.

SDT

 

[looch]

And another...

5) Backhoe boom swing squealing like a piggy. At first I thought lack of fluid - turns out to be another line routing issue. The swing cylinder-to-manifold hoses had an awesome bend to them - not kinked, but still a tighter radius than ideal. More loosening and rerouting cured the squeal.

 

[ray66v]

No service department with any repair work, is going to put a high dollar tech on new tractor assembly. And, they shouldn't have too. That's what the newbies are for. They have to learn somewhere.

However, they also need to be adequately supervised, and their worked checked by someone who does know what they are doing. And, that's where your dealers fail you.

I have trained, and supervised many junior techs in the automotive industry. It's true, that you can't catch 100% of their mistakes, 100% of the time. But, if you train them properly they don't make a lot of mistakes doing simple tasks. And, new equipment prep, is about as simple as it gets.

Also, if you have experience in dealing with junior techs, you already know what they are going to miss, so you can catch 99%, if you want too.

I am sure there is a dealer out there, somewhere, that does all this the right way. But, sadly a high level of failures here has been and on going problem for decades.

This is why I recommend doing your own service, particularity the 50 hour. The same kid that dropped the ball on you the first time, could also be the one who is doing your 50 hour. :thumbsup:

No one will ever care to take the time to look for dry grease fittings, loose fasteners, or hose rubs that you can.

 

[oldballs]

Well said, Ray.

Cheers,
Mike

 

[MechanicalGuy]

Mine was delivered with hydraulic fittings only hand tight, the brush hog deck was a cat 1 and the tractor had cat 2 rear and no adapters/spacers were installed, they bent the brush hog support straps unloading the tractor because the ramp was too steep and they had the third point strut in the wrong hole for the tractor (the top hole of the three).

I was a little pizzed.

 

[Gem99ultra]

I can't think of any industry that doesn't have 'oopsies'.
My Kubota L3400 - hydraulic connection loose.
My son's new Kubota B2650 - hydraulic hose loose.
Ford F150 Lariat ($60k machine) - tailgate misaligned
New LG refrigerator - door sensor malfunction
The list could go on forever - regardless of manufacturer

They all have an occasional burp. I don't think it's intentional. The many reason stated above certainly seem plausible to me.

 

[Industrial Toys]

I don't think they are as much oopsies as simply the result of economic reality. Maybe, throw, the old, people don't want to work in there too.

It's up to you, to be vigilant. People just blindly having faith in a dealer is just being totally out of touch with todays reality.

It also seems to me, that the more you are told and assured of high quality service, factory trained this and that, the less likely that is to be the case.

 

[Recoveryhill]

Brand new L3700, two hours in: No cotter pin in tie rod castellated nut/bolt. Nut vibrated off and in miracle of miracles when I did a next pass with bush hog I spotted the nut on the ground. The bolt was still holding the tie rod in place, replaced nut, pinned and down the road.

 

[OrangeMuscle]

There is no reason the tractors don't get to the dealers assembled properly beforehand by kubota with precision What a joke having the dealers do it. The workers at the 2 dealers I have had the opportunity to visit is laughable. No talent anywhere to be found. They all hate assembling the tractors which is why they half *** it and sloppily throw them together. They know 90% of the time the tractor will be back with things missed or done incorrectly. I know the shipping would be a bit higher, but the way I see these tractors on pallets with boxes of parts strewn all over is a recipe for disaster. My L6060 broke on week one because of incorrectly installed hydraulic lines. The dealer said they can't find good help which is why some newbie clown put it together. Nobody can find good help anywhere, which is why they should put it together in the factory with pride and precision.

 

[Shaneard]

There is no reason the tractors don't get to the dealers assembled properly beforehand by kubota with precision What a joke having the dealers do it. The workers at the 2 dealers I have had the opportunity to visit is laughable. No talent anywhere to be found. They all hate assembling the tractors which is why they half *** it and sloppily throw them together. They know 90% of the time the tractor will be back with things missed or done incorrectly. I know the shipping would be a bit higher, but the way I see these tractors on pallets with boxes of parts strewn all over is a recipe for disaster. My L6060 broke on week one because of incorrectly installed hydraulic lines. The dealer said they can't find good help which is why some newbie clown put it together. Nobody can find good help anywhere, which is why they should put it together in the factory with pride and precision.

How do you "incorrectly install hydraulic lines" and they work for a week? I just want to understand this.