A year of owning a T430, my thoughts

   / A year of owning a T430, my thoughts #1  

mbx5

New member
Joined
Oct 26, 2013
Messages
4
Location
Greenville PA
Tractor
TYM T430 with Backhoe
Purchased my T430 used with 1000 hours. I believe it's an early 2000 model. Kubota 43hp. Came with a Hardy loader and backhoe with extendaboom. Did some minor backhoe digging last summer and fall, moved some gravel, moved some trees I cut down, some snow removal this winter, and this summer purchased a KingKutter 4' PTO tiller.

Last fall I ran over a stump and broke the 4wd selector housing. No problem. Less than $60 later for a shaft, housing, spring, seal and detent ball....good to go... However - I did have a major front drive train component break. The vertical countershaft on the right front is toast I believe. Started pulling it apart today, will finish the bench work tomorrow. The cost of the parts isn't so bad, but I hope this doesnt become an epidemic - as far as breaking drivetrain components.

The good:
Powerful and very useful
Price was great
Parts aren't too expensive
Somewhat easy to change from backhoe to tiller, can be a pain sometimes.
So far it's been fairly easy to service

The bad:
Leaky cylinders
Leaky housings - bolts loosen frequently. I am going to pull and locktite
Seems to run pretty hot when tilling. It's only a 4' tiller. This concerns me a bit
Sticky solenoids - starter and PTO.
Possible weak drivetrain? I wasn't beating on it that bad. Time will tell.
Rubber falls off pedals. Some components feel "cheap" if that makes sense (fwd/reverse selector, some other operator control stuff just feels chinsy)
PITA access to hydraulic fill port when backhoe is on
Very poor traction in 2wd w/o backhoe on....this is probably common w/ any tractor of this size w/o weights


All-in-all, I am happy with it for the price I paid. I couldn't justify spending 2-3x the money on an orange or green just for tooling around the house. I'll keep it for now, and do my best to keep it running....hoping for nothing major. I can handle the minor stuff.
 
   / A year of owning a T430, my thoughts #2  
Always good if it works out for you. I love it when people save money.
 
   / A year of owning a T430, my thoughts #3  
Hi mbx5 and welcome to the TYM family! I don't yet have a tiller for my 273 but when I get one it will be at least a 60"; keep an eye on your radiator and it's protective screen. These TYM's seem to run warm/hot often whenever there is even a hint of dust on the radiator. I try to make it a practice to wash mine out at the end of every day after running it (don't always manage and I know it when it spits out fluid from the overflow line). That way I can just jump on and operate without much worry about it overheating unless I'm working in dust or chaff.
Like you, all-in-all I like my machine. Hang in there and keep us advised on progress/projects. Greg
 
   / A year of owning a T430, my thoughts
  • Thread Starter
#4  
20140714_190153_Android_zpsdd6fe521.jpg

Well I tore into the front drivetrain. Found a broken vertical countershaft. However - it had been repaired. Someone doweled it and TIG welded it together...lol...that didn't work out. I don't feel so bad for breaking it now. Price for a new one and shims is less than $50. I bought two....hopefully will have my 4wd system back soon!
 
   / A year of owning a T430, my thoughts #5  
These TYM's seem to run warm/hot often whenever there is even a hint of dust on the radiator. I try to make it a practice to wash mine out at the end of every day after running it (don't always manage and I know it when it spits out fluid from the overflow line).

My 273 used to overheat a lot in summer and spew out coolant from the overflow. When I spent a few more $ on top of the range coolant it only started doing it recently, after a year or so; time to flush rad and refill with new coolant. I absolutely swear by top quality coolant now as before it used to spew out within half an hour of slashing. I also clean the rad & screen often, especially when cutting high grass as they get clogged with seeds & dust. Please try to fill with premium coolant next time you need to flush the rad and let us know. The difference in price from good coolant to high quality coolant is about 20% but you won't be losing any so will go a longer way, you will actually save money in the long run by not having to top up. I was amazed by the difference! My temperature gauge may be faulty since it hardly ever goes over half way so it became second nature to constantly keep an eye on the overflow.

PS; Greetings from Oz mbx5,
Sascha
 
 
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