New MX5100, A few Observations I've made.

[Big Bri]

Congrats on the new tractor. I too have the Mx5100 and could not believe how much fuel it used. I think when i first got it i was getting about 1.5 to 2 gal to the Hr. Now with 100 hrs on it i'm getting about a gal to an hr. You will like it a lot more with the filled ag tires, my tractor is a 4wd and i think it pulls it butt off. Good luck with your new toy.
Brian

 

[montelatici]

Do you drive these bigger tractors to the gas/diesel station?

 

[Big Bri]

Do you drive these bigger tractors to the gas/diesel station?

i have a gas station less than a mile from my house so i have driven there many times. when i'm away from the homestead i will fill up before i go and bring 10 gal. with me (more than enough for a day of work)

 

[Bob_Young]

Do you drive these bigger tractors to the gas/diesel station?

Five gallons when you break for lunch; another 5 gallons at the end of the day...if you're working it hard. Is that difficult?

I'm thankful it's not a Steiger. 250 gallon fuel tank, as I recall. You could heat a house through a NY winter with what one burns in a few days. ...but they will work.
Bob

 

[captin_insano]

Also, the Diff Lock is VERY, VERY hard to operate. I have to pretty much stand on the pedal to get it to work and then while it is engaged I have to fight to hold it down. If you don't get it totally down ( which is very hard to do) it will chatter alot

I have a little guy (b7800) but my locker was doing pretty much the same thing you describe. You almost needed to stand on it to keep it engaged and it seemed the more torque on it the more it would want to pop out. It failed at 132 hours and again at about 220. Kubota hasnt been real good to me either thus far this time around with the warranty. I worry too about future troubles from the metal shavings that were all through my case. I'd really look into the locker thing before you get stuck in the same position I am. I'm stuck with an expensive piece of junk that has let me down now the 2 times I've needed it most. Last winters worst snow and again with this round of crappy weather.

 

[scesnick]

hey fellas,
Thanks for all the advice about the MX5100. After thinking abou it a bit more, I think my fuel comsumption is more than 1 gallon an hour. It seems to be more like 2gal an hour. I will have to keep an eye on this from here on out. It just seems a bit high. I wasn't really worried about it with 3 ft of snow on my road. I just needed to get it off there ASAP.
As far as the diff lock goes, it is still a bear to engage and it seems that the more torque bit on the tractor the harder it is to keep engaged. I drove my neighbors Ford 1920 and the diff lock was super simple to push and worked great. I really need mine working properly. I use it alot living up on a mountain. I also agree that it should be on the left side to allow your right foot free to use the throttle.

 

[captin_insano]

I shouldnt call my tractor a piece of junk, its not all bad. It's just left me sitting the 2 times I've needed it most and this has been frustrating me. I hope yours works out for ya and thats just the way that model works.

 

[sunnyside360]

Your fuel use does seem high when compared to my Kubota M8200 (82 hp net). I just filled the tank yesterday after plowing a lot of snow in recent snow storms on 4 neighbors long driveways as well as my own. Fuel consumption was 0.85 gal per hr. I moved mountains of snow but it didn't really work the tractor hard. When I'm running the 8 ft bush hog in heavy grass the tractor uses about 1.1 to 1.2 gal per hr.

 

[Tul01]

We've got a 55hp Montana and our fuel consumption is very similar to yours. The snowblower is the worst by far at PTO rpm, next is bush hog. When not using PTO rpm, the economy will be much better. I can nearly double fuel economy by pushing snow with the loader, it just takes twice as long. I'm sure you'll find the fuel consumption better once its broken in and when doing less intensive tasks.

Brent

 

[Matt_Jr]

When using the diff lock try turning the steering wheel back and forth. If both rear tires are already spinning at the same speed it won't engage. If the cogs in the diff are not lined up, one side MUST spin faster than the other to line them up. The only way to do that is turn the steering wheel, or wait till one of the rear wheels start spinning faster than the other. You shouldn't have to stand on it either. It should go in pretty smooth. If the pedal only goes down half way, stop and back up a little, and that should allow the pedal to go down the rest of the way. You have to get the spider gears lined up to lock up. Kind of like a non-synchronized trans. Standing on it can start bending stuff like forcing a gear shifter into gear when the synchronized gears aren't lined up. And I'm sure you know what grinding can do. Not a lecture, just trying to help you keep that stuff like new for a long time.