New L4760 first impressions

[Fallon]

Fallon,
I added an Agrital cab to my tractor. It is all glass and looking at it, it is really indistinguishable from a factory unit. Under the plastic roof is a solid steel sub-roof. Likely to meet FROPS requirements. My cab weighs 900 lbs. I do "feel" the difference when working latterly on a grade.

Not sure of differences w/ factory cab weight, presume similar to meet safety codes. Much of the weight is north of rear fender height.

The rear remote issue surprises me, in that I thought my top link cylinder was undersized at two inch. My draw down in usually about one hr. Since I have less than 300 operating hrs, it never occurred to me the factory valve was the culprit. Certainly worthwhile to read forum posts.

My rear track is 74 inches with 17.5 R4. Agree going wider not compatible with existing implements. Currently track wider than my 6 ft bucket, a pain at times.

My tale of woe is at http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/showthread.php?t=375146. Not including the recent trip to the dealer to fix/replace valves that either didn't help or made things worse. Nit sure if the thread mentions I finally got my FitRite cylinders in finally... Worth the wait & fit perfectly.

The poor quality Grand rear remotes are a pretty poorly kept secret if you poke around much. According to MtnViewRanch at FitRite, they use to be as good as the loader valves a while back, but went to **** in recent years. No clue on the first part, but I conclusively agree on the 2nd part of that.
TractorData.com Kubota L4 tractor information
Weight:3737 to 4134 pounds

So we are looking at a 400lbs difference. I'm assuming that's between cab & no cab. Not sure on the differences between HST+ & GST or how they would factor in. Part of that extra weight is going to be glass, about a quarter of which is below the fenders.

I don't doubt your cab is heavy, but the OEM ones aren't that heavy. And from what I feel the OEM cab doesn't seem to raise the center of gravity much or generally decrease off-center stability.

 

[fishpick]

Since I started this thread as a first impression thread - I'm going to continue along that "impression" process and be happy I didn't put remotes on the rear.

Today was the first time I have actually used the L4760 for work - as in snow removal. We got "just enough" yesterday, maybe 6", to justify playing with the new tractor.

I started the morning by plugging in the block heater - mostly to see if it was true that waiting a few hours then starting would have the tractor temp gauge moving in just a few minutes when it's 25F in the barn... it sure did! When I went to start it - the glow plug symbol in the display was lit for just a second or so - and immediately upon starting the temp needle was at the bottom of the range in the gauge - not buried below anything measurable. Block heater seems like it was a solid $75 spent... This has made my project of getting a wifi signal to the barn a higher priority so I can always plug in the block heater when I leave - BUT turn it on remotely with a wifi switch Then I only have to go out to the barn on cold snowy days to start an already nearly warm tractor.

Speaking of nearly warm - as I have mentioned I don't have the front blower yet - so I did have to go in reverse... but reverse in a heated cab that was warmed up after about 4 minutes and HOT after 10... that's just luxury!

The mirrors almost work for going backwards - until they get covered with fine snow from the blower. Without a rear remote, the chute is manual crank adjustment - so I adjusted to blow "mostly" with the wind... not too bad as the back window opens and closes easily and the crank on the blower is right there. The windows never slams or flies open - easy to manage it. Good design on that big rear window.

I did turn on the defoggers / defroster - the coils in the rear and side glass - and it turns snow on a 25F day with 15MPH winds into water almost as fast as it hits them. The rear wiper was a good investment - clears the water off... the front wiper clears darn near the entire front sheet of window glass - super impressive. The front melts all the snow by virtue of 2 of the directionals up in the cab ceiling keeping the glass warm. And the heat output in general is so much you can "afford" to heat glass that's getting constantly cooled - and still be in just a shirt.

When I put the tractor back in the barn there were mounds of ice on the rear fenders from snow melting off the windows then refreezing when it dripped off.

Seeing as the manual tells you to vary things a bit in terms of RPM for the first 50 hours - and this was all PTO work - that's a small challenge... but I did raise and lower the RPMs as I was working and that's all smooth. The actual PTO speed in the display is kinda cool. I don't know really what good it is - because in the end you either run an implement at it's rated speed or at the speed you want it to perform at... but I guess if you learn "my tiller likes exactly 423" - you could dial it right in... I guess.

Overall - there's nothing to complain about first time out doing work. I stayed warm - I stayed dry... visibility is terrific. My butt isn't cold. The 4WD works (as expected). I have a part of the driveway I go off to swing the rear around to blow back - and just like my old tractor you need 4WD to keep the rears from spinning and it's simple to engage and run with.

I absolutely can not imagine what it will be like when you can clear snow going forward AND be warm AND be dry tho... This was almost good enough to cancel the front blower order... I said almost... but twisting your neck is still twisting your neck - no matter HOW climate controlled the twisting is

 

[Fallon]

I started the morning by plugging in the block heater - mostly to see if it was true that waiting a few hours then starting would have the tractor temp gauge moving in just a few minutes when it's 25F in the barn... it sure did! When I went to start it - the glow plug symbol in the display was lit for just a second or so - and immediately upon starting the temp needle was at the bottom of the range in the gauge - not buried below anything measurable. Block heater seems like it was a solid $75 spent... This has made my project of getting a wifi signal to the barn a higher priority so I can always plug in the block heater when I leave - BUT turn it on remotely with a wifi switch Then I only have to go out to the barn on cold snowy days to start an already nearly warm tractor.

...

Overall - there's nothing to complain about first time out doing work. I stayed warm - I stayed dry... visibility is terrific. My butt isn't cold.

I believe the Grands have a grid heater rather than gliw plugs actually. Think hairdryer element inside the intake.

Amusingly enough after clearing snow once last year my but was the only thing that was cold. More specifically the tramp stamp area. The crack between the bottom & back of the seat was not near a heater vent & right up next to the back window... First world problems... I fixed it with a $25 heated seat cover from Amazon.

Speaking of which I have a Zwave controlled outlet & am planning on the same remote warmup setup. Planning on putting the wall wart (came with wall wart & cigarette lighter adapter) for my heated seat on the same outlet. Trying to find a small space heater for the cab too that will stay under the 15@ rating or that remote switch. Can just jump right into a toasty warm cab with a toasty warm engine right away to go fight snow...

 

[fishpick]

It’s definitely a plug in the block that heats up.
I have the base seat (don’t know which one you have) but my buttal region was nice and warm as the cab warmed up.
Now you have me thinking about the space heater too tho... dang it!

 

[majorwager]

Some posts get sidetracked from the OP initial intent, just a fact of forum posting, So attempting to remain on point, I use a small pelonis ceramic heater in the cab when starting the tractor. I never plug in the block heater, heater core in ceiling begins to produce heat after 8 minutes or so. I did slide a full sheet of .019 aluminum in front of radiator screen. I cover the screen entirely, to reduce the air flow through radiator. Find this speeds increased water temp. Even with the screen covered, the temp gauge remains in the lower 25% reading, even if ext. temps reach 50F. While the engine is warming, the Pelonis conditions the cab to a toasty level. Not going to mess w/ remote activation. Cab warms up quickly. I purchased a overlay seat/back 12V heater, results are disappointing, luke warm, not efficient as my vehicle. So I took an old heating pad, set to high, rest it on the seat. When I am ready to exit the building, disconnect 120V pad and pelonis , the seat is super heated. When I connected my cab heater hoses to water pump and thermostat housing, I noticed the water circulation rate was a very low volume at idle. So after warming for a few minutes, I increase idle speed till ready to leave the building. My cab heat is not really efficient at less than 1500 RPM. I use a snow pusher, and the float position on the FEL valve. At higher speeds the loader arms & valve jerk when float is selected. Engaging float at idle, much smoother. So I throttle between 1599 and idle depending upon snow load and the distance snow is being pushed. I have an exterior cabin air filter which I also cover in the winter. I have two ceiling return air, or in-cabin recirculating vents to eliminated outside air blowing across the heater core, This also made significant improvement in cabin temp. I am building a 3 point HYD Power Unit which produces 32 GPM at 2500 RPM but for now it will power a FEL mounted finish mower. My blower is too narrow for the Kubota, 66", better suited to the ford, but open station ford, I end up wearing much of the blown snow. Thought about FEL snow blower, woodmax 84 inch, which power unit would support, but snow pusher is working rather well. There is no ticking clock, when I am moving snow, I'm done when the snow is removed from staging and driveway surfaces. By the way, my glow plugs are NOT automatic, and it is very rare I need them to start engine. Short crank, its' running..

 

[majorwager]

Fishpick.
Please discuss your experience with emission regeneration, when you reach that point. There is a variation of opinion on this subject, interested in your perspective.

 

[fishpick]

Can do when I get to the first regen. Been keeping the RPMs up as best I can to keep the temp up - to keep the particulates biting off best I can. It hit 5% the other day and the dropped back to 4% as I ran it prett good.

My takeaway is mostly - don’t idle.

 

[mljenkins]

Can do when I get to the first regen. Been keeping the RPMs up as best I can to keep the temp up - to keep the particulates biting off best I can. It hit 5% the other day and the dropped back to 4% as I ran it prett good.

My takeaway is mostly - don’t idle.

I idle a lot, old habits die hard. I think I hit regen at 22 hours on my L6060HSTC. No complaints, just increased the throttle when the throttle up light came on and went about my business. I’ll be curious what you think as well. I for one didn’t think it was as big of a deal as most folks I had spoken to made it out to be. I assume the newer tractors are more fool proof.

Matt

 

[JimP]

Congrats Fishpick, sounds like your liking your 4760.

I also have old habits. I tend to idle equipment and not shut down unless the equipment won't move for 30 minutes or more. Much of my tractor use is moving stuff with the loader at low speeds and engine running at 1800 to 2000 rpm. Maybe thats why my regens are only 16 to 20 hours apart. That said, my regens have also been a non-event. PM meter hits 100%, throttle up to 2000 rpm if I'm not there, keep working and 20 minutes later the meter reads 0%. I have to relearn and run the tractor more like a skid steer. Warmup, throttle up to 2300 to 2500 rpm and leave it there. It just sounds like the engine is screaming at that speed. Jim

 

[fishpick]

Now as a guy who has not had a regen yet - this is just opinion but...

I kinda read folks posts about the horrors and terrors of regen with a bit of scepticism. Now that I have the tractor and and read how many "levels" of warnings and beeps and stuff you get when the tractor needs to do a regen and you haven't - before there's an issue that requires service - I'm of the opinion that your posts are about what I expect... light flashes - up the throttle - do stuff... light goes off... keep doing stuff.

I will absolutely post up an update when I have my first event

Unfortunately it's not snowing and it's still winter... so - the tractor is a bit more parked and not doing things that I would like... I will probably go for yet another ride around the field today making pointless ruts... just because