Access to replace Hydraulic Hoses terminated under the seat of M6800 Kubota?

[W5FL]

My M6800 4WD Kubota was purchased new in 2000 with LA1002 Loader. This has been a bad year for hydraulic hoses and I have replaced 5 of them, but now I need to replace the three (four) hoses going to the loader control from the tractor. They route through a sheath that is anchored to the tractor. These hoses are PB (Power Beyond), In (Pressure), and Out (Drain). The drain has been split with a drain connection for a Backhoe, so it is actually a long hose and a short hose. The other two hoses go to connections on a plate next to the Remote Hydraulic Quick Disconnects and are extremely difficult to get to to replace these two hoses as they are located under the Center Frame (which is the sheet metal under the seat). The shop manual and IP breakdown say to remove:

1) Seat (but not sure how)
2) 3-Point Lowering Speed Control Grip (knob) (but not sure if it simply pulls off or what)
3) Remove the Auxillary Control Valve Lever Assembly (not sure how)
4) Lever Grip and DT Shift Lever Grip (Do they just pull off?)

Then you remove about 25 bolts and lift out the Center Frame to be able to get to the ends of these two hydraulic hoses.

Looks like removing the right rear tire might give enough access, but it is loaded with anti-freeze and weighs about 1000 pounds, so hoping to avoid that.

The alternate of trailering it to a dealer is also not preferable as I am trying to replace all the hydraulic hoses with 2 wire Parker Hose rated at 5000 psi. and he gets his hoses from a local auto supply where the Parker hoses are made by a local hydraulics shop.

That is the dilemma, can anyone give me a little more information on gaining access to these hydraulic fittings under the tractor seat frame in a little more detail than the service manual lists?

 

[Tx Jim]

Is your tractor open station or cab model? I would think the seat suspension should not be that difficult to remove. What type of sheath are you needing to remove(metal or cloth)?

 

[W5FL]

The tractor is a ROPS model and the sheath looks like fiberglass (same as used on the loader hoses. The seat sits on slides and they sit on 4 rubber mounts, but with no obvious bolts on top for removal.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

wen the nice part is when you get it done it should be good for another 15 years + with the hoses you are using.

We ran into a hard job replacing a $2 O-ring on our JD. There can be a lot to removed to get to the 'real' job. This is why the labor on these kinds of jobs can be 10x the parts cost but it is cheaper than trading.

Removing a rear tire to gain access would carry some grave safety concerns for me. Do it by the manual and enjoy for many years. Typically I run hoses to they blow but I have a policy if I have to remove one that still is holding fluid but is a hard to reach place and has aged out then I replace it while it is off.

 

[W5FL]

Thanks Gale. I sure hope so!!! The Parker hoses should be better hoses in the long run, but most of the auto supplies don't use that brand, and sometimes their hose stock is a little dated.

The day before the hose broke, I had used the tractor to unload 3 trailers of 1000# hay bales double decked. Glad the hose waited until the next day when we were trying to move some 6 ft heavy duty corral panels and gates! Guess that job will have to wait a few more days, but quickly miss having the tractor available at a moments notice.

 

[W5FL]

BUMP. Would appreciate it if anyone would pm if any other forums or sites might be better to get an answer to this question?

 

[Tx Jim]

If you can't access hoses then I think you'll need to remove the floor that seat attaches to.

 

[IslandTractor]

If you can't access hoses then I think you'll need to remove the floor that seat attaches to.

Good idea. Looks like it would take a while and require a helper or overhead lift to move the unbolted platform but you'd have excellent access to all the hoses. A set of power extension socket bits, sockets and an impact driver would make quick work of all those bolts.

 

[W5FL]

Thanks Tx Jim and Island Tractor. I think I have that Illustrated Parts Breakdown and will hunt it up. I really wanted to get the seat off since it probably weight 50 pounds or so, but just haven't figured out how it attaches to the metal frame.

 

[Tx Jim]

The seat on my once owned M4900 bolted to seat floor with about 6 bolts. It was very easy to remove because I moved seat farther back from steering wheel than factory setting.