B26 power steering

[woody]

was bush hogging yesterday and the steering kept getting harder. the wheels would turn but I had to put out to get them to turn. the front loader bucket still raises like it should and the three point hitch raises fine. checked the fluid and it was fine, I raised and lowered the bucket and turned the wheels back and forth trying to make sure there was no air in the line nothing seams to help. I'm thinking pressure relief if it has one for the steering.

 

[woody]

Where is all the B26 owners can't believe there has been no responses

 

[woody]

Okay I turned the wheels to the left, removed the line on the left, turned the steering wheel to the left oil under pressure came from the hose and when I turned the steering wheel to the right very little oil came from the hose but no oil came from the cylinder at any time. :confused2:

 

[dodge man]

I'm guessing your problem isn't unique to B26, most Kubotas probably have a similar system. Sorry that's all I've got.

 

[woody]

I'm guessing your problem isn't unique to B26, most Kubotas probably have a similar system. Sorry that's all I've got.

Thanks for the reply, was beginning to think I was talking to myself again. :laughing:

 

[woody]

I'm guessing your problem isn't unique to B26, most Kubotas probably have a similar system. Sorry that's all I've got.

Thanks for the reply, was beginning to think I was talking to myself again.

 

[woody]

alright got an update, I had convinced myself that it was the steering controller but since I had no way to prove it and the parts are so high I did not want to gamble on it and guess wrong so I carried it to my dealer. he put his test equipment on it and determined I was right so he replaced the controller but had a dead spot that he did not like. took the steering cylinder apart and found a damaged seal, he said it looked like something may have come out of the controller and damaged the seal in the cylinder so he put a seal kit in it and said everything is working like it should. I'll go and get it Monday and probably scrap the drive just to welcome the B26 home.

 

[woody]

Update #2 I did go and pick up my B26 and as soon as I got on it I could tell it was some what better but not like it should be and I told the mechanic that. he told me to try it that everything checked good now. I carried it home unloaded it from the trailer and still did not like the way it felt, but I did not get a chance to use it until Monday the 25th when I loaded my welder in the back of my truck and had to use two hands to turn the wheels. needless to say I carried it back and explained why I brought it to them in the first place and why I was returning it to them now. But now I wonder what I should do about the money I have paid them to fix it and they did not, they have always been fair to me but I have never had to take anything back.

 

[woody]

Update #3, yesterday I went and picked up my B26 from the dealer again but this time the steering worked like it should. The mechanic got a Kubota rep to bring a flow meter and when they tested it the steering was only getting two gallons a minute flow and should have been four so they replaced the pump. I have always had good dealings with this dealer but this has been real frustrating to me. The owner was not there but I will be asking him a few questions when he gets back such as why don’t his shop have a flow meter? Thanks for letting me vent my frustrations.

 

[Backlight]

Woody - thanks for the tread. My B26 might be starting the experience the same issue. Good to have background from other owners.

 

[woody]

Woody - thanks for the tread. My B26 might be starting the experience the same issue. Good to have background from other owners.

Thanks for the reply, was beginning to think I was just keeping notes to myself. the B26 has been a great machine but now that I have an L45 I will be selling the B26 at some point in the future.

 

[nspec]

I had the same problem on my b2630. Changed hydro filter and this is how it looked!



I had been operating on a steep slope and my guess is I sucked up some extra sealant from the transmission case that had settled to the bottom of the sump. Trouble free ever since. That was a couple hundred hours ago.

 

[woody]

Woody - thanks for the tread. My B26 might be starting the experience the same issue. Good to have background from other owners.

You are welcome, Latest update and a plug for a great dealer after having all the trouble and frustrations of the B26 getting missed diagnosed I talk to beshears Tractor in Oxford Alabama and he agreed I should not be out the total of the bill and he was willing to share in the cost of repairing the tractor so he mailed me a check and proved why I drive pass one Kubota dealer to get to beshears, so I am satisfied with the end results and I highly recommend beshears tractor to anyone

 

[rScotty]

Update #3, yesterday I went and picked up my B26 from the dealer again but this time the steering worked like it should. The mechanic got a Kubota rep to bring a flow meter and when they tested it the steering was only getting two gallons a minute flow and should have been four so they replaced the pump. I have always had good dealings with this dealer but this has been real frustrating to me. The owner was not there but I will be asking him a few questions when he gets back such as why don’t his shop have a flow meter? Thanks for letting me vent my frustrations.

Woody, thanks for sticking with this and doing all these postings. I've been away or I would have posted some idea. It sounds to me like it might have been a couple of things.... first of all the pump getting old and not putting out enough flow. That happens, but usually at very high hours. And secondly it sounds like something came loose in the controller and ate up one of the piston seals - which probably meant that your power steering piston was being powered in both directions at once.

When I was a mechanic I was on the lookout for a good used general purpose hydraulic flowmeter for years, but every time I saw one I convinced myself that it was out of my price range and so never did end up with one.
Part of the problem is in flowmeters themselves. There is such a wide range of types and even wider range in accuracy and reliabilty in flowmeters themselves that they seem to need to check one against another.
A good mechanic person can get by without one by doing some clever diagnosis and maybe replacing a few small parts, but looking back I can see where having a decent flowmeter in the shop would have been a service to myself and my customers.
rScotty

 

[woody]

rScotty yep it is amazing how looking back we can see where we could of done better, I am glad things worked out like they did. now I need to sell the B26 and put my new to me L45 to work.

 

[rScotty]

rScotty yep it is amazing how looking back we can see where we could of done better, I am glad things worked out like they did. now I need to sell the B26 and put my new to me L45 to work.

Woody, your project sounds like a pretty nice problem to have. I very nearly bought the L45 myself - it would easily do all the work around here. But just as I was about to pull the trigger on the deal, my dealer snuck around behind me and made my wife a deal on a demo M59 that we couldn't refuse.
These larger Kubota TLBs leave a sort of unique void for us owners, because there isn't any machine that we can dream about trading up to. Once we get one we're stuck; nobody in the world makes a better general purpose TLB.
rScotty

 

[woody]

you are correct, I have gotten good at taking the hoe off and putting the three point hitch on the B26 to the point it's like having two tractors.

 

[dknts]

Here it is 7yrs later and I am experiencing a similar issue. I was working on a slope clearing dead trees and branches. Using the hoe in a tight spot, I thought something might be amiss. I stowed the hoe to return to the house, when I realized I couldn't really steer.
Turning the steering wheel at a normal rate would result in no steering (both directions). But, if I jerked the steering wheel or just turned it real fast, I had some control over steering. The tires always wanted to return to center, so traversing uneven ground is a chore. After I got it back and parked, I found that I was real low on fluid. First chance I had, I filled `er up. Started up the tractor and let it run a bit. Turned the wheels back and forth, same result.
I don't see any wiring for the steering pump. Is this not electrical? Because I can turn the wheels, could this be the pump?

 

[rScotty]

Here it is 7yrs later and I am experiencing a similar issue. I was working on a slope clearing dead trees and branches. Using the hoe in a tight spot, I thought something might be amiss. I stowed the hoe to return to the house, when I realized I couldn't really steer.
Turning the steering wheel at a normal rate would result in no steering (both directions). But, if I jerked the steering wheel or just turned it real fast, I had some control over steering. The tires always wanted to return to center, so traversing uneven ground is a chore. After I got it back and parked, I found that I was real low on fluid. First chance I had, I filled `er up. Started up the tractor and let it run a bit. Turned the wheels back and forth, same result.
I don't see any wiring for the steering pump. Is this not electrical? Because I can turn the wheels, could this be the pump?

The power steering is not electrical. If we can round up a hydraulic system schematic for the B26 we can get you started on some diagnostics.
Are you going to do the work or take it to a dealer?
Either way, the first thing I would do is change all the hydraulic filters. You can do that immediately.

Then call around to see if any of your local dealers has a flow meter. If not, ask where they send their hydraulic work. If you read back a few posts, and you will see why most shops do not have a flowmeter - Test wise, a hydralic flowmenter is the hydraulic equivalent of a VOM+Oscilloscope for electronics, except more expensive. Basically a flowmeter allows a mechanic to tap into the hydraulic line and place a varying load on the moving fluid. By looking at the pressure vs flow and comparing that to a hydraulic schematic various parts of the hydraulic system can be evaluated.

The only use for a shop to invest in a hydraulic flowmeter would be for doing diagnosis, and the more common mechanical way of doing things today is to replace parts. There is only upside for the dealer and/or mechanic when replacing old parts with new. Profit is higher and so that way of fixing mechanical problems has become more popular.

Beginning a mechancal job by doing diagnosis first requires a larger investment in tools and education. Not all mechanics choose that route. But some shops do, and that is also where forums like this one can help.
rScotty

 

[rScotty]

you are correct, I have gotten good at taking the hoe off and putting the three point hitch on the B26 to the point it's like having two tractors.

That is where the B26 has it all over the M59. The M59 3pt kit is category 2, and the components are too massive & heavy for me to handle anymore. I wish it the M59 had a lighter weight 3pt. As it is, I just leave the backhoe attached.