branson recall
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DavesTractor
Elite Member
The end of the cable break or the nylon ball pop off of the end of the cable? Seen a couple of these. Branson now has a fix for this which corrects some of the geometry which should fix this. Frustrating problem for such a great tractor. Call your dealer and if he isn't on top of it, have him call Branson in Rome, GA.
guitarman59
New member
I live in Ontario and purchased a Branson 4520R from a car lot, it was sold from a dealer to a landscaping company who went bankrupt, everything here in Ontario that is part of a bankruptcy gets auctioned off by this sole company, hence bought by the car lot.... It was registered by the original dealer to the landscaping company who went bankrupt in October 2012, I bought it in June 2013, from the car lot, it had 16 hours idle time on it, still new and never been used, you could tell by the tires.
So to back up a bit I contacted the company Branson USA and was passed along to the Canadian Warranty Representative. He was very helpful and friendly, cannot think of his name right off, but he its the only Rep and he seemed to be well know by a couple of Branson Dealers in the area. So after a lengthy discussion and a verbal, I purchased the tractor.
After I got it home and started to use it, approximately 3 hours I started to hear a binding noise from the main frame/rear axle area. I thought it was the U bolts so I tightened them, thought it was the rims so I tightened the rim nuts and bolts. still made this binding/creeking noise, finally I determined that it was when I was putting the tractor under load as I started to take off. I lifted the tractor off the ground and put on jack stands and drove the tractor in forward and reverse and it would not make the noise. I even checked the driveshaft's and that wasn't it.
I finally called the dealership and they said they had never heard tell of such a thing, so in it went for warranty work, the tractor was in the shop for over two months. Come to find out the tires were the wrong size based on the model of the tractor, the fan blade was hitting on the shroud and there was a huge space in the one rear axle causing end play, therefore not allowing the pinion gear to hit the crown gear.
Anyhow, got it fixed and it was in the shop way to long.
So here I am in the winter time with a broken ball end cable that runs the loader valve up and down. I called the dealership and got a replacement cable for $42 bucks, got home took it all apart to find out that the cable that they had given me was the wrong sign and type. So I am at square one again, I bet the cable I need will not be available and will take days and days to come from GA to Ontario or even a worst case scenario......it will need to come from Korea. With a minimum shipping time of 2 months.
Taking the cable out was fairly easy on a scale of 1-10 I would say it ranks around a 6 in difficulty to an experienced weekend wrencher. Now that I understand what needs to come apart I would say 1 hour to Re and Re...
I can explain to anyone how to take it apart and put it back together if that helps....not a good overall setup compared to having the valve mounted up and the joystick actually directly controlling the hydraulic valve, without the use of these cheap cables.
Thanks
So to back up a bit I contacted the company Branson USA and was passed along to the Canadian Warranty Representative. He was very helpful and friendly, cannot think of his name right off, but he its the only Rep and he seemed to be well know by a couple of Branson Dealers in the area. So after a lengthy discussion and a verbal, I purchased the tractor.
After I got it home and started to use it, approximately 3 hours I started to hear a binding noise from the main frame/rear axle area. I thought it was the U bolts so I tightened them, thought it was the rims so I tightened the rim nuts and bolts. still made this binding/creeking noise, finally I determined that it was when I was putting the tractor under load as I started to take off. I lifted the tractor off the ground and put on jack stands and drove the tractor in forward and reverse and it would not make the noise. I even checked the driveshaft's and that wasn't it.
I finally called the dealership and they said they had never heard tell of such a thing, so in it went for warranty work, the tractor was in the shop for over two months. Come to find out the tires were the wrong size based on the model of the tractor, the fan blade was hitting on the shroud and there was a huge space in the one rear axle causing end play, therefore not allowing the pinion gear to hit the crown gear.
Anyhow, got it fixed and it was in the shop way to long.
So here I am in the winter time with a broken ball end cable that runs the loader valve up and down. I called the dealership and got a replacement cable for $42 bucks, got home took it all apart to find out that the cable that they had given me was the wrong sign and type. So I am at square one again, I bet the cable I need will not be available and will take days and days to come from GA to Ontario or even a worst case scenario......it will need to come from Korea. With a minimum shipping time of 2 months.
Taking the cable out was fairly easy on a scale of 1-10 I would say it ranks around a 6 in difficulty to an experienced weekend wrencher. Now that I understand what needs to come apart I would say 1 hour to Re and Re...
I can explain to anyone how to take it apart and put it back together if that helps....not a good overall setup compared to having the valve mounted up and the joystick actually directly controlling the hydraulic valve, without the use of these cheap cables.
Thanks
Zork
Veteran Member
- Joined
- Dec 14, 2003
- Messages
- 1,079
- Location
- Virginia
- Tractor
- '04 Branson 3520, '51 Fergy, '96 MTD 18/46, '02 Craftsman GT5000/48
Well, it sounds like Branson is going above and beyond. A wrong part is problematic for you, but I am confident this will work out.
FYI- I have fixed cables before by splicing them longer or creating an eye loop with typical cable crimps or sleeves purchased at Lowes or Tractor Supply. Crimp the cable in a vice for a more permanent fix or with a good vice-grip.
FYI- I have fixed cables before by splicing them longer or creating an eye loop with typical cable crimps or sleeves purchased at Lowes or Tractor Supply. Crimp the cable in a vice for a more permanent fix or with a good vice-grip.
guitarman59
New member
Well, just a quick update. The dealership gave me the wrong cable. Went back and got the joy stick assembly, it is not the same as the original. This one does not have the electric button on the shifter, it is just the plain back joystick. Works okay, but the tilt direction is opposite to what I am used to. It is amazing, once you get use to operating in your brain, and then you are forced to do the opposite, messes you up for a bit. My dad was over today, he was running the tractor and of course he is 75 and a quite a bit cantankerous...LOL he says, I hate the **** controls now....LOL
Oh well, all is well that ends well. Snowing again, expecting another 6 " tonight.
Has anyone had their seat actually come apart at the threading? Brand new tractor, and I noticed it when I bought it but it is getting g worse and worse. Now this seat is the air ride shock absorber adjustable seat.
FYI the cable that broke, there is no way it could have been repaired. It is a solid probably 12 gauge solid cable, not stranded. It broke about 4 inches from the end, apparently this happens due to the bad angle of the cables. The old cables were black with a solid black sheath and the new cables are green and look sort of braded.
Take Care
Oh well, all is well that ends well. Snowing again, expecting another 6 " tonight.
Has anyone had their seat actually come apart at the threading? Brand new tractor, and I noticed it when I bought it but it is getting g worse and worse. Now this seat is the air ride shock absorber adjustable seat.
FYI the cable that broke, there is no way it could have been repaired. It is a solid probably 12 gauge solid cable, not stranded. It broke about 4 inches from the end, apparently this happens due to the bad angle of the cables. The old cables were black with a solid black sheath and the new cables are green and look sort of braded.
Take Care
Had the exact same thing happen to my joystick on my 2013 4520R before it even 50 hours on it. Called my dealer and he got me a new one under warranty but I did have to pay shipping.
Anyone have an issue with the throttle cable on the floor peddle breaking? Mine broke at about the 200 hour mark and I patched it up like Zork mentioned but I think it will just be a temporary band-aid. I have to contact my dealer to get a new cable shipped and I'm hoping it's covered under warranty...
Anyone have an issue with the throttle cable on the floor peddle breaking? Mine broke at about the 200 hour mark and I patched it up like Zork mentioned but I think it will just be a temporary band-aid. I have to contact my dealer to get a new cable shipped and I'm hoping it's covered under warranty...