Broken Kubota Backhoe

[TWD]

If it's just a cracked weld and you haven't pretzled it, grind, weld, paint and be done. :thumbsup:

I've broken a lot of stuff under warranty, and out, and sometimes it's just more worthwhile to know YOU did it right, and save the hassle of driving/hauling for a couple hours to the dealer, and then waiting xDays to get it back, etc... The same applies to any "Insurance" sometimes your better off not using it

 

[funwithahoe]

Still would love to see a pic to believe!

 

[nmarco]

I found this thread while searching to see if anyone else shared my situation and decided to register to share what happened to me. I emailed kubota the attached discription of my issue and am still waiting for a response from them. I am not holding my breath, but it is obviously a design issue or at the very least a workmanship issue. I would not be surprised if this has happened to a number of people.

 

[Taiser]

EGADS!!!!

THAT is quite the break!!!! So it broke at the weld on the thumb then continued up? Did it snap all in one shot? What was being dug/thumbed?

I've abused my 3pt hoe a lot and have never come close to feeling like anything like that would happen!! Hope Kubota contacts you and helps you out.

 

[boxygen]

Nmarco,
WOW! I would think that you will not have any problem with Kubota getting that covered, warranty or not. The tube seems to be a lot thinner wall than I would expect to see. Have you talked to your local dealer? That is pretty unbelievable.:confused2: Please keep us in the loop how it is covered by kubota.

 

[nmarco]

When it broke I wasn't really working it that hard ... just digging into a bank. The crack must have been there and finally propagated to the side walls and then she gave way and tore right up the sides.

I agree, the wall thickness is very thin. I didn't mic it, but is around 50 to 60 thou thick.

I didn't go to the dealer yet, the hoe is only warrantied for 12 months and it is around 22 months old. I was hoping that Kubota would look at the photos and agree there is a workmanship defect and grant me some satisfaction.

The only hard part for me is leaving it set there till I hear an answer. I can hear my welder calling out to me through my closed garage door.:laughing:

 

[crazyal]

It looks like you had a break on one side, the part that's rusted and then the rest gave way. I'm not sure why it broke like that.

 

[nmarco]

I agree, the side with the rust spots was the side where the thumb bracket weld was.

 

[art]

You have to work through a dealer no matter what you do!!! So you are slowing the proper procedures to have any help from kubota.
Dealers can be a lot of assistance with working with the company to get a customer to the proper channels.

It is rare that you could have sent it to the people who need to have it to help you. Get those pics to Goodrich so that the proper procedures can get started to help you.

 

[nmarco]

Good point Art. I will take a trip by there after work tomorrow. I just wasn't sure if they could help since the warranty was up. I guess I was hoping Kubota would send me to Goodrich.

 

[crazyal]

I think you may be out of luck. You can replace just the arm if you want or you could find a welder (if you're not one) and repair it. I think if I was to weld it I would put some plates inside to beef it up.

 

[MessickFarmEqu]

You have to work through a dealer no matter what you do!!! So you are slowing the proper procedures to have any help from kubota.

I second Art. The relationships between all equipment companies and their dealers is that the dealerships are the frontline support.

Thats quite the failure there. Never seen anything like it.

 

[Chilly807]

I think you may be out of luck. You can replace just the arm if you want or you could find a welder (if you're not one) and repair it. I think if I was to weld it I would put some plates inside to beef it up.

I'd agree with Al, in the event you have to fix it yourself the inner plates will not only strengthen the hoe, but will help with alignment too.

Sean

 

[nmarco]

Well I just got back from talking with my dealer and he is going to try and help me out, but he thinks that they may only cover a portion of it. I asked him how much the part was and he said it was $750. I told him the new part wasn't worth half that amount to me becuase I could fix my part and make it much stronger than the original. In any case, we will see how it works out. Best case scenario is they spring for the part and service, which would be a win win for both me and my dealer. But I already made up my mind that I am not willing to pay more than $150 for the part.

I actually wanted to start fixing it this weekend, but the dealer asked me to wait a few days till I hear back from him. In any case, I planed on forming a sleeve for the inside of the tube and I can make that this weekend and get the outer plates preped and ready to go.

I still can't understand why Kubota welds across the tube and especially in that location. You should never weld across the face of a load bearing beam or in this case a structural tube.

 

[CHDinCT]

Wow, that's what you call a complete failure. Sorry to see that, especially since I just bought a BX25 with the hoe. Hope the dealer gets you the part gratis at least. By the way, the pdf indicates the hoe is on a BX2620. Is that a B2620 or a BX2660? I think the hoe is a B-series hoe since the BX doesn't offer an OEM pin on thumb. Just checking.

 

[jmanatee2]

I still can't understand why Kubota welds across the tube and especially in that location. You should never weld across the face of a load bearing beam or in this case a structural tube.

I have seen a couple aftermarket thumbs that make note to this fact. In bright red ink, DO NOT WELD ACROSS..... Only down the sides.

Is your thumb stock or after market? Was it dealer added? Maybe the welder at the factory screwed up.

 

[nmarco]

CHDinCT my bad... It is a B2620 and the hoe is a BH65. Thanks by the way. It'll work out. It always does:thumbsup:.

jmanatee2, I don't have a thumb. the hoe comes with bracket and is thumb ready. I don't think it was the welders fault. Most big manufacturing operations have good process plannings in place. I think it was a design screw up.

 

[Taiser]

I can't figure out why they welded across like that either!

If they want the thumb attachment, why not make a plate that goes all the way down to the bucket? Obviously the steel looks pretty skimpy too, especially for a thumb and running a weld across was a bad idea. If it happened to you it WILL happen to someone else.

I agree I think this is an engineering problem. I bet you're "brochure" will have some bosses yelling at the factory about this one!

Anyone else have the same backhoe? Are the welds in the same areas?

 

[Grateful11]

When it broke I wasn't really working it that hard ... just digging into a bank. The crack must have been there and finally propagated to the side walls and then she gave way and tore right up the sides.

I agree, the wall thickness is very thin. I didn't mic it, but is around 50 to 60 thou thick.

I didn't go to the dealer yet, the hoe is only warrantied for 12 months and it is around 22 months old. I was hoping that Kubota would look at the photos and agree there is a workmanship defect and grant me some satisfaction.

The only hard part for me is leaving it set there till I hear an answer. I can hear my welder calling out to me through my closed garage door.:laughing:

.050-.060" is less than a 1/16th of an inch thick. By the looks of it I'd say it's a bit thicker than that but not by much. That's not a break, that's a catastrophic failure ;-)

 

[TroyR57]

Well guys, thats what bad welds do, is they grow, untill the point of failure. The rust area, started out first, and with use, the rest just popped. At work, we use ultrasound, to find these weak spots. Sometimes the customer wants proff, and we put the bad weld, into a Hyd press, and applie pressure, and from the one weak spot the entire pice will crack just like that. And all its takes is a small weak spot.