BX24 HST Dip Stick Blew Out

[thavil]

Did a search but didn't come up with anything. This is my first issue with this tractor after owning it for 3 years.

After restarting my tractor in my garage, after removing my FEL, I backed out and noticed a trail of fluid. My HST dip stick was gone. I found the dip stick in the horse paddock area where I started removing manure. I figure that I worked at least 45 minutes with the dip stick out. During the 45 minutes, I was cleaning up more manure and turned my manure pile. No dust at all today since we had pleanty of rain recently. After cleaning the dip stick, I checked my fluid level and it's still on the full mark. I started the tractor up and parked it back in the garage.

Two questions:

1. 99% positive that the dip stick was fully seated before I started. Could there be some issue that would cause that much pressure to blow the dip stick out? Just before where I found the dip stick out, I installed the FEL and greased all of the zerks.

2. If this was your tractor, would you immediately change the HST fluid, filter and clean the strainer? Or since it wasn't dusty, what little may have gotten in there, the filter/strainer will take care of?

 

[pdowling1]

I would do nothing but check the vent for obstruction/blockage, and then go about my business. There is no real danger of contamination in that time and conditions. Changing the SUDT would seem foolish to me.

 

[EE_Bota]

I would be curious why oil was lost, but the unit is still full. Could it have been overfull? I agree on the vent issue.

I would not change the oil over what you described.

 

[thavil]

Thanks for the responses. After pdowling1 posted, I went though my workshop manual and couldn't find any reference to a vent. Finally, I found an old post that mentioned that the little red button just above the rear PTO is the HST vent (always wondered what it was). I will check it in the morning. Not sure what to check for since the button appeared to be clean when I looked today. Is this a push button?

EE Bota - Only a small amount of fluid was lost in my garage. From what I can tell, it only lost some fluid during the startup after dropping my FEL and while backing down my ramp from the garage. I checked the fluid before the first startup today and it was at the high mark of full.

 

[EE_Bota]

Thanks for the responses. After pdowling1 posted, I went though my workshop manual and couldn't find any reference to a vent. Finally, I found an old post that mentioned that the little red button just above the rear PTO is the HST vent (always wondered what it was). I will check it in the morning. Not sure what to check for since the button appeared to be clean when I looked today. Is this a push button?

EE Bota - Only a small amount of fluid was lost in my garage. From what I can tell, it only lost some fluid during the startup after dropping my FEL and while backing down my ramp from the garage. I checked the fluid before the first startup today and it was at the high mark of full.

I think the vent is not pushbutton. I don't have your exact tractor though.
I think I might affix someting to the stick to keep is with the tractor in case it tries the same trick again...I would hate to lose the stick and not be able to find it.

 

[Skyco]

Puzzling...the dipstick on my BX24 is pretty dang hard to pull out...can't imagine the pressure it would take to blow it out....

 

[thavil]

Here's what I did today to try and figure this out:

1. As EE Bota suggested, I tied the dip stick to the frame of the tractor. Back when I was in the Army, we called this an idiot cord.

2. Checked the red vent button again and nothing around it.

3. Checked the fluid level before starting the tractor and it was on the high full mark. Using an extractor, I removed enough fluid to bring it to the middle of the full marks.

4. After mowing my back yard to get the tractor warm, I checked my HST relief pressure and it meassured 1750 psi. The low end for this model is 1778 psi and the high end is 1849 psi. Last year, I had bumped my pressure up to 1800 psi but today, it read 1750 psi.

5. While dragging manure in the paddock area today, I remembered what may have caused the issue. Yesterday, I had backdragged manure and created a line to scoop up with my FEL. At the end of the manure line, I got off the tractor to kick the rest of the manure into the bucket. The lip of the FEL wasn't even to the ground, so I jumped on the tractor and moved the FEL control handle to the right for the dump position. The bucket didn't move and I released the handle. I tried one more time to dump the bucket and again, it didn't move (this is when I think the dip stick blew out). I then realized that I had too much downward pressure already on the FEL so I raised the bucket a few inches and then I could dump the bucket the few inches I needed to get it level.

Does this sound possible? Shouldn't the relief have kicked in to avoid this? If so, is there something I can check myself besides just looking at a red button that is the pressure relief. I really don't see what it's supposed to do.

 

[Skyco]

The "red vent button" is not a button- it is just a breather as Kubota calls it in the parts book.

 

[pdowling1]

The red cap is just there to keep water/debris out of the vent. If the dipstick was properly seated it seems impossible to me that you could develop adequate pressure to blow it out. You would hear the vent whistling before that happened. I have a nickel that says it never happens again!

 

[EE_Bota]

The red vent just "breathes." As the fluid heats up, it expands a bit, and if not for the vent, pressure would build in the transmission, likely challenging things like axle seals.

I think the "idiot cord" is a great idea, and I may add one myself, in the event that I pull the stick and forget to put it back or something.

To me, if the fluid level is right, and the vent can "breath" it is an absolute fluke, with virtually no other reason that the stick can blow out. Therefore, I will not be taking the nickle bet, since I expect to lose.

 

[kuboman]

Has the vent actually been checked? On my B1550 the vent was plugged not with dirt but just a poor design. It would push oil out the dipstick untill I fixed the vent. Make sure your vent is open.:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

 

[dodge man]

I'm not 100% sure on this, but isn't the dipstick just in the sump part of the hydraulic system? Meaning it isn't really under any pressure from the pump? If so, I agree, just a one time fluke most likely.

 

[thavil]

Thanks again for all the comments. Hopefully this was a one time issue and never happen again. Without the FEL on yesterday, I mowed and dragged 3 acres of pasture without any issues.

kuboman - No, the vent hasn't actually been checked because I really don't know how to. All I see is a red cap over what I was told is the vent/breather. When I get home tonight, I will see if I can pull the cap off and see what's underneath. I do know that there isn't any fluid around the breather.

dodge man - I would agree that this doesn't sound possible but I do know that there is quite a bit of vacuum pressure when I remove the dip stick. Maybe I didn't really seat the dip stick properly when I last checked it but I don't think so. I'm pretty **** about that plus the location of where I found the dip stick.

 

[EE_Bota]

Thanks again for all the comments. Hopefully this was a one time issue and never happen again. Without the FEL on yesterday, I mowed and dragged 3 acres of pasture without any issues.

kuboman - No, the vent hasn't actually been checked because I really don't know how to. All I see is a red cap over what I was told is the vent/breather. When I get home tonight, I will see if I can pull the cap off and see what's underneath. I do know that there isn't any fluid around the breather.

dodge man - I would agree that this doesn't sound possible but I do know that there is quite a bit of vacuum pressure when I remove the dip stick. Maybe I didn't really seat the dip stick properly when I last checked it but I don't think so. I'm pretty **** about that plus the location of where I found the dip stick.

If you have a vacuum, your vent is clogged. If you ever have a pressure, your vent is clogged.

I know I have some fuel hose, and I would press that over the dip stick hole, and blow...and should be able to hear air escaping from the vent, but failing that, you should not actually be able to pressurize the system.

I presume the vacuum you think you feel is the rubber of the dipstick snagging. It you truly do have a vaccuum, it seems to me your vent MUST be clogged.

Dodgeman is right, the stick is in the sump (actually right high up) and there is no reason for pressure (including negative pressure: vacuum) to ever build there if the vent is working properly.

You are on track...make sure that vent is not clogged like you plan, and you will be home free. I don't know how to take the red thingy off. If the entire device can be screwed out, I would leave the red cap alone, and remove the entire vent.


(My BX2200 is bound to be slightly different, else I would be more helpful.)

 

[thavil]

If you have a vacuum, your vent is clogged. If you ever have a pressure, your vent is clogged.

I know I have some fuel hose, and I would press that over the dip stick hole, and blow...and should be able to hear air escaping from the vent, but failing that, you should not actually be able to pressurize the system.

I presume the vacuum you think you feel is the rubber of the dipstick snagging. It you truly do have a vaccuum, it seems to me your vent MUST be clogged.

Dodgeman is right, the stick is in the sump (actually right high up) and there is no reason for pressure (including negative pressure: vacuum) to ever build there if the vent is working properly.

You are on track...make sure that vent is not clogged like you plan, and you will be home free. I don't know how to take the red thingy off. If the entire device can be screwed out, I would leave the red cap alone, and remove the entire vent.


(My BX2200 is bound to be slightly different, else I would be more helpful.)

Thanks again for helping me out. You are probably correct that I don't have a vacuum going on, what I am really feeling is the rubber oring snagging. It can really give the perception of vacuum. The next time I get the tractor up to temperature, I'll shut down and check it again more carefully.

For now, I have struck out on checking the vent/breather. I carefully attempted to pull up on the red cover but it didn't budge. I don't want to screw anything up by doing something wrong. I also don't see a way to screw it out but I will try to figure it out. I'm going to go through my WSM one more time to see if I can see a reference to it.

 

[Skyco]

Looking at the parts diagram it appears the breather is just poked into a rubber grommet. Kubota calls the part it is inserted into a "bush"..??
So it should pull out...just a guess.

 

[thavil]

Looking at the parts diagram it appears the breather is just poked into a rubber grommet. Kubota calls the part it is inserted into a "bush"..??
So it should pull out...just a guess.

Thanks Skyco. I just looked at my parts manual and now see the same thing. Since there is no reference to it in the WSM, I'm not going to take a chance on messing something up by trying to take it out. I'm going to go by the dealer this weekend and ask them how it is removed. By being there, hopefully they will show me how it's done on one of their tractors.

 

[EE_Bota]

Thanks Skyco. I just looked at my parts manual and now see the same thing. Since there is no reference to it in the WSM, I'm not going to take a chance on messing something up by trying to take it out. I'm going to go by the dealer this weekend and ask them how it is removed. By being there, hopefully they will show me how it's done on one of their tractors.

Couldn't you just make sure the vent is working by preparing a small hose (or perhaps a soda straw) and some bubble water, and while blowing (with your mouth) through the hose into the dip stick hole, brush a little soapy water on the vent? If the vent is working, there is no need to remove it. I wouldn't be seeking to remove it unless I knew it was clogged. That's just me, a notorious fraidy cat. I can hear you all chanting "fraidy cat...fraidy cat...fraidy cat."

 

[thavil]

Couldn't you just make sure the vent is working by preparing a small hose (or perhaps a soda straw) and some bubble water, and while blowing (with your mouth) through the hose into the dip stick hole, brush a little soapy water on the vent? If the vent is working, there is no need to remove it. I wouldn't be seeking to remove it unless I knew it was clogged. That's just me, a notorious fraidy cat. I can hear you all chanting "fraidy cat...fraidy cat...fraidy cat."

I totally agree with you on being a fraidy cat, I'm this way too when it comes to something I don't know about.

I saw in your previous post about blowing air into the dip stick hole, I wasn't ignoring the suggestion, just haven't tried it yet. Not sure how well it will work since the dip stick hole is at least 1" wide. If it was the oil dip stick I could see this working better. I'll give it a shot.

 

[EE_Bota]

I totally agree with you on being a fraidy cat, I'm this way too when it comes to something I don't know about.

I saw in your previous post about blowing air into the dip stick hole, I wasn't ignoring the suggestion, just haven't tried it yet. Not sure how well it will work since the dip stick hole is at least 1" wide. If it was the oil dip stick I could see this working better. I'll give it a shot.

My ignorance is showing. I presumed yours was like mine, and I am wrong. It will take a bigger hose than I normally have around. Sorry about that.