Costco Hydraulic fluid for 50/100 hour Branson 4720 service?

[lowriderb]

would this stuff work?

 

[LouNY]

Maybe what are its specs. why not buy some quality fluid.
Why cheap out on one of the more important fluids your tractor uses, especially since it's a hydro.

 

[ericm979]

Tractor fluid has additives to make wet brakes work better, and more anti foaming additives than hydraulic fluid. I'd stick with tractor fluid and use what Branson recommends or something that meets the same spec. I could not find the fluids Branson lists in the manual but I got some Mobil 424 which according to the datasheet is really close to the Chevron THF1000 Branson recommends. About $90 shipped from Amazon. It's been 25 hours and it ain't blowed up yet.

Napa listed THF1000 on their web site but when I actually tried to order some no one could get it. If they could it would have been about $45 plus shipping.

 

[Stimw]

The Chevron number is THF 1000 , if you google you can find comparable replacements.

 

[Cougsfan]

To be honest, and hopefully not to step on anyone's toes; I think there are a lot of people who are under the impression that buying the most expensive fluid is the only way to insure you get the right quality. That is a safe and fine philosophy if you are fortunate enough to have a significant disposable income. But for a lot of people, they just simply don't have the extra $100 or more it would cost to change fluid by insuring quality via just paying through the nose.

You definitely don't want to use standard hydraulic fluid (usually denoted by the "303" somewhere in the label) in your Branson as it doesn't have the required additives. But "Costco Premium Tractor Fluid" will indeed work fine with no real world drawbacks, and is about half the cost of what you can get a premium tractor fluid most other places. I am told that it does have required additives. I have used it over the years in several tractors without a problem.
My dealer, who is responsible for the warranty work on my Branson said he certainly doesn't have a problem with me using it either. Make sure it says "Premium Tractor Fluid" on the label and not "Hydraulic Oil" as some Costco stores carry both. Last time I bought it (not that long ago) I think it was slightly over $50 for 5 gallons.

 

[Texasmark]

To be honest, and hopefully not to step on anyone's toes; I think there are a lot of people who are under the impression that buying the most expensive fluid is the only way to insure you get the right quality. That is a safe and fine philosophy if you are fortunate enough to have a significant disposable income. But for a lot of people, they just simply don't have the extra $100 or more it would cost to change fluid by insuring quality via just paying through the nose.

You definitely don't want to use standard hydraulic fluid (usually denoted by the "303" somewhere in the label) in your Branson as it doesn't have the required additives. But "Costco Premium Tractor Fluid" will indeed work fine with no real world drawbacks, and is about half the cost of what you can get a premium tractor fluid most other places. I am told that it does have required additives. I have used it over the years in several tractors without a problem.
My dealer, who is responsible for the warranty work on my Branson said he certainly doesn't have a problem with me using it either. Make sure it says "Premium Tractor Fluid" on the label and not "Hydraulic Oil" as some Costco stores carry both. Last time I bought it (not that long ago) I think it was slightly over $50 for 5 gallons.

I don't buy it if specs are not listed on the container. Spec I look for in my old Fords with no whistles and bells is the popular JD 303 spec. fluid, basic trans/hyd fluid. For my Bransons with whistles and bells, the popular spec. I look for is JD J20C which is the "Premium" fluid for tractors with hydros (steering and trannys), wet brakes, this and that.

Warren Co. is a packager/distributor nation wide for a lot of suppliers that carry their own name branded oils. My idea as to how they operate is that they have 2 huge vats, one filled with regular grade fluid and the other with premium, both meeting the highest spec for that grade of fluid.

Then they have a labeling dept and generic containers. When an order comes in from company X for 303 or 20c, they take a container to suit (2 gal, 2.5 gal, 5 gal) fill it with the required oil, slap the buyer's labels on it and out the door it goes.

Do you really think for one minute that suppliers, other than OEM registered suppliers, and maybe them too, have 20 different tanks of premium (for example) fluid sitting around with one made for the Ford spec, the other the JD and so on........if so, I have some Florida swamp land I'll sell you for a major housing sub division.....priced right! Wink!

 

[LouNY]

I don't buy it if specs are not listed on the container. Spec I look for in my old Fords with no whistles and bells is the popular JD 303 spec. fluid, basic trans/hyd fluid. For my Bransons with whistles and bells, the popular spec. I look for is JD J20C which is the "Premium" fluid for tractors with hydros (steering and trannys), wet brakes, this and that.

Warren Co. is a packager/distributor nation wide for a lot of suppliers that carry their own name branded oils. My idea as to how they operate is that they have 2 huge vats, one filled with regular grade fluid and the other with premium, both meeting the highest spec for that grade of fluid.

Then they have a labeling dept and generic containers. When an order comes in from company X for 303 or 20c, they take a container to suit (2 gal, 2.5 gal, 5 gal) fill it with the required oil, slap the buyer's labels on it and out the door it goes.

Do you really think for one minute that suppliers, other than OEM registered suppliers, and maybe them too, have 20 different tanks of premium (for example) fluid sitting around with one made for the Ford spec, the other the JD and so on........if so, I have some Florida swamp land I'll sell you for a major housing sub division.....priced right! Wink!

I will agree that most fluids are comparable as to standard and higher quality a few of the high end fluids are definitely blended and maintained to higher standards.
Any fluid that meets your manufactures minimum specifications will function and maintain your warranty, however in many cases exceeding the minimum specification will result
in equipment lasting longer, running more smoothly, starting better, resisting heat degradation better and just overall better performance and operation. It may not be required
but it certainly may be desirable. **** a lot of old equipment ran for years on non detergent straight weight oils, however it did require more frequent service and the life between rebuilds was not as long as most modern equipment. **** I can remember my grand father complaining because you had to freshen up the engine in the old F20 every 4-5 years, of course it was also done out in dirt floored barn if lucky.

 

[Cougsfan]

Just for the record, Costco Premium Tractor Fluid does have it's specs listed on the container, and is listed as approved equivalent of JD J20C along with a long list of other modern tractor manufacturer's fluid brands. I was at Spokane Valley Costco this week and checked to see if it was there. It was, and it costs $48 for 5 gallons. It did have the old fashion regular hydraulic fluid setting right next to it (for $38/5 gallons, I think) in identical looking containers to the Premium Fluid. So pay attention!

 

[Cougsfan]

I will agree that most fluids are comparable as to standard and higher quality a few of the high end fluids are definitely blended and maintained to higher standards.

I would like to agree with you, Lou, But I can't help being a little pessimistic about the difference in quality claim. I spent my career working in the food industry. I would see identical products with identical manufacturing specs come off the same line into different packages. One was a store brand and one was a name brand. There was virtually no difference except the name brand might be priced 50 to 100% higher on the grocery shelf. I would also have to honestly state that wasn't always the case. Sometimes some store brands were indeed a lower grade. And conversely, sometimes name brands were actually a lower grade product too. You can sometimes (not always) tell the difference by reading the ingredients label (specs).

The point is that basing quality on price and brand name sounds like a intelligent practice, but the real world it isn't necessarily true. You don't know the real differences between Costco Premium Tractor Fluid and, let's say, Valvoline Premium Tractor Fluid. They might be the exact same stuff, or one or the other (anyone's guess which one) may be a little better. All you really know is that by law, it probably meets the minimum specs on the label. Marketing people may add some fancy additive names that are made to make you think you are getting better quality. You are simply not given enough information to know if that is true or of any other differences in quality. You would have to be a petroleum industry insider to know, and I doubt even they could be very definitive.

So much money is spent on more expensive stuff for a false feeling of "better quality". I am not saying that is wrong to do that, I am just saying don't be so sure it is the right thing to do.

 

[Mr Bitz]

Make sure it says" hydraulic/transmission fluid"