Dealer Dealer Prep

[art]

Just to add a little more, by the time the delivery truck gets there I'll lay odds on it that you will have one or two more questions for the driver that you didn't think of while there or that came to surface after your visit to the shop. One thing that I didn't bring up is you might get to meet more of the people that you will be helping you in the future.

 

[John_Mc]

A word of warning: Do NOT check your hydraulic fittings for tightness with the tractor running! With the pressure the fluid is under, you can basically inject the fluind under your skin. This is serious business... some people have lost fingers, limbs, etc to the ensuing infection. It's good practice never to fiddle with any of the hydraulic fittings with bare hands if there is any chance the fluid is under pressure.

 

[RMulkey]

Larry,

There is lots of good advice given already. I second the sugestion to check the lug nuts yourself. I have the same machine with R4s and found 2 rear lugs loose. The rest of the lugs were so tight I needed a 3/4" braker bar to remove them. There are a couple posts on this board related to wheels falling off on several brands. Checking the other nuts and bolts is still a good idea. I suggest you use the touque chart in the manual. I found the forward backhoe mounts loose after about 20 hours of use. I torque them to spec, and they have been fine for the last 300 hours. These were obviously dealer set up issues. The dealer here has a great reputation. It can happen anywhere.

For what it is worth, If you were not planning to do so allready, I would recomend you have the dealer fill the rear tires with ballast. I am not sure how many other implements you have but you need a good 800-1000lbs of rear ballast to offset the weight of a full loader. Without a heavy rear implement, and with the loader full, the rear bounces around way to much to feel like it is under control. I use a Backhoe or a heavy box scraper in addition to the filled tires. The extra weight on the rear helps traction when pushing into piles. The bush hog sticks out way behind the tractor and is a little awkward to use all the time as a counter weight without smashing it into things.

I have about 320 hours on my L4310 and have no complaints. The machine seems to get better every day. One hint, just have a couple of big buckets ready when you change the hydraulic fluid. It holds 10 gallons (you get about 8 gallons out of it when you change the fluids).

Hope this helps.
-Roger

 

[lwparch]

Thanks Roger,
I want to have ballast in the tires. But the tractor dealers and tire dealers I have talked to around here use calcium. Based on the posts I have read I am not sure that is what I want. I will talk to my dealer about other options like windshield washer fluid, beet juice, etc. to see what else may be available in this area.

Also thanks for the warning on catching the fluid.

I haven't used a tractor since I was about 18. I worked summers on my grandparents' and uncles' farms starting about age 9 or 10. My grandfather bolted a wood block on the clutch pedal so I could reach it. I'm sure I'll find tractor technology has changed a lot since then. But I hope tractors haven't become like cars, so that it is not practical to work on them yourself. I am looking forward to using the new machine so that I can share my experiences with this great group at TBN.


Larry

 

[hayden]

Check the Rods on all the hydraulic cylinders for paint overspray. On the loader, for example, Kubota retracts the cylinders then spray paints the whole thing. There have been several cases reported, including two on my own, where the cylinders weren't completely retracted when painted. When you the use the loader and they do retract all the way, the paint on the rod abraids the seals in the end of the cylinder and you get leaks. I had leaks develop in a loader cylinder and my backhoe swing cylinder from this. Both were fixed under warranty, but the down time and logistics were a pain in the butt.

When you get the tractor, check all 4 cylinders on the loader, and any cylinders on other implements. If there is any question, just take a razor blade and scrape back the paint on the rod. It's real easy and can same you a completely unnecessary nusance repair. I suggested to my local dealer that they do this as a matter of course when setting up new machines, but it went in one ear and out the other.

I've also received equipment with loose hydraulic fittings and related leaks, and even had my new tractor delivered with the oil filler cap off. Unfortunately I didn't find it until after running for several hours, but I don't think any harm was done.

High techie, reciently founded a startup company and struggling for tractor time.

 

[RMulkey]

Larry,

Glad to help. I was in the same place you are. I had not used a tractor for 20 years when I started shopping. Even worse I had only used crawlers and had never used a wheeled tractor. The concept of filled tires was totally new to me at least.

For the rear tire ballast, my dealer ended up using non-toxic automotive antifreeze for the tire ballast. I had him put in enough to keep the tires from freezing at 0-deg, which is way overkill for Northern California (I think it is cold when I have to wear socks or a light jacket...). They could have put a higher concentration in, but the weight difference was not very big once the tires were filled. I think I picked up about 450lb per rear tire. That said I still us a rear implement as a counter weight.

Hope this helps.
-roger

 

[Bird]

Larry, I agree with the other guys that you should check everything over when it's delivered, and there are undoubtedly going to be cases in which something was missed, but overall, I suspect that's more the exception than the rule. My dealer's shop is not that impressive; pretty dirty in appearance, etc. However, I've bought two tractors from the same dealer ('95 & '99), the salesman I bought them from delivered them personally, full of fuel and other fluids, and I never found anything on either of them that had been missed.

Bird

 

[art]

We have been using calcium in tractor tires for years in the farm machinery industry. Calciums plus is that it is the cheapest ballast available for the pound. When properly delt with it is not a problem to use in tractor tires. The rims people worry about typically last 20 to thirty years with out any trouble. We have seen tractors at 50 years that still are on the original rims with calcium in them. I don't worry about the calcium in the tires as I said before it is the cheapest ballast for the most.

 

[theboman]

My dealer uses calicum and said moet the problems to rims happens when tires leak and repairs are not done by the owner. OR, adding air don't fix a flat and a leaking tire causes the calicum to speed the process of rim decay.

Bluegrass, Pick It Up!