Did I bust something on the loader hydraulics?

[JWR]

My impression is that front loaders get uneven because metal got bent or tweaked. I can't ever recall it being simply loose bolts, corroded pins, or hydraulics.

Metal stretches when it bends, which is why it can't be bent back.... it can't "unstretch". So it has can be bent somewhere else to compensate. Do that enough & it is certain to find or create a weak spot.

Don't accept a new tractor with an unlevel bucket no matter what they say. And DO NOT pick up things with one corner of the bucket if you want it to stay straight. Trying to get it back to straight again is near impossible. The bend could be anywhere - even back in the frame. Sorry, I wish it was different.

rScotty

Scotty I agree with your analysis about 70% but the other 30% is that I think the mounting structures for FELs differ among the many brands and 3rd party manufacturers. Many of them have mounting structures/brackets that have pins resting in notches that are NOT a tight fit laterally -- they sit snug but nothing much holds them left and right. A lot of the "slop" is there simply because all of them are designed for quick removal and or mounting. The net result is that when the loaders get torques there are modes of "taking up clearances" that do not involve bending anything but rather scooting the loader frame around in the mounting slots. A very small difference in "using up all the tolerance" in one direction versus "using up all the slop in the other direction" is tiny at the loader mount but can give 2 or 3 inches of unlevel at the bucket tips. My thinking.

 

[rScotty]

Scotty I agree with your analysis about 70% but the other 30% is that I think the mounting structures for FELs differ among the many brands and 3rd party manufacturers. Many of them have mounting structures/brackets that have pins resting in notches that are NOT a tight fit laterally -- they sit snug but nothing much holds them left and right. A lot of the "slop" is there simply because all of them are designed for quick removal and or mounting. The net result is that when the loaders get torques there are modes of "taking up clearances" that do not involve bending anything but rather scooting the loader frame around in the mounting slots. A very small difference in "using up all the tolerance" in one direction versus "using up all the slop in the other direction" is tiny at the loader mount but can give 2 or 3 inches of unlevel at the bucket tips. My thinking.

I would go with that. There have to be some times where normal mounting clearances and loose fasteners have allowed the clamping to rotate somewhere in the mounting system - and that can certainly cause an uneven bucket. And as you say, it is likely to be all the way back at the farthermost frame mounting.
We know how to loosen and tighten in sequence - it costs nothing and I agree It's worth going after.

I'm guessing that most dealer mechanics know that too - but getting them to do it may be another problen. Best to do it yourself. So loosen all, straighten, and retighten in sequence is the first thing I would try. Particularly with an Add-On loader. Not on a TLB. If it doesn't work, something is bent.

I was just saying that when a loader is out of kilter because of a bend, then a bend always means something stretched. So in fixing it, remember that metal cannot be unstretched. All we can do is to bend it somewhere else to compensate. And doing that necessarily takes more force than the first bend ..... not a road we want to start down.

BTW, I found out the hard way that when optional buckets are offered, get the optional heavier bucket with a bolt-on cutting edge. Usually called a dirt bucket as opposed to a materials bucket.
We do what we can......
rScotty

 

[Vigo327]

On my [AFFILIATE=1, nofollow=true, newwindow=true, title="Kubota"]Kubota[/AFFILIATE] B8200 with BF300 loader, one thing i really like about it is the huge crossmember between the loader arms out near the bucket. I see most loaders seem to have a round tubular section aka pipe there, and while that makes sense for a torsion-resisting member, i suspect the sheer size of the rectangular beam on mine (around 4x6”) is probably stronger in torsion than a lot of the round sections i see, especially on ‘same size’ loaders. It’s only rated to lift ~700lbs to full height (300kg, thus the BF300). The bucket’s 1/2” cutting edge is pretty well bowed, but the loader arms themselves are perfect.

I know that crossmember is not the only factor but seeing that honking chunk of metal go up and down in front of me does make me feel betterabout being rough with the loader, and so far so good.

I dont consider this a particularly dangerous thing to subject a loader to (maybe the load!) but i have ‘cheated’ extra lift out of the loader repeatedly by rocking back and forth in place while lifting or by dumping bucket slightly while lifting and then curling back up. Ive definitely lifted things it wasn’t intended to lift and other than the bowed bucket which was like that when i got it and i have not managed to make it any worse, the rest of this loader is 100% ok.