For those that hate the treadle pedal on Kubota

[buck12]

I posted this years ago on TBN. My JD GT 235 has two pedals and some brilliant designer also put the brake on the same side. We have a pedal boat in the pond. Someone had pulled the boat on the pond bank on a steep part of the bank, not where I usually keep it. Being lazy (I hate to weed eat), I was trying to drive down the bank beside the boat. The grass was damp and the mower was spinning when I tried to back up. I was trying to rock the mower (forward to reverse) and my boot caught the edge of the forward pedal when I was trying to hit reverse pedal. If the brake had been on the left side this would have been a nonissue but instead the front of the mower went in the pond and sucked in enough water to blow both head gaskets.

This can not happen with my Kubota treadle pedal. Also, the brakes and HST pedals are on opposite sides as they should be. By the way I still have that mower. I really don’t have a problem going back and forth between the dual pedal setup and the treadle pedal. The treadle does seem safer working on hills.

 

[k0ua]

Someone asked about using the split brakes. I use them for several reasons.

1: When stopped on a hill, while it is true you do not need to step on the brake pedals to stop an HST tractor, even going down hill, just letting off of the FWD pedal will stop the tractor, BUT, the tractor will "drift" downhill after it is stopped. You must either apply REV pedal or press on the brake pedals to prevent this movement downhill.

2: When working material up against an close obstacle like a foundation or wall, you need precise and rapid changes in direction that the steering wheel often will not provide. Yes this type of movement is much like a skid steer.

3: when scraping ice and snow off of a driveway that has some slope to it, you have no choice but to use your split brakes as the steering wheel and front tires are useless to keep your line of travel going in the direction you want. Only the split brakes control of your rear tires where your chains will be on will allow directional changes. Of course if you don't have chains on, you are not likely to go anywhere anyway.

4: Getting your temporarily spinning rear wheel to slow down while applying power to the other rear wheel which has traction in a dynamic stuck/unstuck situation. This is superior in my estimation than using differential lock, because it can be applied dynamically while the wheels are spinning without stopping. An example would be traveling in a muddy area where you generally have forward movement on a second by second basis, but some wheel spin is occurring. Just keep a sharp eye on which rear wheel is spinning and apply a small amount of brake pressure as needed to that spinning wheel. Your forward movement will be maintained. It is all about being a better operator, and getting thru things that others would not.

Of course split brakes are useful for other things that I don't do like plowing in the dirt etc. Anytime you need to "slew" the tractor rapidly They are there for you as long as you have them unlocked. NOW you do need to lock them anytime you "road" the tractor, because if you accidental press on just one brake while traveling at speed down the road, you will find yourself in the ditch if the brakes are not locked together.

 

[s219]

I love my Kubota L3430 tractor but hated the treadle pedal. I broke my right foot several years ago and even before it was hard to work the pedal for me.
I am one that has to mod everything and this is what I came up with done it a couple of years ago and it works flawless. Just touch the pedal with the tip of my boot, pivot heel on floor.View attachment 661921

Nice work, both the engineering and fabrication! Well done!

 

[buck12]

NOW you do need to lock them anytime you "road" the tractor, because if you accidental press on just one brake while traveling at speed down the road, you will find yourself in the ditch if the brakes are not locked together.

Yep, I know of a guy that was seriously injured when he hit the brakes running down the road. He did realize the pedals had become unlocked. The tractor wound up on its side.

 

[JWR]

I posted this years ago on TBN. My JD GT 235 has two pedals and some brilliant designer also put the brake on the same side. We have a pedal boat in the pond. Someone had pulled the boat on the pond bank on a steep part of the bank, not where I usually keep it. Being lazy (I hate to weed eat), I was trying to drive down the bank beside the boat. The grass was damp and the mower was spinning when I tried to back up. I was trying to rock the mower (forward to reverse) and my boot caught the edge of the forward pedal when I was trying to hit reverse pedal. If the brake had been on the left side this would have been a nonissue but instead the front of the mower went in the pond and sucked in enough water to blow both head gaskets.

This can not happen with my Kubota treadle pedal. Also, the brakes and HST pedals are on opposite sides as they should be. By the way I still have that mower. I really don稚 have a problem going back and forth between the dual pedal setup and the treadle pedal. The treadle does seem safer working on hills.

The smaller BX series like my BX2200 has what I consider the worst brake pedal position that ever existed on a "tractor." The brakes are rather useless and do not work well on these machines to start with. The brake pedal position is hideously about 2 inches above the Forward part of the treadle HST pedal. So of course in an emergency or sudden uptake of some sort you try to jamb on the brakes and very often get the Forward pedal instead. Such a design is so stupid it should be illegal. And, Yes, it has put me over a steep tall river bank stopped only by the FEL hitting a debris pile in exactly that circumstance.

 

[Gary Fowler]

I guess its old Ford or Chevrolet thing.... and I am fine with that.
Sometimes its what you first learn on old habits are hard to change.
Thanks for all the kind words, I pride myself on doing nice work. But sometimes I take forever to get it done.
Here is a photo of the back side.View attachment 662187

How about working up something to move the brakes to the left side. I could go for that. I have no problem with the treadle and prefer it to the dual pedals like my brother-in-law's New Holland.

 

[Smokeydog]

We don’t have any problems with the treadles. Not all Kubota tractor treadles are the same. My dad briefly had a two peddle JD. I only drove it a few times. I wasn’t overly impressed. He hit or ran over a bunch of stuff before trading for a Kubota shuttle shift.

The OP has good pictures of his conversion for anyone wanting the same. Clean, clever engineering and fabrication. SS or aluminum tread plate for the arrows would look nice.

 

[Frankenkubota]

2 pedals foe me

 

[Frankenkubota]

Many thx, you should write owner/operators manuals!

 

[TBone]

Nice work, both the engineering and fabrication! Well done!

I'm impressed with the mod but like some others I have not only gotten accustomed to the pedal on my L2501, I actually like it and wouldn't change it to a two pedal system if I could.