Grease

[ddivinia]

What kind of grease are people using on their tractors? Do you use the same kind for all the zerks? FEL, wheel bearings, etc? I need to break the manual out and do some reading. I am wondering how many grease guns I need. I have always used the same grease for everything - is that stupid?

Thanks,
D.

 

[Joe1]

Good question. I use John Deere multi-purpose grease on everything on the John Deere. I also use their filters.

 

[RalphVa]

I use the same grease in everything, think it's JD's Urea multipurpose grease. Only other zerks I have to deal with are the 2 on my walk behind mower. Use the same grease in them.

Ralph

 

[dubba]

My JD dealer recommended the "polyurea" grease for all my applications. His original thought was 2 different kinds, but he changed his tune a little when I told him I only had one battery grease gun & I wasn't buying another one.

As a side note- "polyurea" What the heck is that for a name? To me it says "plasticp**z"

 

[RWEST]

I've been using the JD polyurea synthetic stuff for a few years now for everything on all my equipment. Even stuck it in all the fittings on my F150.
Don't know if it's recommended for wheel bearings or not, tho... Maybe that stringy red stuff would be better? /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[ddivinia]

My 5525 with the FEL has so many grease zerks, I went thru a whole tube and didn't finish them all. I got close, but man it sure sucked it up. I was hoping I would hear that I could just buy a pile of one kind of grease.

Thanks,
D.

 

[pruntyc]

I just use Lithium grease in everything I own. I bought the last from Sam's club, 24 tubes, and it don't cost that much. It will do just as good a job. Fact is, even a cheaper grease would work, if you kept it greased all the time, like one should. In the old days, they used a cheap grease called cup grease, it was a dull orange color, they put it in a cup on a machine and every so often screwed it down a little to put a little more grease in. Never knew anything going bad, as it worked because they kept it greased, that is the main thing right there. Better to over grease than under grease. As long as you don't let it go dry, and by putting more in, you push any dirt out, that may have got into it. Works for me, always has. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[Deere05]

I have a 4310 that I use Schaeffer's grease for all of the zerks. A family friend got me using it. He swears by it. He also uses their engine oils as well as says that they do not break down as fast as well as cuts down on engine noise.

 

[CurlyDave]

I am looking at page 62 of the manual for my JD TLB 110 and it says:

" The following greases are preferred:

John Deere Multi-Purpose SD Polyurea Grease

John Deere Multi-Purpose HD Lithium Complex Grease

If not using any of the preferred greases, be sure to use a general all-purpose grease with an NLGI grade No.2 rating"

There you have it straight from the horse's mouth.

Now if you go to the NLGI website, you can look up the ratings of the Deere grease NLGI certifications

It turns out that both Deere greases have a NLGI No.2 rating and I suspect that the primary difference is cost.

Anyway, shortly after getting my tractor I got an air-powered grease gun from Harbor Freight and a few tubes of their red, premium multipurpose grease. This grease has the NLGI No.2 rating and should keep my warranty in effect.

I doubt that Deere actually manufactures their own grease, they contract it out. I was not impressed with the grease the tractor came with. After 10 hours of operation, the Deere grease had dried out and was not particularly lubricating. Time will tell if the red Sta-Lube grease is any better.

 

[pruntyc]

From what I read the polyurea is a little better under extreme conditions, high pressure and water etc. Notice I said a little better. Lithium is also a very good grease in the same ways. Not quite as good, but very close. And face it we aren't running a race machine, at high speed or doing much of anything at high speed or for long times. So we really don't need the highest priced grease. If we keep them greased with the cheapest grease we will never be able to wear them out. But you can't blame JD for trying to make more money. Did you read what the guy said, about how much money you have to have to start a dealership? So they need to make money, its the name of the game. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[sleepy_sleeper]

On my truck, trailer, and 1974 Kubota L260 I use good ole Marine Grease. Will that work on the 790 too?

 

[hutch4472]

I use mobil 1 synthetic grease in everything, it seems to work very well, its like $5 a tube though so I dont know if that is cost effective as much as you need to grease equipment.

Hey CurlyDave....what do you tow your 110 with? I am interested in buying one. Do you have your Class A CDL? Or did you find a trailer under 2k lbs to stay below the 10k max trailer weight? I am trying to decide if I am going to need a Class A CDL to haul one of those around.....heck its not like its rocket science right? /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif Sorry couldnt resist, I bet you get that alot.....Regards, Tom

 

[CurlyDave]

what do you tow your 110 with? ...Do you have your Class A CDL?

I don't tow it--we just got it at the end of December 2005, and need to build up the piggy bank a bit to get a truck & trailer, if I ever do. I don't have a Class A CDL. Right now, the plan is that I am going to use it on our property, and maybe a few favors for neighbors.

40 acres of undeveloped land is going to keep me busy for a while.

In a perfect world, I should have waited a year or so to buy it, but there was a major tax advantage to getting it in 2005. If Uncle is willing to finance part of it for me, who am I to say no?

The dealer delivered it on a trailer with a goose neck and a pickup truck with a 5th wheel in the bed. They told me their policy was that if I paid for them to pick it up for service/repair, they would get it back to me for free. About $100 for the round trip to their shop.

It is going to take a l-o-n-g time for me to justify a truck & trailer at those rates.

I am not the best person to take advice from since this is the first & only tractor I have ever owned, but it is really nice. I looked at the Kubota L39, but the dealer there was willing to sell me whatever he could get fast. The Deere dealer, came out to our property, walked it with me (most of a mile, in the rain) and then recommended what I needed. It was $2-3k more than the corresponding L39, but I had a lot better feeling about the dealer.

Without him, I would never have known that I wanted a 4-n-1 bucket, but he pretty much insisted that I should get it and he was right.

The only things he was wrong on were that he didn't even know about the skid plate. But, reading TBN had warned me about the underside being really exposed, and when he got down & actually looked at it, he ordered the skid plate & I bet he is recommending it to others now.

The other thing he got wrong worked out to my advantage. He told me a 3 pt hitch came standard with it, and it didn't, so he threw one in for free.

Can't beat that.

Before it came in, I realized that the Deere Top-N-Tilt was $1400, but that I could get one for about half of that by upgrading before he got the regular 3 pt hitch in. So I got that for $700. I hope it will be useful, but people who have them say they are great.

Cheers,

Dave

 

[hutch4472]

10-4 Dave thanks for the info, I am really interested in the 110 (ok I am drooling for one and dream of it often I am not too proud to admit it /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif). If you get a chance can you give me the low down on what you think of your machine? Do you still smile everytime you climb aboard even after paying the small fortune (to me anyway) for it? Is there anything else you can think of you would have added/not added or changed about your purchase? Thanks so much for your time, Regards, Tom

 

[CurlyDave]

If you get a chance can you give me the low down on what you think of your machine? Do you still smile everytime you climb aboard even after paying the small fortune (to me anyway) for it? Is there anything else you can think of you would have added/not added or changed about your purchase?

It was a small fortune for me too.

Yep, I still smile, and even though we are having a contractor clear a lot of the land, there are some jobs I have reserved for myself, and the contractor is OK with that.

If I had the money, I would have bought the box blade to go with it. And, a thumb (Addington, not John Deere) would have been part of the purchase, and a rock bucket/ grapple, etc, etc.

To me, the only disadvantage to the JD 110 is the fact that implements are expensive. A box blade is $2500 or so, and you can not use a cheaper one. The blade must weight 1250 lbs to blance the FEL. Similarly, if you want a post hole digger, save your pennies. No PTO operated PHDs for this puppy, you need a hydraulic auger for the backhoe.

The options I got were:

4-n-1 bucket for FEL (this also requires extra hydraulics)
Quick Attach bucket for hoe
7th hydraulic line for hoe, this will power a thumb or the hydraulic auger)
skid plate
3 point hitch, as we discussed.

I added a tilt meter from R&B as advertised on the TBN home page. This is really a great add-on. 15 degrees and I start looking for a better place. 20 degrees and I am in serious trouble.

I wouldn't change anything, except maybe to have the auger and the box blade.

The only thing which could stand improvement is the fact that it is awkward to flip the seat over to use the hoe and then clamber over it to actually sit down. Eventually I will get the knack for this. I really like the little rocker switch which allows you to creep forward and backward while in the backhoe seat.

Read the reviews. Even the Kubota L39 guys admit the 110 is smoother and nicer.

 

[hutch4472]

CurlyDave, perfect, just the type of info I was interested in, thanks for your time. Tom

...sorry for jackin the thread too.....

 

[Partsman2]

I use Shell Retinax LC2 lithium complex grease. This is top quality stuff and is available at auto parts stores in our area.

I agree that keeping it greased is the key but if I can use quality stuff for just a little more money I always go that route.

 

[BloomingtonMike]

Anyone use any of the Hydrotex greases products before?