Recoveryhill
Gold Member
I took delivery of an L3700, a couple of days ago. After putting the SQ160 mower together and running an hour or so before dark, I was very happy.
In the morning I was so proud of the tall stuff that I'd reduced to mulch, I walked the cut over area. Hard for even me to believe, a silver bit caught my eye. It was a 1/2 (metric) size nut with the silver base facing up. When I picked it up, not only was it painted Kubota Gray but it was a castle nut.
I looked at the tractor (a nut farm) and decided to go have a cup of coffee and email the dealer. Suddenly it hit me. Castle nuts need cotter pins and are placed where loss of the nut cause very bad things. Such applications are always linkages.
Back to the tractor I started with the front end at the tie rods. Left side fine, same castle nut as I found in the mulch with the pin in place. Right side, no nut, stud backed out of the hub boss leaving only 1/4" engagement with the wheel.
I'll leave it to imagination what would have happened had the tie rod separated from the wheel at PTO power, in low range 4WD! Further inspection of the nut had paint fully coating the outside diameter. Since on the other side, the cotter pin was painted, the nut that fell off, with no paint shadow created by a pin indicates that the pin was never placed on the nut, at manufacture.
I'm only 1,200 miles from the closest dealer, by the way, who was most helpful when they received the news. They sent me a .jpg of a cotter pin and asked me if that was the part I needed. :confused2:
Today I spent four hours in various uncomfortable positions checking every Nut, Bolt, Pin, Screw, Nail, Stud, and other mechanical connections looking for Assembler Holidays. None found and my hopes are high.
Silly me thinking that a check of fluids would be sufficient.:laughing:
Crap happens I suppose but it pays to check!
In the morning I was so proud of the tall stuff that I'd reduced to mulch, I walked the cut over area. Hard for even me to believe, a silver bit caught my eye. It was a 1/2 (metric) size nut with the silver base facing up. When I picked it up, not only was it painted Kubota Gray but it was a castle nut.
I looked at the tractor (a nut farm) and decided to go have a cup of coffee and email the dealer. Suddenly it hit me. Castle nuts need cotter pins and are placed where loss of the nut cause very bad things. Such applications are always linkages.
Back to the tractor I started with the front end at the tie rods. Left side fine, same castle nut as I found in the mulch with the pin in place. Right side, no nut, stud backed out of the hub boss leaving only 1/4" engagement with the wheel.
I'll leave it to imagination what would have happened had the tie rod separated from the wheel at PTO power, in low range 4WD! Further inspection of the nut had paint fully coating the outside diameter. Since on the other side, the cotter pin was painted, the nut that fell off, with no paint shadow created by a pin indicates that the pin was never placed on the nut, at manufacture.
I'm only 1,200 miles from the closest dealer, by the way, who was most helpful when they received the news. They sent me a .jpg of a cotter pin and asked me if that was the part I needed. :confused2:
Today I spent four hours in various uncomfortable positions checking every Nut, Bolt, Pin, Screw, Nail, Stud, and other mechanical connections looking for Assembler Holidays. None found and my hopes are high.
Silly me thinking that a check of fluids would be sufficient.:laughing:
Crap happens I suppose but it pays to check!
