Is this acceptable quality on a brand new Kubota?

[Harvest Moon]

Me too.

The thing that truely gets me about this thread and others like it, isn't Kubota's welds or dealers delivering somewhat pre-abused or slightly neglected equipment.

It's that it seems like people that take a personal pride in their machines, be it wax them or park them in a heated garage or just don't want them scratched when they fork over $30,000, seem respectful and understanding of those who use and treat their machines like a $8 hammer. But often, the $8 hammer people seem to like to agitate and shame people for their passion for a well kept and often shiny machine. Or one with respectable looking welds, structural debate aside.

Of course the pride people get defensive, who wouldn't after being insulted? Or being told "it's just a tractor."

I don't think I've ever read anyone blurt out in a thread "what! you threw a chain over your axle to secure your machine!! That's a thirty thousand dollar machine, no wonder the rest of the world thinks Americans are wasteful, arrogant, self-entitled..."

For those of you behind the curve on perfectionism, I doubt that WaxMan would ever just throw a chain over his axle. Would you WaxMan?

 

[WaxMan]

Me too.

The thing that truely gets me about this thread and others like it, isn't Kubota's welds or dealers delivering somewhat pre-abused or slightly neglected equipment.

It's that it seems like people that take a personal pride in their machines, be it wax them or park them in a heated garage or just don't want them scratched when they fork over $30,000, seem respectful and understanding of those who use and treat their machines like a $8 hammer. But often, the $8 hammer people seem to like to agitate and shame people for their passion for a well kept and often shiny machine. Or one with respectable looking welds, structural debate aside.

Of course the pride people get defensive, who wouldn't after being insulted? Or being told "it's just a tractor."

I don't think I've ever read anyone blurt out in a thread "what! you threw a chain over your axle to secure your machine!! That's a thirty thousand dollar machine, no wonder the rest of the world thinks Americans are wasteful, arrogant, self-entitled..."

For those of you behind the curve on perfectionism, I doubt that WaxMan would ever just throw a chain over his axle. Would you WaxMan?

WHAT!!! I wax those axles with liquid spray wax and a new cotton T-shirt.
on my knees.
I hate using the fel tube, I even thought of making a rug covered pipe with two hooks welded on the end to slide through the tube
But don't use me as an example I'm so ****, I'd post a picture of myself but I would just look like an A*S

 

[shvl73]

Waxman, in your second pic, do I see some weld splatter?!?

 

[WaxMan]

Waxman, in your second pic, do I see some weld splatter?!?

Yeah my loader has splatter that's for sure, but the welds are good.
If that was Bandmans loader the tube would be all jagged and eaten away

 

[curtisfarmer]

A Hah!!!! Weld splatter.............I won't even start, but it goes to show it could be anywhere, just like anyother welded product. Who cares??? If it takes a close up picture I don't. By the way, all my machines are inside and I am the ONLY one who drives them, my employees drive rakes, and cheap ones to boot cause they always break them. I take serious pride in my machines, their peformance, and they are 1/2 of my bread and butter. I will take images of my Kubotas and their welds by Tuesday (gonna snow up here again and I have to plow, and yes, I wash the salt off every time, and yes who say the L48 is slow, I plow with an L48 with rear blade and make huge money!!!) and we can all see what the industrial Kubota lines have for welding. I have never gone over every weld, but I guess I will try now. From just memory I remember my newest L48 having some thick ones. I posted pics of the machines here on this forum by the way. Good thing I didn't post closeups or you guys would be howling for a recall, how is that for humor. And you guys didn't even think my pound of dirt analogy was funny, but that is what I consider it.
So, pictures by Tuesday. Should I go over my new F450 and older Ford Tractors as well since they were made in the USA as well? By the way, I am so Kubota brand loyal my company work shirts are bright orange, my child has Kubota infant clothes and people make fun of me cause they think I have more Kubotas than I need (we all know they are jealous and we all know who they call when they need tractor or excavator service). I should also say I only use the spilled fuel on my hood to wax down my machines, and before you all yipe, have any of you tried fueling one of those? I also grease the **** out of all of them till the point my wife hates them cause she ruins clothes everytime she hands me my son for a tractor ride. Wife and grease are like oil and water. Anyone else want to post some pics of welds, will thick welds make anyone sick? Beer and pizza at my house if you bring your machines!!!

 

[WaxMan]

curtisfarmer
You have a couple of real nice looking tractors there, nice shinny rims too..
Do you Wax
seriously they look good not what I expected.

 

[Harvest Moon]

Nice axles WaxMan! You sure don't disappoint.

And your machines look pretty sharp too curtisfarmer. Nice looking farm too. No doubt you have standards, just different ones for welds than the bulk of posters on this thread.

 

[DWCox]

Two things are undeniable about keeping tractors (or anything else) clean: (1) you find things that need repair or attention that would otherwise be overlooked. This can save a lot of $ and hassle; and, (2) resale value is typically higher. However, farmers and contractors typically do not have the time or desire after a very long day running the equipment, so I do not blame them (though they [and rental yards] would also be my last choice from among whom I would purchase used equipment).

 

[curtisfarmer]

I keep touch up paint to do stuff like counter weight swipes on my KX121 and other dings and what nots on the L48s, but I don't wax at all, just rub downs with spilled fuel. I wash salt off of them but don't wash them otherwise unless working in mud. I am serious about maintenence though, strict. Almost $600 for a fluid change with filters on a L48!!! I am blessed with storage space so I can keep my machines inside, although my excavator spends most of the year outside cause it goes job to job and rarely home in between. Keeping stuff inside is huge to the longevity of any machine. My L48s do look shiny in the pics, 1 was brand new, delivered with snow on the roof. 1 is a 2005 with 1470 hrs, the other is a 2008 with 102 hrs, my KX121 is 2004 with 610 hours. I don't know about other makes but the L48 loader pistons fade before anything else as does the cab on the KX excavators. I'll try to get pics up as soon as I can, the ones from today were from last year when the 2nd L48 was brand new. It still looks new cause I keep it inside. By the way, I bought the 2nd L48 without hoe so I didn't have to buy the M59 and have to buy the hoe for that. I paid $27.5K for the new L48 and I reckon I saved close to $22K instead of paying $50K +/- for the M59 as I do not need to backhoes and an excavator. Did I mention the new one came missing peices of the loader control assembly, rear valves, and one that leaked? When I called my dealer they said I would have to pay to bring it back to be "fixed". My reply was a stern "what" with the implication that it would affect our relationship and when the service tech came to put on the missing parts he did the valves as well. But the did have audacity to just give me the parts in a box and then tell me to bring it back at my expense. Not a good response to a good customer. Missing parts on 2 seperate areas of the new machine, under warranty 0 hrs, and I was asked to pay to bring it back. Worse than weld splatter.

 

[sixdogs]

WAXMAN,

You are an inspiration to me and your pictures reveal what has been my (failed) goal for the last 40 years. I try to keep my stuff as nice as possible but plowing acreage or rototilling dry soil makes a mess. Working a regular job and part-time farming has left little time.
When I retire next year, and I better live to see it, one of my goals is to have quipment in nearly as nice of shape as yours.