Kubota UDT or gear lube for front axle case

[stumblinhorse]

Getting time to replace the lube in my front axle case on my L3130. The manual calls for 7 QTs of lube. It says either UDT or 80/90 gear lube is acceptable. I don’t have that quantity of either. But 80/90 is easier for me to get local.

What are most people doing? I would put in synth 75w-90 since I have a few quarts of that and would not have to buy a case of 12…. I don’t have any UDT and dealer is 150 miles away. Amazon sells UDT for $50/gallon which is the cheapest online with shipping I can find.

 

[Farmer495]

I just did front axle in M series, I used UDT in it. $9 a liter here.....

I'd think regular 80W90 would suffice. I only used UDT since I use it in the hyd/trans and wanted to keep it the same.

 

[stumblinhorse]

I just did front axle in M series, I used UDT in it. $9 a liter here.....

I'd think regular 80W90 would suffice. I only used UDT since I use it in the hyd/trans and wanted to keep it the same.

Yup I less container of fluid is always better. I have 7 or 8 different hyd/Tran fluids. But No udt left…

 

[notaz3]

My dealer told me that all their tractors get UDT2 for front axles.

 

[MapleLeafFarmer]

I use the 80/90 gear oil because I had a small Kubota B26## that had a very very small leak from front end. Dealer said common and just switch to 80/90 and it would probably go away. (huh I thought) so I did and he was right. 5 years on no more leaks. Dam I love living within reach of a good dealer.

Me thinks its not a critical decision as the viscosity difference is like almost 45% different yet they recommend both??

 

[oldballs]

What all of the above said..........says me. Maybe UDT2 would be the best if your tractor is used in a cold climate quite a bit.

Cheers,
Mike

 

[Captain Dirty]

If Kubota says 80/90 GO is OK with them, 80/90 GO is OK with me (and what I used). For some, the most expensive is none too good for their baby.

 

[stumblinhorse]

I use the 80/90 gear oil because I had a small Kubota B26## that had a very very small leak from front end. Dealer said common and just switch to 80/90 and it would probably go away. (huh I thought) so I did and he was right. 5 years on no more leaks. Dam I love living within reach of a good dealer.

Me thinks its not a critical decision as the viscosity difference is like almost 45% different yet they recommend both??

Ok, well that convinces me. I have a tiny leak up front. So I pulled my maint schedule out and saw it was coming up on a service. I would like it not to leak. So gear lube it is. Thanks.

 

[ROUSTABOUT]

I worked at a large Kubota dealer and used gear oil. But, I would keep a 5 of UDT on hand for topping off your tractor hydraulic system. Gear oil is fine in a gear box. Super UDT is special and will run cooler. Seen other machines burn down because they don't have it. We burned a JD down to the ground one day. Skid steer with a mulcher. It would have been fine with Super UDT in it. But machine was newer and warranty. So they wouldn't like that Kubota fluid in it. JD was an excellent machine. I'm sure with the bush hog was fine too. When you work that mulcher hard, creates heat. They had two machines, sometimes 5 or 6 on a job. I'd always run one.

 

[rScotty]

I use the 80/90 gear oil because I had a small Kubota B26## that had a very very small leak from front end. Dealer said common and just switch to 80/90 and it would probably go away. (huh I thought) so I did and he was right. 5 years on no more leaks. Dam I love living within reach of a good dealer.

Me thinks its not a critical decision as the viscosity difference is like almost 45% different yet they recommend both??

Yes, it is confusing about the front axle 4wd lubrication recommendation. There is some history and even a bit of reason behind it. It started when Yanmar invented and patented the bevel gear type drven front axle that you see on almost all utility size tractors today. The big advantage of their new front axle was it enabled full power to the front wheels at any steering angle. That was a huge advantage because the old constant velocity joints in use in everything from WWII jeeps to big Ag tractors had a problem with handling full power at tight steering angles.

I bought a litte Yanmar in 1980 - mainly because of being fascinated by the engineering in such a little tractor. And of course I immediately took it apart to have a look.

Yanmar initially recommended 90 wt gear oil - there were no multiweight gear oils on the market at the time. By the next decade (1990s) the Yanmar type axle was in wide use, and there had also been some changes in oils. Multiweight gear oils like 75/80w-90 were now available... And there were lighter viscosity trans/hydraulic oils on the market that now had additives to handle bevel gear type of shearing forces. In years before, many of those trans/hydaulic oils had additives that were not compatible with some bushing and syncro materials.

So about 1990 it became possible for a trans/hydraulic oil to handle bevel gear loads with additives. The reduction in wear was similar to how the old thicker gear lubes had handled the bevel gear loads through viscosity. At the same time, design engineers began to look at lubrication differently.

That is why we see see two recommendations for front axle bevel gear systems: It is lubrication philosophy. One design group prefers a thin oil with additives, and another philosophy prefers the traditional more viscous gear lube. The lubrication shearing forces are the same, but solved in different ways.

Not surprisingly, the lighter UDT type trans/hydraulic oil flows better especially in the cold ..... but the heavier lube leaks less past the seals.

I run 75w-90 in mine, YMMV.

enjoy,
rScotty