MX5100 FEL Float problem

juddspaintballs · Oct 19, 2016

I've got 62 hours on my MX5100 now. Two days ago when I parked it, my float function on the FEL worked properly. I push it all of the way forward, it drops down to the ground, and then I release it to shut off the motor and park it. Today I used my tractor's FEL with pallet forks to lift up a truck frame/body/motor one end at a time to take it off of a trailer and set it on the ground. No struggles lifting, no weird torsion of the FEL arms, etc. I noticed that when I was parking it for the day today, that all of the way forward would float still, but the handle wouldn't stay in that position without me holding it there. If I hold it all of the way forward, it drops to the ground and stays. If I move it to the down position, it'll lift the front wheels off of the ground. So the float function works, but my joystick won't stay in that position. Any clues on how to fix that? There's an obvious feeling of moving past the detent still, but it won't stay in position.

JRobyn · Oct 19, 2016

There's a ball bearing and a spring that holds the piston all the way in the float position. It sounds like yours may be stuck, or the spring broken. It's actually pretty common, as water can somehow get in there and corrode things. The detent assembly on all the kubota valves I have ever seen just unscrews from the valve body and can be disassembled and cleaned. Be careful if you take it off that no small parts sproing out!

juddspaintballs · Oct 19, 2016

Thank you for your reply, JRobyn. I was able to find the correct terms to search for after posting and I found out that the piston gets water and corrodes or sometimes it just plain wears grooves where the balls hold on. I took it off, and I had no water or corrosion in there. My 2014 tractor has a weep/vent hole in the bottom so water shouldn't sit there. I learned this was an updated version from my reading other threads. Anyways, I degreased the retaining balls and regreased them with waterproof grease and reassembled. It still didn't work correctly. I took it off again and put an allen wrench in the end of the piston and rotated it about 15 degrees. I saw noticeable grooves in the piston from the balls already with only 62 hours on the hour meter. With the piston slightly rotated, I reassembled and it's working properly now.

Now the real question is, is this part covered under any kind of warranty since my tractor is only 2 years old? I bought it new from a Kubota dealership and I have KTAC.

Fallon · Oct 20, 2016

Common problem & question on here. If it's just dirty & nothing broken, the fix is easier than 2 calls to your dealer.

Put a bag over the cap, then unscrew it. Spring & balls will explode everywhere (or just in the bag if you do it right). Clean it all up & lightly grease everything before putting it back together. If the spring is broken, get your dealer to replace it under warranty or buy a new one for a few bucks. Easier to do it yourself than load the tractor to take it to the dealer for free warranty work (if still under warranty).

motownbrowne · Oct 20, 2016

juddspaintballs said:
Thank you for your reply, JRobyn. I was able to find the correct terms to search for after posting and I found out that the piston gets water and corrodes or sometimes it just plain wears grooves where the balls hold on. I took it off, and I had no water or corrosion in there. My 2014 tractor has a weep/vent hole in the bottom so water shouldn't sit there. I learned this was an updated version from my reading other threads. Anyways, I degreased the retaining balls and regreased them with waterproof grease and reassembled. It still didn't work correctly. I took it off again and put an allen wrench in the end of the piston and rotated it about 15 degrees. I saw noticeable grooves in the piston from the balls already with only 62 hours on the hour meter. With the piston slightly rotated, I reassembled and it's working properly now.

Now the real question is, is this part covered under any kind of warranty since my tractor is only 2 years old? I bought it new from a Kubota dealership and I have KTAC.

I have no idea about the KTAC aspect. As far as I know, loaders are only warrantied for one year.