RK55 110 Front end loader

[Johnny D]

New to the forum, this may have already been addressed.

First off, must say, to date I am happy with my RK55. The tractor has achieved any task I have put it thru.

My concern is the amount of movement in the connection points for the FEL. I'll call this the cradle and pin. Putting pressure down on the bucket there is approximately 1/4 to 3/8 inch movement up and down. Anyone else seeing this?
I pulled the FEL off yesterday to do some measuring. The pin is 1 3/32" the hole in the FEL arm is 1 1/8", stands to reason. The hole in the sub frame (cradle) 1 3/16". I know this is only 3/32 and with the lateral movement in the cradle, movement is significantly noticeable.

Though about getting some shim material to tighten things up. That type movement, in a connection point, seems to me could cause wear and tear.

Checked out my neighbors Kubota FEL and very minut movement at the connection point.

Thanks for listening

 

[DonRybak]

Johnny D, is this the area you are referring to with the movement? Is this on both sides of the FEL?

Is this a new RK55 and have you contacted the store where purchased?

 

[Johnny D]

I will attach photos of the specific area.

Yes, both sides.

Yes, I bought my tractor at the RK in Zanesville, Ohio March 2021. I have not contacted the folks, Vince, or Lenny, about this issue. I was going to see if this was a common thing

, before bugging them.

You can see were it moves laterally. Shim washers will stop that


I've put shims in other areas to reduce what I call lateral movement.

Thanks

Johnny D

 

[Johnny D]

The movement is also up and down with putting downward pressure on the FEL.

Johnny D

 

[sengli]

The only thing I have noticed about my FEL, was how tight the pins were to remove and re-insert. The framework that the FEL attaches to isnt as rigid as the attachment points were on my SOB tractor I had before this one. First time I tried to remove the FEL on mine for mowing, I had to use a hammer to get one of the pins out and the opposite side fell out?

 

[DonRybak]

Johnny D, what ever happened with this? Curious if you contacted RK...........

 

[sengli]

This isnt a new issue with the RK tractors. The most noticeable thing was the bucket on the FEL wouldnt lay flat. One side was off the ground by an inch or so. I had a conversation with the local service guy right after I took delivery. He actually came out to my house and took some measurements. Seems as if he found there was a alignment issue, from his measurements. Ended up we did nothing. I put a 650 pound snow push on the FEL last year for the winter. That spring the FEL seemed to be aligned okay?

 

[DonRybak]

Sengli, I do think this is a new issue. I was the first to bring up the issue about the uneven bucket a couple years ago but I don't have the sloppiness in my FEL pivot points that Johnny D says he has. After I made the post several RK owners chimed in that they had the same issue with their bucket but nobody ever mentioned having excessive play in the FEL. If memory serves me correctly, you are the only one that even mentioned having the unlevel bucket that has a machine that wasn't assembled at the Williston, FL location.

 

[sengli]

Yes I am aware this is a new issue. I was a fan of your posts on this issue. I am not sure where mine was built. Obviously the pins binding is a symptom of the FEL brackets not being aligned correctly.

 

[gunny0628]

I’ve had this issue for some time and it just got lost with the repair folks. The bucket wasn’t level and the first time I took the entire FEL assembly off it was a disaster. The pin on the left side was wedged so tight I had to put a shim under the bucket on the opposite side to counter it. It’s never been fixed and honestly I’ve just given up. Nobody really seems to care if the bucket isn’t level and if this problem exacerbates anything else like the pins and arms being off.