Unique Problem?

[frank_f15]

paul: i have a 2400 fixed rops. no rattle. did have a rattle on right side fel stand arm. drove me nuts! put a little silicone caulk on it and all gone.understand this will not work for u, as u need to move it as required. but anything made to move by design, must have a slight amt. of free play.try putting some self sticking weather stripping in it. it will be pliable enough to make rops fold,but just enough cushion to stop rattle. hope u find soultion.

 

[PaulT]

Whew, when it rains, it pours! Thanks for all of the quick responses. I was at the dealer yesterday, and I took a quick look at the 2410 and the 2910 models with folding ROPS. The 2410 has one that is wider at the top (sorta shaped like a fat light bulb). That one was very tight in both front to back and side to side directions. I am assuming that since the 7500 and 2410 are the same frames, that the ROPS are also the same. The 2910 (and also 2710) ROPS is the same width all the way up, and it had the same rattle as mine does (front to back, not in the hinge). I didn't get my tractor from this dealer, but the sales guy told me that most of them have the rattle. He also said that they tried tightening the hinge, which stopped ALL the rattles (from both directions), but makes the bar too hard to fold over. His suggestion was to live with it. I haven't tried to tighten the hinge bolt, because it wasn't the source of the rattle. I can't see how tightening there will stop the rattle I have in any way. I think this particular saleman says whatever he thinks will get you on your way and out of his hair.

Craig, if your 7500 is shaped like the one I saw on a 2410, and it rattles that way, then some (yours, anyway) do and some (the dealers demo) don't. This then is probably also true of the other models. The question is, what is different between these tractors. My bar does indeed fit over the lower bar structure. I thought about shims, too. In fact, I thought maybe a shim/gasket was left off during assembly. I thought that a rubber boot between the top and bottom pieces would work best. Can anyone verify whether your ROPS has a rubber shim/gasket/boot between the top and bottom pieces where they bolt together (just above the fender)?

A missing gasket would be easier to believe than such loose tolerances. It just seems that so much of the engineering on this tractor is so good, that they WOULDN'T have made it so loose without some reason, would they??? I just wonder what those reasons might be....

PaulT

 

[GlueGuy]

Paul,

I have a B7500 with folding ROPS. It does not rattle. I fold/unfold it every time I take it out of the garage and back again. That said, folding/unfolding it is an effort of strength. It is pretty stiff, I'd say it takes about 50 lbs of pressure to push up or pull down. I don't mind, as I bench press a couple hundred /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif. So, just crank them bolts down, and build up your pecks! /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

The GlueGuy

 

[kawallace]

PaulT I have a fixed ROPS on my 7500 and have found that the mounting bolts will work loose over a period of time. About once a month I check and re-tighten them....this could cause a rattle when operating on rough ground. Wally

 

[hess]

I have a JD 4200 with a folding ROPS. There are two pins on each side that must be removed in order for it to fold. According to the dealer, John Deere made it difficult for these pins to be removed, and for the ROPS to fold easily because they don't necessarily want the owner to fold them, much less remove them.

 

[70boss]

I have a new B7500HST, only 5.1 hours, and I noticed a rattle in the ROPS. I have the fixed version, and the bolts are tight. The whole set-up was rattle free and tight, but now the ROPS can be rocked back and forth slightly, hence the rattle.

 

[skent]

Double check that ROPS mounting! No way should a fixed ROPS rock back and forth (even slightly).

Steve

 

[70boss]

The fixed ROPS, is made of 3 individual pieces. The two lower mounts which are bolted to the tractor (mine are tight), and the upper "hoop", that slides over the other two pieces. The 4 large grade 8 bolts that secure the upper portion to the lower are fully tightened, but the joint between the pieces has a small amount of play causing the rattle, and slight rocking motion. I have no doubt in the integrity of the system, but the rattle is a little annoying.

 

[Charliebrn]

Those bolts that attach the ROPS need to be torqued, not just tightened. Check the specs, it could be they aren't torqued properly. The BX specs are something around 108 ft/lbs if memory serves.....

 

[70boss]

The method of attachment is a slip fit, and the bolts secure the upper half to the bottom parts. The only thing further tightening will do is dent and squeeze the outer piece. The torque on the nuts currently equals or exceeds 100 ft/lbs.