Walker's F Series Thread

[walker450]

Thanks Doug I will be trying that when I get back home and the new plugs come in to the dealer.

 

[walker450]

I made it home from my Minneapolis trip, that's a whole different discussion I'll try to elaborate on if anyone cares.

Still waiting on some parts for the F. It has been raining a lot, which is a good thing, so no mowing now anyways.

I shouldn't have been on ebay, I found bar tires for all four corners. I think I'll post to the main F series thread, it has more views, see what people think.

Link:

SET 2 LAWN MOWER TIRES 24x12-12/20x10-8/18x9.5-8 HEAVY DUTY 4PLY 3 SIZES CHOOSE | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for SET 2 LAWN MOWER TIRES 24x12-12/20x10-8/18x9.5-8 HEAVY DUTY 4PLY 3 SIZES CHOOSE at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

 

[arto98607]

I have that type tires in the drive wheels of our Grasshopper mower and they are one of the reasons why I bought 4x4 F series mower!

Bar tires cause lot of wear (ruts etc.) when the ground is moist or wet.

 

[Hay Dude]

I have that type tires in the drive wheels of our Grasshopper mower and they are one of the reasons why I bought 4x4 F series mower!

Bar tires cause lot of wear (ruts etc.) when the ground is moist or wet.

Me too. I tried bar tires on my ZD331. They worked great, but I got complaints about ripping up grass, even being careful.
4WD with turf tires on my F3680 is about the best you can get and not damage turf.

 

[LouNY]

You can also get these with shallower lugs that taper down to the outside of the tire, supposed to be easier on the lawn.

 

[Hay Dude]

I’m seeing them on Grasshoppers quite a bit.

 

[arto98607]

Here's what our Grasshopper tires look like.

These will wear ruts over time and cause other damage in wet ground.

Changing mowing patterns will help of-course, but there are areas where it is necessary to drive in the same spot.

We are not seing that type of damage from these tires at all so far, and no issues with traction:

 

[walker450]

Thanks for the input on bar tires everyone.... it sure would make the F look cool though

Also, when I do a project, I like to be thorough and do it twice sometimes, actually most of the time I end up doing things twice. Hopefully I'm not the only one.

I put things "mostly" together, did a test run, and noticed a new drip from the hydraulic cooler lines. I had loosened them up and must have disturbed the o-rings. Soooooo.... I pulled the radiator again, put new o-rings in, performed another test run and no leak this time. I'm letting it sit overnight before I finish putting it back together.

So... my new to-do list:
Change hyd fluid and filter
Change left rear 4wd case once I get the stripped drain plug out
New bushing and pin for front castor (I've already changed one)
Install new radiator cover gasket that seals it to the hood to prevent debris coming in
Wash mowing deck
Fab new deck lift location
Install deck, seat, and hood
MOW

For anyone that may be reading this looking for info on removing the radiator.... do not remove the bolt circled below, that'll loosen the hydraulic lines and possibly disturb the o-ring. The radiator has to be removed with the shroud intact as well. It's not too bad, be sure to loosen the fuel tank and pull it out to the side as far as you can so you can reach behind it for 3 bolts. The rest are all relatively accessible.

 

[walker450]

Everything except the drain plug has been done on the list above. I've mowed a few more hours with it and have some new questions for everyone.

If the blades are engaged and I lift the mower, I hear bad noises, like growling noises from underneath the machine. The same noise occurs if I pull up tonanditch and allow the deck to drop down. When it's near the normal height there's no noise. I am assuming this is the PTO driveline. I pulled it apart and greased it. I also greased both u-joints and they did not have any play in them. Any ideas?

Steering... it is not pleasant to mow next to fences.... this thing is just plain squirlly, not sure if other parts of the country use that term or not lol. I've also noticed to maintain a straight line I have to keep turning it to the right. It is very slight but enilough to notice because I have to keep lifting m ly hand up and repositioning it otherwise I'd be doing complete circles. The steering hardware is all in great shape, no play or visible wear. No leaks on the hoses or cylinder. I'm guessing g this is either the steering cylinder leaking/bypassing internally or the steering valve that has an internal issue. Any ideas on this?

This machines nickname is "Cloud". That's because I'm usually in a cloud of dust or grass. I raised the mowing height and get a lot of blowout from the front of the deck. I have dome rubber I can make a skirt for the front out of. I also seen some kits for Deere mowers online the have a lip along the front bottom edge to prevent blowout. I can't be the only one experiencing this with the F. Since the deck is out front you end up driving right into the cloud...

 

[walker450]

Almost forgot, pictures! I washed it but I've mowed with it a few times already before these pics were taken.

 

[arto98607]

Thanks for the input on bar tires everyone.... it sure would make the F look cool though

Also, when I do a project, I like to be thorough and do it twice sometimes, actually most of the time I end up doing things twice. Hopefully I'm not the only one.

I put things "mostly" together, did a test run, and noticed a new drip from the hydraulic cooler lines. I had loosened them up and must have disturbed the o-rings. Soooooo.... I pulled the radiator again, put new o-rings in, performed another test run and no leak this time. I'm letting it sit overnight before I finish putting it back together.

So... my new to-do list:
Change hyd fluid and filter
Change left rear 4wd case once I get the stripped drain plug out
New bushing and pin for front castor (I've already changed one)
Install new radiator cover gasket that seals it to the hood to prevent debris coming in
Wash mowing deck
Fab new deck lift location
Install deck, seat, and hood
MOW

For anyone that may be reading this looking for info on removing the radiator.... do not remove the bolt circled below, that'll loosen the hydraulic lines and possibly disturb the o-ring. The radiator has to be removed with the shroud intact as well. It's not too bad, be sure to loosen the fuel tank and pull it out to the side as far as you can so you can reach behind it for 3 bolts. The rest are all relatively accessible.

You are doing good maintenance & repairs on your F mower, thank you - keep posting please!

About those two hydraulic oil cooler lines:

When I was reassembling my F3060 two years ago, in addition to all new HST seals, front differential seals, rear axle etc. seals I added small homemade plastic support for the cooling lines since especially one of them is a pretty long steel line and subject to vibration, which will wear out those little O-rings over time.

The plastic block is not attached to anything else, just connecting these two lines together.

Just to clarify: I am talking about a mower with 3600 hours of use when I did this little improvement!

Not a big deal.

Cheers

 

[arto98607]

Everything except the drain plug has been done on the list above. I've mowed a few more hours with it and have some new questions for everyone.

If the blades are engaged and I lift the mower, I hear bad noises, like growling noises from underneath the machine. The same noise occurs if I pull up tonanditch and allow the deck to drop down. When it's near the normal height there's no noise. I am assuming this is the PTO driveline. I pulled it apart and greased it. I also greased both u-joints and they did not have any play in them. Any ideas?

Steering... it is not pleasant to mow next to fences.... this thing is just plain squirlly, not sure if other parts of the country use that term or not lol. I've also noticed to maintain a straight line I have to keep turning it to the right. It is very slight but enilough to notice because I have to keep lifting m ly hand up and repositioning it otherwise I'd be doing complete circles. The steering hardware is all in great shape, no play or visible wear. No leaks on the hoses or cylinder. I'm guessing g this is either the steering cylinder leaking/bypassing internally or the steering valve that has an internal issue. Any ideas on this?

This machines nickname is "Cloud". That's because I'm usually in a cloud of dust or grass. I raised the mowing height and get a lot of blowout from the front of the deck. I have dome rubber I can make a skirt for the front out of. I also seen some kits for Deere mowers online the have a lip along the front bottom edge to prevent blowout. I can't be the only one experiencing this with the F. Since the deck is out front you end up driving right into the cloud...

Regarding steering:

With over 2300 hours on your mower, you may want to check if there is any slack in parts 030 bushing, 120 tie rod joints & "support, knuckle" 060

Please note, these are from parts drawings for F3060 so the numbering may be different but I think the rear axles are built about the same.

(030 is a plastic bushing and should be lubricated fairly frequently I think)

I would also check for any slack in rear axle pivot point & adjust as per shop manual.

 

[LouNY]

Continually correcting in the same direction is either the steering cylinder leaking by or the steering motor leaking by.
You can remove one steering cylinder line and pressure the othe side to see if it leaks from the disconnected fitting then repeat on the other side. Then plug both lines and try to turn the wheel (gently) slowly if it rotates it is leaking.

 

[walker450]

Thanks! The hydraulic line support block looks like a very smart idea, I will add something like if/when I have it apart in the future.

Thanks for the info arto, I'll check those parts!

LouNY, I will try this out, makes perfect sense the way you explained it. I'll have to make a trip to town to get some hydraulic fittings to block the lines. Hopefully it is just the steering cylinder that needs new seals.

 

[walker450]

I made a video showing how to flip up the deck on a F series. Maybe it'll benefit someone in the future if they are researching these machines. The easy access to the deck is one of the biggest selling points for me.

In this video you will also see the new lifting point I built. It works great!

 

[Doug Vee]

If the blades are engaged and I lift the mower, I hear bad noises, like growling noises from underneath the machine. The same noise occurs if I pull up tonanditch and allow the deck to drop down. When it's near the normal height there's no noise. I am assuming this is the PTO driveline. I pulled it apart and greased it. I also greased both u-joints and they did not have any play in them. Any ideas?

Steering... it is not pleasant to mow next to fences.... this thing is just plain squirlly, not sure if other parts of the country use that term or not lol. I've also noticed to maintain a straight line I have to keep turning it to the right. It is very slight but enilough to notice because I have to keep lifting m ly hand up and repositioning it otherwise I'd be doing complete circles. The steering hardware is all in great shape, no play or visible wear. No leaks on the hoses or cylinder. I'm guessing g this is either the steering cylinder leaking/bypassing internally or the steering valve that has an internal issue. Any ideas on this?

This machines nickname is "Cloud". That's because I'm usually in a cloud of dust or grass. I raised the mowing height and get a lot of blowout from the front of the deck. I have dome rubber I can make a skirt for the front out of. I also seen some kits for Deere mowers online the have a lip along the front bottom edge to prevent blowout. I can't be the only one experiencing this with the F. Since the deck is out front you end up driving right into the cloud...

My mower deck is pretty noisy also. I had the splined tube replaced and the u-joints replaced. The driveshaft is much quieter than it was. Arto described how he replaced the shaft on his gearbox, as there was play between the shaft and the bolted/snapring connector. I think some of my noise is coming from the same location on my gearbox, and possibly from the opposite end at the splined connection at the tractor end. All parts are available for the driveshaft work, but not from Kubota. It was pretty time consuming to figure everything out. I did some of the legwork and Capital Driveshaft did the rest. I was able to find some new old stock u-joints from Kubota, but that was it.

My steering is pretty squirrelly also. I just was thinking it was me going from a ZTR mower to forklift style steering. Like yours, everything looks like it is in good condition. I had not noticed that it is always in one direction though. I will keep and eye out for that symptom. I try to watch the clearance against buildings and fences, but at the same time watching the casters. They help me see which way the "trend" is pointing.

Concerning the dust, my ZTR was really dusty, but it was side discharge. If I was blowing into the wind, I was getting totally dusted out. This mower is rear discharge like yours. I had not noticed it being as dusty as the old ZTR. When I bought it, it had some user added rubber flaps on the backside of the deck, at each end, and a steel diverter flap spanning between them. I assumed it was meant to mulch the cuttings, but it may have been to keep the transaxle and engine bay cleaner. I notice much more seed debris on the screens now than before I removed them. I removed the flaps and diverter to get a better discharge distribution, and it really helped in that regard.

Keep on mowing...
Doug

 

[Hay Dude]

One thing I dislike about my F is when mowing lawns with lots of particulate mater (leaf bits, dirt, dust) the side discharge mower deck seems to blow quite a bit out the front edge and it ends up in my eyes or shirt.

 

[walker450]

Thanks for the info Doug, very helpful. I will investigate the driveline and gearbox a little more and review Arto's thread.

My deck is actually a side discharge. The main issue is blowing out from the front. I checked Kubotas site and they have this on the F series page: "An inner baffle to prevent cut grass from discharging to the front."

I searched several forums and it seems that a front baffle helps prevent blowout. Messicks has a "Front Kit" bagfle option but it would cost nearly $300 to try out.

I looked at Skags website and they have a protruded front on the deck and then an internal front baffle with some flat pieces that come back between the blades. I'll attach pictures of all this, hopefully it'll make sense.

I've also noticed that on Kubota's website the pictures of the ZD and F decks show a small lip along the leading edge, only about 3/4" long, I wonder of that is for airflow or something else? Mine does not have that lip.

I believe I'm going to have to spend some time fabricating in the shop to get this thing working better so I'm not eating dirt every time I go over areas with thin grass.

One attached screenshot is of a post on a different forum where a guy took off the front baffles if a Kubota deck and it caused a lot of blowout so he out them back on.

 

[Doug Vee]

I should have mentioned in my post that my low tech way of minimizing the dust cloud is I idle down the RPM's while in the thin areas. Still a cloud, but a much smaller cloud.

 

[Doug Vee]

Another thing I notice is that a low lift blade raises less dust than a high lift blade. I have a set of stock Kubota blades which are low lift and a set of Oregon high lift gator blades. The high lift works nice in spring when the cuttings are heavy to help discharge, but they are dusty!

Doug