What do I need for a 50 hour service on a DK45SE

[Btown]

It's easy for the manufacturer to make a 50 hr recommendation as it costs them nothing. Not all manufacturers make that 50 hr recommendation however so it isn't an industry standard backed up with data. And, there are dealers who ignore it too. I think it is pretty silly and wasteful to toss out 10-15 gallons of crystal clear HST oil.

If yours is crystal clear that's great but some people have had all kinds of crud in there.

 

[murphy1244]

If yours is crystal clear that's great but some people have had all kinds of crud in there.

Then there filters did not work so good. I ran my fluid thru a Nylon and not much if any was there.

 

[IslandTractor]

If yours is crystal clear that's great but some people have had all kinds of crud in there.

I'd imagine a few metal shavings would be par for the course. The various filters in the hydraulic circuit should handle those easily. "All sorts of crud" however would make me worry about what was going on. My HST fluid has never been anything but crystal clear. It is a PITA to read the dipstick because the fluid is so clear even at 400hrs.

And, again, I would ask, do you change your car/truck transmission fluid after the first 3000 miles of operation (essentially 50 hours or so)?

 

[k0ua]

It's easy for the manufacturer to make a 50 hr recommendation as it costs them nothing. Not all manufacturers make that 50 hr recommendation however so it isn't an industry standard backed up with data. And, there are dealers who ignore it too. I think it is pretty silly and wasteful to toss out 10-15 gallons of crystal clear HST oil.

Mine was dark and had a lot of what looked like paint debris in it.

 

[kspring61]

Mine was dark and had a lot of what looked like paint debris in it.

Hey k0ua, was it dark on the dipstick or was that more evident when you drained it? I've been keeping a close eye on mine with the dipstick and like
Island Tractor said it's a PITA to even read on the dipstick. BTW I have about 40 hours on the tractor so coming up to that magic 50 hour level so I am trying to figure out what I will be doing on my 50 hour service.

Right now its Full oil, HSt filter, full grease, clean the air filter, and tighten ever bolt and nut.
My manual is with the tractor in TN so I am sure I am missing something that I will find when reading that again

 

[k0ua]

It looked clear on the dipstick. Dark on the container I drained it into with what looked like paint scabs in it. I didn't see much metal.

 

[IslandTractor]

It looked clear on the dipstick. Dark on the container I drained it into with what looked like paint scabs in it. I didn't see much metal.

I would imagine that whatever material was in the "sludge" you saw was simply living at the bottom of the reservoir. I'm going to guess that we would find similar debris/sludge in our automobile gas tanks, transmission fluid reservoirs and oil pans. Point is that this stuff is not part of the circulating fluid and that all circulating fluid goes through a filter before coming into contact with wear parts. If we trust our filters, and change them regularly, and if we know by hours that the oils have not exhausted any additives yet, it still seems very reasonable to simply change the filters at 50hrs and defer changing the fluid until 400.

I just don't see where tractor hydraulic fluid is that much different from automobile/truck transmission fluid. 50hrs equals 3000 miles at cruising speed. 400hrs equals about 24,000 miles on the highway. Does anyone think auto transmission fluid need changing more than every 24,000 miles?

 

[k0ua]

I would imagine that whatever material was in the "sludge" you saw was simply living at the bottom of the reservoir. I'm going to guess that we would find similar debris/sludge in our automobile gas tanks, transmission fluid reservoirs and oil pans. Point is that this stuff is not part of the circulating fluid and that all circulating fluid goes through a filter before coming into contact with wear parts. If we trust our filters, and change them regularly, and if we know by hours that the oils have not exhausted any additives yet, it still seems very reasonable to simply change the filters at 50hrs and defer changing the fluid until 400.

I just don't see where tractor hydraulic fluid is that much different from automobile/truck transmission fluid. 50hrs equals 3000 miles at cruising speed. 400hrs equals about 24,000 miles on the highway. Does anyone think auto transmission fluid need changing more than every 24,000 miles?

You probably have a point with your analysis, but when I saw the crud that came out, my first thought was, "glad I got that out".

 

[IslandTractor]

You probably have a point with your analysis, but when I saw the crud that came out, my first thought was, "glad I got that out".

I cringe every time I peer into my 30 gallon clear plastic fuel container and see the crud on the bottom. Then I remember that my take off is not on the bottom, that I have a pretty sophisticated filter between the crud in my fuel and the pump that moves it to my tractor and that there is another fuel filter after that before the fuel gets to my sensitive injectors. It is definitely hard to see that stuff and pump anyways but at some level you just have to trust the filters. So far so good.

 

[jlgurr]

I don't have a kioti but after my 50 hour service the oil in the sight glass was so much clearer I had to look twice to make sure it was there. No major debris in the drained fluid but significant difference in clarity of the fluid old vs. new.

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