Why Does my Loader Creep Upward?

[Suburban Plowboy]

My L3710 has an LA681 loader. Sometimes a valve will stick when the loader is going up, and the loader will continue creeping up very slowly.

I removed the boot from the lever, and I looked around under it. I couldn't find anything to grease. What's going on?

 

[TractorTech]

On the opposite end of the spool from the linkage, the endcap may have some rust or is simply dry. Take the cap off and inspect.
Also, the bolts on this cap may be loose causing the valve spool to not center

 

[Suburban Plowboy]

I will check. Thanks.

Is there any way to lube the insides of the cables?

 

[TractorTech]

Not easily, but you can try and get some lube down the cable and work it back and forth.

 

[Suburban Plowboy]

Thanks again.

Until about an hour ago, I had no idea what a spool valve cap was. Now I have learned more than I want to know. In case anyone else out there knows as little as I did, I will try to explain.

This loader has two caps with the closed ends facing upward. They are on the front end of the big fat valve thing at the far end of the cables. Each cap has a sort of hollow spacer about 1.5" long between it and the valve thing. Each cap is held on with two 3/16" hex screws.

When you take a cap off, you see the end of the cable. It has a big spring around it, and the spring goes up and down inside the spacer.

When you push the lever in the "down" direction, the end of the cable emerges from the valve thing, and three ball bearings fly out and land on the ground.

When these bearings fall out, it is best to be wearing pants you don't mind throwing out.

When I saw them fly, I assumed there had to be a couple of dozen more in there, and I figured more than three had come out, and that I would never see them again. I wondered how I would get the tractor indoors with the loader on the ground.

It turns out the two smaller bearings go into the sides of the part on the end of the cable, and the big one goes into the end. There are only three bearings. This is why I am not drunk right now.

I'm not sure if the tubular spacer has a flat (around 3/32") spacer on both ends or just one, but a flat spacer flew out along with the bearings.

Everything in there was disgusting and gritty. The screws were badly rusted. The spring and flat spacer were rusted, too. The tubular spacer is aluminum.

I used a wire wheel to clean the flat spacer up somewhat. I wiped everything off as well as I could. I shot lithium grease into the general area of the cavity the end of the cable rides in.

I filled everything up pretty well with Super Lube, and I used it to hold the bearings in place while I put everything back together.

The lever seems to move much more smoothly. I didn't fool with the curl cable because it's late.

Kubota's parts manual is an abomination, but it sort of looks like they sell a kit to replace all the cruddy little parts at the end of the cable. I don't think I need one right now, but I will look into it.

Anyway, thanks for the help. If the loader keeps acting up, I will be back.

 

[Suburban Plowboy]

Well, I moved the tractor and found another part in the driveway.

There is a stainless part I would call a sleeve. It has a concentric ridge inside it a short distance from one end.

It also had a lengthwise ridge of hard crud in it, from the concentric ridge to the far end. It was so big and so hard, I wondered if it was part of the sleeve.

It turned out to be hardened rust.

The sleeve was also covered with crud on one side of the outer surface. I took it to the buffer and wire-wheeled it until it was smooth, if not shiny.

I put a 12-gauge brass brush in a drill and used it to clean out the inside of the sleeve, but the crud was so hard, I ended up using a die grinder and burr.

I didn't know which way the part went into the tractor, so I stuck it in there the way that seemed to make sense, figuring I could turn it around if it didn't work.

I think there is an engineer at Kubota who doesn't know you're not supposed to put carbon steel, stainless, and aluminum right against each other.

I don't believe this was caused by water intrusion, because the joystick has a boot on it, and water would have to run uphill to get into the cap.

Maybe I should see if I can find kits to replace these cruddy parts. I don't want to take it to the dealer, lose a month, and spend $1500.

 

[Suburban Plowboy]

I found the kit to replace this junk. The number is 75536-65100. At Messick's, it's about $178 per cable.

 

[RayIN]

To lube a cable sheath, use a motorcycle cable lube device.

 

[TractorTech]

I found the kit to replace this junk. The number is 75536-65100. At Messick's, it's about $178 per cable.

At this point, do you need the kit? If you got it all cleaned up and lubed, you should be fine.
You can look at the helpful Tips and Tricks on the part listed that includes a YouTube video:

As far as moisture in that end, it isn't really sealed and water can trickle down the valve body into to cap, but in your case, being in Florida, condensation can do the same.

 

[Suburban Plowboy]

Thanks for the help. I was not able to find a useful video when I searched.

I don't know if I need the parts or not, but the tractor is 24 years old, the spring and screws are a real mess, and I figured I should go for it. I don't know if the loader will fail if this assembly falls apart, but I can picture myself leaving the tractor in the woods with the loader on the ground while waiting for a new part, and it's not something I want to deal with. I'm well enough off to pay for an occasional part, and I feel like sometimes it's okay to throw a little money at a problem instead of continuing to piddle with it.

I was able to find the parts kit for $130, which is still ridiculous, especially since Kubota engineered it to fail. I ordered one for the cable which is messed up. The place with the good price only had one kit.

I don't think I actually need anything but the spring and the screws that hold the cap on, because they're in worse shape than anything, but Kubota doesn't sell that stuff separately. Maybe I could go to McMaster-Carr and find a similar spring made from stainless. The screws ought to be available all over. If I felt like it and had time to waste, I could dig up these parts for the other cap and then make a smooth new stainless sleeve on the lathe. I'm sure I have some 304 lying around.

The water must have come from condensation, because otherwise, it had to run uphill to get where it ended up. I don't know what to do about it. I don't think it can be sealed out, and I don't think there is enough water to make drainage the answer. I figured stuffing the whole business with grease was the solution. If I could find a stainless spring and stainless screws, maybe 95% of the problem would go away. In any case, once fixed, it should be about 24 years before the next repair.