B7100 HST Rear wheel hubs and rad

spd164

New member

Equipment
B7100 HST
May 24, 2017
13
0
0
Saltsburg
Recently acquired a good condition B7100HST with a belly mower and rear blade for use around my not too large property. 900 some hours on the machine, and overall it's in decent shape for a 30ish year old tractor. I did ok price-wise I think, but I figured that in the first few weeks of ownership issues would present themselves. I expected this, and I'm perfectly comfortable doing upkeep and maintenance of wearable parts in order to keep this machine for a good long while.

So I discovered last week that the rear wheels are wobbling. The hubs are loose on the axles and the bolts that create tension on the axles seem to be out of travel. I'm assuming this means the hubs are worn out and need replaced, but I figured I'd ask here before pulling the trigger on new rear hubs and swapping them out.

Also, the rad hoses are pretty soft and need replaced, and the fins on the rad itself are fairly beat up. There's a pinhole leak somewhere as I keep getting antifreeze seepage at the top of the rad during use. Again, I have no trouble replacing this, but Kubota wants somewhere in the neighborhood of $600 for a new radiator. Conversely, I found one on ebay made by Kumar Bros thats going for $200. Now, I know you get what you pay for, but I am always leery of dealer markup and I'm wondering if anyone has any experience with Kumar Bros radiators.

Those are the big questions I've got for now. If you're still reading and haven't clicked away from my lengthy post I appreciate you;re taking the time and look forward to learning a lot about my first Kubota tractor on here. Seems to be a wealth of knowledge rolling around these parts.
 

D2Cat

Well-known member
Lifetime Member

Equipment
L305DT, B7100HST, TG1860, TG1860D, L4240
Mar 27, 2014
12,901
4,267
113
40 miles south of Kansas City
Might be a good idea to take your radiator to a radiator shop to confirm the leak is where you think it is, and what it would cost to have it cleaned and repaired.

I have purchased items from these folks with good results. Call them to see what they currently have. I purchased a radiator for a B7100 from them a couple of years ago and it was in excellent condition.

http://wkytpstore.com/

The bolts on your wheels, can you get a couple of pictures and post them so we can see what your dealing with? I would think there is some modification that can be made to make them work fine.

The B7100 is a nice work horse. The radiator needs to be cleaned of all the dirt the invariably collects in the fins. If it's a HST you have a cooler in front of the radiator and it's more fun to get the radiator clean!!
 

Lencho

Active member
Lifetime Member

Equipment
B7100hst
Jan 21, 2017
407
85
28
NM
Hello spd164 and welcome to OTT. There are some very experienced and helpful people here.
I agree with D2cat on first taking your current radiator to a local shop. New radiator hoses are available from Messics or other dealers.
My B7100hst has a few more hours than yours and I've replaced those hoses as well as my rear hubs. The hubs were pricy but the wobble is gone. I can get a photo if you want.
These are great little tools with a bit of care and maintenance.
 

spd164

New member

Equipment
B7100 HST
May 24, 2017
13
0
0
Saltsburg
Sorry it took a few days to get back to you guys, work has been insane. Thanks for all the helpful suggestions. I have no idea why I didn't think of taking the rad to a local shop, but I didn't. That's a great thought, and I'll definitely be looking into that before I shell out the cash for a replacement.

As for the hubs, here's what I'm working with:


And a couple gratuitous pics of the whole machine:



Picked it up with around 900 hours on it for $3500 with the blade and mid mount mower. It's all there and aside from a small hydraulic leak, the aforementioned issues with the hubs and the radiator, and the deck missing a spindle cover, it's pretty well turn key. I think I did ok, and I've really been enjoying getting to know this machine. I'm hoping to get many, many years of light use out of it on my property.
 

spd164

New member

Equipment
B7100 HST
May 24, 2017
13
0
0
Saltsburg

spd164

New member

Equipment
B7100 HST
May 24, 2017
13
0
0
Saltsburg
NIW I can't thank you enough for the helpful info. Appreciate your pointing me in the right direction. Gonna get those hubs ordered asap. Will update when they're here and I get them installed.
 

MikeyA

Member

Equipment
2016 B2650 FEL and 60"mmm,1998 B2400 MMM FEL(sold!) BB 4ft BRUSH HOG
Mar 6, 2010
150
1
18
West Central Illinois
I made mine work by simply trimming the spring down a little. This allowed the bolt to apply more clamping pressure as it was bottoming on spring..might try that before spending the big bucks....
 

D2Cat

Well-known member
Lifetime Member

Equipment
L305DT, B7100HST, TG1860, TG1860D, L4240
Mar 27, 2014
12,901
4,267
113
40 miles south of Kansas City
Might do what Bill did. It will save you some money, and works good. My B7100 was in the same condition...needing repairs on the hub.
 

spd164

New member

Equipment
B7100 HST
May 24, 2017
13
0
0
Saltsburg
I really hate saying this, and this isn't the way I was raised to be, but right now I've got more money than time available and tools at my disposal. I opted to order the new style hubs that NIW so helpfully located for me on ebay. They should be here next week. Just wanted to update and I'll do so again when the hubs arrive and I get them installed.
 

Lil Foot

Well-known member
Lifetime Member

Equipment
1979 B7100DT Gear, Nissan Hanix N150-2 Excavator
May 19, 2011
7,259
2,203
113
Peoria, AZ
right now I've got more money than time available and tools at my disposal. I opted to order the new style hubs that NIW so helpfully located for me on ebay.
Completely understandable. I was pretty much in the opposite position. Glad the solution is on order.
 

spd164

New member

Equipment
B7100 HST
May 24, 2017
13
0
0
Saltsburg
Finally found the time to swap the original hubs out for the new style. The process was super simple and the new style hubs fix the wheel wobble entirely. Thanks for all the help and advice fellas.

Now there's a hydraulic leak I'm gonna see about next weekend I think. Hopefully just an o ring lol.