What did you do to or on your Kubota today?

[McMXi]

Interesting. On my L4701, the glow plug indicator light always comes on. The length it’s on for changes, but it never doesn’t come on at all.

On my tractors, the ECU gets a reading of the coolant temperature when the key is turned to the "ON" position, and automatically turns on the glow plugs if the temperature is below a specific value.

I need to make a correction to my previous comment re the MX. I just went outside and tested both tractors and the M works as I said. I wasn't correct about the MX. As I turned the key to the "ON" position, the glow plug light illuminated for an instant then went out, then came back on for less than a second and went out again. I know that in colder months it'll come on and stay on for much longer when the key is in the "ON" position. The manual mentions 25F as being the crossover temperature.

 

[McMXi]

Everyone I seen who had a compact tractor as a home owner, they ALL use glow plugs starting it when it like 80f - I feel this is so unnecessary. Even with it being mid 60s, I still think it's plenty warm enough. I just find it so unusual that people use them all the time. I understand back in the day glow plugs even during the summer made larger Diesel trucks start easier but it's not like that anymore.

I'm in the middle of replacing the glow plugs in my '02 F-250 7.3L since a couple are bad. They lasted 185,000 miles though but they get used a lot in the winter up here. Not so much when starting at the house since I have a block heater, but if I'm parked outside somewhere for a while and the engine cools down significantly I have to use them.

On my F-250 I control the glow plugs based on how long I leave the key in the "ON" position. If it's really cold I might cycle them a couple of times before cranking the engine. The "new" F-450 is fully automatic and has taken all glow plug control out of my hands.

Given how few starts many tractors see over years of use, I don't think that using the glow plugs every time is a bad thing.

 

[S-G-R]

I see you have added weights to the land plane, do you feel it needs the extra weight? What type of ground are you using it for?

I've been using the land plane as a counterweight with a water tote on the forks. They might just stay on since they're out of the way.

 

[nerwin]

Now I feel like I'm starting my tractor the wrong way

 

[McMXi]

I've been using the land plane as a counterweight with a water tote on the forks. They might just stay on since they're out of the way.

Did you have to modify the plane or the weights get them them to sit on the frame so nicely?

 

[S-G-R]

Did you have to modify the plane or the weights get them them to sit on the frame so nicely?

All but three 42 pounders slid down perfectly. Need to do a bit of light grinding on them for clearance.

 

[Magicman]

Five food plots needed a bit of 'tractoring' today.

My Son was on the old 1974 John Deere 1530 subsoiling and I was following with the Kubota M4900 disking. All went well but on the last plot da John Deere...

Broke a leg. I reckon that a 30+ year old tire has to give up the ghost sometime, sooo

Jacked her up, removed the wheels, and she will get two new tires next week.

We finished da day with a ZT that made a bad noise in the engine and then would not crank over. It might get jacked up and drive something new under it this next week.

Sometime tractoring can be sorta expensive.

 

[NCL4701]

Now I feel like I'm starting my tractor the wrong way

If it fires up promptly running on all cylinders without belching black smoke or firing just often enough to keep running for the first couple minutes, most likely you’re starting it right. If in doubt, check starting/glow plug procedures in the owner manual. It may be a bit different than some of the more complicated models.

I’m not in the habit of glowing mine because it’s stored in a 70 degree building and fires immediately without waiting for the glow plug light to go out. In a thoughtless moment after leaving it outside overnight with temps in the mid 20’s, I didn’t glow it at all. Just turned the key like starting a gasser. It didn’t fire immediately like usual. After about five seconds of cranking, just as I realized my error, it fired. But it was exactly like one of those “can we get this abandoned POS buried in a thicket to run” videos. Sounded like it ran on one cylinder for a few seconds while blowing copious smoke, then another joined in, and another. All four were firing after maybe 10 seconds. Still blew black smoke for another minute. That’s starting it wrong.

 

[Shawn T. W]

On mine the light comes on for a second or two ... But I've only had it a couple of months ...

On my Massey Ferguson no-computer either, it doesn't have a real indicator light, as in it never goes out ... but usually starts hard first start of the day, even if it's 80°+ out ... The Kubota seems to start on the first revolution!

 

[nerwin]

On mine the light comes on for a second or two ... But I've only had it a couple of months ...

On my Massey Ferguson no-computer either, it doesn't have a real indicator light, as in it never goes out ... but usually starts hard first start of the day, even if it's 80°+ out ... The Kubota seems to start on the first revolution!

Yeah my L2501 starts unlike a fuel injection car lol. Soon as you turn the key to the right it cranks like one revolution, if that and vroom it's idling.

 

[Hugo Habicht]

Yeah my L2501 starts unlike a fuel injection car lol. Soon as you turn the key to the right it cranks like one revolution, if that and vroom it's idling.

Some Diesel engines will not start without per glowing, others will. You have a brand new tractor with very good compression, so no problem here it seems. I would still have a look at the operator manual.

 

[skeets]

I havent done it yet, still trying to work up the energy, to change oil in both beasties, flush the rad on the BX and new juice. And try to force my self in to believing winter is coming and I need to get the plow out and ready, I need new shoes welded up for the BX blade, funny how fast the grind away on stone driveways, the back blade needs a new bushing in the pivot joint,, well maybe I wont need to worry about that for now. Old sucks !

 

[WI_Hedgehog]

All of the coolant with the exception of the expansion tank is removed via the drain at the bottom of the radiator. The EWK is used to draw a vacuum on the cooling system and new coolant is drawn into the radiator via the pressure differential.

It's such a good system that makes this sort of maintenance very easy.

Why not pour coolant into the radiator fill opening?

I'm not understanding why two different sources of vacuum are needed, or any vacuum at all--however I'm old school and haven't seen these tools so don't understand what they do.

 

[Russell King]

Why not pour coolant into the radiator fill opening?

I'm not understand how two different sources of vacuum are needed, or any vacuum at all. I'm old school and haven't seen these tools so don't understand what they do.

Some engines have the tendency to get an air bubble caught in the block when fill through the radiator neck. Some reports say that the bubble will not collapse and can cause the engine to overheat in that area since there is reduced heat transfer.

Drawing a vacuum in the radiator and engine then ”injecting” the coolant into the radiator fill port (under vacuum) eliminates that problem.

The other problem is with the draining of the fluid in the expansion tank. It will not drain out of the radiator so will be old fluid in the expansion tank when it should be new fluid. There is no way to drain the expansion tanks so they use a tool to evacuate the fluid out and refill with new fluid. Of course you could remove the expansion tank and empty it but on more modern machines with plastic tanks it seems that the tank is installed and then the machine is built around the tank. That makes removing them very difficult sometimes.

 

[imarobot]

I

Why not pour coolant into the radiator fill opening?

I'm not understand how two different sources of vacuum are needed, or any vacuum at all. I'm old school and haven't seen these tools so don't understand what they do.

Haven't used my vacuum tool on my tractor, but I've used it on other vehicles (sxs, motorcycles) that are difficult to bleed the air out of the cooling system. The vacuum helps suck the coolant into nooks and crannies than just pouring the coolant into the system.

 

[nerwin]

I'm probably dumb but kinda confused with leveling the 3 point attachments. I seen it so many different ways. So my ballast box when rest on the ground is level and the manual tells you to only raise just off the ground to level it out. But when raised its angled, like the back of the attachment is higher than the front. I see others when they raise and lower their 3 pt attachments they remain level no matter what and others are like mine.

Does this just depend on the geometry of the attachment? Or am I not setting it correctly?

 

[McMXi]

Yeah my L2501 starts unlike a fuel injection car lol. Soon as you turn the key to the right it cranks like one revolution, if that and vroom it's idling.

There's no mystery to it but differences in compression, battery health, starter health etc., can all be factors in how easily a tractor starts. As the air is drawn into the engine and compressed, energy is being added to the air in the form of heat. If the engine block is cold enough it'll remove energy from the air fast enough such that when the fuel is mixed with the air it won't reach the required auto-ignition temperature which necessary for the fuel/air mixture to ignite. The fact that you start your tractor when the block is relatively warm makes a big difference.

My earlier point wasn't that glow plugs should be used every time, only that using them when they aren't needed isn't such a bad thing. Battery life and/or glow plug life might be affected but perhaps not enough to matter. I don't even consider turning the key to "START" until the glow plug light goes out, and that's for the MX, M, F-250 and generator. When I first bought the F-450 (in February) I noticed that pushing the start button doesn't always result in the starter turning. The ECU automatically controls when the starter solenoid is energized.

As a sanity check this morning (40F) I turned the M6060 key to the "ON" position and the glow plug light came on for a few seconds and then went out. Yesterday afternoon the glow plug light wouldn't come on at all when it was a little above 50F.

 

[McMXi]

Some engines have the tendency to get an air bubble caught in the block when fill through the radiator neck. Some reports say that the bubble will not collapse and can cause the engine to overheat in that area since there is reduced heat transfer.

Drawing a vacuum in the radiator and engine then ”injecting” the coolant into the radiator fill port (under vacuum) eliminates that problem.

The other problem is with the draining of the fluid in the expansion tank. It will not drain out of the radiator so will be old fluid in the expansion tank when it should be new fluid. There is no way to drain the expansion tanks so they use a tool to evacuate the fluid out and refill with new fluid. Of course you could remove the expansion tank and empty it but on more modern machines with plastic tanks it seems that the tank is installed and then the machine is built around the tank. That makes removing them very difficult sometimes.

A much better response than I could have made.

I should also make the point that this EWK/Schwaben combination makes the whole process incredibly easy. I haven't changed the coolant in the MX or M using a conventional process so I can't say if I would have needed to add more coolant once the tractors had warmed up to operating temperature and then cooled down. What I can say is that I haven't need to add coolant to either tractor after using the EWK and Schwaben tools.

 

[Hugo Habicht]

Does this just depend on the geometry of the attachment? Or am I not setting it correctly?

Attachment and three point hitch geometry matter. Only when lower arms and upper linkage are the same length and parallel the load stays at the same angle.

Was just looking at that making a tow bar ball attachment for my three point hitch. Modified a Cat.1 draw bar to Cat.0 and added arms for upper linkage. Limiter for negative load on the ball is still missing and painting of course

 

[Russell King]

I'm probably dumb but kinda confused with leveling the 3 point attachments. I seen it so many different ways. So my ballast box when rest on the ground is level and the manual tells you to only raise just off the ground to level it out. But when raised its angled, like the back of the attachment is higher than the front. I see others when they raise and lower their 3 pt attachments they remain level no matter what and others are like mine.

Does this just depend on the geometry of the attachment? Or am I not setting it correctly?

There are two different levels on any implement = front to back and side to side. You state your problem with words that make it sound like you’re trying to achieve level in both directions.

Some implements do want to be level others level side to side only.

You talk about a ballast box and when lifted it is not level front to back. That can be controlled using the top link of the three point hitch. So lift it the height you want it level and level it front to back and side to side. Just remember that if the tractor is not on level ground and you level the implement then the implement will NOT be level on level ground. And also the implement will not stay level front to back through the complete lift range of motion (due to the geometry of the arms and top link.

I personally wouldn’t worry too much about the ballast box being level front to back, just get it close enough.