GREASE... every 10 HOURS?

[newbury]

I keep my backhoe attached all the time, so between the tractor, backhoe, and bucket, there's roughly a thousand grease fittings to hit.

Same here, but I've only got 12 zerks on the loader and 23 on the backhoe (two of which are a ROYAL pain). I've misplaced my owners manual so I don't know of any zerks on the tractor itself.

It's becoming a Saturday morning, cup of coffee routine before I wake up the subdivision
If anyone knows of any zerks on a B7610 PLEASE tell me!

 

[Grateful11]

daman1 said: No there's people that over grease and people that grease when
actually needed, i don't think anyone in this thread said "i don't grease" at
least i don't see that statment....

Actually Teg said: "Well, what it looks like what we got here.... Are the over
greasers and those that don't overgrease...

It's been said before... Greasing is too cheap & easy to skimp on it ...and as
far as I care, tractor are suppose to be greasy ...and dirty If you have time
to clean your tractor, swing on by... the back 4 needs cutting. I wish it was
the back 40 but atlas..."

Teg didn't say there's some that don't grease, he only mentioned those that
don't over grease or those that grease too much. ;-)

 

[daman1]

Teg didn't say there's some that don't grease, he only mentioned those that
don't over grease or those that grease too much. ;-)

:thumbsup:

 

[KeithInSpace]

Just "low-end" tractors (like the BX)...

Small. Sub-Compact. Petite. AND FULL-FEATURED. NOT "low-end".

Honda Fit or Cooper Mini are examples of small, sub-compact, petite, AND FULL-FEATURED automobiles.

Yugo, Chevette, and Excel are examples of "low-end"

Big difference. It always has, and always will, get under my skin when "cheap" and "low-end" are words used to describe any tractor smaller than a Grand-L. I'd be able to mow my grass in one pass if I had a 18' wide bat-wing mower. Not everyone needs that. Sometimes, every once in a while, small is just what the Doctor ordered. Not "low-end".

Regarding the original question...10 hours of tractor time doesn't equate to 10 hours of implement use.

Other than over-greasing being messy, I can't fathom there being a down-side. The fact that stuff sticks to grease OUTSIDE the pin/joint just means that you stopped it before the stuff got INSIDE the pin/joint. A good thing.

That said, I'd just play it by ear. You know when you use your FEL to do a big job...grease in preparation and grease when done. If you haven't greased all summer, grease for the fun of it.

 

[teg]

most compact tractor owners don't use the loader enough at one time to justify greasing once a month.

I said on post #6... I feel that just driving a gravel road or bumpy field will wear down the pins... I'll still stand by that... Take a couple hundred pounds, put it a few feet out front and bounce it around for 10 (clock) hours ...maybe my land is just not as smooth as what you guys are driving on. :confused3::confused2:

 

[daman1]

I said on post #6... I feel that just driving a gravel road or bumpy field will wear down the pins... I'll still stand by that... Take a couple hundred pounds, put it a few feet out front and bounce it around for 10 (clock) hours ...maybe my land is just not as smooth as what you guys are driving on. :confused3::confused2:

Yes and no,if one has nice tight pins i don't see that as a problem but if you have some slop yea i could see that causing some extra wear,that's where using the right type grease is key,people don't realize all grease is not made equal just like motor oil,but we won't go there.

 

[Tractor Factor]

Small. Sub-Compact. Petite. AND FULL-FEATURED. NOT "low-end".

Yeah, the term "low-end" does carry a connotation, though its use wasn't intended as an insult here.

I'll take a pass on "petite", however...sounds like a tractor designed for a woman.

 

[donn12]

Seems to be many very enthusiastic greasers here. Maybe the slackers don't want to be abused! I use just enough grease so it starts to come out - no more. Based on how little actually goes in if you have ever forgotten to grease it for 30 hours or so its probably not the end of the world for non commercial use. I am sure its every 10 hours of actual loader use not tractor hours but as everyone has said its so cheap why not grease it too often? I use moly EP and I am not picky about the brand.

 

[LBrown59]

Small. Sub-Compact. Petite. AND FULL-FEATURED. NOT "low-end".

Honda Fit or Cooper Mini are examples of small, sub-compact, petite, AND FULL-FEATURED automobiles.

Yugo, Chevette, and Excel are examples of "low-end"

Big difference. It always has, and always will, get under my skin when "cheap" and "low-end" are words used to describe any tractor smaller than a Grand-L. I'd be able to mow my grass in one pass if I had a 18' wide bat-wing mower. Not everyone needs that. Sometimes, every once in a while, small is just what the Doctor ordered. Not "low-end".

Very well put.
To me such descriptions are just a reflection of the describers ignorance.

 

[rdsaustintx]

Small. Sub-Compact. Petite. AND FULL-FEATURED. NOT "low-end".

Geez, everybody gets their panties in a wad. It wasn't a slam on BX's Keith. I own one. Heck, I love one. But it was the least expensive TLB on the Kubota lot. If I asked for a "high-end" machine, they wouldn't point at mine.

The POINT (long lost) was BX's don't have rpm-compensating meters, just clocks. Which are cheap. That's a fact. Whether it's a feature, salesmen and fanbois can argue about. I just drive the thing.

So a more expensive machine with an integrated control computer and rpm-compensating meter is what, "FULLER FEATURED"??

To me such descriptions are just a reflection of the describers ignorance.

Masterful use of diplomacy (and html tags), as usual Les.

 

[wvpolekat]

So, would I be considered **** retentive if I was contemplating pulling all the pins from my loader and cleaning them and the bushings and giving them some fresh grease? Doesn't look to be that much work.

 

[TripleR]

So, would I be considered **** retentive if I was contemplating pulling all the pins from my loader and cleaning them and the bushings and giving them some fresh grease? Doesn't look to be that much work.

I don't think it is ever a bad idea to do something to help you know your machine better; don't think is necessary, but sure can't hurt anything.

 

[newbury]

I don't think it is ever a bad idea to do something to help you know your machine better; don't think is necessary, but sure can't hurt anything.

I don't know, drop a piece, lose a small part, lot's of potential "whoops".

 

[Grateful11]

So, would I be considered **** retentive if I was contemplating pulling all the pins from my loader and cleaning them and the bushings and giving them some fresh grease? Doesn't look to be that much work.

You might want spin them over 180 degrees if they're showing any wear.

 

[sld]

I don't know, drop a piece, lose a small part, lot's of potential "whoops".

Guys like you should just take it too a dealer and not get your hands dirty.

 

[kcender]

I grease my FEL and backhoe about every 10 hours.One pump per joint is usually enough.I don't see the need to keep pumping the gun if all you are doing is squeezing it out around the joints.I pay special attention to the linkage fittings on the bucket and hoe as these are the areas that see the most movement and strain.They are also the parts that are in the dirt and grit.I grease these every time I use them and sometimes twice a day if I am using them a lot.

 

[American Pit Bull]

I said on post #6... I feel that just driving a gravel road or bumpy field will wear down the pins... I'll still stand by that... Take a couple hundred pounds, put it a few feet out front and bounce it around for 10 (clock) hours ...maybe my land is just not as smooth as what you guys are driving on. :confused3::confused2:

People can dream up all the anecdotes that they want, in order to rationalize their actions, but it doesn't lend truth to the situation...

Sure, linkage pins can wear from "just driving up and down bumpy roads"... But you would have to drive up and down that road every day for 20+ years with never greasing the pin for it to wear/deform to a point of having an effect on the function.

Even if the pins were made from the mildest iron available (rather than hardened steel), then we would have to drive up and down that road for 5 years every day, rather than 20+, with out greasing.

The weight of the bota buckets are tiny when compared to large equipment. The same large equipment takes a beating that our Kubotas couldn't dream of; without resulting in failures that are caused by merely driving the equipment on rough terrain .

But more importantly: Greasing prevents frictional type wear to the linkage pin. You are worried about the shearing action, that will cause deformation, when you speak of driving up and down bumpy roads/fields... No amount of grease, fresh or old, will keep a pin from damage due to shearing forces... The hardening process during manufacturing is your only means of defense against that type of damage.




To this I will add a caveat: My statements are made due to my knowledge when dealing with strengths of materials in my engineering field and my current professional experience when dealing with the daily maintenance of ~$7,000,000 worth of Caterpillar equipment in an industrial setting.

 

[Grateful11]

Don't take offense but a professional calling steel pins "iron", sorry it's not the
same thing. I've been machining metal from mild to exotic for nearly 30 years
and the only time I hear the word Iron is when dealing with Cast Iron, Ductile
Iron, Nodular Iron, Meehanite, etc.

 

[American Pit Bull]

Don't take offense but a professional calling steel pins "iron", sorry it's not the
same thing. I've been machining metal from mild to exotic for nearly 30 years
and the only time I hear the word Iron is when dealing with Cast Iron, Ductile
Iron, Nodular Iron, Meehanite, etc.

No, it is far from the same thing... Thus, why it was used as a poorly engineered example that would cut the service life dramatically.
Notice the statement that followed in parentheses that illustrates the recognition of the difference in material.

Even if the pins were made from the mildest iron available (rather than hardened steel)...

 

[Grateful11]

No, it is far from the same thing... Thus, why it was used as a poorly engineered example that would cut the service life dramatically.
Notice the statement that followed in parentheses that illustrates the recognition of the difference in material.

I definitely agree that riding around doing nothing would take an extremely
long time to cause any wear. Our IH 574 has a FEL and it's about 35 years
old and this farm was a Dairy until 2003 so it saw a lot of loader use especially
handling manure. It's always been well maintained and there is very little
slop in any of the pins of the loader.