3-Point Hitch BX25 3 point lowering question

paulemar · Nov 15, 2012

I have the Kubota ballast box for my BX25 and it won't lower enough to sit on the ground for removal. I have to put 4 X 4's or cement blocks under it to set it down. I also spent a short time trying to get my Brinly cat 0 3 point one bottom plow set up and couldn't get it to go deep enough. It appears that the lift arms don't go down far enough. I've adjusted the top link every which way but ran out of daylight before finding an answer. I don't believe that there are any additional holes in the lift arms to make the adjustment. I've heard of folks having a problem with the 3 point not lifting high enough, but not this, and I've had no luck thus far finding anything by a search. Any ideas on what to try when I get back this weekend?

timswi · Nov 15, 2012

paulemar said:
I have the Kubota ballast box for my BX25 and it won't lower enough to sit on the ground for removal. I have to put 4 X 4's or cement blocks under it to set it down. I also spent a short time trying to get my Brinly cat 0 3 point one bottom plow set up and couldn't get it to go deep enough. It appears that the lift arms don't go down far enough. I've adjusted the top link every which way but ran out of daylight before finding an answer. I don't believe that there are any additional holes in the lift arms to make the adjustment. I've heard of folks having a problem with the 3 point not lifting high enough, but not this, and I've had no luck thus far finding anything by a search. Any ideas on what to try when I get back this weekend?

Do you have any pictures of the rear set-up with the implement lowered?....Or even one with implement off and the arms lowered?

Seems to me that the upper arms don't have full down travel..Trying to think of causes for that.

paulemar · Nov 16, 2012

timswi said:
Do you have any pictures of the rear set-up with the implement lowered?....Or even one with implement off and the arms lowered?

Seems to me that the upper arms don't have full down travel..Trying to think of causes for that.

I'll get a picture as soon as I can. Here's some more info that I thought of that might be helpful. This is the first time the 3 pt hitch has been installed since I removed the backhoe last week. It works except for not enough down travel. It was mostly put together by the dealer when I got it with the tractor last February. The ballast box was just put on, empty. One thing I noticed when I checked everything out soon after getting the tractor was that the hydraulic fluid was really, really full to the point where some came out under slight pressure when I removed the dipstick. At the time, I just put the dipstick back quickly. Could there not be any more room for fluid when the lift arms descend to the point where they stop and they are under pressure? Tomorrow (Saturday) I'll try a few things like adding some weight to the ballast box and maybe lowering the 3pt hitch with the hydraulic fluid dipstick removed. (good idea or not)
I just now looked in my manual and the hydraulic fluid was overfilled when I previously checked because it was definitely above the top line on the dipstick to the point of overflowing. When I did my 50 hour service, I lost, at most, a couple of ounces of fluid, so it could still be overfilled. Would a hydraulic reservoir that is seriously overfilled prevent the lift arms from descending all the way?
Thanks, Paul

JOHNTHOMAS · Nov 16, 2012

Check/twist the knob that determines the speed of drop under your legs. Free advise which may be worth nothing.

J_J · Nov 16, 2012

There should be a space in the reservoir for expansion.

It sounds like you are way over filled. If there is no place for incoming fluid, that might be a problem, and might blow some seals.

Whatever attachment you have installed, after cycling the unit several times, the cyl's should be full and then you should have a space for heat expansion.

Your dipstick should have a mark for proper fill level.

With nothing on the 3pt arms, how far down does it go?

Are your side links tighten to much?

The top link might not be the correct one for a certain attachment.

If the 3pt lowers at a speed to your satisfaction, then the knob has nothing to do with how far the lift arms fall.

The knob adjust the drop speed and will lock the 3pt in a certain position.

rlsmith · Nov 16, 2012

Have you adjusted your mower height knob to 0

rbarker · Nov 16, 2012

Is the mowing deck still on? Since you just removed the backhoe I would also try disconnecting and reconnecting the hydraulic bypass hose for the backhoe in case it didn't seat tight when you plugged it in. Mine is a pretty tight fit and takes some fiddling to get it to snap in.

paulemar · Nov 16, 2012

OK, I believe I'm a contender for TBN idiot of the month, I got home from work, ran out to the tractor expecting to find an overflowing hydraulic fluid level. Nope! I couldn't even see any fluid. DUH! Then I realized that I just put the new hydraulic 60" snow blade that I bought a few weeks ago on the front of the tractor . That's why I was putting the 3 point ballast box on to help with traction and as a counter weight to the snow blade. It never dawned on me that there were 2 hydraulic cylinders and 4 hoses that were likely empty and would fill with fluid. I even allowed for that when I installed the blade by running the engine for around 5 minutes at low idle to fill the system.

Anyway, I added around 2 1/2 quarts of SUDT2 to bring fluid level up to a little bit higher than it should be. I'll move the tractor to a more level spot tomorrow, warm it up, and fine tune the fluid level. Then I'll check the 3 point hitch. I'll bet it works like it should. I'll let everyone know what happens.

dsmiley · Nov 16, 2012

paulemar said:
I'll move the tractor to a more level spot tomorrow, warm it up, and fine tune the fluid level. Then I'll check the 3 point hitch. I'll bet it works like it should. I'll let everyone know what happens.

I'm guessing it will still be shy. I had the same problem with my BX25 ballast box and with 3pt forks. My solution was to purchase another adjustable side link. It comes with one to balance the lifting arms but with two you can adjust both arms down to a proper height. I think it was about $15.

Dean

94BULLITT · Nov 16, 2012

My box blade barely touches the ground and the same for my scraper blade. I bought a quick hitch and my solution was to drill a couple of extra holes in the qh to make the implement go lower.

radioman · Nov 16, 2012

you may have been seeing foaming, not overfilled when you pulled the dipstick. Foaming only happens when the intake tube is higher then the hydraulic oil sucking air so when it foams up, it just keeps foaming more and more, higher and higher as you use the hydraulics. On the BX, you cant stop using it as the transmission uses the same oil as with FEL/BH and 3 pt. This would account for "overflowing" when in fact its way too low. You need to check dipstick when its cold. When it has proper level of oil- it wont expand as much foaming sucking air would which is why you can see the oil on the upper or over on dipstick, but not overflowing the reservoir.

paulemar · Nov 16, 2012

dsmiley said:
I'm guessing it will still be shy. I had the same problem with my BX25 ballast box and with 3pt forks. My solution was to purchase another adjustable side link. It comes with one to balance the lifting arms but with two you can adjust both arms down to a proper height. I think it was about $15.

Dean

Ahhhhh! The voice of experience. This may be my best option in the long run. Even though I was hopeful that adding HTS fluid would solve the problem, the more I thought about it, the more I was becoming doubtful. All other hydraulics worked. The HTS worked just fine and the snow blade went from side to side and up and down through its full range. I also thought that the lift arms went up all the way, which is a hydraulic function, but going down is just gravity. So, I couldn't see how getting air in the system, if it was sucking air, would stop the 3 point from going all the way down.

If it still has the problem when I check tomorrow, I'm ordering another adjustable side link as suggested. I have the existing one cranked pretty short to level the ballast box. I've got to solve this because I plan to get a rototiller in the Spring and this problem could cause it to not dig to full depth.

Thanks to everyone who responded to this thread, I'm going to try all suggestions. I'm sure I'll get this fixed.

kcender · Nov 16, 2012

Did you try jumping on the arms while the lever is down? Maybe they are binding on something,just a thought.What is the measurement from the floor to the center of the ball,that way others can tell you if theirs is the same.

Leejohn · Nov 16, 2012

I would try unhooking the lower links and make sure they go down when opened side to side all the way. If they do (and they should ) make sure now the upper arms are going all the way down. If they are and its a new machine like mine was I drilled new holes in the lower link arms. Mine was also binding up and had to get everything loose. Also make sure you can push them way about side to side and push them together as you move up and down by hand.

Leejohn · Nov 16, 2012

I might add that my left lift link was welded together wrong and was locking it up. The right one has the adjuster and could turn that was how I happened to see what the left was doing.

Tractor Seabee · Nov 16, 2012

I have a BX25 and all my implements go down below the level of the rear tire tread. My Rototiller drag shoes go at least 4" down into loose soil. Adding a QH did not change that. I have a carry all I use for pallets of wood and it sets flat on the ground when down. Strange! A loaded ballast box should push the arms down full travel. Remember the BX 3PT has no hydraulic assist on down stroke. Might be something to do with the 3 PT lower speed valve system not releasing all the pressure. Per the BX Shop Manual trouble shooting guide and other info there the Control valve raises and lowers the 3PT. If you are doing your own work the shop manual is a must have. It has saved my Bacon several times in 500+ hrs.

Ron

kcender · Nov 17, 2012

I just measured the TPH on my BX2360 which is the same as the BX25.At it's lowest point the center of the hole in the ball is 9 1/2 inches off the floor.

unbidden · Nov 17, 2012

paulemar said:
OK, I believe I'm a contender for TBN idiot of the month, I got home from work, ran out to the tractor expecting to find an overflowing hydraulic fluid level. Nope! I couldn't even see any fluid. DUH! Then I realized that I just put the new hydraulic 60" snow blade that I bought a few weeks ago on the front of the tractor . That's why I was putting the 3 point ballast box on to help with traction and as a counter weight to the snow blade. It never dawned on me that there were 2 hydraulic cylinders and 4 hoses that were likely empty and would fill with fluid. I even allowed for that when I installed the blade by running the engine for around 5 minutes at low idle to fill the system.

Anyway, I added around 2 1/2 quarts of SUDT2 to bring fluid level up to a little bit higher than it should be. I'll move the tractor to a more level spot tomorrow, warm it up, and fine tune the fluid level. Then I'll check the 3 point hitch. I'll bet it works like it should. I'll let everyone know what happens.

Well a contender needs an opponent...right. Sign me up! I just put the same hydro plow setup on my BX so I'll be checking the fluid level as soon as I get home today. Thanks for the heads-up.

paulemar · Nov 17, 2012

Here's the latest. I adjusted the hydraulic fluid level to what it should be. I had to remove some of the fluid that I put in yesterday using a turkey baster as it was overfilled. It is now at the correct dipstick level.
My height measurement to the center of the lower link ball is also 9 1/2 inches from the ground. So if that is correct, then all is as it should be. It still annoys me that the ballast box won't lower all the way to the ground. It is presently empty, but I did add some weight for figuring this out. If the ballast box had the recommended 300 lbs in it, having to place it up on blocks or something similar could be a bit dangerous and I couldn't remove it without having it on blocks. I have tried the 3 point drop speed control at both extremes and in the middle-----no effect on the height. I think I may take the advice of dsmiley and just put an adjustable lift rod on the left side too. They are around $35 for the whole thing, plus shipping. It wasn't something many online dealers had in stock but Coleman Equipment Inc had 1, so I just ordered it now. That should get me through until my warranties expire and I can drill another hole in each of the lower links if needed for special implements.
Maybe this will wear in a bit lower because when I first installed the 3 pt. hitch, I measured to the ground from the ball center at the lowest position and it was around 12 inches. I could slip a 4 x 4 under the ballast box. Now the BB is only about an inch off the ground at the full lowered position.
I'm going to leave everything as it is for the winter but I'll exercise the 3 point hitch every time I get on the tractor.
The picture shows the BB with the lower links at their lowest when this shot was taken. See how much space is between the bottom of the box and the ground, around 4 inches. It is now only about an inch, so maybe it just needs broken in a bit more.
Thanks to everyone for the suggestions and advice. If this improves at some point, I'll post about it. I'll let you know how the adjustable lift rod works out too.

Paul

kcender · Nov 17, 2012

Just curious if your BB is made for the BX25 as Kubota makes different models of them.If so is it possible to relocate the pins higher on the box? It makes me wonder what Kubota is thinking if they designed their products this way.I remember being frustrated with the TPH on my BX25,when I had it,in that it wouldn't lower enough to unhook my chipper without putting blocks under it.