Cab roof repair advice

[Gary Fowler]

Temporarily repair with Gorilla Tape and it will last for a year or longer until you can find the solution for permanent repair.

 

[TripleR]

From a thread by ns_in_tex
We finally got this response from kubota about our request for cab material ID.

"Dear Sir,
The cabin roof on your L4610 is a polymer base resin material that is not
repairable with any plastic "welding" technique. In addition we are not
aware of any bonding agents available that are directly compatible with
this material and we consequently recommend replacement, rather than
repair.
Thank you for owning Kubota products.

Our dealer quoted us a new top for something over 1600.00
I don't think that is going to happen."

I just contacted my brother to be sure and he said about any adhesive made for plastic will work, but he stabilizes the damaged material before application.

EDIT: https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/kubota-owning-operating/270893-how-do-you-repair-damaged.html

 

[ray66v]

We've still not heard what the material this is..... If its fiber glass, then it very repairable with epoxy or a fiberglass repair kit. Not all that hard to do. ABS also takes glue well and is very good for repairing a crack. But if its one of the poly varieties like HDPE, then the weld kits come into play since this material doesn't like glue. Yes, manufactures claim they have a magical glue, but I remain skeptical of them. I've not used those weld kits so I can't comment on them.

Ditto on the first two.

HDPE is very oily, so it doesn't take glue well. Any time you cut it, break it, or sand it, you release more oil from the pours.

HPDE doesn't weld all that great either. I always glue it.

The biggest secret in gluing HDPE, is to pass a propane flame over it a few times before applying the glue.

You don't need to heat it, just pass the flame over it a few times, allow the flame to burn off the oil that was exposed by opening it up.

As with most plastic repairs, you "V" out the crack, and use some fiberglass cloth to reinforce the glued joint.

I would be surprised if the roof is HDPE. But, anything is possible. HDPE is soft, and has some flexibility to it. HDPE would not be rigid enough to span a roof, without lots of supports.

More than likely, it's straight fiberglass, or SMC, (the stuff automakers use for rigid plastic parts, such as a Corvette). Or, if they are really making junk, ABS.

A fuel tank repair kit is ideal for home plastic repairs. It contains everything you need to fix about a 6" crack. They are available at parts stores for about $15.

We used them in the body shop for years, before they started making products to do these repairs.

 

[ray66v]

From a thread by ns_in_tex
We finally got this response from kubota about our request for cab material ID.

"Dear Sir,
The cabin roof on your L4610 is a polymer base resin material that is not
repairable with any plastic "welding" technique. In addition we are not
aware of any bonding agents available that are directly compatible with
this material and we consequently recommend replacement, rather than
repair.
Thank you for owning Kubota products.

Our dealer quoted us a new top for something over 1600.00
I don't think that is going to happen."

I just contacted my brother to be sure and he said about any adhesive made for plastic will work, but he stabilizes the damaged material before application.

EDIT: https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/kubota-owning-operating/270893-how-do-you-repair-damaged.html

It may not be a product that is easily repairable, But, I guarantee you, anyone who does these repairs on a regular basis in a body shop can successfully do it.

Most of what we do is a nightmare anyway, by design, they want to sell parts.

 

[Tigershark]

I still don't know what is made of but I picked up some E6000 industrial adhesive and it sealed it pretty good just waiting on the full 24hrs to cure. It looks like shoe goo and dried very fast, the cracks were pretty minor the housing around the light looks like it's one solid piece that can be replaced but I glued the cracks and will prob throw some gorilla tape over it and not worry about it. I don't think any water will get in and that was my main concern. It's a tractor it's going to get scratched as much as I put it through. Just finished clearing a few acres and really put the grapple to the test. I was pretty impressed with the size trees I could pick up. I grabbed a couple that lifted the loaded rears off the ground with the grader box. For those I just had to cut them into smaller sections

 

[TripleR]

It may not be a product that is easily repairable, But, I guarantee you, anyone who does these repairs on a regular basis in a body shop can successfully do it.

Most of what we do is a nightmare anyway, by design, they want to sell parts.

That's what my brother said, no big problem. Dealer said no way we could repair mouse damage for under $2500 in parts: https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums...-l40-cab-heater-repair-2500-a.html?highlight=

 

[Ford850]

It may not be a product that is easily repairable, But, I guarantee you, anyone who does these repairs on a regular basis in a body shop can successfully do it.

Most of what we do is a nightmare anyway, by design, they want to sell parts.

This is why I suggested a body shop. Most of us haven't been in one lately, but unfortunately I was in a local shop recently. While I waited to talk to the manager I wandered around and was amazed at the work being done with todays plastic and aluminum vehicles. These guys are skilled craftsmen using techniques I didn't know were possible to produce beautiful restoration.