FEL Stuck...HELP!

[oldballs]

Well TBN'er, it doesn't pay to work when you are tired. After 5 years of owing/operating my B2620 and mounting the FEL as needed, I really screwed up.

From the pictures you can see that the FEL is collapsed on the right tire. I tried to get it up with the hydraulics but only made it worse. I gave up for the night. Anybody have any ideas how to detach the FEL from the tractor. I have caved in the right and left engine panels as well as the some of the front grill. I can't believe that I did all this damage......must be getting too old to operate the darn thing. Suggestions appreciated.

 

[Grandad4]

I think you are going to need some way to lift the loader arms off of the tractor from above so you can back the tractor out and lower the two parking stands down. One way to do that would be with another tractor and loader; another would be a tow truck. From the picture it at least looks like you are outside so maybe you can get access to it with other equipment. Another way would be to place enough weight in the bucket that the loader will stay planted flat on the driveway and use the bucket curl to raise the loader arms. There is a lot of weight in the loader arms so nothing is going to be simple, safe and easy... please be careful! Maybe your dealer will be able to help. Do you have KTAC insurance on it?

 

[TMGT]

Do you have an engine hoist or can borrow/rent one? Otherwise build a gantry and use a come along, wood would be adaquate. Luckily the loader isn't too heavy to lift from that end.

Out of curiosity, how did this happen? Was this during removal or installation?

 

[Indian MC]

Smh,, How did this happen?
I thought Quick & Easy detach & attach FEL's were pretty much something grandma could do with a coffee and doughnut in her hands.
Granted, not everything can be completely idiot proof.
What happened?

 

[oosik]

Unfortunate, this situation is. The good news - you were not injured. I agree that the solution is to lift from above. Either some sort of portable lifting device or crane or build yourself a gantry. Also - get help from somebody who can be your eyes or operate the lifting device while you observe.

Other than the bent body panels - I think the situation with the FEL looks a lot worse than it will end up being when it gets separated.

BTW - its because of what we see in these pictures, that I have NEVER removed my FEL. Plus the fact that I do not have a level spot where it could "easily" be removed AND where I would want to leave it. Hey, I have enough trouble with the on/off of my 3-point implements. My poor 'ol hands & knees are more than evidence to that.

 

[square1]

No offer of a solution, but some advice. The panels are already bent, don't worry about bending them more as part of the recovery. Just watch so that expensive vitals under the panels don't become damaged. It may be necessary to sacrifice some additional inexpensive bits during the process. Most of all, be safe. Chain or otherwise support components to avoid sudden release as you begin to move things. Best wishes.

 

[TMGT]

Honestly a couple fit guys could lift the arms without a problem if you have some friends/ teenagers etc. The B2620 isn't that big and the loader isn't really that heavy comparitavly.
You should be able to get the situation resolved without further damage.
A gantry is probably the best as you can lift both sides together, but not necessary.

 

[Egon]

Pull the top pin on the rear bracket and forward pin on lift cylinder. Should clear up some area for the arms to move.

 

[oldballs]

A friend(s) in need are friends indeed. Thanks for the encouragement, cautions and advice. I was going to mount the FEL and have done it many times in past 5 years. Occasionally it is tricky but usually it goes right on. I still couldn't believe that I
became some frustrated that I bent the panels up. Old and tired will do that....just like typing mistakes but that can easily be erased.

Think I'll start by getting a hand from my neighbor (big guy) ...after I go to church and pray that I'm still safe and sound of mind.

Cheers,
Mike

 

[diesel85]

I had this similar issue happen with my BX. Although, I stopped and took a few minutes to carefully assess the situation before I did anything. With some careful small (I mean small) movements of the hydraulics I was eventually able to correct it and get it hitched up without bending, scratching, or damaging anything. The problem is going too fast and in large movements is where you'll get in trouble. I take mine off a few times a year. So it's on and off quite a bit. I've had no problem doing it on uneven ground, unless I am just getting better. Though, I find each make/model tractor a little different. Good luck and be safe.

 

[bdhsfz6]

I'm sorry about your predicament. You must feel terrible damaging your 2620 which looks to be in great shape otherwise.

It's hard to tell for sure from your pics but it looks like you could put a bottle jack behind the front tire. If so, with the bucket on the ground, it would be possible to jack up the loader mount columns until you get enough clearance to drop the loader stand legs. If the jack won't fit behind the front tire, you could put pieces of pipe through the pin holes of the loader arms and use them as jack points. Unless you have 2 jacks, you would have to alternate side to side using blocks. You might be able to put the blocks on top of the tire temporarily. Once the stands are in place, remove the jack(s) / blocks and back the machine away. Again, it's hard to tell from the pics whether this would work or not.

Although I have occasionally removed the FEL from each of the 6 Kubotas I've owned, like oosic, I've learned to just leave them attached. In my case, I have very little reason to remove them anyway. With the exception of my old B7100, I spent the extra few $$ and got the QA option on the FEL's of my other tractors. When mowing, I just remove the bucket for better visibility.

I'll admit, doing engine maintenance can be a hassle with the FEL arms in the way and the manual says to remove the FEL first. I just remove the bucket, raise the FEL to it's highest point to get the arms out of the way and block it up with a 4X4 for safety.

In any case, I wish you luck and please keep us posted on your progress!

 

[oldballs]

Thanks again folks. I didn't get back to it until this evening and it appeared the easiest one man way to separate the tractor from the FEL was to remove the pins (6) that Egon referred to, along with removing the side panels and grill. It required using some jacks on each side at certain point on the FEL arms. By dark I had the tractor separated from the FEL. Tomorrow I can review the damages to the rubber hydraulic lines on the FEL. The dents and scratches of the side panels and grill are obvious. I ran out of daylight to view any other damages on the tractor itself.

The good news is that........I didn't hurt myself and only used a few nasty words. Thanks again TBN'ers.

Cheers,
Mike

 

[Indian MC]

Well TBN'er, it doesn't pay to work when you are tired. After 5 years of owing/operating my B2620 and mounting the FEL as needed, I really screwed up.

Yes, it is screwed up now..
Above, you stated that you have been mounting the FEL as needed.
Will you please forward what you did differently during this dismount & mount?
What went wrong this time, so others may not make a similiar mistake.

 

[oldballs]

It was late in the evening, almost dark, I was very sweaty and tired. After a couple tries to hook it up I just started moving the joy stick all around to get the response that I wanted. Disconnected the hydraulics and tried to back out and then did most of the damage as I recall.

Now I am all set to fix "stupid". What else can I say?

 

[TMGT]

Ok, just curious why the parking stands were up if you were trying to connect?

 

[oldballs]

IIRC, the parking stand are suppose to be up when connecting....i.e. after the hydraulics are connected and the FEL lifted enough to raise them into their parked postition.

 

[Grandad4]

I've never raised the parking stands until the loader was fully and successfully mounted on the tractor with the pins in place. If you raise the parking arms before that you take a chance of getting in a bad situation if something slips, as you discovered. At least if the parking arms are down, it won't fall down on your tires.

 

[TMGT]

The parking stands don't get put up until it's all pinned and in place for me. As Grandad said, it's can go bad until the pins are in as you found out.

 

[CobyRupert]

Just curious, but:
Could someone put enough ballast in the bucket so that no weight is on the loader arms, and then use hydraulics to lift the arms?
How do you lift the stands if it's not pinned in? Isn't there weight on them until loader arms take load off them?

 

[TMGT]

Just curious, but:
Could someone put enough ballast in the bucket so that no weight is on the loader arms, and then use hydraulics to lift the arms?
How do you lift the stands if it's not pinned in? Isn't there weight on them until loader arms take load off them?

If you curl the bucket down enough with the loader in the mounts it will allow enough height to put the stands up, but it isn't as easy or convenient.
Enough weight in the bucket could work but it would take quite a bit.