Good Day...Bad Day

[ABaran]

You know it's a good day when:

1) The man with the big truck delivers your shiny new BX2230.
2) That same man gives you four different Kubota hats.
3) While your better half is cutting with back with the new tractor the neighbor welcomes you to the neighborhood with a banana nut cake that's still warm from the oven.

You know it's a bad day when...
1) That shiny new BX2230 springs a leak /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif
2) The dealership is closed for the day.

Can't really tell exactly where the leak is but it's somewhere behind the left rear wheel as the inside of the tire is covered with hydro fluid. Oh well, at least we got the grass cut.
I'll keep you'll informed..

Andy

 

[Junkman]

Start the tractor and look for any spraying hydro fluid. If you don't find anything spraying, it might just have been overfilled and with the heat of the day the fluid expanded and came out the overflow. Check the transmission dip stick to see where the level is when it is cold and also when hot. My bet is there is nothing wrong except that it was overfilled. Nice looking machine.... and you should remove the loader when cutting grass... /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gifJunk......

 

[DannyD]

How does the grass catcher work. I wanted that on both of my machines but the cost at that time was prohibitive.

 

[JimMorrissey]

Just remember to put something down before check for spraying hydro fluid. The fluid will kill any grass it hits and will permanently stain that nice tarmac drive.

 

[milkman]

Could it be diesel, that's where the early BX's would leak from the fuel level sender, supposed to have that fixed though. Pull the liner out of the cupholder and see if the top of the tank is wet, should be able to tell by the smell also.

 

[RonR]

Junkman is right--get that FEL off if you are going to mow.

The FEL loves to EAT stuff, like corners or buildings, or sides of sheds, or vehicles! Don't ask me how I know this, please.

Mowed twice with the FEL on and both time, the FEL ate something.

As a minimum if you don't take it off, curl it full and raise the FEL so you can really see where the front lip of the cutting edge is. I'll swear it is automatically extendable when it gets close enough to eat something! /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

Ron

 

[btolle]

I have had 2 Kubota's leak hydro fluid and in both cases it was the return line that takes the fluid back to the transmission. It is a rubber line with hose clamps on it since it is low pressure and the leak is always at one of the hose clamps. A simple tightening with a screwdriver has cured it both times.

I would prefer to fix little stuff like that myself, it is easier and much faster than taking it back to the dealer.

Hope your problem is as simple as mine was.

Bill Tolle

 

[ABaran]

Guys,
Thanks for all the good input.

The FEL came off as soon as the delivery driver pulled out of the driveway. Since part of my backyard is fenced in I didn't feel like taking out part of the fence. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

The jury is still out on the grass catcher. The tube from the MMM clogged up a couple of times. Since it happened while my wife was driving it I didn't see what lead up to the clog. Once we get this leak squared away I'll be able to experiment with the grass catcher.

Unfortunately, the leak was not overfill. On the back left side there is an unpainted block with three hard lines running from the front. One of the lines runs to a 45 degree fitting that connects to the block. When I started the tractor there was no spray, just a significant drip comming from either where the fitting screws into the block or where the line connects to the fitting. I was able to wiggle an 18mm wrench onto the line to see if it was loose but it seemed to be tight. Judging by the way the fluid was dripping down the connection the problem is on the transmission side of the block/connection.

I tried to get my camera in close enough to get pics but the bottom of the fender and top of the tire get in the way. I'll get you'll posted on how things go.

Andy

 

[Junkman]

If the tube clogged up, then the grass was either wet or the tractor wasn't being run at full speed. To eliminate this from happening in the future, keep the engine speed toward the high side, and if the grass is long or wet, then only take a half bite with the mower. Best time to cut is late afternoon when the grass is dry and there is still light. Best time to water is in the very early morning. Watering in the evening allows the grass to stay wet all night and can cause mold and fungus problems. Apply fertilizers with weed killers when the grass is a little longer and in the morning before the dew is off the grass. I know.... more info than you asked for, but I felt like exercising my fingers........ /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
One other thing...... if you ever are going to cut the grass with the loader in place, never do it with the loader raised because it will hit overhead items, and overall, it isn't a safe way to traverse the land with a elevated bucket. As a rule, when ever traveling with the bucket, loaded or unloaded, keep the bucket as low as possible. Only raise the bucket as high as necessary and never any higher. The higher the bucket, the easier it is to get into a toppling situation.

 

[mhagerty]

Andy,

I have the bagger as well; I’ve only had the tube clog twice. Both times the grass was 6” or 7” tall and wet, I just took a smaller bite after that and it was fine.

The problem is (really not a problem) is that these BX’s go through grass of any reasonable height (8” or less) like butter. You feel like you can mow almost as fast as you want not realizing that at some point you will overload the capabilities of the bagger.

Play around with some more and I think you will find that it works great.

Mike

 

[nysdotinspector]

It just might be the hyd. strainer. The bolt may be loose or an O ring might not be seated right. The inside of the left rear wheel is wet , check it out, good luck.

 

[JWE]

Andy, my BX2200 leaked in the same place. It turned out that when the dealer installed the FEL they installed the block but forgot to tighten it. There is an O ring seal behind the block. If the mounting bolt is tight the O ring is probably bad.

BTW, I have a grass catcher and it has never clogged. I agree with Junkman, running the grass catcher at rated RPMs is the key to trouble free operation. I keep my engine speed at 3100 when I have the catcher attached.

John

 

[ABaran]

John,
You must have been doing the Vulcan mind meld with my dealer. When I called them and explained the location of the leak he mentioned that the lines leading to the block were for the FEL and that there were several O rings in the connections that were either not installed or became kinked during the installation.

So, the tractor is in the shop. Hopefully, I'll have it back by this weekend to I can get more seat time and work out the bugs with the grass catcher. Since the grass was dry (read very dry) I suspect the problem was Mom was taking too big a cut. No big deal, since the yard isn't that big it should only add a few minutes to the overall time.

Since I didn't catch the leak right away, I spent this afternoon cleaning the leaks off the driveway. First I used kitty litter to soak up the excess fluid. If there are any ex Airdales out there, you'll remember the Speedy Dri shuffle. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif Then I sprayed a generous amount of Simple Green on the spots and finally hosed down the whole area. I might have to do this a couple more times but so far it seemed to do the trick.

Again, I want to thank everyone that has taken the time to provide their input and experiences.

Andy

 

[ABaran]

You know it's a good day when you come home from work and find your repaired tractor waiting for you in the driveway. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

When I called the dealer today to find out the status of my tractor, he told me that rather than chase the leak they were going to replace the whole block and fittings and install new O rings. Life is good.

The enclosed picture shows the area where the leak was coming from. As I mentioned earlier, the leak was coming from the back side of the connection. The only difference I noticed is this time they wrapped the threads with teflon tape... I was always under the impression that hydro fluid ate teflon tape /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif Guess I'll just have to give it the hairy eyeball prior to start-up and after shutdown.

Take care, stay safe and stay cool.

Andy

 

[EastTexFrank]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( <font color="blue"> Since part of my backyard is fenced in I didn't feel like taking out part of the fence </font> )</font>

Yup, learned that lesson. And, just to prove that I'm a slow learner, I also took out my wife's beloved pecan tree. "We" had only planted it about 3 years earlier so it wasn't much of a challenge really. The fence was much tougher and a lot more spectacular.

 

[ronjhall]

<font color="blue"> I was always under the impression that hydro fluid ate Teflon tape. </font> /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif
The problem with Teflon tape is pieces of the tape can get into pumps, valve and other hydraulic components. It has been know to destroy a pump in a very short time. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif