Is Brian still around?

[s219]

I'd be seriously surprised if 98# is enough to tweak the frame or meaningfully deform the tires of a large heavy tractor. Many other brands have off-center tanks and I have never heard of this being an issue. Easy enough to test though.

How much is it off?

 

[ovrszd]

I'm reluctant to believe the tank theory. 100lbs on the left rear tire isn't going to have much effect.

To test this simply add air pressure to the left rear tire. If you can level your bucket by adding a few lbs of air pressure, less than 5psi, then simply run your tires that way.

Curious to hear the result.

 

[s219]

And why is it a dilemma yet? Has RK stopped answering questions through their listed contacts on their website or through the stores that sell and service their tractors?

Public forums is a poor way to do customer support because it can't be done efficiently, has to put up with trolls, exposes the company to bad publicity when there's a public disagreement between a customer and their public forum service presence, etc... While it might be possible to do a good job with product support in regards to technical questions like parts identification, it's highly likely to not be able to do a good job with issues like warranty questions, repair questions, business dealings questions, etc... in a public forum. It exposes them to too much liability and too much distraction.

The issue I see, and some folks may remember this, is that RK came charging into the forums somewhat like a bull in a china shop. I remember the original RK tractor guy bumping a bunch of threads with links to RK, to the point of being spammy. It wasn't until after TBN management worked with RK that a more reasonable presence was established on the forums. It was pretty good for a while, but declined and from there I think the presence was inconsistent at best.

RK brought all this on themselves if you ask me. You can't attempt to reap the benefits of being on TBN without accepting the challenges, and one of those challenges is establishing a long term stable strategy. RK wouldn't be the first company to dive into social media and then botch it up. Whether it's due to personnel or employment issues, doesn't matter, somebody at RK needs to be responsible for their online presence that they started in the first place.

 

[ovrszd]

The issue I see, and some folks may remember this, is that RK came charging into the forums somewhat like a bull in a china shop. I remember the original RK tractor guy bumping a bunch of threads with links to RK, to the point of being spammy. It wasn't until after TBN management worked with RK that a more reasonable presence was established on the forums. It was pretty good for a while, but declined and from there I think the presence was inconsistent at best.

RK brought all this on themselves if you ask me. You can't attempt to reap the benefits of being on TBN without accepting the challenges, and one of those challenges is establishing a long term stable strategy. RK wouldn't be the first company to dive into social media and then botch it up. Whether it's due to personnel or employment issues, doesn't matter, somebody at RK needs to be responsible for their online presence that they started in the first place.

Well stated. Moss knows all this as a moderator here.

Again, I'll throw Mark of Everlast under the bus. He displays the proper way to manage social media involvement. No flag waving. Just great customer relations and service.

 

[fried1765]

Well stated. Moss knows all this as a moderator here.

Again, I'll throw Mark of Everlast under the bus. He displays the proper way to manage social media involvement. No flag waving. Just great customer relations and service.

Mark has certainly figured it out, and I think most everyone here appreciates what Mark does.

Obviously....not so for the RK folks.
Lots of smoke blowing, and now the smoke is even gone.

 

[jmc]

Hard for me to visualize the tires being that "springy" to compress much under 100 lbs of slightly off-center weight. If that was the case, stepping up into the opposite side of the tractor would be a lot more weight and a lot more off-center and the bucket should tilt the other way. Easy check.

 

[gunny0628]

I haven’t tried it yet but I will. And at least she is giving me something try as well as folks on here.

 

[ovrszd]

I haven’t tried it yet but I will. And at least she is giving me something try as well as folks on here.

Yes Gunny, you have a dedicated representative trying to help you. She deserves respect and thankfulness for that.

 

[snymat68]

Tank theory doesn't explain why the FEL on my RK24 is also tilted.

 

[the old grind]

I don't remember ever being on ground so flat that I noticed whether the FEL bucket sits level within half a handwidth. Lord knows it's usually the opposite when I try to cut with a corner. IMO the fuel thing makes me laugh. What ballast adjustments do we make already between a full tank and say ~1/4-full? :laughing:

Lowering tire pressure works to correct ride height. Don't know if raising it does as much. All my FELs' arms have a bit of flex when working a bucket or grapple. Don't use this very much on 'groundworks'.

I'll agree with Moss that TBN & other fora will never be great venues for factory service issues. Mark's presence might be more 'approved' than some, and I might guess that our RK guys were given a shrug of permission vs status as 'official rep'.

Some guys can look awful when just trying to help others. I have a whole life like that. I'm not discouraged by the reality of it.