RK55H owner question

   / RK55H owner question #1  

Dfixit1

Bronze Member
Joined
Feb 20, 2019
Messages
97
Tractor
Kubota L4240HSTC-3
Test drove one and we had a hard time putting in gear and the manager had trouble too and twice he thought he had it in gear a pressed the forward pedal and the tractor made a very loud hydraulic wine noise. Im unsure if it was dead heading the hydraulic pressure in the transmission or bypassing it?
Has your RK55H had this condition?
Its very loud and you would know it if it happened.
 
   / RK55H owner question #2  
Mine is very hard to shift if the tractor is still. I just feather the pedal forward or reverse real lightly and then it slips out of and into gear easily. After two or three times it became second nature and never have to think about it anymore.

Not sure about the whine... the hydro is fairly loud under normal operation but I don't recall what it sounds like if the range selector is not in gear.
 
   / RK55H owner question #3  
Like others, I have to feather the gas to find the sweet spot where the gear shift will stay put once you put it in gear. Popped out on me a few times. Will likely loosen up over time. HST whine is quite loud in high gear, and lessens in medium and low gear.
 
   / RK55H owner question #4  
If I throttle mine all the way down it shifts easy but I've only had it a couple of weeks so I don't know if that makes a difference.
 
   / RK55H owner question #5  
I’ve only shifted mine at idles death never above that. Maybe he was trying to shift it above idle

And I also have to feather the pedal a little to get it to go into gear.
 
   / RK55H owner question #6  
Same comments as above. It is not synchronized tranny, so ranges cannot be shifted "on the fly" while moving at speed. But, after stopping, I do have to do a "feathering the pedals while drifting slightly dance" to change ranges. And, yes, high/transport gear is whiny. For reference, I still have to do the same thing to change ranges in my 20 year old New Holland hydrostatic tractor, as well as in-and-out of 4WD. I think the feathering/movement releases the tension on the drivetrain to allow the gear carriers in the transmission to move. My understanding is that you will have to do this in just about any non-synchro HST tractor. I will say that the shift linkage is rather rubbery and indefinite compared to others - not notchy or precise - but once I got used to it, works real well.
 
   / RK55H owner question #7  
Same as above, but add that sitting on level ground helps as well. If the tractor is trying to roll (even slightly) while trying to find the gear, it makes it more difficult. I've never had it pop out once it was in gear.
 
   / RK55H owner question #8  
I made a post on another thread where they were talking about shifting the ranges. I think its like any transmission, you have to get a feel for what is best for your vehicle. I once operated an MCI tour bus with a manual transmission, and it took me a few miles before I was fairly smooth shifting through the gears; especially downshift. I just had to find the right RPM range to make the shift smooth. I also find it makes it easier to shift into neutral right before the tractor stops, which is when there is no strain on the range. Then just as it comes to a stop, it seems to slip into the next range fairly easy. Sometimes I do have to feather the pedals, but it hasn't bothered me at all.
 
 
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