Mowing servicing the 60" belly mower on a Kubota BX2230

[Dragonslayer]

I have had my new to me BX2230 for about a month now. The tractor runs great but i was noticing that when cutting through medium to heavy mulch the belly mower would take on a harsh unbalanced sound. It sounded fine when cutting low grass with light mulch. So, today I pulled the belly mower off to check it out. The first thing I noticed was that the center blade was loose. In fact, the blade would turn free without engaging the belt and pulleys. The blade bolt was so loose I could unscrew it by hand and remove the blade.

The exposed end of the spindle shaft had splines with the last quarter inch being hexagon shaped. The blade had a round hole that was not splined. Should the blade hole be splined to match the splines on the shaft? Between the bolt and the blade there were three washers the top two had round holes and the bottom washer had an hexagon shaped hole that matched the end of the shaft. The round hole on the blade and the two top washers with round holes spinning on the splined shaft just didn't seem right.

Also, The PTO shaft gear box on top of the center spindle has a reservoir that was dry. Should this box be full of gear oil?

Would the combination of the loose blade and dry gear box be causing the harsh unbalanced sound I described?

 

[robertm]

I believe the order of washers is correct, but without taking mine off, I can't confirm. Once you put them on, you'll see there is only one way to get the hexagon (hole) washer on to accept the spindle shaft. There should be a bearing cup first, then washers.
I think that the loose blade is your biggest problem, but the empty gearbox would be s bigger worry.

 

[RaydaKub]

I'd agree with robertm. And make sure you have greased it well. From memory, there are at least 6 zirks on the deck, and 2 more on the driveshaft. My mower (same model) was howling like crazy and I finally put new bearings on both outer blades. The center blade bearing is probably going to last longer simply because the bearing has additional support from the gearbox. The new bearings really made mine a lot quieter. The hexagon washers are intended to keep any freewheeling from the blade away from the bolt itself.

 

[skipperbrown]

Yikes. You need to find out why there is no gear oil in the gear box. That's an expensive part. There is probably a drain under the deck. Make sure it is there and tight. Monitor it closely over the next weeks. My deck has certain rpm's it likes best and when I changed my blades last year it helped with the vibration. I just find a comfortable rpm speed close to max and mow away. On my deck, a little older than yours, there is a cup cover over the bearing, then the blade goes on (it's round so the shaft can still spin if you hit something really hard), the hex washer, then 2 dished washers, and the bolt holds it all together. My deck has 11 zerks: 2 on the drive shaft, one for each blade, and one on the back of the deck. Each wheel has a zerk. Make sure your wheels only hit the ground when they encounter uneven surfaces.

 

[David_Kb7uns]

The only drain for that gearbox is the bottom seal when it goes bad. Otherwise there is a bottom drain hex bolt on the side, check level side, fill top and a breather top.

Look in manual and it tells the replacement interval for bottom, side and blank top oil seals.

David

 

[Dragonslayer]

The only drain for that gearbox is the bottom seal when it goes bad. Otherwise there is a bottom drain hex bolt on the side, check level side, fill top and a breather top.

Look in manual and it tells the replacement interval for bottom, side and blank top oil seals.

David

I managed to get the gear box off and sure enough the bottom seal is leaking. The next hurdle is to get the pulley off the gear box shaft. Is there any tricks? I'm thinking a 6" wheel puller. My 4" wheel puller won't reach.

 

[Grandad4]

While you're at it, check the condition of the large drive belt. A worn belt will significantly affect mowing performance.

 

[JWR]

I have had my new to me BX2230 for about a month now. The tractor runs great but i was noticing that when cutting through medium to heavy mulch the belly mower would take on a harsh unbalanced sound. It sounded fine when cutting low grass with light mulch. So, today I pulled the belly mower off to check it out. The first thing I noticed was that the center blade was loose. In fact, the blade would turn free without engaging the belt and pulleys. The blade bolt was so loose I could unscrew it by hand and remove the blade.

The exposed end of the spindle shaft had splines with the last quarter inch being hexagon shaped. The blade had a round hole that was not splined. Should the blade hole be splined to match the splines on the shaft? Between the bolt and the blade there were three washers the top two had round holes and the bottom washer had an hexagon shaped hole that matched the end of the shaft. The round hole on the blade and the two top washers with round holes spinning on the splined shaft just didn't seem right.

Also, The PTO shaft gear box on top of the center spindle has a reservoir that was dry. Should this box be full of gear oil?

Would the combination of the loose blade and dry gear box be causing the harsh unbalanced sound I described?

Would they !!! I'll say ! They would give you an unbalanced nasty sound and worse. I have not even read the other replies yet but ... I took my 60" deck off of our BX2200 last night and sharpened the blades. The 3 blades are all the same by the way.
1) There is nothing abnormal about the splined shaft from the center spindle. No the blade is NOT splined. So long as the hex hole is not messed up on that outmost washer you are good to go. I take mine off and on using an air wrench and strongly recommend doing that unless you take the time to use a torque wrench when putting them back on. Those bolts that hold on the blades are head size just under 1 3/16", probably metric. I sneaked by using a 1 3/16" socket but am shopping for a 1 5/32. The 1 1/8 is too small to go on. Very likely a 30mm impact socket is the right tool.
2) Your entire noise and balky behavior was certainly due to the loose blade ! Ye Gods ! Wonder you got by with no further damage. Check that hex hole washer and replace it if need be. The hole might be chewed up.
3) Bad news on the dry gearbox. Don't operate AT ALL until you get some 90 weight gear oil in it. A little operation with it full (full just means up to the checking plug) will let you know if your seals are leaking or how in heck it got dry. That is rather uncommon. Unfortunately, you need to get it up off the ground to even check for a seal leak. If you have a FEL you can boost the rig up off the ground using the FEL and then put some jack stands under it. Don't even think about crawling under there without extra supports.
4) If the leak exists you have to do something. If it is small to medium you can try "double zero grease" = "00 Grease" available at Tractor Supply and other places in a quart squeeze bottle. That stuff is thick -- somewhere between grease and gear oil -- and universally used in the south to avoid the expense and trouble of replacing seals on Bush Hog gear box shafts.
5) Based on what you found with that deck I have to be super suspicious what else went crying for attention and some normal maintenance on the whole machine. Question the prior owner if that seems feasible or possibly productive. At very least give it a serious going over for neglect. While you have that deck off is a good time to hit all the grease fittings with fresh grease as well as sharpen the blades.

 

[diesel85]

I had to replace the seal on the gear box as it was started leaking one year. It was fairly straightforward to replace.

Hardest part is getting that darn belt on and off...

After which, I always change the gear box oil every year.

 

[Dragonslayer]

I had to replace the seal on the gear box as it was started leaking one year. It was fairly straightforward to replace.

Hardest part is getting that darn belt on and off...

After which, I always change the gear box oil every year.

I got the belt off but that spring was a PITA. Gear box came off. The pulley came off with the persuasion of a 6" wheel puller. Seal came out. Now that, I know what I need it's off to get parts if I can get by the Kubota dealer this week.

Who are the best Kubota parts dealers on line? I'd like to get the parts on the way rather than waiting till next Monday which is the soonest I can get by the Kubota dealer.