What have you done to your Branson today?

[Sooner79]

Update;

Got a call from the dealer and they suspect a leak on the front drive line seal. They are going to fix it under warranty so that is great. But I asked them to pull the bell housing cover and look at the top of it because I am almost certain that is motor oil. It is too black to be gear oil to me. They said they would look. So I may have more than one leak which is disappointing to say the least.

The tractor just has not been worked very hard at all. Mostly mowing in 2WD. Pulling the land plane to help my brother is the hardest it has ever worked and that was just a long day and should not have been an issue. But I was pulling in 4WD on that job.

I will say I feel very blessed to have a great dealer that is willing to help! So many times we hear of dealers failing their customers but mine is doing things the right way. More to come!

Who is your dealer?

 

[2manyrocks]

The positives are that you were able to spot a potential issue with the motor oil leak, the dealer is giving good service, and it may be covered under warranty.

I am starting to wonder if mowing is actually pretty hard on tractors?

 

[Torvy]

Who is your dealer?

Ooh, I know the answer...same as mine. K5lwq put me onto them.

Big Tex in Caddo Mills.

 

[ptsg]

Update;

Got a call from the dealer and they suspect a leak on the front drive line seal. They are going to fix it under warranty so that is great. But I asked them to pull the bell housing cover and look at the top of it because I am almost certain that is motor oil. It is too black to be gear oil to me. They said they would look. So I may have more than one leak which is disappointing to say the least.

The tractor just has not been worked very hard at all. Mostly mowing in 2WD. Pulling the land plane to help my brother is the hardest it has ever worked and that was just a long day and should not have been an issue. But I was pulling in 4WD on that job.

I will say I feel very blessed to have a great dealer that is willing to help! So many times we hear of dealers failing their customers but mine is doing things the right way. More to come!

If it's the seal coming from the transmission, that actually pretty easy. Although, I wouldn't expect dark oil coming from it.

Just need to drain the entire fluid (probably the hardest or messiest part), the pull the inspection plate out. Pull the front axle drive shaft out and Branson made it so you simple pull a sleeve (post #1394, 3rd picture on the right) to replace the seal and o-ring without having to split the tractor.

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

The positives are that you were able to spot a potential issue with the motor oil leak, the dealer is giving good service, and it may be covered under warranty.

I am starting to wonder if mowing is actually pretty hard on tractors?

I can't see how mowing would be any different on the tractor than any other work?

So far 6 1/2 years and 400 hrs and mine's still going. It's mowed some stuff... I haven't been underneath it in months (been trying to avoid activities such as that for a while now), but as far as I know, mine doesn't leak. No drips on my concrete driveway when I park on it (stored in bldg with gravel floor though).

 

[K5lwq]

The positives are that you were able to spot a potential issue with the motor oil leak, the dealer is giving good service, and it may be covered under warranty.

I am starting to wonder if mowing is actually pretty hard on tractors?

Mowing is about as happy as a tractor could ever be. Constant RPM in its peak power curve. Loader work is a little tougher on it with lots of stops and starts usually at much lower RPMs. Then there is excessive weight on the front ends.

This tractor has not done much loader work at all. A few brush piles with the grapple and used the bucket once to dig a hole for the final resting place of our dog. Most of the heavy lifting and loader work is done with the Kioti.

No plowing or disking with the Branson yet, just pulling the land plane is the only hard pull it has done. I have with no doubt worked the stew out of tractors in my time but all of that was row cropping with 200+HP tractors.

There should not be any leaks on this young of a tractor with the load it has carried. That said, that is exactly what a warranty is for. It could be that the seals used are of lesser quality or improperly installed during assembly. I likely will not know because they are doing all the work.

 

[K5lwq]

If it's the seal coming from the transmission, that actually pretty easy. Although, I wouldn't expect dark oil coming from it.

Just need to drain the entire fluid (probably the hardest or messiest part), the pull the inspection plate out. Pull the front axle drive shaft out and Branson made it so you simple pull a sleeve (post #1394, 3rd picture on the right) to replace the seal and o-ring without having to split the tractor.

Yes, hopefully that is all that is leaking because splitting the cabbed version does not look fun at all. But from looking in the bell housing and seeing how clean everything was, I can’t imagine that is just gear oil or hydraulic fluid.

One thing that has crossed my mind is I am running T6 full synthetic Rotella. I have had seen synthetic oil leak when regular Rotella would not. But too many Branson folks running the same oil with no issues so doubt that is the case.

It could also be I have not worked it hard enough for this to show up until the road work with my brother. I am just purely speculating at this point. But it is extremely rare for any modern engine to leak from a rear main even on high hour engines.

One other thing that has crossed my mind is the top bell housing bolts or engine mount bolts backed out and has created the problems. I did feel the need to adjust the clutch as it was grabbing right at the bottom. Once adjusted it feels much better but the question of why it needed it in the first place is a concern.

So hopefully there is no crack or failure from loose bolts. I have checked and torqued every bolt I can get to but I can not even see the top engine mount bolts.

 

[2manyrocks]

I can't see how mowing would be any different on the tractor than any other work?

So far 6 1/2 years and 400 hrs and mine's still going. It's mowed some stuff... I haven't been underneath it in months (been trying to avoid activities such as that for a while now), but as far as I know, mine doesn't leak. No drips on my concrete driveway when I park on it (stored in bldg with gravel floor though).

Mowing for me takes hours on end at some balance of ground speed relative to rough fields and vegetation density. Other than plowing my garden in the Spring, I don't do much plowing.

As for whether the seals themselves weren't good or were improperly installed, I would suppose the dealer could be able to offer an assessment on that.

I would think the manufacturer would want an accurate assessment from the dealer of what caused the problem that needed repair under warranty from the viewpoint of collecting data so that if they see a recurring problem, the manufacturer can make changes to parts, design, or the assembly process as needed to avoid future warranty claims?

 

[Zork]

I adjusted two lower fittings on my grapple cylinders. This brand has a heavy steel guard to protect the cylinders and hoses, but the lower 90 of each cyl. Was not parallel to the cylinder and gave the appearance the hose was malformed when the clamps were open. When the hose was loosend and repositioned it helped but the fittings had to align. This condition could not be good over time. I did not take a photo. The one side required almost one full turn, but the other side only a quarter. Now the hoses lay gracefully under the guards in any position.

Did some grappling today (Saturday) and I found these photos and you can see the lower hose/fittings of the cylinder arent quite positioned properly. When the clamps are opened it really disfigured both hoses. Anyway, i got them adjusted properly now.

 

[YanmarFever]

Zork, I have almost the same grapple as yours. What I dont like is that it does not open up enough to grab a big brush pile.
Its great on logs and rocks, but the top arms hang to low. I wish I would of bought a different one, so it sits in the shop on a pallet collecting dust...
Nice tractor you have there!