Bad Welds?
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Russell King
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L185F, Modern Ag Competitor 4’ shredder, Rhino tiller, rear dirt scoop
You are not the first person to report this problem…
See this thread
www.orangetractortalks.com
See this thread
mystery solved....
noticed the bucket tilted about 1/2" this morning..... ..this explains it. now I'll finally HAVE TO remove the loader after 5 years.
www.orangetractortalks.com
North Idaho Wolfman
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L3450DT-GST, Woods FEL, B7100 HSD, FEL, 60" SB, 743 Bobcat with V2203, and more
GreensvilleJay
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Equipment
BX23-S,57 A-C D-14,58 A-C D-14, 57 A-C D-14,tiller,cults,Millcreek 25G spreader,
BTDT, 2018 BX23S, 3 years ago ?.... heck I thought someone had 'borrowed' MY pictures !
Kubota Canada wanted $2500+ 13% for just the 3 pieces of welded 'frame' ( not under warranty...I tried...)
I removed everything off the 2 pieces, hauled to neighbours shop, next day went to drop off the SSQA section, for 'alignment' purposes,he's already fixed it !! Pins went in silky smooooooth. How he did it was a mystery until he pointed out his table. About 5 by 8 feet and 4" thick precision ground 'hunk of steel'. I've got a LOT of 'heavy use' hours on it since then...he KNOWs how to weld !!
Kubota Canada wanted $2500+ 13% for just the 3 pieces of welded 'frame' ( not under warranty...I tried...)
I removed everything off the 2 pieces, hauled to neighbours shop, next day went to drop off the SSQA section, for 'alignment' purposes,he's already fixed it !! Pins went in silky smooooooth. How he did it was a mystery until he pointed out his table. About 5 by 8 feet and 4" thick precision ground 'hunk of steel'. I've got a LOT of 'heavy use' hours on it since then...he KNOWs how to weld !!
Kubota will make this right and get you fixed up.
They DO NOT want to go down the warranty - decline wormhole.
See KTM. See JD.... It all ends badly.
They DO NOT want to go down the warranty - decline wormhole.
See KTM. See JD.... It all ends badly.
Does that torque tube pierce the rectangular tubing that makes up the loader arms? In other words, can you see through the tube when standing to the left or right of the loader? I'm trying to understand how those welds would have broken if the tube pierces the loader arms, which is the strongest way to build the loader.
The welds between the tube and the loader arms sure look pretty awful, and I was a professional welder for over a decade and wouldn't be happy with welds like that.
Last edited:
GreensvilleJay
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Equipment
BX23-S,57 A-C D-14,58 A-C D-14, 57 A-C D-14,tiller,cults,Millcreek 25G spreader,
It looks the same as mine did, NO 'penetration'. Tube is 'butt welded' not pierced.
While mine was 'out of warranty', KubCda did inject some coins into my account,that of course they got back a few months later
While mine was 'out of warranty', KubCda did inject some coins into my account,that of course they got back a few months later
Gas shielded mig is a great process but unfortunately it can make poor welds look great to the uninformed. It's really sad there's so little quality control where that loader was built. I wouldn't settle for less than total grind and reweld all joints on the loader,,,,at someone other than my expense.
It does look like it's butt welded. My loaders have the torque tube passing through the loader arms which is much stronger.It looks the same as mine did, NO 'penetration'. Tube is 'butt welded' not pierced.
While mine was 'out of warranty', KubCda did inject some coins into my account,that of course they got back a few months later
MIG requires clean metal. That shop may not remove the mill scale before welding.
Hell, I weld better than that. No penetration….nice quality control. Wonder how many other crap welds there are. I will be checking mine over…
Runs With Scissors
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L2501 TLB , Grappel, Brush Hog, Box Blade, Ballast box, Forks, Tiller, PH digger
I dunno,......
That second pic does not look like a "robot weld" to me.
To my un-trained eye, it appears a little "uneven".
Now the big question is....Are you going to have it ground and re-welded, or are you going to modify it and make it go all the way through and welded on both sides?
"Enquiring minds" want to know.
That second pic does not look like a "robot weld" to me.
To my un-trained eye, it appears a little "uneven".
Now the big question is....Are you going to have it ground and re-welded, or are you going to modify it and make it go all the way through and welded on both sides?
"Enquiring minds" want to know.
GreensvilleJay
Well-known member
Equipment
BX23-S,57 A-C D-14,58 A-C D-14, 57 A-C D-14,tiller,cults,Millcreek 25G spreader,
I KNOW a proper butt weld has survived my 'testing' since it was done. Actually was told to not be 'gentle', and I have a lifetime warranty on the welds( he did both sides....).
To make a thruhole,you'd need to precision drill 2 holes and use a long tube. Not really needed as loader doesn't lift elephants !
To make a thruhole,you'd need to precision drill 2 holes and use a long tube. Not really needed as loader doesn't lift elephants !
I'll be watching mine like a hawk now that more folks with a BX series tractor are reporting this. This should not be happening.
I'm waiting to hear back from the dealership. Problem is, even if I get a new one under warranty, how long until that one breaks?I dunno,......
That second pic does not look like a "robot weld" to me.
To my un-trained eye, it appears a little "uneven".
Now the big question is....Are you going to have it ground and re-welded, or are you going to modify it and make it go all the way through and welded on both sides?
"Enquiring minds" want to know.
Those are classic stress riser cracks. Mig welding is notorious for causing these and it is usually caused by using a too small of a filler wire. I don’t think that’s the case here. I suspect the quality of the tube steel is the issue. Steel is made with tolerances for amounts of carbon and other alloys. I suspect this run of tubing might be outside of the standard but I don’t know if Kubota uses certificates to monitor their steel or not. I assume they would but maybe these parts are done outside of the factory.
Who cares about elephants (well, I do care about the ones in Africa), but loader arms can be subjected to significantly different forces on each arm when raising a load, which can subject the arms to high torque stresses. That torque tube wants to rotate about its long axis under load, particularly unevenly distributed loads, which puts the butt welds under a torsional shear stress and that's what's happened here.
Take a look at the loaders on larger models and you'll see that the loader arms are pierced with the torque tube welded on both sides of the arms providing way more torsional strength. The better gooseneck trailers will have the crossmembers piercing the I-beams that run the length of the deck whereas the cheaper models will butt weld the crossmembers to the inside of the I-beam which is nowhere near as strong.
It's been a while since I owned a BX so I'd forgotten how the loader was configured.