Perventative maintenance tips

[Butch]

There are just some things that are not covered in a WSM or operator's manual that we stumble upon that make good sense in prolonging the life of our tractors.

Now there may already be a thread that I have not uncovered yet that covers this.... so if there is please feel free to redirect me. Any way these tips should be shared for the benefit of us all and our respective pocket books.

I have one very good one to start the thread off and I have to say up front it is not original by me.... I can't for the life of me remember where I heard or read it.

Preventative maintenance on a Kubota FEL/Front Blade Husco Hydraulic Control Valve; lubrication on the lower end of the spools.

When I was working on my Husco valve I noticed some fairly signifigant corrosion when I removed the spool covers from the lower end of the valve body. It was obvious water had made its way into both the lift/lower/float and bucket roll/regeneration centering springs. Hydraulic oil NEVER sees that part of the control valve. My tractor is garage kept and only gets wet when I get wet operating it... and that ain't very often and water still got in.

Here is the tip to prevent corrosion damage... I drilled 2 holes in both cast spool covers one near the base and the other underneath at the end of the cover. What I do is shoot a little WD40 in the upper hole periodically when I grease the tractor. Also, when I do an oil change I shoot WD40 in the lower hole untill it comes out the upper hole. This makes certain the detent sleeve (1), springs(2), and ball bearings(5) are lubricated prerventing costly corrosion.

Just one note.... when you take the two allen hex head screws off to remove the cap for the first time you can bet the detent sleeve is going to come off with it.... that is what the bearings ride against locking the float/regeneration. This is a sure sign of corrosion.

Catch the bearings in yourt hand or better yet have a rag in your hand to assist in the catch.

I did mine with out taking the valve off the tractor and leaving the three lines attached to the valve hooked up.

This whole process takes only about 30-45 minutes.... providing it is before O-beer:thirty

Butch

 

[traildust]

There are just some things that are not covered in a WSM or operator's manual that we stumble upon that make good sense in prolonging the life of our tractors.

Now there may already be a thread that I have not uncovered yet that covers this.... so if there is please feel free to redirect me. Any way these tips should be shared for the benefit of us all and our respective pocket books.

I have one very good one to start the thread off and I have to say up front it is not original by me.... I can't for the life of me remember where I heard or read it.

Preventative maintenance on a Kubota FEL/Front Blade Husco Hydraulic Control Valve; lubrication on the lower end of the spools.

When I was working on my Husco valve I noticed some fairly signifigant corrosion when I removed the spool covers from the lower end of the valve body. It was obvious water had made its way into both the lift/lower/float and bucket roll/regeneration centering springs. Hydraulic oil NEVER sees that part of the control valve. My tractor is garage kept and only gets wet when I get wet operating it... and that ain't very often and water still got in.

Here is the tip to prevent corrosion damage... I drilled 2 holes in both cast spool covers one near the base and the other underneath at the end of the cover. What I do is shoot a little WD40 in the upper hole periodically when I grease the tractor. Also, when I do an oil change I shoot WD40 in the lower hole untill it comes out the upper hole. This makes certain the detent sleeve (1), springs(2), and ball bearings(5) are lubricated prerventing costly corrosion.

Just one note.... when you take the two allen hex head screws off to remove the cap for the first time you can bet the detent sleeve is going to come off with it.... that is what the bearings ride against locking the float/regeneration. This is a sure sign of corrosion.

Catch the bearings in yourt hand or better yet have a rag in your hand to assist in the catch.

I did mine with out taking the valve off the tractor and leaving the three lines attached to the valve hooked up.

This whole process takes only about 30-45 minutes.... providing it is before O-beer:thirty

Butch

Thanks Butch for making this thread and sharing a great tip. I don't know if another thread was created like this before. To be honest it wouldn't matter because forums move very very fast and stuff will get buried and lost.

This whole process takes only about 30-45 minutes.... providing it is before O-beer:thirtyButch

Aint that the truth
How many times have I had to continue the job the next day wondering what the hell I was doing the night before? An awful lot

Scott

 

[dusty-t]

Hi Butch. Thanks for starting this thread, your first post doe's not apply to my tractor but I am sure there are lots of people on here that it does help. I think the threads can be make and model specific or not. Someone at sometime will use the tip and maybe save a few bucks or a few hours or both. Only tip I can think of for the moment and I use it a lot because my hands are messed up. Magnets, they were mentioned the other day in a steering box thread. I use magnets to put bolts and nuts in where I can't reach with my hands. If you make sure that the bolt and nut thread together easily the magnet will hold the nut or bolt while you thread the other end on. Dusty P.S. Keep this thread going. Oh Shite this has nothing to do with preventative maintenance, sorry guys.

 

[traildust]

the magnet will hold the nut or bolt while you thread the other end on. Dusty P.S. Keep this thread going. Oh Shite this has nothing to do with preventative maintenance, sorry guys.

Sure it does. If you didn't use the magnet then the fastener could fall into a horrible place. Weather it be the depths of the abyss within the tractor or only heaven knows where.
Well now things got a lot worse because you could have prevented the unnecessary further tear down if a magnet had been used to begin with.

Scott

 

[Butch]

Guys, Tractor specific for the use of the Kubota Husco control valve... gotta say yes to some extent. Kubota had a propriitary agreement with Husco for the B series and most of the L series tractors where the control valves were mounted independently of the tractor itself. They were all renditions of the monoblock configuration. The 2 spool monoblock could be configured to work on something like a B7100 all the way up tp the big boys FEL valves. The newer B (like the one my uncle in law bought) has the control valve built into the tractor.
From what I could gather the integrated control valves are somewhat new and on the less beefy tractors. That's what my local dealer told me.

The good part is I now know these are serviceable by us common folk... cause Husco will sell us parts if we can figure out how each particular valve is configured.

After I got into it... actually into the valve... there is not that much to it.

 

[joekimtkd]

Is it possible to show some pictures~~~???
I don't know all those names of the parts. so I don't know where to drill through...

Tell you the truth, I might drill through the engine block~
but it sounds really good tips. Thank you for sharing it.
Again, picture please~!

Joe.

Oh, Dusty~! I'm heading Mount forest tomorrow.
If I get chance, I'll stop by your house. It would be evening time, if I could.
I want to see your giant snow man. if it still alive~!

 

[traildust]

I want to see your giant snow man. if it still alive~!

Joe,
The snow man's dead

 

[Butch]

Joe, I will see what I can do with pic or two... may take me a day or so...
Butch

 

[Butch]

Joe... here is my first stab at posting a picture...

Just one note... If the parts to be drilled were steel you could use a magnet to capture any cuttings from getting in to the housing when you drill the top hole... unfortunately it is aluminum. So.... I'd suggest taking it apart to drill the holes.

Besides it would be a good idea to clean and lube the "innards" before the WD40 anyway. To clean the float and regen detent sleeves I used a 3/4" copper fitting wire brush cleaner.

Hope the pic helps... Butch

 

[ptwyz]

Joe,
The snow man's dead

The services were beautiful ! Very sunny & warm day !!!

Could not ask for a better day to have a service for a dead snowsquatch!

 

[Butch]

Guys... this is the first time I have ever left a mug shot on the net.... At least the flies won't be liting on us...
Butch

 

[traildust]

Guys... this is the first time I have ever left a mug shot on the net.... At least the flies won't be liting on us...
Butch

Butch, you look like you're ready to tear into some ones ass for accusing you of dumpster diving


Scott

 

[Butch]

I replied here to float this back to the top for a new member that id having control valve issues. It was easier for me to find this than him for sure....

 

[OrangeinNJ]

I've had my B7500D orange for 5 years and this is the first time I've had a problem I could not solve. MY FEL whines after about a half hour of moving dirt/snow, etc. accompanied by that "no oomph" problem so many have posted. I only have 300 hrs, and when I did the hydro change, noticed that the OEM gray paint was still on the drain nuts AND filter. I was pissed since I took it to the dealer for the 50 hr change included in the new purchase. Still have the problem. assisted by Bill - my guru in CT and reading posts here, particularly Butch's, I pulled the relief valve, and inspected but did not readily see a way to take it completely apart. It looked clean. So I moved on to lift/curl housings. Lift side was clean, no rust but had water (I'll do Butch's hole later). Tilt/curl is ugly. Dry, but with white powdery/ corrosion. I will post a pic as soon as I figure out how to do the attachment. I sprayed it with wd40, soft wire dremel attachment, then followed up with a nylon brush attachment, lint free cloth and vacuum to be sure there are no abrasive parts remaining. Additional note- my joystick has ALOT of side to side play. The knob actually hits the steering wheel. Bill thinks this is due to the compression (or lack thereof) of the spring.

Sorry for the long post - where do I go from here? After removing the relief valve, is there any further dissassembly possible/necessary to clean?

 

[OrangeinNJ]

heres the pics

 

[Jlillie]

Wow, I'm guessing thats pretty much what mine looks like. B-( I'm glad I revisited this thread.

heres the pics

 

[Bulldog]

My brother and I went thru this on his B7500 when it was only a couple of months old. He kept it in the dry from the first day he bought it. The thing we overlooked was the fact it sat on a lot in the rain. I guess you could say it came weathered from the dealer.

 

[HanksRide]

There are just some things that are not covered in a WSM or operator's manual that we stumble upon that make good sense in prolonging the life of our tractors.

Now there may already be a thread that I have not uncovered yet that covers this.... so if there is please feel free to redirect me. Any way these tips should be shared for the benefit of us all and our respective pocket books.

I have one very good one to start the thread off and I have to say up front it is not original by me.... I can't for the life of me remember where I heard or read it.

Preventative maintenance on a Kubota FEL/Front Blade Husco Hydraulic Control Valve; lubrication on the lower end of the spools.

When I was working on my Husco valve I noticed some fairly signifigant corrosion when I removed the spool covers from the lower end of the valve body. It was obvious water had made its way into both the lift/lower/float and bucket roll/regeneration centering springs. Hydraulic oil NEVER sees that part of the control valve. My tractor is garage kept and only gets wet when I get wet operating it... and that ain't very often and water still got in.

Here is the tip to prevent corrosion damage... I drilled 2 holes in both cast spool covers one near the base and the other underneath at the end of the cover. What I do is shoot a little WD40 in the upper hole periodically when I grease the tractor. Also, when I do an oil change I shoot WD40 in the lower hole untill it comes out the upper hole. This makes certain the detent sleeve (1), springs(2), and ball bearings(5) are lubricated prerventing costly corrosion.

Just one note.... when you take the two allen hex head screws off to remove the cap for the first time you can bet the detent sleeve is going to come off with it.... that is what the bearings ride against locking the float/regeneration. This is a sure sign of corrosion.

Catch the bearings in yourt hand or better yet have a rag in your hand to assist in the catch.

I did mine with out taking the valve off the tractor and leaving the three lines attached to the valve hooked up.

This whole process takes only about 30-45 minutes.... providing it is before O-beer:thirty

Butch

I just took mine apart and the detent sleeve did not come off but I pulled it off and the ball's went flying. I think I found them all, 4 small and 1 larger ball. Here is my question, my detent sleeve looks worn along the lip of it. It was extremely dirty and corroded. I cleaned it up the best I could but not sure if I need to get a new one or not? Also either way, how do I get all the balls back in place and back together again.

 

[Butch]

Hank... keep following the thread and it will tell you a simple way to get the detent sleeve back over the ball bearings. Basically after cleaning up all the parts I slipped the spring back inside the end of the shaft holding it in place with a glob of grease. Then I did the same with the four ball bearings holding them in place with grease AGAINST the spring in the shaft. Now here is the trick... get a #2 pencil and slid the sleeve over it. now take the pencil with the sleeve positioned in the right direction and put the end of the pencil against the spring and at the same time with the other hand position the sleeve Against the 4 ball bearings.

Now... as the pencil compresses the spring slide the sleeve over the ball bearings as soon as the compressed spring clears the bearings... easy quick and permanent fix!

 

[South 40]

Hey Everyone,

Just to drop my 2 cents in the kitty, most people don't know but WD-40 is not actually a lubricant, it was invented as a way to shed moisture, and not too long ago they changed the formula so it will no longer burn.

Until a few years ago it was great for starting an engine, but not anymore.

A good lubricant/spray oil would be a better choice to keep the spools moving, filling the drilled hole with spray oil will not only disperse moisture, but lubricate too.

I would suggest Deep Creep, this is also the best rust buster I have ever found.

I might also suggest finding some sort of rubber or plastic band/tube to slide over the holes so they are not as likely to allow moisture and dirt to enter freely.

Best Regards

Paul