Operation Manuals

[Brazos]

Why can you not find and download operator's manuals (not WSMs) on the Kubota website? I would like an extra copy to keep out in my barn as a working copy. With all the multiple warnings, saying death could result, on every page you would think they would make the operator's manual as available as possible for free.

 

[NEPA Guy]

You have to pay. I can't find it now but they had a link to another company for a downloadable pdf. Now it just seems to say go to your dealer.

http://www.messicks.com/search?q=kubota manulas

 

[Brazos]

I guess I will see if the dealer will give me one. If not I will buy one. I can understand Kubota charging for a shop manual as they cost money to produce and they would rather you take the tractor to a dealer for service. The operator's manual should be free as they tell you how to operate the tractor safely. For years now gun companies have been printing on there barrels to read the manual and how to get a free copy. Just a liability thing. If I do get another copy I may just cut the pages out, scan it into a PDFs, and make it available to others.

 

[old freddie]

I found mine on Kubotabooks for free download. I wanted a printed copy and don't have a printer so I took a flash to local copy place and it cost me $9.00. $.07 page. I also wanted a WSM but not successful and a member sent me a pdf. I am now looking for a printed copy of the parts manual but Kubota does have that on line but I could not figure out how to down load it.
I bought a used tractor and went to my dealer and they would even share any info with me from the op manual let alone provide me with one. $21.00

 

[Grandad4]

Some years ago I found parts listings available for free downloading, but learned that parts numbers are often updated so what I downloaded was often obsolete. Better to use the online parts references.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

If I do get another copy I may just cut the pages out, scan it into a PDFs, and make it available to others.

You need to read the fine print, as that's the reason you don't find a lot of PDF manuals, it's called copyright infringement.
Their lawyers will pay you a visit one way or another.

 

[NEPA Guy]

I guess I will see if the dealer will give me one. If not I will buy one. I can understand Kubota charging for a shop manual as they cost money to produce and they would rather you take the tractor to a dealer for service. The operator's manual should be free as they tell you how to operate the tractor safely. For years now gun companies have been printing on there barrels to read the manual and how to get a free copy. Just a liability thing. If I do get another copy I may just cut the pages out, scan it into a PDFs, and make it available to others.

I agree. The manual should be a free download at the very least for safety's sake. Corporate greed at its finest.

I've searched online for available copies. I couldn't find anything easily downloadable. No one seems to pirate copies. There's so many different models, it would be a task to offer a complete library. Hit or miss with individuals seeding out copies.

Once I bought my manual online in pdf format, I put copies on two of my ipads, my old one is now dedicated to the garage.

Maybe you can get it in pdf format from a dealer? Print a copy, and have a backup file in case you spill oil on it or something

 

[Brazos]

I am just going to ask the dealer for a 2nd copy. It's a new L2501 and I have not found one online. The operator's manual is one warning after another saying "could result in personal injury or death". With the number of people who get hurt or killed by tractors each year I just assumed there would be a download copy on the Kubota website at the very least.

 

[sheepfarmer]

I think Kubota would be ahead of the game if, at the very least, they posted the directions for each model to complete the regen. There have been several people writing in to OTT on their smart phone because they are out in the north 40 and their tractor is blinking or beeping, and/or the boss has locked the operator's manual in the office and it is after 5, and what do they do now? If they can access OTT they could reach the Kubota website faster.

Kubota expects people to store the operator's manual in a storage compartment in the back of the seat on my tractor, but the dealer said not to do that, it leaks. I would like a second copy to keep out in the barn too...

 

[torch]

You need to read the fine print, as that's the reason you don't find a lot of PDF manuals, it's called copyright infringement.
Their lawyers will pay you a visit one way or another.

In Canada, copyright subsists in all literary, dramatic, musical or artistic "works" once published. Under the Canadian copyright act, as permitted by international treaty, copyright does not subsist in directions for the use and care of a useful article in the form of an instruction or repair manual that accompanies a product or that is supplied as an accessory to a service as they are specifically excluded from the definition of "works". Therefore, copyright of a service or owner's manual does not subsist under Canadian law despite any claims to the contrary.

Under US law, I believe it is possible that an entire manual can be copied for private study or educational purposes as "fair use".

Of course, none of the above would necessarily stop copyright trolls from harassing those who offer such a pdf.

 

[Brazos]

I am not worried about copyrights on a operation manual which is also a safety manual. They are more likely to get sued for way more money than me if somebody gets hurt be ause they were unable to find an operation manual to learn how to safely operate their tractor. Even at that if I PDF it I would just email directly to people looking for one. I just want a clean copy to keep with all my paperwork in the case I sell it one day. I would want the new owner to have the correct manual that came with the tractor. Kubota has been around a long while now. Their tractors are well respected and all over the country. It amazes me they don't have all this archived on their website. They really need to add this and work on their website in general while they are at it. Hopefully someone from Kubota reads this site.

Out of curiosity I just went to the John Deere website and looked up a couple models and their operation manual is on-line.

 

[Sammy3700]

Check on ebay found the tractor and loader owners manual for dad's L3800HST with LA524. 32.00 shipping included. I also took advise from here and bought the WSM for his and my L3700SU. If you ask most will negotiate that I have found.

 

[Brazos]

This is my last post on this as I do not want to be seen as some sort of Kubota hater. If I was I would have not bought one. That said it is absolutely stupid not to have operator's manuals (not workshop/repair manuals) linked to the Kubota website free to download and further more a hard copy sent if requested. Tractors have a lot more inherent dangers than other products we buy but yet most any product has a manual available on the company website. For example when I pull up OTT I see an add for a John Deere 3032E. I went to the John Deere website and quickly pulled up the operator's manual for a 3032E. I am posting about this one last time with the hopes that somebody at Kubota actually reads this site, that is dedicated to their product, and will work to rectify this simple, legitimate issue, very quickly.

Furthermore I have searched e-bay, Kobotabooks, manualvault, etc. and my model is not listed. Sure I can go to the dealer but they should just have a free PDF to download on their website like other companies.

 

[CountryBumkin]

They are more likely to get sued for way more money than me if somebody gets hurt be ause they were unable to find an operation manual to learn how to safely operate their tractor.

I doubt Kubota would lose if they were sued. They provide the manual to the original tractor buyer. Either he lost it or sold the tractor to someone else with out providing them the manual. Not Kubota's fault.

But it would be nice PR if Kubota offered a free download of all their "owner" manuals.

 

[Southernfarm]

I just asked my dealer and he emailed me the PDF version of the manual. I asked for the mower deck user manual because that one was in a ziplock bag and zip tied to the shaft, in an open crate outside. Moisture had got in and made the original a bit rusty and moldy. He just gave me the electronic version.

 

[Brazos]

Strangely I went to the Kubota website earlier for something else and found a link to the Operator's Manual for my new. I had looked specifically for this a number of times before and gave up. I would like to think Kubota read this and changed their website for me but most likely it has been there but hard to find. The manual is available for purchase. A downloadable PDF was $10 (this is what I did but it ended up costing a little over $14), a CD, or a print copy for $25. So you can at least get the manual though the PDF version should be free like John Deere. I accomplished my goal though and now have the Operator's Manual and all the O&Ms and parts list for my implements. I 3 hole punched them and put them in a 3 ring binder to keep out in the barn with the tractor.