More Power

[dmignogno]

Is there any way to increase the loader lifting power by a couple hundred pounds on a BX25D? My hydraulic pressure is adjusted to its high end of operating specs. Just would like a little more lift without having to buy a bigger tractor

 

[CountryBumkin]

I think you would need to further increase the hyd pressure or maybe reduce the weight of the FEL (an aluminum bucket?). There's only so much these little tractors can do.

 

[ehenry]

Shim the relief valve. I think for each 1mm shim it increases pressure 39 pounds. Don't start shimming until you know what your pressure is on the FEL. Bxpanded sells a gauge kit or your can make your own. Kubota sells 1, 2 and 4mm shims. There are plenty of posts here and on other sites about this.

My BX22 pressure was between 1700/1800 lbs. I shimmed it to a tick over 2000 and have been quite pleased with the result.

 

[bucktail]

There's always a way; it just takes time and money, but upgrading to a bigger tractor and loader or getting a skid steer is probably the path of least resistance. You could swap out the cylinders for cylinders with a bigger bore, but then you'd start breaking the loader. You reinforce the loader and start breaking the tractor. Great excuse to get a skid steer.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

Yes it sounds like you have just run out of tractor!

 

[maclean]

Be careful what you wish for...my BX25D is bone stock and I've blown up the tilt cylinder twice...once around 400 hrs and again just recently at 817 hrs.

First time I swapped it on warranty. Second time the dealer laughed at me.

Took it to a hydraulic shop...middle of nowhere and we have one in our tiny little town...guy is awesome. He explained the Kubota cylinder I brought him has no dead head like others. So when you use it on max tilt the entire weight of the bucket is on a 1/8" lip of soft cast iron.

-Mac

 

[dmignogno]

Be careful what you wish for...my BX25D is bone stock and I've blown up the tilt cylinder twice...once around 400 hrs and again just recently at 817 hrs.

First time I swapped it on warranty. Second time the dealer laughed at me.

Took it to a hydraulic shop...middle of nowhere and we have one in our tiny little town...guy is awesome. He explained the Kubota cylinder I brought him has no dead head like others. So when you use it on max tilt the entire weight of the bucket is on a 1/8" lip of soft cast iron.

-Mac

Did you replace the cylinders with different ones or did you rebuild the Kubota ones

 

[WFM]

When I took my tractor back for the first service at the dealer(I forget now like 50 hrs) I asked about the lack of lifting power. He said he could shim the hydraulic pump to help some. It is very hard to have the perfect tractor. I'd love the lifting power of 3000 lbs...not 1000 lbs like I have. But you'd need to spend $50.k to have a tractor that would do that and way bigger then anything I'd need. To big ? Or to small ? Its a fine line to fine tune the right model tractor. Just like building a shed. Always build bigger then you need.

 

[maclean]

Did you replace the cylinders with different ones or did you rebuild the Kubota ones

First time the dealer gave me a new one for $120 "on warranty."

Second time the hydraulic shop used a lathe and turned a new head out of ductile iron...it was quicker than waiting 6+ weeks for someone to figure out how to get it from Kubota. Second time took $230 to fix the cylinder (both times add in the cost of a ton of hydraulic oil and filters and 6+ hours of blowing out and flushing lines.)

Hydraulic guy says if I do it again he'll just turn another head out of steel...pros...head won't break...con...something more expensive might break.

Go for bxexpanded's gauge and shim kit. If I wasn't broke from fixing my tractor I would order one. More power to me = more ways to break things.

-Mac

 

[L.C. Gray]

If space permits go to larger diameter cylinders. Bigger the area of the piston the more force it will generate with the same hydraulic pressure being applied.

One of the above posters is right, more force = More stuff to break. You can quickly get into having the loader out power the tractor or as I put it, the tail wagging the dog, which isn't safe to be operating. If you really need more lift, you really need more tractor.

 

[dmignogno]

Thanks for all your info. I did buy the pressure gauge and shims when I bought the tractor 3 years ago. The pressure was under specs then so I shimmed it up into the spec range. I checked it again two weeks ago and found it was at the low end of the specs so I shimmed it up again. This time to just over the high end of the specs. I will live with that for know and always make sure that I am lifting as close to the pivot point as possible.