MX condenser screen is worthless

[mcmxi]

I'm cutting my friend's 12+ acres tomorrow afternoon and Saturday and will be using the MX with the Del Morino flail mower. I'll bring the Echo leaf blower if the POS will start! It's supposed to be in the low 90s tomorrow and Saturday so it'll be a good test of the MX and its cooling system. I'll report back with any issues.

 

[troverman]

I'll borrow your M6060 while you're out on the MX6000...lol.
I just finished my main round of summer mowing. I'm not sure a leaf blower is adequate if the radiator cores get really blocked up. If the grass is tall and has tassels hitting the grille area, you can plan on needing to do a clean out or two.

 

[mcmxi]

I'll borrow your M6060 while you're out on the MX6000...lol.
I just finished my main round of summer mowing. I'm not sure a leaf blower is adequate if the radiator cores get really blocked up. If the grass is tall and has tassels hitting the grille area, you can plan on needing to do a clean out or two.

The grass is at least 3ft tall in his fields and very dry but I'll use the flail at maximum offset so that I'm not driving over the grass before I cut it. That should reduce the amount of crap that gets sucked onto the condenser and radiator screens.

 

[Hunter1157]

I have to do some mowing in the next few days and I will try and take my infrared thermometer with me and take a reading of the floor/seat area before I start and after I have been mowing for about an hour. Temps are going to be 100* plus here for the next week so I will also get a feel for how the new insulation works.

 

[Russell King]

I'm cutting my friend's 12+ acres tomorrow afternoon and Saturday and will be using the MX with the Del Morino flail mower. I'll bring the Echo leaf blower if the POS will start! It's supposed to be in the low 90s tomorrow and Saturday so it'll be a good test of the MX and its cooling system. I'll report back with any issues.

On the no start issue on the Echo blower (that I recall recommending to you) you may need to tighten up the thumb screw that holds the screen over the air intake (and make sure that it is turned on to the run position). Should start easily then (don’t ask how I know that)

 

[mcmxi]

On the no start issue on the Echo blower (that I recall recommending to you) you may need to tighten up the thumb screw that holds the screen over the air intake (and make sure that it is turned on to the run position). Should start easily then (don’t ask how I know that)

@Russell King, thanks for the recommendation. You probably should have suggested that I RTFM while you were at it!! When I read the starting procedure in the manual last night it mentioned moving the throttle to the 50% position. I had it wide open, and wouldn't you know it but it started on the second pull. Maybe I've been down this road before but completely forgot about it. Also, I have a PB-2520 and it doesn't have a thumb screw over the air filter screen.

 

[Hunter1157]

troverman, Looks like you nailed it on the metal around the seat area. Just got finished mowing for about 2 hours. The metal under the seat area was 82* when I started which was the air temp at the time. After I got back to the house I took readings on the metal around the seat area and right where it meets the floor and the temps where 101*. The rubber floor mat read 89*. This has pretty much convinced me to order some heat shield material and cover all the metal around seat area down to the rubber mat to try and stop some of that heat from getting into the cab.

On a side note the AC functioned much better after insulating the roof. When out in the sun with temps above 95* I use to have to run my AC fan on 3 but on 2 today I was very comfortable.

 

[troverman]

Thanks, that’s good info. I will insulate mine.

 

[mcmxi]

Last night after cutting for close to five hours I could feel the temperature in the cab increasing. The temperature gauge didn't show any significant increase and since it was late I parked the tractor. This morning I raised the hood. The condenser screen, and to a lesser extent the radiator screen, were covered with all manner of grass and weeds. A minute with an Echo leaf blower got everything cleaned up.

 

[rc51stierhoff]

When I mow with the MX at the other place, it’s very common that it’s as tall as the hood. (When I mow at home with the B in back same thing). I have an air compressor and wand that is helpful at home. My other place I don’t have a air compressor there so I try to be a little more mindful of the buildup of material…to me it seems like it cleans easier if you keep up with it…you can by air in a can…but I opted for a Milwaukee cordless blower…it works very well…I don’t think it replaces a wand that can reach in really tight places, but the blower has pretty impressive airflow and very quickly cleans the debris off. I clean all the implements with it actually before parking.

 

[B737]

Last night after cutting for close to five hours I could feel the temperature in the cab increasing. The temperature gauge didn't show any significant increase and since it was late I parked the tractor. This morning I raised the hood and the condenser screen, and to a lesser extent the radiator screen, were covered with all manner of grass and weeds. A minute with an Echo leaf blower got everything cleaned up

this is my experience as well while brush cutting. But as a cab-less savage, I only need to monitor engine temp. I always bring a hose, the water version of radiator genie and a leaf blower if I bring the machine off property to brush cut.

If only there was a screen in development that wraps around the exterior grille, maybe attached with magnets, similar to "winter covers" that wrap over the grille.

 

[mcmxi]

this is my experience as well while brush cutting. But as a cab-less savage, I only need to monitor engine temp. I always bring a hose, the water version of radiator genie and a leaf blower if I bring the machine off property to brush cut.

If only there was a screen in development that wraps around the exterior grille, maybe attached with magnets, similar to "winter covers" that wrap over the grille.

I have a similar system for my F250 for summer/winter use but haven't used it yet. I bought it on Amazon for $60 or so three or four years ago. It has snaps that need to be drilled and mounted rather than magnets but the idea is the same.

I probably should have bought a more powerful leaf blower than the Echo PB-2520 but it does work and is able to blow off/out most of the dust and vegetation. Certainly enough to get back to effective A/C performance.

I can see why @Hunter1157 has insulated the roof and is thinking about doing the same for the floor of his cab. I was comfortable in 95F weather but there's very little humidity up here so it might not be as critical for me. That said, insulation against heat is insulation against cold, and sound deadening is always appealing.

 

[B737]

@mcmxi at the risk of thread drift... I had a 15 year old stihl hand held gas blower that I recently replaced with an echo "just because". I am so disappointed I gave up my Stihl for the echo. I mean it works, but im not happy with it. It takes a while to 'warm up' and provide 100% power, where as the Stihl just started right up and was ready to go. Not happy with the Echo.

 

[mcmxi]

@mcmxi at the risk of thread drift... I had a 15 year old stihl hand held gas blower that I recently replaced with an echo "just because". I am so disappointed I gave up my Stihl for the echo. I mean it works, but im not happy with it. It takes a while to 'warm up' and provide 100% power, where as the Stihl just started right up and was ready to go. Not happy with the Echo.

How we remove debris from our tractors, particularly when we're using them, isn't a thread drift as far as I'm concerned.

I'm with you on the Echo. I've been buying Stihl products for years without any complaints, but bought the Echo on the recommendation of an ex-coworker who's opinions on just about everything were based on what he'd read. It was $170 or so and I should have paid twice that for a Stihl and been 10x happier. I don't like how it runs, or the ergonomics, but I'm stuck with it for now. As I said, it managed to get most of the debris off the two screens but there's certainly room for improvement.

Someone needs to offer a "leaf" blower for tractors with a wand that can fit in tight spaces and blow dust out of the radiator and condenser. I could fabricate something using PVC pipe I guess. Maybe a reducer or two would bump up the air velocity enough to do a really good job of blowing crap out of the engine compartment.

I'm heading back out to my friend's place and will start the day using the Echo.

 

[troverman]

@mxmci I’m amazed the AC wasn’t totally warm with that buildup. I guess it’s how clean the condenser cores are behind the cheesy screen.

I recently picked up the Milwaukee m18 blower…not impressed but will probably work for this purpose.

 

[RBsingl]

Two years ago, I replaced my 25 year old Stihl trimmer with a Stihl KM-131R Kombi head along with the string, blade, and blower attachments and I am completely happy with it. It has good balance with all of the attachments and with only one motor to worry about. The 131 is the biggest of the three professional series Kombi heads and has plenty of power for the attachments and starts quickly and surely.

My only complaint is Stihl must have learned from the ink jet printers because the string head must have come with only a few yards of line just like the initial ink cartridges come about 15% filled. I bought a second spool and line in bulk so now I always have a full spool ready to go.

Rodger

 

[troverman]

Two years ago, I replaced my 25 year old Stihl trimmer with a Stihl KM-131R Kombi head along with the string, blade, and blower attachments and I am completely happy with it. It has good balance with all of the attachments and with only one motor to worry about. The 131 is the biggest of the three professional series Kombi heads and has plenty of power for the attachments and starts quickly and surely.

My only complaint is Stihl must have learned from the ink jet printers because the string head must have come with only a few yards of line just like the initial ink cartridges come about 15% filled. I bought a second spool and line in bulk so now I always have a full spool ready to go.

Rodger

The Stihl trimmer heads are horrible. I have two KM131R units with most attachments. I refuse the use the trimmer. Husqvarna has the best trimmer heads.

 

[RBsingl]

The Stihl trimmer heads are horrible. I have two KM131R units with most attachments. I refuse the use the trimmer. Husqvarna has the best trimmer heads.

I use the blade for almost everything, the string trimmer only goes on when I have to trim near stuff that could get hurt.

What is the Stihl trimmer head doing (or not doing) for you? The bump feed head seems to work well, it is the same style I had on my previous trimmer.

Rodger

 

[troverman]

I use the blade for almost everything, the string trimmer only goes on when I have to trim near stuff that could get hurt.

What is the Stihl trimmer head doing (or not doing) for you? The bump feed head seems to work well, it is the same style I had on my previous trimmer.

Rodger

The trimmer head is difficult to load (requires two equal lengths of string cut instead of just one folded like Husky and others). It also doesn’t hold very much string. I have a side landscaping business and go through a couple thousand feet of string a season, so reload speed and capacity is important.

 

[RBsingl]

The trimmer head is difficult to load (requires two equal lengths of string cut instead of just one folded like Husky and others). It also doesn’t hold very much string. I have a side landscaping business and go through a couple thousand feet of string a season, so reload speed and capacity is important.

I can understand that would be a pain with a commercial business. Fortunately I just take care of my place (5 acres with a fair amount of trimming, I hope it will be a little less trimming once my F-2690 is delivered).

The Kombi head trimmer came with the 4 "tooth" blade installed, I switched over the 3 tooth triangle blade from my older Stihl which seems to cut much more quickly.

I have had to rewind several coils in old transmitters and receivers as part of my vintage ham radio gear restoration hobby. I guess it is all relative because compared to multiple layer coils with several tap points in the winding, the string trimmer winding isn't bad.

I can't remember the brand of the first trimmer I bought back in 1990 but it was a royal pain to replace the line. Instead of two separated areas on the spool, it had a single open area and you had to carefully keep both lines parallel to one another and untwisted as you wound the layers. It was perfectly designed to ensure that you would always buy preloaded spools from the manufacturer.

Rodger