Damaged Loader... How best to repair?

[fried1765]

Here’s one example. I could only lift this stump about 3 inches off the ground, but it was enough that I was able to move it where I wanted to dump it.

And for the naysayers, yes I did dig it out with my three-point-hitch backhoe…

View attachment 124952

Using that 3pt. hitch backhoe......it took exactly 3 weeks?

 

[InTheWoods]

Is this a LA535 FEL? Curious what size logs you( @FarmtoLake ) were carrying (i.e length, diamter, species)

 

[Henro]

Using that 3pt. hitch backhoe......it took exactly 3 weeks?

No, but probably a day.

We use the tools we have…

AND the tractor has yet to break in half...

Sure beats a pick and shovel!

 

[fried1765]

No, but probably a day.

We use the tools we have…

AND the tractor has yet to break in half...

Sure beats a pick and shovel!

"has yet to break in half"
Tomorrow is another day!

 

[NorthwoodsLife]

I don't know, Kids... Just Sayin':

The loader hydraulic capacity, tractor size and weight, and FRONT-END LOADER FRAME, et al., should NOT be bendable in normal use.

Abuse is another story.

I'm not saying that the OP abused his LX2610. I'm saying that maybe the King, K, shaved a little too much off of the needed structure for the front end loader.

I haven't bent mine. The LA535. At least I don't think I have. But if it's not abused, I don't think I should be able to bend it.

I should be able to drag logs or stumps with the loader without fail. Even only on one side or the other. It should not fail. Considering horse power and weight of the machine.

Just sayin'. Just an old man's thought.

 

[InTheWoods]

^That's kind of what I've been thinking and the reason behind my wanting to know details about what the OP was doing that might have caused this...

 

[NorthwoodsLife]

To continue, if I may.... I never bent the loader framework or structure on my Kubota B7100. Never. And I didn't on several MF, Case, JD and several other commercial loaders and TLB's that I operated over decades. And I put them through some very serious stress.

They built the loader frame and structure to handle abuse. More abuse than the weight of the tractor or HP could dish out. And nothing bent.

Is something happening here with Kubota? Have they gone cheap on us?

If it pulls it, I should be able to drag a 2-ton Stump 50 yards with my tractor. Even only attached to one side of the loader. If it doesn't, it's too big. I shouldn't be able to bend my loader arms trying. Period.

Imagine you are digging a hole, and your right or left side of the bucket is under a huge, house size boulder. But you can't see it. Should you be able to bend your loader arms trying to lift it?

The answer is no.

You build the loader arms and frame structure on a tractor to handle the max capability of the tractor's weight, hydraulic capability, and horse power. And then add 50 percent.

You don't put a 200 HP axle in a car that has a 500 HP engine.

 

[D2Cat]

I was talking with a friend today who told me about his tractor experience since I last saw him. He has a 4 year old Massey 60 HP tractor with loader. He was using a stump spade removing stumps. He broke BOTH loader arms, cracked the steel. The bean counters are saving every penny and lightening up the metal in tractors.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

I will give my guess what happened, the OP can confirm or deny.
He grabbed a log and it was hanging out one side a little more then the other and he moved it from one place to another and on that move the tractor hit a bump or two and bounced and that is really how it bent.
It didn't bend from the lifting of it.

 

[GrizBota]

Hello Jiggseob, you were right on the loader frame tower. The right side is perfectly straight. The left side is out by 1/4' over 24'. Next step is to remove the loader and then the loader frames to do a similar repair as you mentioned. Thanks again

Is that 1/4 inch in 4 feet? Or 1/4 inch in 24 ft? If the latter, does the laser show the other side to be perfect and is the laser level truly accurate to one part in 1152 (0.05 degrees)?

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

Is that 1/4 inch in 4 feet? Or 1/4 inch in 24 ft? If the latter, does the laser show the other side to be perfect and is the laser level truly accurate to one part in 1152 (0.05 degrees)?

He should have put 24" not 24'
so 24 inches
or 2 feet
He said earlier that he was using a 2 foot level.
So 1/2" per 4 feet

 

[GrizBota]

He should have put 24" not 24'
so 24 inches
or 2 feet
He said earlier that he was using a 2 foot level.
So 1/2" per 4 feet

That’s sounds plausible. Yeah, 1/2 inch in 4 feet is fouled up. One of the reasons I generally try to spell out the units. Many times not doing so leads to miscommunication due to a simple typo. I was wondering where there was something 24 feet long on that little loader.

 

[Donystoy]

I was skeptical of the design of the loader mount when I first saw it and thought that it might be easier to damage compared to my old one on the B7200. My old one had the posts part of the removable loader assembly and attached to the lower quick attach section that was connected to the tractor frame. The loader frame also had diagonal support arms that hooked into the front lower frame of the tractor ahead of the grill. In my opinion a much superior design. I think I will at least check the torque on the mounting bolts that attach the posts to the lower tractor frame on my LX2610.
Travelling with a heavy load in the loader over an undulating or rough surface can put serious stress on any equipment.

 

[jiggseob]

My bothers L3540 is 200 miles away, impractial to show repair. My L3130 is apart in the shop, doing main and rod bearings. The loader frames and bracketry on the two tractors is similar.

The attached photo is of a non-bent, non-fishplated, non-repaired loader frame component from my L3130.

The similar part on my brothers tractor was bent about 3/8" along the long-side of that bar. It took some artfully supported pressing and heating and beating to get it straight. Then added a piece of 1/2" flat steel, bent to fit the zig-zag. Started right at the front of that bar, and went about 8" past the zig-zag.

Check that bar, and the loader quick-attach tower for bend or deformity.

 

[jiggseob]

I agree that the stress on a loader and tractor while "lifting" a load is one thing. Having a load unevenly distributed between the two sides of the loader, then going over uneven ground, possibly steering left or right, would put twisting force on the loader frame far greater than would occur during the initial "lift".

My old B6200 HST with Allied loader has lifted all sorts of crazy stuff, so heavy that the rear wheels of the tractor were lifting off the ground - even with tiller on 3pt for counter weight. Did alot of heavy dirt-work building house and landscaping acreage, despite my severe abuse, no failures in this 1986-vintage tractor / loader.

I'm not sure what happened to tweak my brother's L3540 loader, but generally he is far less abusive on equipment than me. Are loaders less strong and less idiot-proof? Probably. Are hydraulics able to lift stuff that the rest of the structure is not capable of? Probably.

 

[GeoHorn]

I don't know, Kids... Just Sayin':

The loader hydraulic capacity, tractor size and weight, and FRONT-END LOADER FRAME, et al., should NOT be bendable in normal use.

Abuse is another story.

I'm not saying that the OP abused his LX2610. I'm saying that maybe the King, K, shaved a little too much off of the needed structure for the front end loader.

I haven't bent mine. The LA535. At least I don't think I have. But if it's not abused, I don't think I should be able to bend it.

I should be able to drag logs or stumps with the loader without fail. Even only on one side or the other. It should not fail. Considering horse power and weight of the machine.

Just sayin'. Just an old man's thought.

I harvested an oak log…. almost 30” by 20 ft…. and carried it almost a mile with my M4700DT/|LA1002 loader …rated at 2K lbs….. It often lifted the tactor rear wheels off the ground as I passed over rough “bumps” in the dirt-road/wooded terrain. It did not “bend” or otherwise “twist” my FEL.
BUT…it also never occurred to me to be aware I could abuse the FEL doing-so. I now realize I was fortunate.
Yes, folks, …it’s possible to over-stress your equipment. THINK about what you are doing when you try to accomplish things with your “mighty-midget Kubota”.

 

[gator tx]

Thats why I love my KSR option on my tractor! No bouncing with load. Plus, I have proper ballast also. People need to remember how hard it is on the front axle also. If backend is coming off ground, need more ballast. JMO

 

[jiggseob]

Okay Mr. Gator Tx ya got me. My stuff is all old. Hell even my brain is 63 years old. What is a "KSR option", and how does it make my tractoring life better?

And I agree with being conscious of front axle load. When I pick up something stupid-heavy with the loader, any load at the bucket-edge transfers weight off the rear wheels. When the rear wheels are getting light and dancing and hardly touching the ground, that means that almost 100% of the load; the tractor, the operator, the stupid-heavy load on the loader, the whole damn works; is on that front axle. How strong are those kingpin steering knuckles? How strong are the hubs and axles? How much load can those little tires take? A whole lot more than one might think. Maybe.

Theoretically, adding a 400lb tiller to the 3pt arms then allows the lifting of an additional 400 lbs at the bucket edge... and then when the rear wheels are almost lifting off the ground, thats 800 more pounds on that front axle.

Generally, we don't know the limit of front axle strength until that limit is exceeded. $$$.

 

[Schmitty]

Kubota Soft Ride, perhaps?

Thread here

 

[mikester]

How to fix your tractor

https://gifbin.com/bin/042010/1271761416_tractor-flip-over.gif