Kubota Manuals Silliness

[GeoHorn]

While seeking to confirm information posted by another participant regarding maintenance instructions I went to my OM and WSM and searched for it and didn’t find it.... but. what I DID find... was yet another example of Kubota manual confusion: These two pics are from the OM and the WSM for the M4700/M5400 models.... they are the Tire Inflation Charts for those models.
I have 16.9-28 rear tires. You’d think Kubota could at least get their specs to agree with their own publications, yes?
(I wonder if I should run rear tires at 18 psi.... or 22 psi....??)
grrrrr....

 

[Dave_eng]

While seeking to confirm information posted by another participant regarding maintenance instructions I went to my OM and WSM and searched for it and didn’t find it.... but. what I DID find... was yet another example of Kubota manual confusion: These two pics are from the OM and the WSM for the M4700/M5400 models.... they are the Tire Inflation Charts for those models.
I have 16.9-28 rear tires. You’d think Kubota could at least get their specs to agree with their own publications, yes?
(I wonder if I should run rear tires at 18 psi.... or 22 psi....??)
grrrrr....

The thing that I notice in the material posted is that the WSM deals with two models but the O&M one only deals with the smaller of the two tractors. I did not think further if there is a logic in all of that.

On my tractor, a M7040, the tires I ordered R4, are not even mentioned in the size pressure chart.

The dealer when to Kubota and got their recommended pressures which did not make sense.

Dave

 

[GeoHorn]

The thing that I notice in the material posted is that the WSM deals with two models but the O&M one only deals with the smaller of the two tractors. I did not think further if there is a logic in all of that.

On my tractor, a M7040, the tires I ordered R4, are not even mentioned in the size pressure chart.

The dealer when to Kubota and got their recommended pressures which did not make sense.

Dave

Good eyes there, Dave! But those are only the individual page-headers...

In fact both manuals purport to represent M4700/M5400 models.

 

[GeoHorn]

What’s more is that both manuals (in the tractor specifications pages) list the 14.9-28 rear tire for the M4700 but the 16.9-28 tire for the M5400..... yet my M4700 was delivered new from the dealer with these Firestone 16.9-28 tires.
Now, I understand that a larger tire will have a greater footprint and therefore would normally carry a lower pressure for equal weights..... so I’m inclined to believe the slightly lighter M4700 with the larger tire might prefer the lower 18 psi...not the 22 psi posted in the WSM... ( the M4700 weighs only 50 lbs less than the M5400 so that may not play as much of a factor... I’ll bet at 240 lbs I’m more than 50 lbs heavier than the average Japanese operator....LOL )...

 

[Thunder chicken]

Geo, we have company ops manuals, SOP’s and AFM’s that can’t agree on things. Then there’s always that guy who says ‘do it this way’ cause it’s just the way it’s always been done’. I’d expect nothing less from a tractor manual!

 

[CJO]

Not sure this is the right place for this question, Please redirect me if not. I have an L260 about a 1974, The steering has become Difficult ( hard to turn like no power steering) not sure if this is a gear oil problem or something much bigger, came on sudden and just trying to figure it out, thank you for any help

 

[GreensvilleJay]

was told 5 decades ago....3 ribs on the ground = good tire pressure.

 

[lynnmor]

The engineers should have spent some time in the military motor pool.

 

[GeoHorn]

Geo, we have company ops manuals, SOP’s and AFM’s that can’t agree on things. Then there’s always that guy who says ‘do it this way’ cause it’s just the way it’s always been done’. I’d expect nothing less from a tractor manual!

Yeah.... I was recently reading the final NASA accident investigation report on Columbia and you’d think by now NASA would have double-checked everything they do.... but it’s not comforting to read their “final” report which is supposed to make us all feel warm-and-fuzzy about how much they’ve finally improved.... when the report is full of typos and misspellings.

Of course, SOP’s and company Ops are developed by operator insiders...not the mfr’r. I can see where a committee on SOPs this year might not fully match what the ops-manual committee created a decade ago... Hopefully the user-group can suggest corrections..
Somehow I tend to hold the mfr’r to higher standards when they publish manuals on their own product.

 

[je1279]

I agree that the manuals can be frustrating, especially when there is conflicting information. As for rear tire pressure, I think it's more experimentation depending on usage and most manuals will state significantly higher pressures than necessary. I've found that for most compact tractors, somewhere in the 12-16psi range works best. If you add an implement or ballast to the rear and notice the tires squatting, just add a bit more pressure. This method works for me.

 

[bird dogger]

Not sure this is the right place for this question, Please redirect me if not. I have an L260 about a 1974, The steering has become Difficult ( hard to turn like no power steering) not sure if this is a gear oil problem or something much bigger, came on sudden and just trying to figure it out, thank you for any help

Sorry, I can't help you with your L260 problem but "Welcome, to OTT"!! You'd be best to start your own thread in this section. If you go to the top of this page and click on the "Service, Repair & Maintenance" forum header it should take you straight to the top of that forum. There you'll see the spot to post your question. Select the "Post" button or put your cursor in the thread title box and type your title and then question in the box below your thread title. Hope this helps!

 

[CJO]

Sorry, I can't help you with your L260 problem but "Welcome, to OTT"!! You'd be best to start your own thread in this section. If you go to the top of this page and click on the "Service, Repair & Maintenance" forum header it should take you straight to the top of that forum. There you'll see the spot to post your question. Select the "Post" button or put your cursor in the thread title box and type your title and then question in the box below your thread title. Hope this helps!

Great..... thank you for your help !

 

[blank102]

I've always wondered why Kubota"s come with such an inadequate manual.

 

[dambuster]

Not sure this is the right place for this question, Please redirect me if not. I have an L260 about a 1974, The steering has become Difficult ( hard to turn like no power steering) not sure if this is a gear oil problem or something much bigger, came on sudden and just trying to figure it out, thank you for any help

I have the same L260 and steering issue....which became a major problem...hard to steer, then impossible to steer, lots of issues developed quickly..Old machine and Kubota was NO help at all since steering parts (as well as the part are NLA for the L260, and other Kubota models do NOT interchange!) I tore into the steering box system, which is a nightmare in itself. I found that the upper and lower steering shaft bearings, steering shaft seals had disintegrated. Sector shaft seal was also leaking. It seems water had gotten into the steering box. I am No mechanic, so it has been a terrible experience for me! Take Lots of photos to help you put back together, when you can find the parts! I was fortunate that the ball Nut on the steering shaft was still intact and good. I do Not think you can easily repair or replace those because they do not match ANY other system I could find!

TODAY, I just found most gaskets, shims, bearings and seals. It took me a combination of internet searches, Kubota dealer Luck and many YouTube videos (Yanmar were the best) to help me thru it!. Ready to re-assemble this coming week, God willing. Watch the videos!!!!! Get lots of good hand cleaner, towels, PB Blaster, degreaser. You will be removing instrument panel, battery tray, all wire & control connections, steering wheel, etc. The upper & lower bearings will be easy to find...

Hope you have a good place inside to do this work....save ALL nuts, bolts, etc and photos...Caution, you MUST pay attention to the re-adjustment of the front wheel steering, to help avoid any over steerage damage...There is a YouTube video that warns of the importance of this...it might be a Yanmar tractor thing...which is very similar to the Kubota L260 system.

Good Luck! I do not get on this forum much..since I am too busy fixing my tractor! I do not use any social media either.

 

[PainInMy_L260]

Not sure this is the right place for this question, Please redirect me if not. I have an L260 about a 1974, The steering has become Difficult ( hard to turn like no power steering) not sure if this is a gear oil problem or something much bigger, came on sudden and just trying to figure it out, thank you for any help

Any luck? I’m having steering problems with my L260 as well.