MX5400 Heat Houser

[BA76]

Merry Christmas everyone. I just purchased a new MX5400 open station tractor. I purposely wanted an open station for ease of mowing under and along tree lines. Barn cleaning stalls with low over hangs. And ease of getting on and off frequently during the course of a normal work day. But.....there are days here in Illinois that some wind protection would be very welcome. My son and I enjoy cutting firewood and the 5400 is a welcome helper. My question is, does anyone have any information on availability of a heat house/weather enclosure that would fit my tractor? I see the soft cabs that require a canopy. That will not work for me.

 

[Bmyers]

Welcome from another Illinoisan. Sounds like you got yourself a nice Christmas present.

 

[UpNorthMI]

My MX 5800 is my snow clearer here in Michigan, the best solution is a lot of clothes, I like the great visibility and being able to watch the snow blower on the back and the front snow pusher, a cab or enclosure would be nice but I do too much in the woods, Merry Christmas, stay warm. An open tractor is far better than being out there with a shovel!

 

[SidecarFlip]

None ever made that I know of. You might want to give Shoup a call, they are in Illinois and see if they have a heat houser that might be adaptable. Good folks to work with, I get lots of parts from them.

 

[BA76]

Welcome from another Illinoisan. Sounds like you got yourself a nice Christmas present.

Thank you! Yes I did! It seems like a very sound capable work hand so far. Had a 5amp fuse blow Wednesday. Killed the tractor immediately. The dealer checked it out and found nothing obvious wrong. Replaced the fuse and it’s been fine since. We will see....

 

[BA76]

My MX 5800 is my snow clearer here in Michigan, the best solution is a lot of clothes, I like the great visibility and being able to watch the snow blower on the back and the front snow pusher, a cab or enclosure would be nice but I do too much in the woods, Merry Christmas, stay warm. An open tractor is far better than being out there with a shovel!

That is definitely true. Most days the open work station is just the ticket for me. I found it odd some of the options Kubota left off the open station tractors verses the same tractor in a cabbed version. The tilt steering wheel was the first I noticed. Second was the bucket level indicator rod. Just because I don't have a cab doesn't mean I don't want to know if my bucket is parallel to the ground. Visibility to the bucket is basically the same on either unit. I ran my tractor one day and called my dealer and asked them to order the leveling rod.

 

[Bmyers]

I know with the cold temps we are having right now, the cab with my heater sure is nice.

 

[BA76]

None ever made that I know of. You might want to give Shoup a call, they are in Illinois and see if they have a heat houser that might be adaptable. Good folks to work with, I get lots of parts from them.

I will do that. Is Shoup a Kubota dealer? The MX series is a new enough there probably isn't anything specifically made for that tractor. Something close would be fine. I can retrofit it myself.

 

[BA76]

I know with the cold temps we are having right now, the cab with my heater sure is nice.

Yes, a cab can be pretty sweet.

 

[freewheel3]

On my MX5000, I simply use a 10'x12' tarp. I enclose the whole front end, including under the belly and use a few bungie cords to hold it in place. I have it so the steering wheel and joystick can be either under it or exposed.
Then I use two bungie cords to the Rops to enclose the operator station, those bungies are also my door handles lol.
It isn't near as good as a cab, but after an hour of use, the floor boards, seat and steering wheel are all warm to the touch and I still have great visibility. It takes 5 minutes to install in the fall and about 2 minutes to remove in the spring. All for the cost of about $20.

 

[SidecarFlip]

I will do that. Is Shoup a Kubota dealer? The MX series is a new enough there probably isn't anything specifically made for that tractor. Something close would be fine. I can retrofit it myself.

Shoup is a general parts dealer (all makes) in Matawan Illinois (I think). I buy tillage parts, cutter knives and rake tines from them all the time. Good folks.

 

[Ikc1990]

My wifes grand father mad a simple wooden cab for his open cab Alice and put plexiglass windshield rear window and 1 window in each door he even used a couple old household door knobs to lock it up. Lol he is in his 80s just put a new heater in it attached to side of dash so he can still remove cab in 6 peices with like a dozen screws for summer but dont have to remove heater. Just a thought he used luann for roof and larger areas and glued 1 inch foam board for insulation before heater it actually stayed decent in there. But at his age he should be able to plow and pull firewood in a tshirt. Lol us younger guys can do the manual labor hes put his time in and then some.

 

[BA76]

On my MX5000, I simply use a 10'x12' tarp. I enclose the whole front end, including under the belly and use a few bungie cords to hold it in place. I have it so the steering wheel and joystick can be either under it or exposed.
Then I use two bungie cords to the Rops to enclose the operator station, those bungies are also my door handles lol.
It isn't near as good as a cab, but after an hour of use, the floor boards, seat and steering wheel are all warm to the touch and I still have great visibility. It takes 5 minutes to install in the fall and about 2 minutes to remove in the spring. All for the cost of about $20.

Now that’s a direction I hadn’t even thought of. Good idea. Thank you.

 

[BA76]

My wifes grand father mad a simple wooden cab for his open cab Alice and put plexiglass windshield rear window and 1 window in each door he even used a couple old household door knobs to lock it up. Lol he is in his 80s just put a new heater in it attached to side of dash so he can still remove cab in 6 peices with like a dozen screws for summer but dont have to remove heater. Just a thought he used luann for roof and larger areas and glued 1 inch foam board for insulation before heater it actually stayed decent in there. But at his age he should be able to plow and pull firewood in a tshirt. Lol us younger guys can do the manual labor hes put his time in and then some.

Thats a cool story. I could see my dad doing something like that when he was alive. That generation had more ingenuity and were twice as tough as I’ll ever be.