Newbie - '87 7200 or '02 7500??

[rhader]

Again I have the B7500 with the factory LA272 and that FEL max's out at 600 lb. so 1000 lb. is a stretch or a really big stretch for either tractor. I have some clamp on pallet forks and sometimes I need to lift with the FEL only and it get lite in the back end. I have a 48" tiller that weight in at 600 lb. and that make a great counter weight. I don't use the pallet forks for anything really heavy (loading the bush hog on the trailer, when I unload my 60 gal compressor, etc) but with the tiller attached it smoothes things out.

The spec sheet for the B2920 I was given by the Kubota dealership says the FEL capacity is 900lbs slightly over actually... I know of course the B7200 is likely closer to 500lbs give or take.

I didnt realize the B7500 would be that similar to the B7200....

 

[rparkinson]

I looked at the site for the front end loaders, seems like a great deal. Hard to go wrong for 1800 bucks... If you are mechanically inclined you will be fine. Like I said, the B7200 I had was a great machine, very powerful for its size. It did a lot of work for me. When I got it, I read about all the quirks of them, did everything I could do service wise to prevent any failures and it was great with the exception of the steering box. I will say that after owning that machine and then buying a new one that pwr steering is nice.... let us know what you decide, good luck!!

 

[rhader]

After some consideration and speaking with a few of the dealers I have aput a deposit on the older 1987 B7200.. I think it will do 99% of what I want it to and for the extra 1% Im not even sure if the B7500 would do the work... and an extra $14k for a 2012 or 2013 with 29hp (B2920) seems a bit much...

AND to top it of fteh dealership told me that for the price im getting it for beat it up for a year and they would be able to at the very least give me what I payed for it today on a trade in a year from now...

SO... picking up the B7200 tomorrow!!!
I will let you know how it goes - as you mentioned above I have read the steering box can be a hassle with a load in the bucket...

 

[rparkinson]

Good deal- you will like it. Do make sure to change the fluid in the steering box, it often gets neglected because it is a pain. It does not have a drain on it, so the only way to do it is suck it out, which always leaves some in it, or remove it completely and tip it over to drain it. This is a pain on the HST models and not nearly as bad on the gear models. Just my 2 cents anyway... well more like 25 cents at this point... ha.. good luck!

 

[rhader]

Picked up the new to me B7200... now in its new home! Was sitting at about 1280hrs when I picked her up now at about 1295!
I must have plowed the driveway a dozen times!!

Now as all things go you get them home and see a little bit more so of course there are a couple of minor things I did notice that she will need:
- front tires for sure
- currently sits on turf tires.. .now do I change all 4 tires I am not sure if the rear tires have ever been replaced so they would be 26years old if they haven't and do show some cracking but tread appears OK.. do I replace them?
- are there more aggressive tires I should go with?
It was quite slippery out on the weekend with lots of wet snow and ice so I was slipping but still got around OK. with the 4x4 of course... Though I could see some more traction could be very useful in some slippery mud.

- the seat needs replacing

- the front hood needs to be straightened out a little from a stump quarrel I am told its not too bad - not as bad as it looks in the picture

- front grill is a little obscure due to the misshapen hood

- there are a couple hydraulic lines on the loader that will need replacing

- the main feed hydraulic line appears to be somewhat wet and might be leaking from somewhere

- the battery is 6 years old and definitely finished...

- front headlights work / but very dim / so I will need to add some daylight lighting for the night hours...

- tail lights most don't work

Everything else is very solid - and very clean - the tractor has been stored in doors from was said and appears for its entire life so is in good shape. The only real paint blemish is on the side by the battery with what looks to be a battery explosion or tilt of some sort....

The glow plugs seem to take longer than I would expect (about 60seconds) crank time to hold on. but that might be the battery that is causing this...
That's about it from my weekend assessment... I did notice the GP indicator is not actually the GP's any longer but is wired to the key ignition to hold manually to the left... Not sure if this is a typical correction??

here are some pictures in its new home...

the battery and the battery left paint stains.

 

[rhader]

more pics:

 

[rhader]

So now does anyone have any other suggestion as to what sort of preventative maintenance or suggestion as to what I should look at?

i.e. thanks for the suggestion on the steering box fluid. I will do that for sure....

I will be doing an engine tune up and oil and filter change of course...

hydrostatic trans fluid? I assume I should be doing this of course?

anything else?

the engine.... are there any timing related parts that I should be concerned about changing immediately?

cheers.

 

[rparkinson]

Hey good deal, congrats on the bota!! Grab that fan and give it a shake make sure the water pump bearing is not wasted- easier to fix it now if it is and you are in fix it mode. Glow plug set up is proper. In cold weather you will have to hold the key to the left for about 60 sec or so, says that right in the manual. Good to hear you will address the steering box. These are great machines and if you service it like you should it will last you a long time. Take the time to learn where ALL the grease fittings are. Use a good quality grease. I use wurth SIG 3000. Killer $$ but it makes me feel good... Use good filters too, like Wix, Mann... or Kubota. Dont use garbage filters. Glad to see it worked out for you!!

 

[Russell King]

one thing I did not see in your list was the radiator/anti-freeze. You will probably want to change it or at least verify that it has anti-freeze in it.

I imagine from where you live that you would do this anyway.

 

[Russell King]

Oh you might want to look at this thread - it shows a similar tractor paint job.

http://www.orangetractortalks.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9197

 

[rhader]

that's a pretty awesome paint job!! hole smokes! I may have to do that.. lol

I didn't mention the coolant - however yes I plan on changing that as well.

I was looking into the hydrostatic transmission and the engine oil and it was documented by a local kubota dealer that the changes have been done regularly and at the Kubota dealership of course so everything appears to be up to date - typically I would do the flush of all systems anyway for peace of mind - but doesn't seem all that necessary.

Those tires that are on the Kubota in the link appear to be pretty nice looking... Anyone ideas where to purchase tractor tires from or what I should look for more specifically? looking for a somewhat aggressive - but don't want to destroy the driveway.

and batteries? what should I put in for a battery?

cheers.

 

[Eric McCarthy]

A set of R4 Industrial tires will offer better traction then turfs and wont trash your driveway or lawn. And as far as battery look for something in the 850 to 1000 CCA size for those cold starts on a Canadian winter morning.