RCK60B23BX gearbox issues

[ShellKnobCat]

I can now report success! The parts came in yesterday and after 4 hours of making a few dumb mistakes, a lot of cussing and getting myself filthy dirty the gearbox is rebuilt and back in use. I mowed for about 3 hours this morning with no issues at all. All for about $163.00 in parts and without a lot of fancy tools. I used JB Weld to fill the chipped area around the one bolt hole, replaced all 3 bearings and all the seals along with the big aluminum bracket (Kubota calls it a stay) to replace the broken one I had. The only thing I didn't do myself was get the old bearing off the vertical gear which a friend with a shop cut off for me.

And a lot of help from people on this board. Thanks!

 

[m.t.hands]

good deal, when you see the price of a gear-box you didn't do too bad

 

[lugbolt]

I was going to suggest checking the bottom bearing in the spindle housing before rebuild/re-installation. May have already done that. The bearing gets loose and that's all that supports that long shaft, it flops around and takes out the lower bearing in the box, and the seal, oil leaks out, destroys gears and the other two bearings.

Also you can remove the shaft assembly with the pulley on it without removing the pulley (for replacing the seal), easy, but still cant get the bearing out without taking the box apart.

I know you & the dealer aren't on good terms, but if one would ask why they want to replace the gearbox because of the broken bolt hole, here's why. If they were to "JB weld it" and throw it back together, and that JB breaks (and it will at some point), the dealer now has a good chance of having to buy that box + labor and perhaps the entire deck; and they'd still have a mad customer. That's IF the owner didn't take them to a courtroom somewhere with a two-bit greedy attorney, then plaster the name of the dealership all over social media, billboards, and other potentially slanderous avenues. That is a set of real concerns for any dealership, thus they've become sort of "parts changers", which effectively passes some of the liability onto the manufacturer of the part, in this case Kubota. Car dealers have been doing this for YEARS, and for good reason. I hate the practice but it's necessary in some cases.

 

[ShellKnobCat]

The bottom bearing in the spindle is fine. Turns fine and seems to be tight. I totally understand why the dealer didn't want to repair a breadbox with a chip in it. I am surprised that nobody offers rebuilt gearboxes for these decks. It's really a pretty simple device and with the high cost of a new box I would think there is a market for rebuilts.

 

[ZD326S]

Congratulations! You saved some major $$$!