We were moving trees with the grapple for storm cleanup and realized when we were done that the left side now sits lower than the right. We looked at all of the hydraulics and dont notice the rods being out of line and then looked at all of the arms to see if there was any broken paint from possibly tourqing the carriage. Is there an arm adjustment to re-level the machine? The hydraulic fluid looks to be at the proper level on the guage, but could it be as simple as adding more fluid? Has anyone ever had this problem? We were lifting large trees, but if the loader couldnt handle it the arms just wouldnt raise, so we would cut more off the tree to get to a more manageable weight.
SVL95 Loader arms uneven
- Thread starter wmmoorejr
- Start date
If I'm not mistaken this was discussed a little while back. @North Idaho Wolfman did a post on how to fix it--I cannot remember the solution but it worked for the OP. May want to search the forum.
North Idaho Wolfman
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@North Idaho Wolfman
I was able to get these pictures. I raised the arms all the way up and measured the rams on the back, they are the same on both sides. I then wen to the front and fully extended those rams, same measurement on both sides. I do not see any indication of a bend (chipped paint, stress fracture, ect...) I also measured from the inside of the right arm to the cab and came up with ~4 1/2" gap. The opposite side is a little over 5"
The bottom two pictures show the uneven spacing where the arms are supposed to come down. The right side is catching while there is plenty of room on the other side. I am at a loss. Any guidance or ideas would be greatly appreciated.
I was able to get these pictures. I raised the arms all the way up and measured the rams on the back, they are the same on both sides. I then wen to the front and fully extended those rams, same measurement on both sides. I do not see any indication of a bend (chipped paint, stress fracture, ect...) I also measured from the inside of the right arm to the cab and came up with ~4 1/2" gap. The opposite side is a little over 5"
The bottom two pictures show the uneven spacing where the arms are supposed to come down. The right side is catching while there is plenty of room on the other side. I am at a loss. Any guidance or ideas would be greatly appreciated.
North Idaho Wolfman
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Need to see pictures from the sides too.
From what I see, that's not looking good.
It's looking like you pushed it too hard and bent the loader arms, and that's no small task to do on a Skid loader!
From what I see, that's not looking good.
It's looking like you pushed it too hard and bent the loader arms, and that's no small task to do on a Skid loader!
Thanks, headed back up this weekend and will get more pictures. What exactly would you like to see on the sides? I am attaching the only one I took this past weekend
If they did bend, it is very surprising to me too since all we were doing was picking up trees with the grapple, cutting them down to a manageable size and moving them off the road. We have done the same thing many times before with no issues.
If they did bend, it is very surprising to me too since all we were doing was picking up trees with the grapple, cutting them down to a manageable size and moving them off the road. We have done the same thing many times before with no issues.
North Idaho Wolfman
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What you would be looking at would be twisting of this tube, As that tube keeps the arms in sync.
Look for any bow or twist or cracked or warped paint on the tube or the connection to the tube.
How this normally gets damaged isn't from lifting anything it's from wedging something between the back of the bucket and the unit.
Like what damaged the step on the unit?
if it was like a log that got wedged in behind it there is your cause.
Now if that is the issue, as I'm sure it is, there are a couple ways to fix it.
The most accurate and safe way is to replace the loader arms!
Only a good option if you have Kubota insurance as that's a lot of money.
The other option is to have a very competent welder cut the tube and reweld it back with the arms in sync.
The third option is to block the side that drops first and using the hydraulics to twist it back into shape, this is the most risky as you can do more damage if done wrong.
Look for any bow or twist or cracked or warped paint on the tube or the connection to the tube.
How this normally gets damaged isn't from lifting anything it's from wedging something between the back of the bucket and the unit.
Like what damaged the step on the unit?
if it was like a log that got wedged in behind it there is your cause.
Now if that is the issue, as I'm sure it is, there are a couple ways to fix it.
The most accurate and safe way is to replace the loader arms!
Only a good option if you have Kubota insurance as that's a lot of money.
The other option is to have a very competent welder cut the tube and reweld it back with the arms in sync.
The third option is to block the side that drops first and using the hydraulics to twist it back into shape, this is the most risky as you can do more damage if done wrong.
That can also happen if one side comes unlatched when there is weight in the grapple/bucket/tool. The weight twist the latched connection.
@North Idaho Wolfman Thank you sir I will scour the back of the machine and see if I see any indication of a bend, or twist. I will out a level on it too. Nothing got between the grapple and the machine. The step was ripped off over a year ago when a chain was attached to it to try and pull a seed drill from under the lean to. This current damage just occurred recently.
I know that there was talk of getting the insurance, but do not know if that was ever done. I will look into that. The owner of the machine is actually also a part owner in a welding and machine shop, so that could be an alternate route to take as well. I did try to put just the lower side of the bucket on a stump and let all the weight be taken there, but it didn't seem to help. I may try blocking it this weekend.
@D2Cat Thank you for your response as well. When you say comes unlatched do you mean the actual locking pin that rotates down on each side into the implement to hold it to the arms? If that is the case then, no nothing came unlatched. Would there be another latch I am unaware of?
I know that there was talk of getting the insurance, but do not know if that was ever done. I will look into that. The owner of the machine is actually also a part owner in a welding and machine shop, so that could be an alternate route to take as well. I did try to put just the lower side of the bucket on a stump and let all the weight be taken there, but it didn't seem to help. I may try blocking it this weekend.
@D2Cat Thank you for your response as well. When you say comes unlatched do you mean the actual locking pin that rotates down on each side into the implement to hold it to the arms? If that is the case then, no nothing came unlatched. Would there be another latch I am unaware of?
North Idaho Wolfman
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Well the only other things I can come up with is a broken lift cylinder or a damaged pin.
I think it's time to haul it to a dealer and let them get there eyes / hands on it and see what's going on with it.
I think it's time to haul it to a dealer and let them get there eyes / hands on it and see what's going on with it.
The machine might be able to lift the weight but it can't handle the bending moments. Think of what you do to loosen stuck wheel lug nuts. You get a big breaker bar to apply more torque. When you lift a big tree and the load is offset (admit it, it was) it's the equivalent to using a big @ss breaker bar and you broke your machine.
Think of this as an expensive learning lesson and be thankful nobody got injured.
Talked to the dealer, they are seeing this problem often. Looks like the arm design is faulty or the material is not strong enough
I have one that is like yours twisted same direction what happened with your did you have to replace boom