Tractor seats

check 6

Member

Equipment
BX 2680 FEL and pallet forks aerator ZD1211, RTV500
Apr 8, 2019
41
47
18
Seguin, Texas
I’m about at the end of my rope trying to find a comfortable seat for my Kubota grad L. The stock seat is short (butt to knee) hard and offers no support to things or back. Besides you tend to slide forward out of the seat. The dealer has been great trying to help but no success yet. The seat on my Kubota ZD 1211 mower is great but I’m being told it won’t fit. issue Im 80 multiple issues with my back including chronic sciatic . 5’9” and 150 lbs . Anyone else gone aftermarket seats with success ?
 

Motion

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Lifetime Member

Equipment
Kubota MX5100HST/FEL
Aug 17, 2020
540
302
63
Mandeville Louisiana
Start with a seat that fulfills the confort you desire and fabricate accordingly.
 
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Flintknapper

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Premium Member

Equipment
L2350DT
May 3, 2022
1,764
2,216
113
Deep East Texas
Let me know what you come up with. I recently purchase an L2350 with factory original seat and it would have made a good Medieval torture device.
 

check 6

Member

Equipment
BX 2680 FEL and pallet forks aerator ZD1211, RTV500
Apr 8, 2019
41
47
18
Seguin, Texas
At least my dealer is trying. I cut a neighbor widow two acre field Tuesday and my sciatic reacted in the worst way . We have fabricated a new bracket but the seat they tried was not deeper. I had the opportunity several months ago to visit with several engineers from Kubota Japan and I was blunt that the seat was no where near up to the quality level of the tractor. In fact the showed me a working example of the possible next evolution of the grand L and it had the same stupid seat. In fairness to them most cars from Japan also have very shallow seats butt to knee . The original one on my grand L is but 16” butt to knee where as the one on my ZD 1211 is 18”” which is more in line with most seats and or chairs.
on a different issue the engineers were excited about several mods I had made to my grand L. like the two rather than one entry step, the tool box bracket I had on the right side where an entry step might go and the camera arrangement I had installed. They took lots of pictures so maybe things like that may be included and or offered later.
right now the seat issue is close to making me sell the tractor which otherwise I could not be happier with.
 

JimmyJazz

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Equipment
B2601
Aug 8, 2020
1,219
738
113
Pittsburgh, Pa
Maybe visit some dealers that offer other brands and sit on a bunch of different tractors and/or construction equipment until you find the proper fit. Bobcat and whatnot. Good luck.
 

GSD-Keegan

Well-known member

Equipment
B2601 with Fel and Bh70 backhoe
Mar 6, 2021
611
808
93
Ontario, Canada
Kubota has some nice seats on their high end zero turn mowers. Wonder if any of them would work on a tractor ??
 

notforhire

Active member

Equipment
Kubota L47
Dec 5, 2019
123
55
28
Meadows of Dan VA.
The seat on my Kubota ZD 1211 mower is great but I’m being told it won’t fit.
That translates to, the bolt pattern is different and it won't fit without modification.
I would look at how far off the bolt pattern is between the two seats. It may be as simple as drilling new holes. There are lots of seats available for ZTs and I'm sure you could make one fit.
If you like your tractor, I wouldn't give it up quite yet.
I have some hip issues and greatly improved my L47 seat by raising it up and setting it back a little. ED27B0B8-365F-4511-A8D4-440961929DF3_1_105_c.jpeg
 
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pokey1416

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Lifetime Member

Equipment
Grand L4060HSTC, BH92 Backhoe, HLA Snow Pusher, Dirt Dog Tiller, EA DiscHarrow
Jun 24, 2020
556
825
93
SW Michigan
I'm with you on the bad Grand L seat. I'm upgrading to air ride but it sure isn't cheap!
 

GeoHorn

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Equipment
M4700DT, LA1002FEL, Ferguson5-8B Compactor-Roller, 10KDumpTrailer, RTV-X900
May 18, 2018
6,040
3,316
113
Texas
The original HARD VINYL Kubota seat and it’s hard-rail mounting system was SO uncomfortable and with no lumbar support.

I bought one of these from Rural King when it was on sale for $150, then added a seat suspension system from them. Northern Tool also sells them: https://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200326736_200326736

Here one is at ebay: https://www.ebay.com/itm/3940296148...9&customid=445503844-16-1646238767.1652969052

I HATE the HARD VINYL tractor seats so I ordered a “cordura’ covered seat. SO MUCH more comfortable. I also added a suspension onto the Kubota seat rails system I bought aftermarket. I’ll try to find a link.

Here’s a spring suspension system similar to what I’ve found very simple, much more comfortable than no suspension, adjustable to operator’s weight : https://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200487876_200487876
 

Tughill Tom

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Equipment
B3200
Dec 23, 2013
1,214
1,336
113
Turin, NY
I put a Talon in my B3200 and couldn't be happier. Got it from RK when they were giving them away, I paid $125.0
DSC01049.JPG
 
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D2Cat

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L305DT, B7100HST, TG1860, TG1860D, L4240
Mar 27, 2014
13,816
5,558
113
40 miles south of Kansas City
The seat GeoHorn posted is the one I have on my L4240. Been there now for about 3 years. Did take a bit of modification. I remember adding a wood spacer glued to the bottom of the seat to activate the safety switch. I leave the armrest on the left side up all the time for easier entry/exit.

I also installed the same model seat on a B7100. Did take some mods, but it made mowing delightful. Oh, I bought three of them for $49 each including shipping. It was so cheap i took my chances the ad was real! A few others on here got in on the same bargain.

First picture is base after old seat was removed. Second is new seat with aftermarket cover.
 

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edritchey

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Lifetime Member

Equipment
A bunch of cute little Kubotas
Jul 19, 2014
1,106
804
113
Wellsville, PA
Grammar makes the air ride seat that Kubota uses and they are nice but until you get the seat and the wiring harness required you'll probably have 1000+ into it.
 

JP_Austin

Member

Equipment
2021 Kubota M4D-071
Feb 15, 2022
32
17
8
Austin TX
I've got the Grammar air ride in my M4D and love it. I'm still learning all the adjustments on it but in rough terrain it's a breeze. They are pricey to retrofit into machines so consider that.
 
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dgtvrpepair

Member

Equipment
L4760HSTC RTV-X1100c ZD1211L-72
Feb 10, 2020
47
23
8
Morrilton AR United States
I have the grammar air ride in grand l4760 hstc with the fore/aft kit. The part number is MSG75G/531 for the seat. You need to order it form a kubota dealer to get it with the riser that is required under the seat. You lose the swivel feature and if you want to run the pto without being in operator seat you lose the flip up seat and switch to run it. You can put something about 3 lbs or more on seat and still run pto without being in the seat. Just be careful! The seat made a huge difference in my opinion. Not as much travel up and down as original but not near as jarring. If you have a hydrostatic transmission the fore/aft kit is great but if you have a clutch you probably won't like it. The fore/aft isolator kit gives movement forward and backward with a gas strut like movement. The seat comes in cloth if you have a cab and vinyl if you don't.
 

notforhire

Active member

Equipment
Kubota L47
Dec 5, 2019
123
55
28
Meadows of Dan VA.
I ordered a new seat w/ suspension from e bay. It arrived today and I mounted it on my ZT mower.
I expect that the seat bracket of your tractor could be modified to fit.
The bottom of the seat is about 17" deep. According to the seller, it's a Ferris seat. I believe it is the same as a Kubota ZT seat (and others) except for the color.
It was necessary for me to widen the mount points by welding tabs to my original seat mount frame.
The seat adjusts forward and back and the suspension travels about 3 inches. The seat itself is much softer than the original (18 yr old) Ferris seat as well as my L47 seat. Cost with tx and shipping was apt $600. E2DA9329-82F2-4D52-83C7-8A8F67DB1DBD.jpeg EB4031D9-8DC5-4BD7-9249-D9C9F83DAAF3.jpeg 19BB6EF5-E6DF-4C80-86D5-7036983B425D.jpeg ECE3391A-FAB4-4902-B62C-DFD3BB0D437B.jpeg
If you want additional info, please let me know.
 

check 6

Member

Equipment
BX 2680 FEL and pallet forks aerator ZD1211, RTV500
Apr 8, 2019
41
47
18
Seguin, Texas
I think we found a solution. First the seat off a ZD1211 is slightly too wide but the seat off a lower line Z mower will fit. It does not have adjustable recline but you can get some adjustment by loosening the bolts etc. the depth of the seat is better than the OEM seat that comes on the grand L, the padding is better and the back support is improved. We built a simple bracket to mount it and at first test drive it is more comfortable and more supportive . I heard some feedback that Kubota has heard the complaints and they are redesigning the seats for most of their their tractors . My dealer has taken pictures of our instal and is sending them to Kubota . Hope this helps others
 

mikester

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Equipment
M59 TLB
Oct 21, 2017
3,547
2,004
113
Canada
www.divergentstuff.ca
 

GeoHorn

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Lifetime Member

Equipment
M4700DT, LA1002FEL, Ferguson5-8B Compactor-Roller, 10KDumpTrailer, RTV-X900
May 18, 2018
6,040
3,316
113
Texas
You guys that can afford $1500+ seats should have a Rolls Royce radiator up front and a Silver Phaeton emblem on the sides of the hood.

I’m certainly not in your league… I was pizzed I had to spend $400 to replace an original Kubota torture-device.
 
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notforhire

Active member

Equipment
Kubota L47
Dec 5, 2019
123
55
28
Meadows of Dan VA.
You guys that can afford $1500+ seats should have a Rolls Royce radiator up front and a Silver Phaeton emblem on the sides of the hood.

I’m certainly not in your league… I was pizzed I had to spend $400 to replace an original Kubota torture-device.
Because of back issues, I'm trying a $600 suspension seat on my 18 year old machine. As much as I dislike spending that much on a seat, I'm hoping to avoid spending $10,000 min on a new mower that has a suspension.

Look at the bright side. You could have saved $400 by spending $30, 000 on a new tractor with a crappy seat.:D
 
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mikester

Well-known member

Equipment
M59 TLB
Oct 21, 2017
3,547
2,004
113
Canada
www.divergentstuff.ca
You guys that can afford $1500+ seats should have a Rolls Royce radiator up front and a Silver Phaeton emblem on the sides of the hood.

I’m certainly not in your league… I was pizzed I had to spend $400 to replace an original Kubota torture-device.
Ha Ha!

I've spent thousands of hours in the K OEM torture seats. No thanks.

Here's a joke for you - Why are divorces so expensive? Because they are worth it!