zip tie dip stick

[jpf]

my answer to my kubota dip stick problem. a dip stick made from a large black zip tie.
it works great, I can see where the hydraulic fluid is on my dip stick much easier than on the yellow factory dip stick.
maybe not the best photography but you can see how it is made and how it works.

 

[jpf]

sorry I meant to show the upper end to show the "handle" of the new dip stick but it didn't loaded.
anyway the handle is just the cut off end ran through the top to make a "T" handle.

 

[Kennyd4110]

Here is my solution, about $5 from a JD dealer:

 

[MilkyWay]

jpf
Your zip tie idea seems pretty clever. Most zip ties are not straight as a rule. Did you do something to work around this? I have found that sanding the dipstick with course paper has helped me as well. I have done this on metal and other material dipsticks.

 

[jpf]

I have a few packs of large zip ties that are flat [harbor freight] until you pull the end through then they become "curved". I just used a new un-curved one.
also, I used a awl to punch a hole into the zip at the proper distance to show the "full" mark.

 

[MilkyWay]

I have a few packs of large zip ties that are flat [harbor freight] until you pull the end through then they become "curved". I just used a new un-curved one.
also, I used a awl to punch a hole into the zip at the proper distance to show the "full" mark.

You da man! I like it.

 

[greenacresnorth]

Here is my solution, about $5 from a JD dealer:

that dye is the best, Cat makes a dye that is florescent, we put it in all our machines, you can see a fresh oil leaks with a black light, after about 30 min and color is gone, great for finding a hidden leak!!

 

[D2Cat]

I 'd be real careful using Harbor Freight zip ties as a dip stick. The ones I got from them were so brittle I just threw them in the trash. I'd want something more substantial to use rather then having a broken zip tie lost in the oil.

 

[GSPKurt]

Won't the hydraulic oil attack the plastic and cause it to break down?

 

[jpf]

maybe the oil could attack the plastic, but I don't think the two seconds it takes to stick it in and pull it back out to check the level of the oil will worry me.
and I'm also not worried about the strength of the cheap zip tie not much strength needed to check oil level.

 

[lugbolt]

Paint the dipstick with flat black paint.