Any Kubota Gurus?

[71_Bronco 1,072]

I think I may be getting my hands on an older Kubota soon, but dont know anything about them. Just curious if anybody here knows much about these thing or if I'd be better off on a different forum.

 

Thanks!

[Achto 27,562]

I personally have never owned a Kubota, but I have had plenty of experience with their engines. Here are the only two things that I know about them. As for the engine, if the glow plugs do not work it is almost impossible to start the engine. Even if it is 105 + degrees out side, you will most likely have to use the glow plugs to get it running the first time each day or after the engine cools to ambient temp. Not usually an issue, just something to know.

 

As for the tractor, the pinion on the front axle can be a weak point. This is usually not an issue unless you have a loader and insist on ramming into dirt piles or hard snow piles.

 

In general I have not heard of any real issues with the tractors.

[bc.gold 3,403]

If the tractor is a Grey market import, Kubota dealers are prohibited from giving technical support or even sell you parts, the good news on the greys there's generally a North American equivalent model sporting a different model designation.

 

Check the PTO rotation, some Greys used counter clockwise rotation.

 

If the engine is hard start fix the cause never use starting fluid.

 

Engines built before Tier 4 were direct injection the latter engines have cylinder head problems in where they will form cracks in the per-combustion cup. Once this happens engine coolant entering the cylinder causes piston damage, engine over heating check for white sludge under the oil filler cap.

 

Tier 4 engines are indirect injection, ownership in my opinion requires deep pockets.

 

Once owned a Thomas skid steer with a 6 cylinder Kubota, that engine was direct injection and had no cold start issues.

 

My Grey market 3 cylinder was also direct injection, never had an issue with starting during a cold central Canada winter.

 

Purchased a Kubota V2203 direct injection engine from a Carrier reefer that sat five years, the engine fired right up. Sold that engine to a fellow who is now running it in his Skid Steer.

 

 

 

 

Edited June 14, 2020 by bcgold

[bc.gold 3,403]

Diesel Engine Combustion Systems

 

The quality of combustion in diesel engines depends on how quickly and how completely the fuel mixes with the air as it is injected into the combustion chamber. Two basic systems have been devised to improve this mixing: direct-injection and indirect-injection.

Direct-Injection

The direct-injection system introduces the fuel directly into the combustion chamber. Direct-injection promotes good fuel economy, but the air swirling is not strong enough to achieve an ideal mixture with the fuel. This weakness is overcome with specially designed chambers and air-intake ports, and by the use of high-pressure fuel injection. Direct-injection diesel engines are gathering increasing popularity. They are now used in nearly all trucks with payloads of four tons or more and also in a significant proportion of passenger cars in Europe. The most popular form of direct-injection system provides a strong swirl of air in the combustion chamber to aid the air-fuel mixing process, with the fuel being injected under high pressure from four or five nozzle holes.

 

Advantages Minimized surface area raises thermal efficiency and reduces heat loss, resulting in good fuel economy. Simple cylinder head design is durable and reliable, partly because it is largely unaffected by heat or pressure distortion. Engine starts easily, and preheating with a glow plug is not necessary.  Disadvantages Current designs produce more NOx emissions than indirect-injection systems. Not ideally suited to high-revolution vehicles (passenger cars) due to difficulties in creating an ideal swirl.

Indirect-Injection

The indirect-injection system is currently limited to use in passenger cars and light-duty trucks. The most popular design features a spherical swirl chamber in the cylinder head. Air is forced into the chamber by the piston and begins swirling rapidly, which promotes a good mix when the fuel is injected. A preliminary combustion of the mixture takes place and heat rises, forcing the remaining unburned fuel into the chamber at high velocity, where it mixes well with the air and undergoes complete combustion.

 

Advantages Suitable for fast engine speeds with high rpm. Less vibration and noise.  Disadvantages Additional chamber adds to design cost. Greater surface area leads to heat loss and reduced fuel economy. Higher temperature operation wears out parts faster.

Intercooler-Equipped Turbocharger

Turbocharger

A turbocharger is a mechanism that increases the amount of air supplied to an internal combustion engine at higher than normal pressure by means of a turbine powered by the exhaust gases. By allowing more air to enter the cylinder while maintaining the exhaust amount at the same level, a turbocharger can improve combustion efficiency and improve the power output.

Intercooler

An intercooler is a device that cools the supplied air, which is heated to a high temperature upon being compressed in the turbocharger. Then, it will send the cool high-density air to the cylinder.

 

Advantages of Turbo-Charged Engines The turbocharger can supply large displacement to the cylinder, so that a high level of output can be obtained with a small exhaust volume. Achieving high power with a small exhaust volume means that the engine's weight and size can be made smaller, and this translates into a lighter vehicle weight and improved fuel efficiency. Moreover, a turbo-charged engine can generate 20% to 50% more torque* compared to a non-turbo-charged engine with the same displacement. These advantages make turbo-charged engines ideal for vehicles used for long-distance, high-speed transportation. On the other hand, non-turbo-charged engines feature high levels of torque in the low speed range, which gives them a better startup and acceleration performance and makes them suitable for vehicles used mainly for city driving involving repeated starting and stopping. In recent years, turbo-charged engines are getting more popular for their high fuel economy and remarkable power performance. * Torque Torque is the rotational force generated by the movement of the crankshaft. The unit of torque is the Newton meter (Nm) or the kilogram meter (kgm). In principle, the higher an engine's combustion power, the greater the amount of torque it generates. For example, if a one-meter-long arm is fixed at right angles to a shaft and a 1kg weight is set at the tip, the force exerted on the shaft is 1Nm (1kgm).

 

Edited June 14, 2020 by bcgold

[rmaynard 15,434]

My son-in-law has one and loves it. That's all I can tell you. 😀

[Tractorhead 9,064]

If you plan a b series there are few things to watch.

 

the older ones as Achto and bcgold allready mentioned, needs good condition to fire right up.

This kubota tractors are similar to the yanmars and isekis.

Keep your fingers away fro b6000 they exclusiveley built for Asian market with changed pto spin direction.

Therefore nearly no Attachments found and if they extremely expensive.

There is a pto gear available to change spinning direction. Cost about 300 -500$

 

All of the Kubotas, yanmars and isekis are available in 2 WD or 4WD versions.

Parts on most can be interchanged depending on sizes.

my iseki tx1300 can be compared to kubota b7000 with 13 HP.

 

if it‘s in good shape and the price is ok, check follow issues.

 

first look if water and oil is separated and non mixed.

check compression if you have a compression tester, if not follow test will work.

1. Coldstart

Preglow exact 6 sec, then fire the engine right up with wide open throttle and count the cranks how much it needs to start.

all under 5 cranks is a fantastic value and the Engine will start even -20deg. C

if it needs 8 Cranks the engine is still usable but begins wear.

 

If it starts cylindre by cylindre, mostly the injectors or fuelpump are worn.

 

keep the engine after start at least 5 min in bit higher idle to warm it up then stop the Engine.

Restart it on idle setting on the throttle.

it must fireup at first or max. Second crank. if not - keep the finger away.

 

The tractors itself are really Hard workers, They can be handled brutforce Work especially the 4 WD’s.

but i would recommanded urgently change the Waterpump and the Thermostat.

This both are the necessary things this Engine needs well functional.

a clogged waterpump or even a fail thermostat will kill you engine under load quickly with a cylindre rip as bcgold allready mentioned.

 

The Gears use Hydraulic Oil for the 3 point.

i have a lot of info‘s for this machines, but today no time to wrote all.

 

if you have questions, don’t hesitate to ask me

 

The handling is different to a Wheelhorse, but it depends for the needs if you can be happy with them or not.

They be not as simple as a Wheelhorse built.

 

i have an iseki 4WD and i like that thing, but for a quick job i allway‘s prefer the Wheelhorse.

[WVHillbilly520H 10,373]

FIL has a Kubota diesel ZTR (326) 10+ years old fires up right no matter the weather.  I have a Kioti CK20 built in South Korea by Deadong it is nearly 20 years old still fires up no matter the weather also same engine is in my 4 year old Mahindra eMax ... Everyone fusses about expensive replacement parts for an Onan IMO this is what will be the issue with owning an older Kubota/Yanmar ect diesel.

[71_Bronco 1,072]

Thanks all for the help. I'll be looking at it tonight, not sure the vintage or model. All I know is that its 2wd, and a manual transmission.

[Tractorhead 9,064]

Mine is a TX1300 from 1976.

 

I buy mine at a Dealer and see it before.

It was in a rude optical shape, but after rework it looks right out of the Factory.

They do a complete rework of all Transmission and engine related parts as i wish.

 

The older Engines have just a Starter, a Generator to batterycharge and light, sometimes also flashlights.

The electric is as simple as it can be.

 

The whole linkage on the Engine and breaks is solid built,

the 3 Point is able to lift about 500 Kilo‘s.

The hydraulic supports 170Bar pressure with a 4 gpm pump, but there is also a 6gpm pump available.

In my case with the FEL i built, i‘m fine with the 4 gpm version.

 

A rops is highly recommended, while this beats are really Heavy.

2 WD have about 480Kilos, the 4WD have about 540Kilos.

 

the rear Axles are very strong built and be gear reduced, not exactly shure but i think it‘s 2“ full Metal.

 

Another important thing on this machines to know, is the Brake system.

There 2 encapsulated drum brakes, each tyre have it’s own drum, they run sealed into the rear gear block.

each side has a Pedal on right side, they can be combined by a simple interlock lever.

 

So if the Tractor run‘s its own way it can be supported with a foot tip instead only with steering wheel.

 

The clutch and the Genny and also the Starter are basic automotive Parts.

[71_Bronco 1,072]

Quick update. The tractor is mine now. It was originally bought new in 1986 by my grandfather. It is a B7200 with a 60" belly deck, currently sitting at ~1,400 hours.

 

My grandfather bought it new, and sold it when he bought a new, bigger Kubota. After passing almost 2 years ago, the bigger kubota went to my dad.

 

After changing owners a few times, my dad caught wind it was for sale, and bought it for me.

 

It needs a few little things like a new deck belt and a little TLC, but for 34 years old, it looks pretty dang good. Starts right up (after doing the glo plugs) and purrs beautifully.

 

As far as I know, it hasnt ever had any big attachments on it (like a loader). Only the occasional york rake, and mostly mowing duty.

 

Oh, and I have the original manual, sales brochure, and signed bill of sale from 1986 with my grandfather's name on it.

[shallowwatersailor 3,213]

Check out: https://www.orangetractortalks.com/

[953 nut 55,163]

1 hour ago, 71_Bronco said:

The tractor is mine now. It was originally bought new in 1986 by my grandfather. It is a B7200 with a 60" belly deck, currently sitting at ~1,400 hours.

 

My grandfather bought it new

That is so cool, finding an old member of the family.

In the mid '80s I worked  maintenance for a large produce operation that had a dozen small Kubota tractors. They were a good solid worker and with regular maintenance will go forever. The pain jobs were not much to brag about and we had to make new fenders for many of them but they were exposed to the weather and fertilizers so this was to be expected. The biggest thing against them was that repair parts were propitiatory and could only be purchased from the dealer. Prices were outrageous compared to other brands 

[WHX?? 48,813]

And the pics are where???

[71_Bronco 1,072]

21 hours ago, WHX24 said:

And the pics are where???

 

Here she is 

 

 

[71_Bronco 1,072]

According to the build tag, the motor is a D950, 3 cylinder diesel, output is 17hp at 2,500 rpm.

 

From what I found online, that motor has the spherical combustion chamber, so that would be the indirect type mentioned above.

[bc.gold 3,403]

4 hours ago, 71_Bronco said:

According to the build tag, the motor is a D950, 3 cylinder diesel, output is 17hp at 2,500 rpm.

 

From what I found online, that motor has the spherical combustion chamber, so that would be the indirect type mentioned above.

 

Maintain the glow plugs, they can be tested as installed, keep the battery fully charged if the starter shows signs of being sluggish have it repaired  and keep starting fluid away, never leave the key in the ignition inviting unauthorized use.

 

Leaving the key in my Thomas 233 HD skid steer which had a 6 cylinder Kubota engine a buddy used starting fluid and ruined the engine.

 

I'm sure your Kubota will give you many years of enjoyment.

Edited June 16, 2020 by bcgold

[71_Bronco 1,072]

One quick question, hopefully someone here will know.

 

The tachometer is a 0-3,000 unit. Idle seems to be at about 1,200 rpm.

 

It looks like there is a mark on the tach at roughly 2,400 rpm that says "PTO". I assume this is to have the attachment run at the proper speed.

 

Side tangent, this tractor also has a manual dual-speed PTO selector.

 

The tractor tag says "maximum speed: 2,700 RPM".

 

So my guess would be to keep the tractor around the 2,400-2,500 range. I dont want to rev it over 2,700 and hurt the engine. Is this safe to assume?

 

And as for lower RPM, does it not matter? I know it doesnt have a splash type system for oil, but I dont want to run it at a low RPM unless I know it wont hurt it.

 

Thanks!

Edited June 16, 2020 by 71_Bronco

[bc.gold 3,403]

IMO you'll want to run the engine at the higher rpm's, diesel engines like to be at their designated operating temperature in order to burn fuel efficiently.  Low engine rpm's will cause the engine to coke up.

 

Engine coke aka carbon can possibly sieze piston rings in their lands, also raise engine compression putting extra stress on the starter motor.

 

 

 

 

 

.

[Glassman82 0]

I am replacing a Kubota V3300-T-DI. Will a Kubota V3300-T-ES work? Is the V3300-T-ES a direct or indirect injection? Engine is being replaced in a Bobcat S300.

Edited September 6, 2021 by Glassman82

[8ntruck 6,998]

Nice tractor.  Ought to be a good worker.

 

Are those 15" rear wheels?