# Operating a Kubota tranny question



## Fotoguzzi (Jan 12, 2020)

I have the perfect retirement job that pays really good. Driving a Kubota M9960 with snow blower, not sure of the term but I drive forward dragging the blower which faces forward too.
I do 63 driveways which takes about 5 hours over some 40 miles.
After my first time out this season my left thigh muscles are sore from all the clutching, backing up, drop the blade/blower drive forward. I am in high gear range number 3 usually lower gears tend to want to wheelie on releasing the clutch. But then the tractor speed is too fast and I have to clutch again to slow down. It has a turtle gear button on the shifter that I understand puts it in crawl mode, or the low range of the tranny? I don't use it but maybe should?
the thing about driving in low revs to go slow not good because the blower needs at least 2k rpm to blow clean when the snow is wettish. i can Get pics of the controls this weekend. What am I doing wrong? whats the most efficient way to use this tranny?


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## unsquidly (Jul 13, 2021)

My first question is......Is this your tractor and your business or are you working for someone?


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

Don't see where that is germane (post 2). But nice outfit anyway. Is it a hydraulic shuttle or a dry clutch. Mine are both hydraulic shuttle and I rarely use the clutch pedal at all, just the column mounted hydraulic reverser and no 'clutch pedal' to start moving again either, just the column mounted hydraulic reverser lever. The hydraulic shuttle has a built in proportional control so starting from a as stop is always smooth and graduated. I have a blower too and it's for sale. I rarely use it but not a bull type, a rear mount push type. A Lucknow 6.5 foot. I have a 10 foot power angle front mount blade with a skid steer mount.

Myself, I run in low range in top gear when plowing / plowing. Like I said, I never touch the clutch pedal at all. Left foot in flat on the floor.


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## unsquidly (Jul 13, 2021)

What I asked is very relevant to his situation......If this is not his business and his tractor then my advice would be to first ask his boss who owns the tractor how he would prefer him to operate the tractor. You know how people are, everyone has their take on how their equipment should and will be operated. Not reason to start off on the wrong foot with the boss..... Put yourself in the shoes of an owner of a snow removal business....You would want any employees that you had to come to you first and ask how you wanted your equipment operated before they just we to a forum and took the advice of the folks on there who may or may not know jack about what they are saying.....


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## Fotoguzzi (Jan 12, 2020)

I work for a company who puts 10 of these units out every time it snows. This is my second year.. they pretty much let me learn myself after some basic instructions. My boss LOVES ME! And I'm good at it.. I will ask him the best way to operate it, I'm just trying to be ready for the next dump coming all day tomorrow. Not sure if it's a dry clutch or not so I didn't know I could use the lever on the column without the clutch, if that's true it will be smooth sailing for my clutch leg. Not sure what tranny it has but I'll find that out too. Thanks to all and keep the suggestions coming.


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## unsquidly (Jul 13, 2021)

Fotoguzzi said:


> I work for a company who puts 10 of these units out every time it snows. This is my second year.. they pretty much let me learn myself after some basic instructions. My boss LOVES ME! And I'm good at it.. I will ask him the best way to operate it, I'm just trying to be ready for the next dump coming all day tomorrow. Not sure if it's a dry clutch or not so I didn't know I could use the lever on the column without the clutch, if that's true it will be smooth sailing for my clutch leg. Not sure what tranny it has but I'll find that out too. Thanks to all and keep the suggestions coming.



I would go about it by not asking him how to operate it but how he wants you to operate it. It might make him a little nervous if this is your second year and you are asking him how to operate it.....LOL......You might ask him if he has a owners manual for the tractor. Tell him that you would like to borrow the manual and see if there is anything on the tractor that you are missing on your daily inspection. That will give you a chance to see what transmission, clutch and all that the tractor has and the manual will tell you what you should and should not do as far as operation......Just my two cents worth on the matter......


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## Fotoguzzi (Jan 12, 2020)

Maybe a dumb question but, Dry or hydraulic clutch, ? If I say the clutch needs to be in for the brakes to work, does that tell which it is?


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## unsquidly (Jul 13, 2021)

Looks like all three transmissions that were offered on that model were all wet disc clutch.....Check out this link...This is the data on that tractor.....Scroll down and click where it says transmission. This will show you all the choices that we offered on that model.....



https://www.tractordata.com/farm-tractors/007/4/2/7425-kubota-m9960.html


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## pogobill (Jan 31, 2012)

Have a read of this brochure and have a look at the operators / owners manual.


https://kubota.ca/getmedia/790bd15b-73f8-4fe9-8f37-bcf61b4819da/M60-ENG?ext=.pdf


I'd figure out the column mounted shifter and I would also use low range for blowing which would keep your ground speed lower and manageable, and the RPM of the engine up to operate the blower.


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

My comment is rather long but...

Keep in mind I own 2 of them exactly like yours but earlier models and larger that the one you are using. It's a hydraulic shuttle and Kubota employs the system on many units in many power ranges. It gives you all the advantages of a hydrostatic transmission but in a gear drive with no parasitic power loss that a 'Hydro' has.

First thing I'd do is ask the owner for the owners manual and read it cover to cover. It tells you everything you need to know like-- How to check the oil, what to do when the regen light comes on, ground speeds in traveling gears and service intervals and a lot of other info you need to know.

Unsquidly, I surmised it was a company unit, says so on the door...

It's not a wet clutch, in fact it has no 'clutch' in the purest sense of the word as there is nothing in the bell housing but a spring loaded damper plate which removes the shock load from the flywheel and crankshaft as well as the transmission input shaft when changing directions or gears and the *foot clutch should only be used when selecting a gear range or coming to a complete stop and parking the unit*. Other than that, you left foot stays on the floor.

There are 2 'wet' clutch packs, the travelling pack and the PTO pack. Both run in transmission oil all the time. The 'clutch' pedal only acts (via cable or linkage) on the proportioning valve on the side of the gear box, there is no direct linkage to the transmission at all. The proportioning valve controls the lockup pressure on the travelling clutch pack and also controls the lock up pressure on the PTO pack. It reduces the lockup pressure on the travelling pack to zero when you push on the pedal so you can change travelling speeds. It does not reduce the pressure on the PTO pack at all. It's imperative to check the transmission oil level and use the correct fluid (SUDT) or an equivalent fluid but you cannot add different fluids like say SUDT and HyTrans because they won't mix and the clutch packs will fail.

The only way to change fluids is to drain the gear box and change the filters. I run Chevron All Weather THC Synthetic in both mine but I changed after the initial drain and filter changes and the gear boxes hold just under 5 gallons (US) of fluid so it's not a couple liters, it's an 'oil well' when you pull the drain plug and on my 2 there is only one drain plug. The hex bolt under the bellhousing is for draining any accumulated water in the bellhousing, nothing more and I pull that yearly and let any accumulated moisture come out.

In summary:

NO clutch is present
The 'reverser' lever on the steering column controls the forward and backward movement and also allows you to place the tractor in 'neutral' but the main transmission is still engaged, why you cannot start it (at least mine you cannot), unless the range shift is in neutral as well and the clutch pedal is depressed which removes any pressure on the travelling pack.

Fluid level is very important and the type of fluid as well and no mixing of fluids ever.

Gear selection must be made with the foot clutch depressed and lockup pressure on the travelling pack reduced to zero. Same applies to range shifting.

Keep your foot off the clutch pedal except when shifting gears or range shifting, it's not needed. Use the column mounted lever to change directions and starting and stopping. The proportioning valve will mot only sense the load but it will engage the travelling wet pack according to the gear selected (which is why I suggest using a higher gear in low range because you can wear out the travelling pack from excessive slippage though it's rare. I have over 6000 hours on one of mine with ZERO pack issues and I just adjusted the pack lock up pressure a bit which requires a special fitting and a liquid filled 4000 pound pressure gage. Not something you need to be concerned with.

Read the owners manual, don't wing it.

Kubota is slowly changing all of their units over to the 'wet pack design because most owners will never have to take the tractor apart to change a dry clutch because there isn't one. The only ones not to change will be the hydrostat smaller tractors though even those use the 'wet' pack' pto clutches.

I will say that it is possible to 'see' the wet pack travelling clutch and the wet pack pto clutches if you remove the back PTO casting, you can see them but you cannot access either without splitting the unit as they are not reachable from the back end. They are both in front of the rear drive (ring and pinion) but in reality, they won't ever require any maintenence in the life of the unit.


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

Perhaps the one thing that Kubota changed that I don't like is.. They relocated the ac and cab heat mechanicals under the seat pan so access is complex and tight (and you have to remove the seat to access them). My climate control mechanical components are under the roof panel so accessing them is much easier. I remove the lid (8 screws), take it off and everything from the relays to the ac condenser and heater core is right there and easily serviced, something I have to do yearly because in my farming application, even with the external cab filter, I get fine chaff and dust on the ac condenser and heater core and they have to be cleaned yearly. Much easier up top, versus under the seat pan, I much prefer that and of course both of mine are pre 4 engines so I have no emissions components at all (other than a turbocharger wastegate control to reduce black smoke when under load or throttling up. In fact, servicing the ac or the heater heat exchangers is best left to a dealer. It's a complex undertaking. whereas mine can be done in the tractor shop by me alone (I do need a second set of hands to remove the lid. Mot sure why they did that (under the seat pan mechanicals, but they did. Farming operations will always require cleaning at some point because of the dirt and chaff. No ag tractor with a cab and climate controls is exempt from it.


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## Fotoguzzi (Jan 12, 2020)

Thankyou Flip, first order today is get the owners manual. I'll try to read that before the next plow (tomorrow morning)


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

I won't run anything else because the hydraulic shuttle with a gear transmission gives you all the advantages of a hydrostat without the parasitic power loss and the complexity of a hydrostat. It's a simple power transmission and Kubota has engineered it to be basically bullet proof.

My 2002 was the first year Kubota offered it and my 2004 is exactly the same with an additional 2 plates in the PTO clutch pack because the original design had a weak clutch brake.

Personally, I will never buy a Post 4 tractor with common rail and ECM controls. I prefer 100% mechanical injection and no emissions stuff, but that is a personal opinion only. Far as fuel economy goes, I don't buy into the economy hype at all but again, just my opinion. Both of mine are very frugal on fuel.


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## Tx Jim (Jul 28, 2020)

Fotoguzzi
I can't envision you blowing snow at an average of 8+ miles per hr. The cover must be fairly shallow. As others stated the hyd shuttle fwd/rev clutches substitute for a traction clutch.


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

If I'm not mistaken, International fiddled with the same drive system Kubota is using today with mixed results but, I also believe Kubota has refined it to to the point of excellent reliability. Mine are stone reliable. I've had no issues with either the drive system or the PTO system other than the weak pto clutch. Kubota has addressed that as well. Why I use an over running clutch on the PTO stub.

Cannot remember the IH model but I have seen them. Potato farmer a bit south of me has one.


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

Tx Jim said:


> Fotoguzzi
> I can't envision you blowing snow at an average of 8+ miles per hr. The cover must be fairly shallow. As others stated the hyd shuttle fwd/rev clutches substitute for a traction clutch.


Jim... Keep in mind that he's using a pull type blower, not a push type so the sore shoulders from looking back constantly is eliminated.. I remember looking at them but I was concerned about driving over the snow and compacting it before blowing it. Guess they work fine though. I'm not doing any snow removal this year. Hoping we don't get much and if we do, the guy down the road with his plow mounted Jeep can do the drives for 20 bucks and a bottle of Crown Royal... I'd spend that in diesel doing it myself.


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## Tx Jim (Jul 28, 2020)

SCflip
I realize snow blower that Fotoguzzi utlizes is designed to be utilized going forward(see photo) BUT he speaks of depressing clutch to move in reverse direction which causes the 8+ MPH average that much more difficult figure to maintain! John Deere offered a hyd reverser very similar to Kubota back in the mid 1960's.


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

Interestingly and somewhat backward in my thinking, both my Kubota's reverse movement in any gear is faster than forward movement so what I do is throttle down in reverse and of course never touch the foot clutch pedal. That pedal is an ornament on both mine. Probably shouldn't post this because you have to know how to do it but.. When advancing in gear ratio's on mine, I don't use the clutch pedal either. I float the gears, something you learn when driving a big truck with a standard transmission. When you match the driven gear speed with the drive gear speed, shifting is effortless and the clutch (wet or dry) is never disengaged. Of course that is an acquired from experience technique.

Only time I do is when I change ranges from creep to slow or road, because the internal ratios are so far apart it would be almost impossible to float them.


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## Fotoguzzi (Jan 12, 2020)

Thanks for all the expertise.. I'll try the shuttle shift with out clutch tonight. BUT I thought the brakes only engage when the clutch is in, true? So I still need to clutch and brake when backing up close to the garage door so I don't crash into it? We are getting 8 inches right now and the plow session starts at midnight.


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

Close quarters yes but the brakes are outboard in the axle housings so clutch or no clutch has no impact on braking what so ever.


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## Tx Jim (Jul 28, 2020)

SidecarFlip said:


> Close quarters yes but the brakes are outboard in the axle housings so clutch or no clutch has no impact on braking what so ever.


I beg to differ with you SCF if one is headed towards a reasonably close obstacle on a tractor but tractor operator doesn't disengage the clutch or place shuttle control in neutral but just pushes on brake pedals it's a very high(100%) probability that tractor is going to hit the obstacle.


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

Probably should have said, place the shuttle lever in neutral while applying the brakes. I thought that was understood. No way can the brakes overcome the driveline. Don't need to push in the clutch pedal at all, just move the shuttle lever to the center position.


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## Tx Jim (Jul 28, 2020)

SidecarFlip said:


> Probably should have said, place the shuttle lever in neutral while applying the brakes. I thought that was understood. No way can the brakes overcome the driveline. Don't need to push in the clutch pedal at all, just move the shuttle lever to the center position.


Ah that's OK it just proves that you also can fail when performing "proof reading" similar to ME!!! IMHO thinking something is understood is similar to thinking new tractor/equipment purchaser will "read their tractor's operators manual" which many owners don't do.


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

That seems to be a result of our 'plug and play' society today. Operators manuals are optional for many and then there is the used tractors with no documentation. You and I both know that every tractor or implement came with an operators manual and they somehow vanish, never to be seen again. I have a file with the manuals in it and when I sell or trade in something, all the documentation goes with it, including any parts or repair invoices plus a maintenance record.

I'm having issues with my ankle and I'm in constant pain so my thought train is lacking sometimes. I assumed the the OP would put the shuttle lever in neutral or clutch it when getting close to an object like a garage door.

Maybe I should have clarified that. Just something I take for granted as the brakes would never overcome the motor in that situation.


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## Fotoguzzi (Jan 12, 2020)

Well I learned a lot. I was out clearing 16" from midnight to 6pm.. not my ideal retirement job after all.. 2 drivers have COVID so
i did 2 routes. Then we go back and clear the wake left by the city plows. It's a lot of bouncing around, you wouldn't think snow could be so bumpy.. my driveways are sometimes miles apart so I cruise at the top speed of 24.2mph between them. Used about a tank and a half of fuel.
what I learned, the shuttle lever is pretty clever and I made use of it. But I still have to clutch on the driveways or for sure the shuttle shifter would have me going thru someone garage door.. I can get about 6" from the door to drag out the snow before blowing in the front yard. It takes some real finesse getting perfection. I did clobber a guys nativity scene about 20 feet off, the the blower was rev'd up. I'll be paid about $1200. 🙂 I like the Kubota.


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

When close, you have to clutch but any other time, no clutch. Actually, the more proficient you get with it, the closer you can get to an object. You don't need to cut the revs any as the wet pack will act proportionately. It's a nice setup, I sure like mine and I'd never own anything else. Kind of sort of like an HST but with no power loss. I know you don't own the tractor but make sure the owners keeps on on oil changes, especially the transmission and use SUDT. It ain't cheap but it's what you want in there.

Our power just came back on about 30 minutes ago. Been out since yesterday morning about 10. Been running on standby the entire time. Just shut it down to check the oil, topped it off, kicked it back in and it shut off as line power was restored.


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## TX MX5200 (May 12, 2020)

I’m an occasional user, but my brothers Deere has the same setup with shuttle lever. Once the hi-lo and gear is selected, then it’s shuttle control from that point. 

I normally throttle down, then to neutral position on shuttle then to direction I want. Usually do it working the bucket or moving hay, but same idea. Of course I’ve never operated it while shredding as I seldom swap directions shredding.

My Kubota is smaller (MX series) and they call it a shuttle, but it’s not. I have to clutch to swap directions so they take liberty with their definition of shuttle, but I knew that as soon as I saw no column shifter. The MX is the crossover between the L and the M, so think you have to be in the M before true shuttle is offered. My brothers Deere is full Utility in 85 hp range.

Feel happy you have shuttle to use…once you get to using it regular you will get it down without clutching….of course if your running in high gear and backing, your narrowing the margin of error as it’s coming in hot. Like driving a boat, don’t approach dock any faster than ya wanna hit it😁


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

Think Deere calls it a 'power reverser'.


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

I like it because it eliminates a dry clutch entirely. 6000 hours on my one M and I've never touched it except I upped the clamping pressure a bit last year (which is easy to do with a pressure gauge and a 10mm socket). With a dry clutch, sooner or later you'll need to replace the clutch, sooner if you use it a lot. Only ever heard of one unit that needed the travelling pack replaced and it wasn't a plate failure but the shell failed.


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

TX MX5200 said:


> I normally throttle down, then to neutral position on shuttle then to direction I want. Usually do it working the bucket or moving hay, but same idea. Of course I’ve never operated it while shredding as I seldom swap directions shredding


There is a learning curve involved as in gaging the lock up and unlock up time but once you get used to it, the foot clutch becomes an accessory. With mine, I do need to depress the foot clutch and have the 'reverser' in neutral before it will crank but after that, I forget about the foot clutch almost entirely. Nice thing about the hydraulic shuttle is if you do 'half clutch' it with the foot clutch, you won't hurt the pack, whereas with a dry clutch you wear the disc before it's time.


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## TX MX5200 (May 12, 2020)

SidecarFlip said:


> There is a learning curve involved as in gaging the lock up and unlock up time but once you get used to it, the foot clutch becomes an accessory. With mine, I do need to depress the foot clutch and have the 'reverser' in neutral before it will crank but after that, I forget about the foot clutch almost entirely. Nice thing about the hydraulic shuttle is if you do 'half clutch' it with the foot clutch, you won't hurt the pack, whereas with a dry clutch you wear the disc before it's time.


Guess it goes to learning the machine you are operating. On the Deere I just throttle down and it’s neutral on the lever…then swap directions and throttle up. Again, that’s not running pto as poster is doing with snow mobile attachment. I imagine spooling it up and down while using shuttle drive will be learning curve.

I’m sure he will be teaching us after a short while though


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

I have no idea about a Deere far as clutch pack operation is concerned, only Kubota.


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## TX MX5200 (May 12, 2020)

SidecarFlip said:


> I have no idea about a Deere far as clutch pack operation is concerned, only Kubota.


I have a Kubota and don’t know…I do know when I push on the left pedal I can swap gears. I also know I have 4 Hi and 4 Lo…wish I had 4 Medium but that’s a luxury.

I will say this MX is too light to be running in 4 Hi down the road as it will get squirrely real quick. That Utility JD with bigger front tires and weight is way more stable.

mine is perfect for my use and bigger than I need at the moment though…it’s a 2WD as compared to the AWD JD I use on occasion.

I think the snow blowing extra job is perfect retirement job…of course you would go broke here waiting on the snow as I don’t recall it snowing enough for a blower in 59 years. It snows and sticks maybe once every 7 years and ya gotta look at it in a hurry before it melts. Now if there was something that turns mud into dirt real quick that would sell.


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

Believe it or not, I have the same issue with my M's with the loaders off going down the road in high range (23mph) and they get that 'squirrely' effect too. What I do is I get it going straight and hold the wheel gently at the bottom. Seems to work. I believe it's a trait of the hydrostatic steering. Always making minor corrections to the travel line too. I have to stay aware all the time or it will drift to the low side of the road and that can be bad when pulling a wide implement. More than once I almost cleaned off a mailbox. Anymore I just remove the bucket and leave the loader arms on.

Again, don't have a clue what type of steering JD has, only Kubota.

Actually, I don't really need front wheel assist myself but it comes in handy infrequently and the resale is better too. Seems like everyone wants FWA whether they need it or not today.

With a Kubota, unlike say a pickup with freewheeling hubs, you never really disengage the front axle. You disengage the power flow but everything is still turning inside all the time as well as the prop shaft, and that equates to tire wear and parasitic drag.

Probably should have bought the second one with 2 wheel drive instead but it was a good price so I grabbed it.


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## TX MX5200 (May 12, 2020)

I know we are off topic on the OP thread but feel he’s squared away on his question until we hear back.

I too was wanting AWD for value and rare need as only hills around here are fire ant homes. The JD I use at brothers never sees pavement and that may be difference in stable feel it has. Roads on his place are packed kaliche or dirt. I can run it at pretty good clip with bucket on and it’s like driving a 4x4 truck. It may handle same as your M, but difference is noticeable over my MX.

I prefer to operate the open station tractor over the closed cab Cat skid steer, which shakes your innards. Once I retire I’m looking forward to some seat time on dozer and Gallion road grader.


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## Tx Jim (Jul 28, 2020)

SidecarFlip said:


> Believe it or not, I have the same issue with my M's with the loaders off going down the road in high range (23mph) and they get that 'squirrely' effect too. What I do is I get it going straight and hold the wheel gently at the bottom. Seems to work. I believe it's a trait of the hydrostatic steering. Always making minor corrections to the travel line too. I have to stay aware all the time or it will drift to the low side of the road and that can be bad when pulling a wide implement
> 
> Again, don't have a clue what type of steering JD has, only Kubota.
> 
> With a Kubota, unlike say a pickup with freewheeling hubs, you never really disengage the front axle. You disengage the power flow but everything is still turning inside all the time as well as the prop shaft, and that equates to tire wear and parasitic drag.


I'd be surprised if your M9000 will go 23 MPH @ rated engine speed. Top speed for M9000 that I located was 20.5 MPH. My M7040 advertised maximum speed with largest rear tires offered is only showing 18.5 MPH.
Later model JD tractors have hydrostatic steering utilizing hyd cylinder on frt axle similar to Kubota tractors. All hydrostatic steering tractors I've driven require a small amount of steering wheel correction when traveling at highway speeds.
Both my GM 4WD pickups have non freewheeling frt hubs


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

I have this sticker on the lower front glass on the cab unit that shows maximum travel speeds in various gears. At 2250 rpm in high range it shows 23 mph and I checked it with my speedometer phone app as well. 23mph. Actually, 22.9 mph. Both the open station and the cab tractor both the same travel speed in high range in 12th gear.

Keep in mind that your 7040 is a lot newer and both my M's are considered ag tractors and I run the largest R1 bias tires available as well. When I replace the bias R1's with radials this spring, I expect the top speed to drop a bit because the radials have a slightly less over all diameter.

Having said that unless I'm going to a fire I don't run that fast. I usually run at 1500 rpm in high range because it gets a bit better (less) fuel consumption and I'm not in a big hurry anyway. Only going to my fields that are distant from here. I have one set of 3 hayfields that are about a 20 minute drive at 1500 rpm. Kind of enjoy going slower anyway. Lets me be nosy and observe what is going on on my route to the distant fields.

Far as free wheeling hubs go. I have Mile Marker manuals on my truck that completely isolates the front drive (except the outer bearings of course) from the rest of the axle. Myself, personally, I cannot see turning all the front end components when not needed, all that does is accelerate wear and reduces fuel mileage. Why I don't own an AWD SUV and would never have one. For me full time AWD isn't a necessity. If it's that bad out, I stay home.

On my truck, when the transfer case is in 2H, nothing rotates in the front, not even the driveshaft and my transfer case also has a PTO position for driving an external pump. My philosophy about full time 4wd is the automakers did that for 2 reasons. One, people would forget to disengage the front hubs and Two, with all the components constantly rotating they wear out faster and need replacement sooner. On my 1997 350 Ford truck, I've never replaced any front end components except the upper and lower axle mounts which I did almost right away because Ford in the infinite wisdom made the joints out of hard plastic with their 'grease for life' BS. I replaced them as well as the tie rod ends and drag link with greaseable ones, not because they were shot but because I want to be able to grease everything. Did the same to both driveshafts, replaced all the non greaseable universals with greaseable Super U joints. When I change the oil, everything gets greased including the spring shackle bushings.

When I require 4wd. First thing I do is stop and engage the front hubs and then shift the transfer case into either 4L or 4H, depending on the situation and I have an ARB air actuated front locker in the front pig anyway... and a Detroit Tru-Trac out back, so my 4WD is really 4WD, not one tire in the front and one tire in the back like open differentials (yours) provide.

I use it rarely but if I need it, it's available.

Kind of similar to the mandatory TPMS tire pressure monitoring systems today. Don't have that on my pickup truck, I do have it on the Burb and my wife's van and my puddle jumper and I find it unnecessary because I actually check tire pressure at least weekly. Don't need no idiot light telling me a tire is low. If I could totally disarm the system, I would.


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## Tx Jim (Jul 28, 2020)

SCF
Website I checked for M9000 spec's must contain incorrect information. Concerning your Ford truck you're lucky because I've read where 4WD frt axle on Ford trucks has a long history of failing. I know of several neighbors that own Ford trucks that the frt axle locking devices failed.








Kubota M9000 utility tractor: review and specs - Tractor Specs


Kubota M9000 review and specifications: dimensions and weight, engine and transmission type, horsepower, oil type and capacity, tires




www.tractor-specs.net


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

I see they claim 20.5 but mine is slightly above that, maybe my tach is off, not sure but the sticker (on the window) says 22 and my cell phone app says 22.9. Don't really matter much as I rarely if anytime go that fast. No need to. They also claim a different power rating than my open station has. According to my dealer who had it on his PTO dyno last year, I'm making 91 pto horsepower. Don't know what the cab tractor makes but I'll know before spring as it's going in for a tune up and injector pop test and have the new electronic controls wired into the tractor and the old NH electronic controls removed. I inquires about the difference in output power and the service tech at my dealer told me that no 2 tractors from the factory will have the same output power, he said they are all different. Asked him about 'turning it up a tad' and his response was if you want more power, buy a bigger tractor. Power is just fine with me and I gauge all my implements to what it makes anyway.

Not about to even consider a new T4 tractor ever. Don't want the grief and certainly don't want to have to buy DEF either.


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

Interestingly as well, they don't even list either of mine (Os or cab units). The cab tractor is an M9000 HDCC3 and the open station is an M9000 HDC and the end year for the M9 was mid year 2004. I know because I had to special order my cab unit from Kubota and it took almost 5 months to get it. My dealer (who I happen to know personally) had to negotiate with Kubota USA to get it built as it was no longer in production in Japan. In fact it came through with options I never ordered, like the full Arctic cold weather package (block heater and special air intake to keep snow dust out of the air cleaner) as well as extra under hood insulation. Never used the block heater but the rest is intact.

My open station is 2 years previous (2002) but it's not listed in the spec sheet either nor are the options listed. My OS has no exhaust stack and the hood is a solid one piece of steel and the exhaust pipe runs down the side of the engine and exits in front of the left floor board. Actually, I kind of prefer it as there is no exhaust stack to block your forward vision


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

Far as the front axle on my '97 F350, it's a Dana 60 and I've never had any issue with it but then again, I don't flog it either. It's basically a farm truck that totes our slide in camper up north in the summer


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## TX MX5200 (May 12, 2020)

I have no clue what top speed is on mine, but know it’s puckering speed. I only speed it up on the road to sling the tires clean. I park in my shop and don’t want mud inside.


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

Benn there and did that before. Not bad with the cab unit but with the open station, the clods seem to land on me as they fling off... I try to go slow enough so they don't.


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