K-Connect

unless Kubota changed something the lift mechanism is contained in the front bumper and is an electric over hydraulic unit. pretty sure the PTO is direct drive off of the front of the engine through a gearbox or chaincase one or the other and then has an electric clutch to start and stop the implement pto. i anm unsure if the gearbox/chaincase has a disconnect or not.
 
foxalaska said:
The best kept secret on the planet. How is hell does the system work? Drive off the front of the engine? A method to engage and disengage? Installation info?
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There is a clutch powered by a relay. The dash switch to turn on the PTO runs to the first relay for the dash light and second relay to power the clutch. Otherwise yes it’s direct drive from the crank
 
Neither of the two videos shows how to remove the K connect system from the RTV. I looked into this when I first got my X1100 and I could not wrap my brain around the system and how it connects to the rear of the engine. If anyone has ever separated the engine from the transmission you realize there is no room to add a gearbox back there. Also if you added a gearbox between the engine and the transmission you would have to lengthen the frame. Also the small drive shaft that runs the gearbox is in the same direction as the driveshaft that runs the accessories. So my twisted logic tells me it has to connect to the front. The only other option would be transmission that would have to be significantly re designed which doesn't seem to be the case. Additionally if you look at the parts break out where the driveshaft on the gearbox connects to the RTV it looks like the crankcase pulley on the front of the engine. Any one who ever had a G1900 with a snowblower should be familiar with the PTO connector bolted to the same PTO Pulley that drives the mower deck.
 
Have a question for you Westfield, now that you have had your K-Connect and blower for your RTV-X1100C.

Is it easy enough to remove everything in the summer so you still have all your ground clearance for trail riding?

I had ruled out this system when I had priced it and found out it was 20 grand Canadian, but now I'm thinking I should get something easier for my wife to operate if she has to. She doesn't feel comfortable with the tractors, but I think with how tricky it is sometimes to shift these RTV's from forward to reverse, a blower might be easier for her than plowing with the Boss plow.
 
You cannot disassemble all the drivetrain parts for the PTO or you will be in trouble. That is professionally installed and everything has to be lined up correctly or you will have problems! There's a lot more involved then just a couple U-joints. I would imagine some people on here could take it apart and put it back together correctly. I retired a mechanical engineering machine designer and now at 67 years old I would not attempt to take it apart and reinstall it.
 
Some of the Kubota dealers do not even install them correctly people complain about a lot of noise coming from there U joints and lots of vibration.
 
Okay. So I guess that option is still ruled out. I don't want anything that will hamper my trail riding abilities in the summer, otherwise no point having an RTV.
 
When I was shopping for a new RTV I had planned on purchasing the K-connect system, but one dealer I visited said they do not sell or install the K-connect system as they have been "troublesome". When I pressed for some details they just said it is difficult to install and maintain alignment over time. They just didn't want to make a sale only to have frustrated customers. Having the drive shaft so long and quite low just makes it an invitation for trouble. With this knowledge I decided to save the money and went with the Boss V-plow that I know works well.
 
Post 167 on this thread describes what this member does with the K-connect to regain the ground clearance during the summer time.

I personally have not removed any parts of the K-connect during the summer. I only harvest 12 cords a year so the decreased clearance and approach angle hasn’t been too much of an issue.

The K-connect with snowblower was worth every penny in my situation.
 
A buddy of mine and I did a "self install" on my 2017 X1100C. I bought the RTV used last year from WA and located the Blower, Hydraulic, and K-connect kit from a dealer in WI that had it listed online. (customer cancelled his order due to Kubota not shipping the RTV's, and he was stuck with the blower kits).

1st, I'll say that it took us 3 solid weekends, plus probably 6 2-hour week nights. Neither of us has ever owned a Kubota, or tractor of any brand. He is a fairly knowledgeable home auto enthusiast, and I am just learning. We did it in a friends auto body shop on a 2-post lift. The lift was invaluable, as was working out of a shop with a couple of experienced techs, and every possible tool we could need.

The Hydraulic unit is installed 1st. It is pretty straight forward. The most difficult part is routing the power cords to the back of the RTV and getting the lines for the control stick ran. We also spent a couple of hours trouble shooting a lack of power, that turned out to be an ignition on wire that did not have power as the book told us.

Next is the PTO Assembly. This took the most time. There are mods that have to be made, a radiator that has to be moved one inch higher. Removing and replacing a hydraulic hose, drilling mounting holes, and a number of lines, that have to be routed in very tight spaces. Removing the front pulley from the engine proved to be very difficult, but we prevailed with the help of the baddest impact wrench in the shop. Then getting the 3 hex bolts back in the new provided pulley equally fun, followed by the 3 bolts to put the driveshaft in. I will say that once you understand each step in the assembly manual, it is very straight forward. This often involved me reading it 2-3 times, handing of the book to my buddy, followed by a conversation, and sometimes inlisting a 3rd party for thier thoughts. I will mention that there are no adjustments to made in alignment. All of the mounting points are fixed, and the install manual makes no mention of making adjustments. There simply is no provision, and fankly no room for it.

The blower unit is pretty straight forward. Ours does make some noise at specific RPM's, but we spent a number of hours trying to isolate it with no luck.

All in all it was difficult, but a very good learning experience. I believe the dealer I bought the blower kits from told me that Kubota reccommends 20 hours to install, but they had never done it in less than 30. We probably have a 100 into it counting both of our time.

Since the main accessory drive pully for the altenator and air conditioner now has a PTO shaft attached to it, we replaced those belts. Also did an oil change and replaced two hydraulic filters while we had the lift.

So far we are very happy with the RTV and blower. We have had about 60" of snow so far this year, and it has had no problem blazing through it.
 
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