X1100c Snowblower alignment rattle height

[J754]

I purchased a ‘20 x1100c with k-connect plus snowblower and am looking for some owner feed back on pto noise. With hand throttle all the way up and pto engaged I can lift the blower to about 4” off the ground (maybe 1/4-1/3 the way up) before the shaft gets noisy. It’s not a horrible noise but just when you hear it go from smooth operating to that first audible difference where you say that’s as far as I want to raise it. Does that sound normal or do other owners get more angle/height out of an engaged pto blower?

 

[Westfield]

My snowblower does the same thing. I am no mechanic but I believe that is caused by the U joints. When the snow blower is flat on the ground the shift and the U joints are all lined up straight so it runs smoother. Then when you raise it up all the way it's putting stress on the U-joints and rest of the drive. That's my guess anyway. I am going to go to the dealer sometime when I get a chance. I have to ask him about the reduction box on the snowblower it is getting very hot after running the snowblower. I will ask him about the noise. But I will not make it out there for quite a while it's an hour and a half one way. I've also read about other people having that rattling noise when you raise the snowblower. Hopefully one of the experts on this site will let us know why they make that noise.
aurthuritis any ideas?

 

[J754]

I’d be interested in seeing measurements from the ground to bottom of blower when the noise becomes noticeably different on like machines. Are most people seeing around 4” before noise or some people getting more lift before the noise starts.

 

[Mork]

You may want to get into a habit of disconnecting the PTO when raising the blower past the point where the noise starts. I have a rear blower mounted on my BX tractor and if I raise it 4-5" off the ground the PTO shaft starts to vibrate. This can seriously damage the PTO and blower if the shaft is too far out of alignment.

 

[extrafu]

@Mork do you see any issue in disconnecting the PTO when moving around for a few seconds and reconnecting it after? Like disconnect the PTO, lift the snowblower, move 30 feet away in 15 secs, drop the snowblower, connect the PTO. Would it be better to leave it running?

 

[Mork]

What I would personally do is just lift the blower to clear the ground to move it. Leave it run and be careful not to lift the blower too high while running. Disconnect the PTO when finished for the day and lift the blower to its transport height.

 

[J754]

You may want to get into a habit of disconnecting the PTO when raising the blower past the point where the noise starts. I have a rear blower mounted on my BX tractor and if I raise it 4-5" off the ground the PTO shaft starts to vibrate. This can seriously damage the PTO and blower if the shaft is too far out of alignment.

That’s the same process I do when the blower is engaged. I wish the lift cylinder had a better response time. It’s just hard to know if the few things that bother me is normal or now not right without having other RTVs to compare.

 

[Kingfisher]

I have had the same noise issue with my 2020 RTVX 1100c with snowblower. From day one when it was being demonstrated to me I questioned how loud the rattle is when the unit is lifted. I did find only raising it as high as I need to to kept the noise to a minimum. I also disengage the pto when it has to be raised to a higher position. That being said I recently had a u joint fail on the pto drive shaft. The dealer indicated (without admitting a design problem) that this was a known issue to Kubota. My unit is barely a year old (100 hrs) and I purchased the extended warranty. The dealer claimed this was not covered under warranty but out of the goodness of their hearts they were covering labor and Kubota was covering the parts.(new redesigned parts supposedly) I get most warranties don’t cover implements however if you have to remove the skid plates on the RTV to replace a shaft and u joint how is that the implement and not the RTV. Anyway thought I should share.

 

[BiffNH]

Sorry to hear of the vibration problems. I seriously looked into going with the K-Connect blower when I ordered my RTV X1100C this past spring, but the two dealers I made contact with both said they don't support the K-Connect system as it has been "problematic". I decided to heed their comments and decided to get the Boss V-plow again. I'd love to have a snowblower attachment but I do love the V-Plow.

 

[Kingfisher]

Sorry to hear of the vibration problems. I seriously looked into going with the K-Connect blower when I ordered my RTV X1100C this past spring, but the two dealers I made contact with both said they don't support the K-Connect system as it has been "problematic". I decided to heed their comments and decided to get the Boss V-plow again. I'd love to have a snowblower attachment but I do love the V-Plow.

Unfortunately I need the blower as I have nowhere to push snow. Curious your location, I would love to speak to a dealership that might give me the straight scoop on how to manage this K connect system

 

[BiffNH]

Unfortunately I need the blower as I have nowhere to push snow. Curious your location, I would love to speak to a dealership that might give me the straight scoop on how to manage this K connect system

I am in central NH. One dealer said they won’t deal with the snowblower Townline Equipment in Plainfield, NH and I purchased my new machine from MB Tractor who said they would sell me a snowblower but advised against it. I was told that the setup was finicky and that it shouldn’t be considered a seasonal setup. I didn’t want to carry all the undercarriage all summer and lose the clearance, etc. I did consider getting a Barco unit as it looks great and would work well for me but no local dealers. Good luck.

 

[Kingfisher]

Interesting, I am also in NH. Thanks for the info it is very helpful.