[Bob Driver]

This is for our new member RJ that sent me a PM. First off, Welcome to the Forum..... The PM feature of this Forum limits the size of post to 420 characters, to me that appears to be the obvious work of the Bright Idea Fairy, so here you go RJ...... I guess I could have "tagged" you with this post, but I like to poke at Pogo Bill and he's grown to expect it

Your Tuff Torq K71 is one of their better transmissions at the moment. To be honest, I'm not currently a big fan of Tuff Torq. Their parts are expensive, they have some poor designs, and they really don't like the summer heat here in Mississippi. As an OEM, they aren't really keen about giving their customers two pieces of critical maintenance information.... 1) They need an oil change after the first 50 hours of initial operation. 2) Some models have an internal filter that requires the entire axle to come out of the chassis and be split to gain access to the a small, but expensive filter. You're lucky with the K71 internal main transmission filter, they ignored that pesky Bright Idea Fairy, and it's underneath a cap at the back of the unit.

Your K71 set up has two filters.... One is a "Hydraulic" filter, the other is the main transmission filter. The good news on the K71 is they are both fairly easy to access, the hydraulic filter is a spin-on, the main trans filter is a cartridge type under the cap at the back of the unit. The bad news is they are both ridiculously expensive under a Tuff Torq part #, $25 for the spin-on, $45 for the actual transmission filter.

The main killer of any Tuff Torq is heat. Make sure your fan is in good shape, make sure the aluminum case is clean ( they say don't use a pressure washer, so an air blow gun is your other option), and don't run at a constant high speed, in the heat of the day. That cyclone rake is a monster, it's going to be tough on the transaxle. Here in MS, I'd wait until after sunset in the Summer, pause often with the tractor engine at idle to give the fan time to cool the trans down, and empty the cyclone when it gets 1/2 full to keep the weight down.

Here's a link to a PDF you'll find really helpful on servicing the K71..... Good luck

K71 Oil Change Instructions

 

[Bob Driver]

Keeping with the theme of poking at people..... That spin-on hydraulic filter is the same as a Baldwin BT251 that sells for around $12. The internal trans filter Tuff Torq # is 1719832, but it looks like they've pulled their usual crap and I can't find a X-reference for their $45 filter at the moment. You know damn well they didn't make that filter, one of the filter OEM's did, so they're playing games and their posted filter number is an internal "reference number", so you can't easily x-reference for a cheaper alternative, so you'll give up and just basically pay them their ransom $$$$

 

[pogobill]

I guess I could have "tagged" you with this post, but I like to poke at Pogo Bill and he's grown to expect it

Hopefully RJ will pop in and share his issue and experience.

 

[Bob Driver]

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Hopefully RJ will pop in and share his issue and experience.

OK.... I see your point. Now I feel used and worst case scenario possibly scammed/hacked. As usual, I give my solemn "promise" to do better, but you're probably going to just shake your head at that also

 

[rpjpd]

This is for our new member RJ that sent me a PM. First off, Welcome to the Forum..... The PM feature of this Forum limits the size of post to 420 characters, to me that appears to be the obvious work of the Bright Idea Fairy, so here you go RJ...... I guess I could have "tagged" you with this post, but I like to poke at Pogo Bill and he's grown to expect it

Your Tuff Torq K71 is one of their better transmissions at the moment. To be honest, I'm not currently a big fan of Tuff Torq. Their parts are expensive, they have some poor designs, and they really don't like the summer heat here in Mississippi. As an OEM, they aren't really keen about giving their customers two pieces of critical maintenance information.... 1) They need an oil change after the first 50 hours of initial operation. 2) Some models have an internal filter that requires the entire axle to come out of the chassis and be split to gain access to the a small, but expensive filter. You're lucky with the K71 internal main transmission filter, they ignored that pesky Bright Idea Fairy, and it's underneath a cap at the back of the unit.

Your K71 set up has two filters.... One is a "Hydraulic" filter, the other is the main transmission filter. The good news on the K71 is they are both fairly easy to access, the hydraulic filter is a spin-on, the main trans filter is a cartridge type under the cap at the back of the unit. The bad news is they are both ridiculously expensive under a Tuff Torq part #, $25 for the spin-on, $45 for the actual transmission filter.

The main killer of any Tuff Torq is heat. Make sure your fan is in good shape, make sure the aluminum case is clean ( they say don't use a pressure washer, so an air blow gun is your other option), and don't run at a constant high speed, in the heat of the day. That cyclone rake is a monster, it's going to be tough on the transaxle. Here in MS, I'd wait until after sunset in the Summer, pause often with the tractor engine at idle to give the fan time to cool the trans down, and empty the cyclone when it gets 1/2 full to keep the weight down.

Here's a link to a PDF you'll find really helpful on servicing the K71..... Good luck

K71 Oil Change Instructions

Dear Bob,

Thank you so much for the response and I apologize for getting back to you so late, this past week has been crazy busy for me.

First off, I misspoke as my transmission is the K72H. I see can see where the small cylindrical filter with the spring on it goes into the transmission (front area of the transmission/mid area of tractor near the deck). I have yet to find the filter that looks like a standard spin on oil filter on my Prestige tractor. I was contemplating use AMSOIL when I change the fluid, any recommendation on the type is appreciated.

At 30HP this is by far the strongest tractor I have owned (currently have a Red Cub 782) and previously owned an Ingersoll. Both have 16/17 horsepower engines that served me well. I figured towing a cyclone rake would be good with the power this tractor has but learning this transmission may be problematic is a bit disconcerting. I am used to the cast iron rear ends that can slide backwards down hill with tires rotating in opposite directions. lol.

Thank you again for your assistance.

Ricky

 

[Bob Driver]

Dear Bob,

Thank you so much for the response and I apologize for getting back to you so late, this past week has been crazy busy for me.

First off, I misspoke as my transmission is the K72H. I see can see where the small cylindrical filter with the spring on it goes into the transmission (front area of the transmission/mid area of tractor near the deck). I have yet to find the filter that looks like a standard spin on oil filter on my Prestige tractor. I was contemplating use AMSOIL when I change the fluid, any recommendation on the type is appreciated.

At 30HP this is by far the strongest tractor I have owned (currently have a Red Cub 782) and previously owned an Ingersoll. Both have 16/17 horsepower engines that served me well. I figured towing a cyclone rake would be good with the power this tractor has but learning this transmission may be problematic is a bit disconcerting. I am used to the cast iron rear ends that can slide backwards down hill with tires rotating in opposite directions. lol.

Thank you again for your assistance.

Ricky

Uses the same cartridge main transmission filter, expect the Simplicity # is 1687472YP...... Same thing, that's a "reference number" to keep you from buying it cheaper from the OEM that actually made it

 

[rpjpd]

Thank you, any recommendation on the AMSOIL transmission fluid?

 

[Bob Driver]

Thank you, any recommendation on the AMSOIL transmission fluid?

Nothing gets a conversation going on here like "What Oil"? ..... I've never been a strong believer in two things that are blatant myths..... 1) Household Recycling 2) Synthetic oil in a lawn mower. Recycling is because I worked in the trash business for years and I know what really goes on at a MRF. Expensive Synthetic oil in a lawn mower, to me, is like insisting on putting Estée Lauder lipstick on a pig.

Tuff Torq wants you to put their $50 a gallon 187Q0899000 oil in everything they build. The original oil they put in your K72 was JD Hy-Gard Low Viscosity at $27 a gallon. They also put just plain old SJ rated dino juice 10w30 in a lot of their transaxles that runs $18 for 5 quarts at Wally World for their Super Tech brand.

I smell something going on here and it smells like $$$ to me. Me personally, I'd ignore Tuff Torq's money grab and run 10w30 dino juice and change it every season. If that freaks you out, and you still want to jump on the "Full Synthetic" band wagon, go with Super Tech Synthetic 10w30 for $21.50 at Wally World. If you're concerned about the quality of "Wally World Super Tech" oil, it's made by either Warren oil, ExxonMobil, or Pennzoil. The way to tell when you're holding the jug and surrounded by the lovely folks at Wally World is as follows.....

ExxonMobil
The way to tell if the oil was made by ExxonMobil is by looking at the bottle cap. It’s larger than a normal Supertech cap and will be similar or exactly the same as the caps found on Mobil 1 oil bottles.

Warren
Most of Walmart’s synthetic motor oils are made by Warren. The way to tell if you’re buying a Warren-made oil is by looking for a white rectangle on the front or back label. The rectangle can be blank, have a number inside it, or have a QR code.

Pennzoil
Pennzoil-made oil can be identified by the packaging stamp. Because it’s packaged by Constar, it will have a small letter C with a star inside it on the bottom of the container. However, keep in mind that Warren will also use Constar packaging if they’re running short on their own, so check whether there’s a white rectangle on the labels to confirm or rule out Warren as the manufacturer.

Here's a PDF from Tuff Torq that explains their scheme for extorting $50 a gallon for their oil

Tuff Torq Oil BS

 

[rpjpd]

Hi, thanks again for all the help.

R