X series straight shifter upgrade kit

unfortunately for you all the new updates and options are on the 2024 models but yours is still a great machine that will get a little easier to shift with more hours. You will learn techniques for shifting such as throttle blip and keeping the pressure relief cable adjusted right. Removing the pin simply helps in moving the shift lever smoother and quicker with the right timing
 
I am looking into the new parking brake handle to see if i can fit it to my 2015 Note in picture lists improved shifting.IMG_3344.jpg
 
Mine was built in 7/23. I am assuming it is a 2023 model. I don't know what the cutoff date is for the year for Kubota.
 
Well, P is my 10th alpha numeric in the 17 digit serial, so I guess that would make it a 2023. Always a day late and a dollar short......
 
Looking at Messick's youtube channel, it appears for 2024, the RTV-x900 and the RTV-x1120 are going to go away and a new model, named the RTV-X, will replace them. It appears the are going to bump the HP in the diesel up a bit, but it will still only do 25MPH. but have more torque. It also looks like you can get it in Tan color, also. Should be interesting to see what the MSRP for it will be.

Screenshot 2024-01-22 at 4.50.22 PM.png


 
Len 900 said:
This shifter upgrade has been on my mind so today i spend some time looking at the stock shifter and the upgrade stright shifter from kabota. What i discovered is the kabota engineers eliminated a steel pin that is on the stock lever that indexes into a steel gate under the dash. The sreel pin and shift gate forces the operator to fiddlefart around to shift gears instead of a smooth, straight and guick up or down motion. The little plastic nub on the stock plastic by the letter N has little effect on straight shifting. I decided if the kabota engineers eliminated the pin as an upgrade I would too. I took a little hacksaw and cut the pin off and WOWSER what a vastly improved shifting experience!!!! The guicker timeing of the shift without having to go through the extra motion to go through the shift gate seems to catch the transmission at a good pressure point for it to slip into gear. I don't know why this is not a service bulletin. It is a fifteen minute mod verses a 250 dollar kit and 1 1/2 hours labor to instal. I wanted to share this "Lens Shifter Mod" with my fellow owners.. lolView attachment 14229View attachment 14230View attachment 14231
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With the pin removed can the shifter drop down from low to high?
 
Ohio_Pawpaw_Grower said:
Hey Green, when you back up a hill, are you able to mash on the brake and get the pressure to release? I have also had success pressing lightly on the go pedal as I move the shifter.
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No, if I back up a hill, no matter how hard I press on the brake pedal, it will not get a release. I can't get it into neutral. I can shut the engine off and then it will slide right into neutral with no issues. We have some fairly steep hills here and most of the time, when I am backing up one of the hills, I am in 4WD. I will try blipping the speed pedal and see if that works. I also found that if you increase the RPM of the engine with the warm up half throttle lever pulled, it does shift a whole lot better. I dunno. I paid a lot of money for that machine to be giving me grief on shifting. My 855D Gator never gave me grief when shifting, although it is belt drive vs hydro. 2 different types of drive train.

I am getting ready this spring to purchase a CTL. Kubota and Cat are the 2 brands on my radar. The Kubota is a SVL75-3 and the CAT is a 289D3XPS. I have put quite a few hours in on both models, but for the money you give, dealer and parts support, Durability and features, I am going to go with the Cat. My RTV X1100c transmission shifting has left a little bit of a sour taste in my mouth for Kubota. I am not exceptionally thrilled with my local servicing Kubota dealer, either. There are other Kubota dealers in my area, but they are all owned by the same company. The local Kubota dealership has also been bought and sold several times in the past 15 years. For almost 5 of those years, the Kubota dealership closed up shop and you had to drive 2 hours one way to get parts or service.
 
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There's two issues with the pre 2024 rtv shifting. The first is the straight cut gears in the gearbox that as the machine sets on an incline the lash will be gone and there's friction between the teeth. This improves with miles. The second is mal adjusted hst speed lever causing the swash slight tilt and the hst creeps into the gear lash. If you need to hit the brake to release pressure all you need to do is adjust the hst speed lever on the transmission so that the hst doesn't creep. The new models i think have helical gears so they should be quieter and shift more smoothly.
 
aurthuritis said:
There's two issues with the pre 2024 rtv shifting. The first is the straight cut gears in the gearbox that as the machine sets on an incline the lash will be gone and there's friction between the teeth. This improves with miles. The second is mal adjusted hst speed lever causing the swash slight tilt and the hst creeps into the gear lash. If you need to hit the brake to release pressure all you need to do is adjust the hst speed lever on the transmission so that the hst doesn't creep. The new models i think have helical gears so they should be quieter and shift more smoothly.
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Interesting. I didn't think I was getting any creep, but maybe I need to put the back end up on jack stands and check it while it is idling. I guess it is possible I am getting a bit of creep that takes any backlash out of the gears and leaves them loaded. That kind of makes sense. It is supposed to be in the 50's this weekend with no snow or Arctic temps. I'll check it then.
 
To answer 20lewesadan question no it does not effect the low and high shifting. where removing the pin helps is shifting between forward and reverse. As you come to a complete stop it allows you to quickly move the lever between forward and reverse before pressure builds back up in the trans. With the pin in place you have to work the shift lever around the pin which slows you down just enough to give time for pressure to build back up and make it harder to shift. Then you have to use one of the techniques such as blip the throttle and quickly shifting. Kabota engineers must have realized this when they eliminated the pin on the straight line kit.
 
Sticky shifting really isn't because of pressure in the hst. It is more because of gear lash friction that can be caused by the machine rolling up against the static hst or from the hst creeping into the gears tightening the lash between the gears. The rtv up until recently used straight cut gears that makes the situation worse. The pressure relief poppet that the brake pedal actuate just alows the hst to roll back a little relieving the tight gears.
 
I agree Aurthuritis that gear bind is also part of the problem. Removing the pin helps you catch that sweet spot when everything is in balance for a quick shift.
 
Now that I put the blower on my RTV I found out I can't use my timing and blip the throttle technique because you now have the hand throttle at wide open throttle. But I learned now that when I get to end of my pass, if I change gears at same moment I lift the blower that works to unbind it too.
 
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