First time having hydraulic hoses made

[nwjones18]

Had a steering hose leaking on my Kubota and cost from dealer was $250 for a 5ft 1/4in hose with 2 female swivel ends.. This began my search for a local source for the hose. Apparently 3 places in my town make hoses, Bumper to Bumper, Napa and Oreilly auto parts. After going to the first two and them not having the correct fittings Oreilly at least said they could have the fittings the next day. Here they are:

https://www.oreillyauto.com/detail/...raulic-coupling/gat8/g251110404?q=G25111-0404

They charged me $25 per fitting which was surprising to me, but it is what it is. I had them make 2 steering hoses both very similar (5ft 1/4in female swivel ends) and 1 3ft 3/8 hose with female JIC fittings and the total was $236. Hard to complain about getting 3 hoses for the cost of one, but somehow I still want to complain about $90 for a 5 ft 1/4in hose.. But will be nice to have a tractor with no leaks.

Prior to this I had no idea that so many places locally would make Hydraulic hoses on the spot.

 

[JohnnyG]

We had a Parker Industrial near us in Pittsburgh, but they may be around other cities as well.
If these guys don't have it, they'll make it!

https://www.parker.com/content/dam/...ature/Catalog-4800-Parker-Industrial-Hose.pdf

 

[nwjones18]

We had a Parker Industrial near us in Pittsburgh, but they may be around other cities as well.
If these guys don't have it, they'll make it!

https://www.parker.com/content/dam/...ature/Catalog-4800-Parker-Industrial-Hose.pdf

That's a good resource. In my research on the tractor forums I found a lot of people going to either this place:

https://www.discounthydraulichose.c...pFFt894P0iaaY_ujIbBIOtGI3fbJwYn4EHDag1F26LLhi

or

https://www.surpluscenter.com/Brands/NRP-Jones/

If you have a hose with standard JIC fittings the pre made ones from surplus center are CHEAP and have good reviews. I honestly wasn't sure what fittings I had and would have guessed wrong on the 1/4 hose fittings... My 3/8 hose with female JIC fittings would have been $15 + shipping from them vs $62 from Oreilly.

 

[JTK]

You did good!

It's crazy how expensive tractor parts are and not just the green and orange variety.

 

[cptbarkey]

You still squeaked by less than 1/2 $ of the dealer which is always good. I see a mobile hydraulic hose truck running around the area on occasion, he must rake it in.
What happened to the original hose? My 2007 BX steering cylinder has a slow seep, I already bought a rebuild kit. I had to repair the rear PTO seal and both rear axles for leaks, but thankfully the FEL cylinders and all other hoses are dry even after 1230 hours.

 

[BrendanC]

i built hydraulic hoses back when i was working in the mechanic shop. built, hydro tested etc.

good quality isn’t cheap. we were a parker ONLY shop. fittings are expensive, hose is expensive and all the die’s/presses are expensive. i’m a large proponent of field serviceable hoses. fittings cost more upfront but you don’t really have to buy them again afterwards.


a BIG thing you can do to keep your hydraulic hoses alive for longer, is cover them in nylon sleeving to keep the UV off of them.

 

[redhat]

In Buffalo we’re lucky to have Ferry Hydraulic and Power Drives. Almost all hoses on my 1025R are Power Drives hoses. Guys there even let me take bulk hose with (1) end crimped on home to figure out my routing and length without paying.

Went home, routed them, marked with a sharpie and the guy put the other ends on and I paid the man. Now that’s service.

 

[nwjones18]

You still squeaked by less than 1/2 $ of the dealer which is always good. I see a mobile hydraulic hose truck running around the area on occasion, he must rake it in.
What happened to the original hose? My 2007 BX steering cylinder has a slow seep, I already bought a rebuild kit. I had to repair the rear PTO seal and both rear axles for leaks, but thankfully the FEL cylinders and all other hoses are dry even after 1230 hours.

There are two steering hoses that run from under the steering wheel to the front axle and one was leaking through the hose about 2 inches down from the fitting under the steering wheel.. Just a fail as it wasn't even in the sun. I went ahead and replaced the other one as well since I had access and was at it. The other hose was one for the 3rd function and while it wasn't dripping it was clearly damp so just got it done while I was at it. Only other rubber failures I've had is the hose from the tank to the fuel strainer got soft and I replaced it. My tractor has less than 400hrs. It did sit outside uncovered for the first 5yrs of its life, but I've had it sheltered since I got it in 2020.

 

[Chris142]

That sounds cheap to me. The AC hose I use costs me $11 per foot the fittings at least $25 each my cost.

The hydraulic parts are much more robust than my stuff and should cost more .

We have a local hose shop here that has everything in stock and makes hoses while you wait

 

[Fitter30]

March or April had a 1/4" hose same fitting 4.5' hose at a bearing / hydraulic supply house almost $50. 20-25 minutes had the new hose in hand. Brought the old hose in so they could get the angle of fittings the same. Hose went to the bucket failed because of chafing. Took some old garden hose and stainless hose clamps to help with the chafing.

 

[BrianF]

Good on you for shopping around. Lots of places in farm country can make and repair hydraulic. Its a great alternative to extremely over priced dealer parts.

I've shared this experience before but I was needing a new power steering pressure line for my 2006 Trailblazer. The coupling between the hard and flex line was leaking. I think it was like 150 to 200ish for an OE line, which would have taken hours to replace. I ended up at a small, family owned tool/brearing/hydraulic shop. Asked the owner, who promptly came out with a measuring tape and 15 minutes and 27$ later, he whipped up a splice that used compression fittings and replaced the flex line once cut out.

i dont remeber when that even was... 10 years ago? Regardless, was a life saver and it will out last the vehicle at this rate.