l3000 4wd

[grainger12002]

Anybody provide any insight on the l300dt, I have an opportunity that I want to pull the trigger on, just looking for any weak points or obvious things-its a 2000 model year w la450s loader,500hrs in good shape for 10k-will need front tires but other than that..........

thank you

 

[cp1969]

I've got one. It is a good tractor but not one that couldn't stand some improvements.

Unless you have the glide shift transmission, you will find reverse in high range is almost always faster than you'd like to go, probably the equivalent of 6th or 7th out of eight gears. In low range, it's way too low but in some cases, like box blade work, that has to make do and it takes two gear shifts to get there each time you want to change direction.

There is no aux hydraulic, but I guess that can be added if you need it. The lights aren't great, either.

I don't know of any real "weak" points other than the transmission situation I described above. I have had no problems whatsoever with mine. But you might want to negotiate some on that price or look at a new one...I think I only gave $11K for mine brand new.

 

[grainger12002]

The tractor is in good shape, has a loader and only 400 hrs, I think he will go 9k,but it does need front tires.

 

[cp1969]

I forgot it had a loader. $9K might be a good deal.

 

[Youare]

I bought one new 5 years ago, only one problem small problem that the dealer corrected right away. There was a piece of metal shaving in the 3PH lift circuit that kept things from working properly.

Other than that there have been no issues for the past 400 hours. It is a gear drive tractor and you have to move a shift lever and push the clutch in when ever you wnat to change speeds or direction. I don't have a problem with that and don't find that difficult even when plowing snow where you change directions a little more than notmal.

The one thing I did do was move the rear tires to the widest setting. This improved the stability of the tractor greatly. I use mine mostly to gather wood for heating our house so there are frequent trips into the woods.

When you change the front tires make sure the have the same rolling diameter as the originals. 10K with a loader sounds like a fair price for my neck of the woods but in New England used tractors seem to go for higher prices thant other places.

I had a bigger tractor when I bought my L3000 and it look a little getting use to, but it is a great machine.

Randy

 

[grainger12002]

thanks for the reply. I have been looking and 3 options,the L3000, A L295,or an L245. I am sure either will work I just want the most bang for my buck,its not and everyday tractor, and i have a larger tractor for field work.Thoughts ....are greatly appreciated

 

[needtobuildmore]

I bought one new in 2001.

There was one issue I had that is worth mentioning: The high/low range shifter mechanism is kind of flimsy. The neutral safety switch that required it to in in neutral before starting was eventually disabled due to concerns about future breakage. In short, the handle is long and allows for too much leverage while shifting & eventually wears out the inner shift fork.

Although it was fixed under warranty, it seemed like it should have lasted for more than 3 years before breaking.

 

[Bob_Young]

grainger:
I've got the L3000's big brother; the L4300. Same idea, a good basic gear tractor with an 8x2 transmission. The transmission is its biggest limitation. CP1969's remarks about the reverse speeds is dead-on. The Reverse gear ratio is between 2nd and 3rd in the base 4 spd. transmission....so in High range, the speed is between 6th and 7th like CP sez. Even Low range reverse is too fast for some applications. I thought Kubota goofed on this, but I find that similar reverse ratios are used on Ford 8x2 transmissions; so it must be a tradition or something.

If you're going to shift between low range and high range, you should come to a complete halt. Some have damaged their transmissions by shifting between ranges on the fly. The manual cautions against shifting the base 4-speed transmission on the fly; but that doesn't seem to cause any trouble and the shifts are pretty easy if you only go up or down a gear at a time. I think the L3000 will have similar restrictions.

Basically the L4300 seems to be a simple, rugged, straightforward tractor. I'm sure the L3000 is the same. If you value honest simplicity above troublesome sophistication, you'll probably like the L3000. If it has to sit for awhile, there's less for the mice to chew up.

They're light for their power so you might want to have the rears filled. $9K seems about right.
Bob