L3301 FL weak lift / curl

[MapleLeafFarmer]

hello... I bought a new L3301 with FL / BH / Pallet forks / 3rd function, etc... and now have 20 hours on it.

I feel the FL lift and curl to be weak.

for background. I live on an good sized acerage. 100% pine forest covered and soil sample is 96% sand down to 9'. Small layer or organic matter on top. Sand is yellow near top and white near bottom of this range. Sand is almost suitable for fracking!! no tiny stones, nice and clear like a Caribbean beach. Cleanest / nicest sand for a beach imaginable.

I recently sold my B2620 with a 50" bucket. Never had a problem diving into a sand pile and lifting / curling a overfull bucket.

Now I just purchased a new L3301 with a 66" bucket. The bucket capacity is much larger of course and diving into same piles of sand to get an overfull bucket seems to really strain and stall the lift / curl capacity. I run RPM at about 1,750.

Anyone else think their L series has lift / curl limits or am I just expecting it to do more than it should? never noticed with the B2620.

thanks in advance

 

[ericm979]

Try running the engine at pto rpm and don't overflll the bucket.

The limits are built into the cylinder size and loader geometry.

 

[General Lee]

Kubota is notoriously known for having hydraulic pressures set below their specs.

 

[Ortimber]

I recently sold my L3901, and I also thought the loader felt weak. I never did get around to checking hydraulic pressure.

 

[s219]

I don't notice any issues with my L3200, but I have the standard 60" bucket. The 66" bucket is a light materials bucket, and not meant to be heaped full with heavy materials. That bucket's larger volume is intended for light materials like mulch. You can certainly carry heavy materials in it, but not fully heaped.

Can't hurt to check to make sure the pressure is within spec. Also, be sure the 3-pt hitch isn't out of adjustment -- if that is using hydraulic pressure, it will make everything else on the tractor feel weaker.

 

[Fallon]

You need to check the hydraulic pressure. Then shim the relief valve only if its low.

My L3200 (only different from the L3301 with engine emissions) couldnt be sufficiently ballasted to be safe when lifting heavy. I could barely lift "1,200lbs" hay bales. Add a fair bit to that for pallet forks & the fact the load was a ways out. The back end had a 60" rotary cutter on it with 200lbs of junk piled at the back & loaded R4s. The back end was super light when doing that. I could get a full bucket of rock fine. Dont remember if it was a 60 or 66" bucket.

 

[MapleLeafFarmer]

So I did a little math and going to conclude the L3301 is proportionately weaker in the lift / curl versus my B2620

B2620 with the LA 364 loader has a 5.5 cubic foot bucket. With dry sand weighing about 100 pounds / cubic foot (5.5 * 100 = 550) and a LA364 loader rated at 802 pounds ( 364kg * 2.204 = 802 at pins w/o bucket weight) the load of sand makes up 69% of the rated capacity (550 / 802 = 69%) Full bucket lifts easy

same math but for the L3301 with LA 525 loader has a 8.1 cubic foot bucket. With dry sand weighing about 100 pounds / cubic foot (8.1 * 100 = 810) and a LA525 loader rated at 1,171 pounds ( 525kg * 2.204 = 1,171 at pins w/o bucket weight and quick connect) the load of sand makes up 69% of the rated capacity (810 / 1,171 = 69%) and full bucket does not lift.

now math may be out a little as L3301 has quick attach which adds some weight where B2620 is pin on etc.... BUT basically 69% of rating is no problems for the B2620 where 69% rating on the L3301 is beyond capacity.

no biggie for me, don't really care as I am retired and have all the time in the world to play in my sand piles but this does confirm the loader lift/curl does seem weaker full bucket to full bucket comparisons. So I be crazy most of the time but not so this time (haha).... gotta love the info this site provides....

Cheers

ps: both have backhoes for ballast and run rpms at the same.

 

[gsganzer]

Definitely check your pressure. My L3800 was under spec and I shimmed it to spec. It made a decent difference, but the front end loaders on the economy L series are anemic compared to many other brands. They're also on the low end for hydraulic GPM, so running other hydraulic tools, hydraulic post hole auger, 3- point splitter doesn't work too well. But it is the value/economy model and is made for your basic tractor duties.

I happen to think the L series fits a nice niche for the small property owner. It's a light enough machine that you can use it around the yard without leaving ruts everywhere, but it has just enough weight to do some moderate field work like fertilizing, brush hogging, tilling, aerating etc. I do wish it had just a touch more FEL and hydraulic capabilities, but with the machines lighter weight and stance, you'd be asking for stability problems.

Edit:
I do think the curl fails to match the lift capabilities, especially with pallet forks (probably a function of them sticking further out). Many times I can lift a load with the forks, but I can't curl it.

 

[s219]

B2620 with the LA 364 loader has a 5.5 cubic foot bucket. With dry sand weighing about 100 pounds / cubic foot (5.5 * 100 = 550) and a LA364 loader rated at 802 pounds ( 364kg * 2.204 = 802 at pins w/o bucket weight) the load of sand makes up 69% of the rated capacity (550 / 802 = 69%) Full bucket lifts easy

same math but for the L3301 with LA 525 loader has a 8.1 cubic foot bucket. With dry sand weighing about 100 pounds / cubic foot (8.1 * 100 = 810) and a LA525 loader rated at 1,171 pounds ( 525kg * 2.204 = 1,171 at pins w/o bucket weight and quick connect) the load of sand makes up 69% of the rated capacity (810 / 1,171 = 69%) and full bucket does not lift.

now math may be out a little as L3301 has quick attach which adds some weight where B2620 is pin on etc.... BUT basically 69% of rating is no problems for the B2620 where 69% rating on the L3301 is beyond capacity.

This is extremely flawed, since the loader ratings are at maximum height (7-8' typically) and don't scale linearly down. The L3301 loader can lift much higher than the B2620 loader. If you want to compare the lift curves for both loaders (in the owner's manuals) you'll see both loaders have much higher capacity down low, and due to its greater lift height, the L3301 loader is going to have even more gain down low than the B2620. To be honest, I get frustrated at how complicated people get with loader mathematics while at the same time missing the whole point and wasting time with numbers. Just look at the lift curve in your owner's manual to truly understand it.

As suggested, check your pressure and again, remember you have the light materials bucket, and it's not meant to be heaped full with heavy materials. That is another pet peeve of mine recently -- lot of people buy optional bigger buckets for their tractors and think they are gaining something or going heavy duty, but don't realize they are light materials buckets. These various bucket options are well understood in the construction market, but it seems like in compact tractors this point really gets missed. Everybody thinks bigger is better and that's only true for *volume*, not weight.