Kubota L3301- is this right for me?

[GoosePaint]

Thanks for the opinions. I borrowed a buddies new jd 4010 this weekend. Used it to move 28 yards of dirt down my 500' driveway w loader and box blade. Got more work done with 40hp hst than 70hp NH gear driven. Man that hst is nice. Makes front end loader work like slinging a shovel. Now i get it! Most of the logs we mill are pine, and all have been log jacked up onto the mill so far. Just for fun i moved a 15' piece of cedar that represents waaaay bigger than i will ever need to mill. The little tractor handled it fine. I wont be ready to buy for a few months, but i will be buying the l3901, 4x4, hst. The jd was nice, but i have a pile of made in japan honda stuff that i depend on already, and that jd isn't yanmar enough for me. Thanks!

 

[GoosePaint]

Also, because of the simple controls on the jd, i could slap it into neutral and jump off to hook up logs or whatever without tractor shutting down. Are the controls the same on new kubota? It was a pain on the tn70a new holland to set brake everytime.

 

[motownbrowne]

Also, because of the simple controls on the jd, i could slap it into neutral and jump off to hook up logs or whatever without tractor shutting down. Are the controls the same on new kubota? It was a pain on the tn70a new holland to set brake everytime.

With a hydrostatic machine you don't need to (and shouldn't) put the transmission in neutral to get off the machine. Leaving it engaged will hold the tractor from rolling to some degree. Not as good as brakes but better than neutral. It might creep downhill a touch, but it's not gonna take off.

 

[GoosePaint]

On this machine it would shut down when i took weight off seat unless lever to the left of seat was in neutral. I used it for 2 days without touching the brake.

 

[Fallon]

I zip tied down the seat sensor on mine L3200, so I can stand or jump off without it dying. As you probably noticed the HST acts like a brake when not being driven. I'll jump off mine on a hill in M range & it will roll a foot or so a minute. Not great, but good.

The Parking brake is a little lever on the right side, just to the left of the brakes. You jam on the left brake (or both if pinned) Then pull the parking lever to hold the brake in place. A bit annoying, but workable. I often drop my box blade instead. You get use to the twitch to the left when you try to take off with the parking brake on. I never pin my brakes unless someboyd else is going to drive the tractor. With the HST I use them for turning & very occasionally when trying to do precision pickups or drops on a hill.

Whatever you do, get the tires loaded & always use proper ballast, especially given your plans to mostly use the loader. Loaded rear tires really help with the traction & help keep the rear on the ground when lifting things. However loaded tires don't help keep the load off the weak front axle. Proper ballast on the back unloads weight off the weak & complex front axle to put it on the strong & simple rear

At one point I was trying to put a 100, maybe 180 tops gate on the pallet forks. It was just a gate, so I didn't bother with putting anything on the back for ballast. It was also only in 2wd & on a slight downhill slope (front wheels were maybe 6-8" lower than the front). I let off the go pedal & kept going. Jammed on brakes, no affect. FInally ended up with a couple small holes in the sheet metal in the back of my shop.

Moral of the story is, always ballast properly (not just load the tires) & use 4wd if you pick up anything with the loader as the brakes are only on the rear (and don't work in 2wd if your rear is light). Your brakes are also not likely to work if the HST doesn't stop you when you let off to go pedal.

I'd still highly recomend the tractor, but just be aware of the limitations & proper operation.

I got R4s as they have a higher load capacity, are a bit more durable. They probably have a little less traction than R1s, but I haven't had any problems, I'm power limited a lot of the time.

You'd be crazy not to get the loader with the SSQA on it rather than just the pin on one. Swapping between bucket, pallet forks & a grapple just takes seconds with the SSQA. Could take ages with a pin on.

 

[jeff9366]

All tractors sold in the last few years have OSHA mandated "safety" switches under the operator's seat and tied in with the PTO.

 

[murphy1244]

All tractors sold in the last few years have OSHA mandated "safety" switches under the operator's seat and tied in with the PTO.

Not so. Kioti does not use them in the DK series and I thank them for that.

 

[GoosePaint]

My 1986 honda 3813 garden tractor has the seat switch, so annoying.

 

[s219]

I zip tied down the seat sensor on mine L3200, so I can stand or jump off without it dying. As you probably noticed the HST acts like a brake when not being driven. I'll jump off mine on a hill in M range & it will roll a foot or so a minute. Not great, but good.

The engine should only quit on the L3200 when getting up off the seat if the HST treadle is depressed fwd/reverse or the PTO is running (though PTO can be started with seat lifted so that it will run without anyone in the seat).

Were you having problems with the engine quitting anytime you got up off the seat, even with HST treadle centered? That would not be right, and suggests the safety switches on the HST treadle need adjustment.

I get up and out of the seat on my L3200 all the time, and it won't cut out unless the treadle is depressed and the tractor is moving. It's annoying if I am creeping forward to do something and then lift up off the seat try to look over the hood (rare). But there are other situations where that could be important.

 

[Fallon]

The engine should only quit on the L3200 when getting up off the seat if the HST treadle is depressed fwd/reverse or the PTO is running (though PTO can be started with seat lifted so that it will run without anyone in the seat).

Were you having problems with the engine quitting anytime you got up off the seat, even with HST treadle centered? That would not be right, and suggests the safety switches on the HST treadle need adjustment.

I get up and out of the seat on my L3200 all the time, and it won't cut out unless the treadle is depressed and the tractor is moving. It's annoying if I am creeping forward to do something and then lift up off the seat try to look over the hood (rare). But there are other situations where that could be important.

I often stand when trying to maneuver to pick up things with the forks, which is my main reason for defeating the switch. If I fall off, the HST pedal will go to center & stop the tractor just as well as killing the engine would. I stay belted to the seat if I'm running a mower or tiller to prevent ant PTO entanglement.

Its was one of the first things I did, so I'm a bit fuzzy on all the kill scenarios with that switch operating normally. You are quite probably correct.