KennK
Silver Member
Oh man, I am hard on my JD 3320.
Last fall I accidentally put gasoline in it. I used a different gas station than normal to get diesel, and the pump I used was off to the side with a green handle (usually that means diesel), but it pumped gasoline. Turned out on all of the other pump islands there that nozzle WAS diesel, except the island I picked. It was marked unleaded, but I missed that. Sigh. Stupid Stupid Stupid.
No immediate damage. It started smoking and I stopped it quick and called the dealer. He cleaned it out and returned it. Now a year later one injector went bad - not sure if related, but might have been. Not too expensive a fix.
Last spring I had to pull a truck out of some mud with the 3320. I hooked a tow strap to the drawbar (I'm always careful to pull straight forward) and must have bumped the shifter knob with my fat butt - it ended up in the high gear. I over-revved the tachometer and broke it - such that the tach gave random readings - must have been sliding on the shaft or something. Sigh. Had to replace the entire instrument cluster - about $700.
Now its back home and good as new.
Last winter was especially cold. I parked it outside one night (I have a barn) and it didn't want to start in the morning. I put a blanket over the engine and a light bulb underneath - that was enough to get it started after a few hours of heating. When I had the tractor in to get the new instrument cluster I asked them to install an engine heater. Turns out it already had one - they said that the cord was hidden well - even they almost missed it. Sigh. When I'd bought it I'd asked about an engine heater. He said it didn't need one. I never thought about whether it might have already had one. Sigh.
BTW, I have the same corrosion issue with the battery. Have thought about swapping in a maintenance free once next year.
I really REALLY like the tractor. It felt kind of big at first, but now I'm very comfortable with it and it maneuvers like a dream. Though I still have to be careful with low-hanging branches hitting the ROPS.
I think I've read about others that also have a problem with tight ROPS pins - the ones you'd remove to fold it down. They are wedged in so tight that I've just never bothered to remove them. I'm afraid they won't go back in. Kind of odd.
I find the lube points on the 3pt hitch are a pain. The ones on the arms don't take grease well - too much back pressure.
I have a MMM - 60" 7 Iron Mid-Mount Mower Deck. It comes off pretty well, but I find it a pain to put on each spring. My biggest trouble seems to be inserting the drive into the mid PTO (sometimes it goes right in, but most times its a struggle) and when pivoting the front bracket it seems like the deck has to be setting juuuust right, otherwise I pull and pull and pull. There had to have been an easier way.
Oh, I also wish the MMM could ride higher than it does. In must that thing can become a real nasty anchor. If I had it to do over again I might have purchased a 3PH finish mower.
Ken
Last fall I accidentally put gasoline in it. I used a different gas station than normal to get diesel, and the pump I used was off to the side with a green handle (usually that means diesel), but it pumped gasoline. Turned out on all of the other pump islands there that nozzle WAS diesel, except the island I picked. It was marked unleaded, but I missed that. Sigh. Stupid Stupid Stupid.
No immediate damage. It started smoking and I stopped it quick and called the dealer. He cleaned it out and returned it. Now a year later one injector went bad - not sure if related, but might have been. Not too expensive a fix.
Last spring I had to pull a truck out of some mud with the 3320. I hooked a tow strap to the drawbar (I'm always careful to pull straight forward) and must have bumped the shifter knob with my fat butt - it ended up in the high gear. I over-revved the tachometer and broke it - such that the tach gave random readings - must have been sliding on the shaft or something. Sigh. Had to replace the entire instrument cluster - about $700.
Now its back home and good as new.
Last winter was especially cold. I parked it outside one night (I have a barn) and it didn't want to start in the morning. I put a blanket over the engine and a light bulb underneath - that was enough to get it started after a few hours of heating. When I had the tractor in to get the new instrument cluster I asked them to install an engine heater. Turns out it already had one - they said that the cord was hidden well - even they almost missed it. Sigh. When I'd bought it I'd asked about an engine heater. He said it didn't need one. I never thought about whether it might have already had one. Sigh.
BTW, I have the same corrosion issue with the battery. Have thought about swapping in a maintenance free once next year.
I really REALLY like the tractor. It felt kind of big at first, but now I'm very comfortable with it and it maneuvers like a dream. Though I still have to be careful with low-hanging branches hitting the ROPS.
I think I've read about others that also have a problem with tight ROPS pins - the ones you'd remove to fold it down. They are wedged in so tight that I've just never bothered to remove them. I'm afraid they won't go back in. Kind of odd.
I find the lube points on the 3pt hitch are a pain. The ones on the arms don't take grease well - too much back pressure.
I have a MMM - 60" 7 Iron Mid-Mount Mower Deck. It comes off pretty well, but I find it a pain to put on each spring. My biggest trouble seems to be inserting the drive into the mid PTO (sometimes it goes right in, but most times its a struggle) and when pivoting the front bracket it seems like the deck has to be setting juuuust right, otherwise I pull and pull and pull. There had to have been an easier way.
Oh, I also wish the MMM could ride higher than it does. In must that thing can become a real nasty anchor. If I had it to do over again I might have purchased a 3PH finish mower.
Ken
