4310 Broke

[jd0716]

I have a 4310 with FEL and 72 inch MMM a year old. I went to raise the deck a few weeks ago, and instead of the deck coming up, the transmission case cracked. The wheels on the mower deck never came off of the ground. A hydraulic sensor also broke as a result and the service man said there is a bent bracket, although I am not quite sure where this bracket is located. The dealer is saying the deck may have been out of adjustment, but I can't imagine that would break the case on it?!?!?! Has anyone heard of this happening before or is it a fluke?

Needless to say, it was a mess with all the hydraulic fluid that poured out. It made me sick when it first happened but I am hoping to get the tractor back in the next week or so. The work is piling up!

 

[John_Mc]

OUCH!! That hurts just hearing about it.

Just curious... have you ever used a 3 Pt hitch Backhoe on that tractor?

John Mc

 

[jd0716]

Never had a backhoe on it. The only 3 point attachments I have used are a brush hog and 6 foot blade to clear snow on my drive.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

I have heard of one other event of this nature. What happened in that case is that the pin holding the rod end of the lift cylinder fell out for some reason. Then when the operator tried to lift the mower deck the cylinder extended until it hit something solid. At that time the bracket holding the cylinder end bent back and one end (I don't remember which) of the cylinder was pushed into the transmission case causing it to break. Your bad experience seems very similar.

 

[_RaT_]

Sorry to hear about your experience.

"I am hoping to get the tractor back in the next week or so. The work is piling up!"

You better start making some alternative plans, my guess is that it's going to be awhile.

 

[gkk2001]

I had the dealer install a MMM on my 4100 and noticed oil leaking but thought it was some leakage on the gearbox. Turned out to be a hydraulic line coming off the HST trans was bent 90 degrees. This particular line had a banjo fitting on the end of it. The dealer replaced the line at his expense but I immediately traded in the MMM for a rear finish mower which I like alot better. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[Bob_S]

Ditto on ease of working on the tractor. At first I added just about 6.8 gallons and I was able to get the correct level in the sight glass. I than ran the tractor for a few minutes and then let it set for 10-15. At that point the level was low. Today a purchased one more gallon of low viscosity hydro. I havent been out yet to add any but I would be supprised if it took much more than what may be needed to fill the filters. I dont know much oil if any would drain from the FEL via the control valve etc when draining the system. Does any one know if this can happen and if so would there then be a chance of getting air in the system and causeing a false reading in the sight glass for a period of time?

 

[Bob_S]

Sorry about the last post. I sent it to the wrong thread.

 

[jd0716]

No word on my tractor this week. The dealer is a little over an hour away so I haven't been up to see the dealer directly, but I have been in contact with the service rep over the phone. They did not say any pins were found to be missing and I didn't notice any missing when it broke, although I did not spend much time checking it out because I knew I couldn't fix it. I don't feel that I have been rough on the tractor. I use the loader, but the only wieght I have on the back end is the 6 foot blade. So I make sure not to get too much wieght on the loader to keep the tractor strable.

Since this is my first tractor... Will it be okay once they put it together again or could this become a recurring problem? And since the tractor is split, will it cause leaks or a weak point when it is put back together? Finally, what types of things should I be sure to check to make sure everything works okay when I get it back?

Thanks for the advice.

 

[Bird]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Since this is my first tractor... Will it be okay once they put it together again or could this become a recurring problem? And since the tractor is split, will it cause leaks or a weak point when it is put back together? )</font>

It should be just fine, assuming the mechanic does the job right and he probably will.