Cant shift outta high

[Gigabelly]

Just got my new (used) L4310 today. I used it for a few hours and got some good work accomplished, but I put it in high range to get across my property, but could not get it out of high. I press in the clutch, can't get it out of gear. I try lifting the front wheels to make sure no extra pressure on tranny, can't shift the gears... I cannot get it out of high gear. In or out of FWD, doesn't matter. Surely, I am overlooking something simple. Can ya tell me what I am overlooking? Please don't tell me I gotta send it in to the shop. I just got this thing this afternoon. It is 10yrs old with less than 1000 hrs. Did I get suckered, or am I just doing something wrong?

 

[TripleR]

Have you tried it while putting a little pressure on the shifter and applying a little HST pedal, usually works for me.

 

[JOHNINMA]

I'm not sure what the transmission setup is on your tractor, but on my brand new L3540HSTC sometimes I find if it's difficult to shift in or out of a range I can use the loader against the ground to wiggle the tractor forwards and backwards while trying to shift at the same time. It does get a little finicky sometimes about shifting and this always makes it go easily from range to range. I would also make sure the parking brake is released as you want the rear wheels to be able to move slightly as you try to wiggle the tractor forwards and back. Obviously you don't want to force anything and if this does not work you may want to check for stuck linkages etc. One last thing, I had my new tractor fully inspected at 50 hours by a dealer I trust, and the touchy shifting on mine anyway is nothing abnormal and other than being a little annoying the tractor performs beautifully. Hope this is the same for yours and good luck.

 

[Gigabelly]

So you use the FEL bucket tilt to wiggle the tractor? Huh. I will give it a try, see if anything happens. I have tried it with slight pressure on the HST but to no avail.

I have a call in to the Kubota dealer in Omaha where I bought it. Hopefully the wiggle will work, or the dealer will know the solution. Meanwhile, I gotta be careful with the HST. I get a load in the FEL and start to back up waaay too fast.

Thanks for the tips

 

[TripleR]

Sounds like you need to have your linkage checked, no way am I going to put up with a tractor you have to use the FEL to change gears. My 5030 is eight years old with no problems shifting.

Any chance an errant stick found its way up in there?

Good luck.

 

[JOHNINMA]

My tractor does not stick in a range all the time, but sometimes once in a while it can be a little stubborn about either going into a range or coming out into neutral and for me moving it slightly solves everything. I am very mechanically inclined and now that I am at the 100 hour service I plan to personally go over every inch of this machine myself and if I find anything that was not adjusted right or otherwise I will post back with the results. Sorry if I created any confusion with my previous post, but my problem is only occasional.

 

[TripleR]

My tractor does not stick in a range all the time, but sometimes once in a while it can be a little stubborn about either going into a range or coming out into neutral and for me moving it slightly solves everything. I am very mechanically inclined and now that I am at the 100 hour service I plan to personally go over every inch of this machine myself and if I find anything that was not adjusted right or otherwise I will post back with the results. Sorry if I created any confusion with my previous post, but my problem is only occasional.

Yeah, I think that is just the nature of the beast so to speak as I have two Kubotas and one John Deere HST and occasionally they will get a hiccup and require a little persuasion. This is even referred to in the Operator Manual IIRC.

We do our own service on all of our tractors and that is a great way to get to know your machine.

 

[easygo]

Try it on level ground when there is no pressure on the drive-line or transmission. If it does not work just give the pedal a little push in either direction to make the wheels rotate about a half a turn. Then just ever so slightly press the pedal in the opposite direction to take all possible pressure off and then try to move the lever. That is what I do and it works but sometimes takes a few tries. If I want to get it out of 4wd picking up the front wheels with the loader works without fail.

 

[bigbull338]

if its an HST sounds like the ball isnt rolling right to catch the shifer forks.an that can be easily fixed by a kub machanic.

 

[Grandad4]

In addition to the other comments about level ground, finding true neutral HST position, etc., here's one other angle to consider before raising your stress level about something being wrong with your tractor.

If your tractor was sitting out in the elements for a while, such as on the dealer's lot, the range shift linkages can get hung up a bit since crud accumulates there and can harden. Also, the mid range is so versatile, you tend to use it for almost everything and the lack of shifter use compounds the crud problem. This happened once or twice with ours, and the solution was a liberal dousing of the linkages with something like WD40 or penetrating oil. We simply soaked them through the shifter slots, with a few repeated applications and everything loosened up nicely.

Since then the tractor is stored indoors, hosed off every once in a while and we make a point to use the shifter more often... no more problems.