L2800-L3400 PTO Making the right choice

[ccsial]

I posted these once before bit it might do again. I understood from my dealer that the new ones with no slant replaced the slant cams.

 

[Chilly807]

I posted these once before bit it might do again. I understood from my dealer that the new ones with no slant replaced the slant cams.

From the looks of those "new" cams, there's no longer an over-running clutch action? I can see how the old ones would slip if driven the wrong way by an implement, but the new ones look as if they'd simply lock in. Maybe I'm missing something.

Sean

 

[ccsial]

From the looks of those "new" cams, there's no longer an over-running clutch action? I can see how the old ones would slip if driven the wrong way by an implement, but the new ones look as if they'd simply lock in. Maybe I'm missing something.

Sean

Not missing a thing. I think Kubota realized that you don't need the over-running clutch with the HST and the customer complaints were many. The first time I disengaged the PTO on my L3400 by pressing in the clutch I almost had a heart attack. I thought the tractor had come unglued. I called the dealer and they gave me the drawings and explained it was normal. After understanding how it worked I started to clutch and disengate the lever at the same time.

It will be interesting to hear what the dealer says.

 

[Chilly807]

Not missing a thing. I think Kubota realized that you don't need the over-running clutch with the HST and the customer complaints were many. The first time I disengaged the PTO on my L3400 by pressing in the clutch I almost had a heart attack. I thought the tractor had come unglued. I called the dealer and they gave me the drawings and explained it was normal. After understanding how it worked I started to clutch and disengate the lever at the same time.

It will be interesting to hear what the dealer says.

What year is your L3400? Reading your post, it sounds (literally) like you have the ramped cams.

According to the Kubota websites, the new L3800's still list an over-running clutch with the HST models. Unless they've found a way to provide the over-running feature in a different part of the drivetrain, it looks as if the new models still have the ramped style cams, possibly the solid ones are used as replacements if the customer has problems with the other ones? Or has Kubota not changed the specification list on the websites?

I found it under the "features" portion of the pages, both Canadian and US say the same thing, though the Canadian site is easier to find information in.

It'd be interesting to talk with a dealer mechanic or service manager that has had to deal with this issue to see what's fitted to the new models coming out, and what is done in the case of a problem like the OP is having.

I wonder if it's the ratcheting action that wears the square edges of the cams so they slip when trying to drive a heavy load? I would think the edges would become slightly rounded after a while. You'd think there would be a slight negative rake angle to the square side so they "hook" in place while driving.

Sean

 

[ccsial]

Sean, My L3400 is a 2005. It does have the slanted cams.

I would not be surprised if the literature was not updated. I really don't know anything about the L3800 though. Maybe someone who has one can tell us if it makes the ginding racket when the clutch is press with a load on it.

My snow blower has not much inertia so it does not make much racket becasue it stops fast, but the mower really grinds.

I think they have a bit of a rake angle on the cams. Mine won't disengage unless it is spinning.

My gut feeling is that when tilling the load on the PTO causes it to chatter causing damage. That's just a guess. I think the tiller transmits a lot more disturbance to the PTO that a mower, unless of course, you hit something hard.

Al

 

[cville97]

Finally got my tractor back this week with new PTO clutch cams and a new 3PH valve. I suspect the part number for the cam is TC220-99990 since there is no longer any grinding when I push in the clutch with the bush hog going. The 3PH valve works much better - not perfect, but acceptable. I haven't gotten a bill yet, so I haven't seen a part number for the valve. The dealership is working on getting Kubota to cover some of the cost, so I was told I probably wouldn't see a bill for a couple weeks. Nice that they're tying though, since the warranty has long since expired.

Overall, everything works great now, but I'm still nervous about putting on a tiller again....

Jason

 

[ccsial]

Good luck. I hope the new cams are more reliable with tilling. Thanks for the update. Keep us posted how the tilling goes.

 

[cville97]

I finally got the bill for the replacement of the cam and the 3 point hitch valve. Part numbers for the cam and valve are below. Total bill was $1514.15. Kubota warranty paid $462.94, even though it was long out of warranty. I'm happy.

TC220-99990 Kit Cam
31351-39604 ASSY VALVE

 

[Chilly807]

Good to see it's finally resolved.. at least they paid for part of the repairs.

Sean

 

[cville97]

Thanks Sean. The cam was certainly a "must have", and after using the new 3pt hitch for almost a year now, I would say the valve replacement was also worth it.