L2800-L3400 PTO Making the right choice

[8226hamer]

With my problems I have had with this tractor I knew that I would probably be having to get a different tractor. There are three Kubota dealers within 30 mile of where I live. I took the L2800 to the two dealers a couple weeks ago, that didn't sell me this tractor for a price on a new B3030, One wanted 5000.00$ and my tractor and the other wanted 4900.00 and my tractor. I had not checked on a price from the dealer where I bought this tractor yet.

After meeting with the Feild Rep and found out what I did, he apologized about my situation and when I told him it looks like a B3030 may be the right choice for my type of application, but I was going to have to spend at least 4900.00$ to to get one. He said he would talk to the salesman and try to help me out on this. I called the last friday to get a price to trade. The salesman that sold me the tractor was not there. I was talking to the owner of the dealership and told him who I was, and the problems I have had. He said he knew about them and would talk to the salesman about it and the salesman would contact me monday with a price. I didn't hear from them Monday, so I decided to call today and see if they had come up with anything.
It really made my day when the salesman said it would be 4900.00$ and my tractor. He was letting me have the B3030 at their cost he said.

I need to get ahold of the Field Rep and thank him for his help!, and tell the other two dealers that they need to raise their prices above cost.

I didn't expect a new 3030 for nothing, but I did expected it to be lower than the other two dealers price.
After learning what I have about this PTO system and the definition of what an implied warranty is, and with Kubotas answer to my problem. I think I will get someone else worry about it now.

 

[JC-jetro]

It really made my day when the salesman said it would be 4900.00$ and my tractor. He was letting me have the B3030 at their cost he said.

That is a great news. Now B3030 has a hydraulic independent PTO, you can engage or diengage PTO while in motion.

Good luck with the new tractor

 

[8226hamer]

I am going to assume that this is a very distinct and noticable sound. I probably have about 8 to 10 hours of running my rotary cutter on this tractor. I know I have throttled down the engine with the PTO engaged and I do not recall ever hearing this ratcheting sound. Is it possible your tractor was repaired the first time with the old style cams. I noticed the date on the service bulletin was 12-19-05. The manual for the L3400 is somewhat vague in my opinion as to disengaging the PTO. I disengage the clutch and then the PTO lever. What is the general consensus on this?

8226hamer, I wish you the best on your PTO issue, whether it be a successful repair or a different model tractor. I know it has to be frustrating.

Terry

If you ever hear the sound you will not forget it. It is a very distinc fast, loud clacking sound. My tractors serial number are below the numbers stated on the service bulletin, so it originaly had the old cams in it. When this happened the second time I found out about the new style cams on this discussion board. I thought the same thing, that they were replaced with the old type cams and this was the reason it failed again.
When I talked to the severice manager, who sinced replaced the old one, he said he knew nothing about the new style of cams, but he would check and see about them. He found out that the old cams that failed the first time were indeed replaced with the new style of cams. This shot down my hopes of not having anymore problems with the PTO. I was hoping that they were still the old style cams and that it was the reason for the second failure, but he checked what the part numbers that were used for the first time repair and found that they were the numbers for new style of cams.
Thanks for the support and the information you have provided. It has been frustrating dealing with this, but worse thing can happen to a guy than this. I will get things worked out and life will go on.

 

[8226hamer]

That is a great news. Now B3030 has a hydraulic independent PTO, you can engage or diengage PTO while in motion.

Good luck with the new tractor

I didn't take it as good news as the other two dealers knew nothing about the problems I was having and that I just wanted to trade for a new B3030. They were within a hundred dollars of each other of each other.

I thought that with the problems that I have had with the tractor and after talking with the field rep about my problems and this being the dealer where I got the tractor from, him telling me that he was going to talk to the saleman and help me out to get a good deal in the trade.

The price difference was the same as one of the other dealer who knew nothing about my situation and a whopping hundred dollar less than the other. This dealer or the field rep did nothing to help me the way I see.

Like I said I wasn't expecting them to trade me even up for a new B3030, but it should have been somewhat lower that what the other two dealer quoted prices were.

This was the price difference that I paid when I traded my old B2910 in on the L2800 2 years ago. The B3030 is what replaced the B2910 and there is little difference between the two. My old 2910 did have 3009 hours on it, but the PTO was still working with no problems.

Me having to come up with $4900.00 and a tractor that is two years old with 212 hours on it, just to get a tractor with a PTO that I don't have to worry about going out and then me to having to pay the repair bill everytime it does, was anything, but good news. If it was five or six years down the road and My L2800 gave me 3000 hours of trouble free use I wouldn't have cared to pay that much difference in price.

 

[mjfox6]

If you ever hear the sound you will not forget it. It is a very distinc fast, loud clacking sound. My tractors serial number are below the numbers stated on the service bulletin, so it originaly had the old cams in it. When this happened the second time I found out about the new style cams on this discussion board. I thought the same thing, that they were replaced with the old type cams and this was the reason it failed again.
When I talked to the severice manager, who sinced replaced the old one, he said he knew nothing about the new style of cams, but he would check and see about them. He found out that the old cams that failed the first time were indeed replaced with the new style of cams. This shot down my hopes of not having anymore problems with the PTO. I was hoping that they were still the old style cams and that it was the reason for the second failure, but he checked what the part numbers that were used for the first time repair and found that they were the numbers for new style of cams.
Thanks for the support and the information you have provided. It has been frustrating dealing with this, but worse thing can happen to a guy than this. I will get things worked out and life will go on.

If the new cams do not ratchet (nobody with a newer model seems to know what we are talking about, plus that is how my service manager described it to me), then I have to assume that you still HAVE to have the old style cams. If you push in the clutch at 540 PTO RPM or throttle down really quickly, there is no mistaking the ratcheting sound. The new cams don't do this, or am I wrong?

Did your dealer tell you the part number? TC220-99990 as per Service Bulletin PSB-2005-052-A? That part number does not show up anywhere in my parts book, so I really don't have a clue what they are doing (maybe they don't either!)

 

[Marcussen]

On my tractor I can come down from 2300 RPM to idle (about 800-900) without pushing the clutch in without any ratcheting sound from the tractor. I can tell the rotary mover rotating faster than the tractor PTO. I had an 8N with an external overruning clutch so I know the sound and when it happens. There is no ratcheting sounds on the Kubota when it winds down. (S/N 58693)

 

[8226hamer]

On my tractor I can come down from 2300 RPM to idle (about 800-900) without pushing the clutch in without any ratcheting sound from the tractor. I can tell the rotary mover rotating faster than the tractor PTO. I had an 8N with an external overruning clutch so I know the sound and when it happens. There is no ratcheting sounds on the Kubota when it winds down. (S/N 58693)

It sound like to me Kubota has changed something in this system. My tractor has had the new style cams installed twice now. If I would do what you descibed doing with your tractor. My tractor would be clacking like the Wheel of Fortune Wheel after being spun by Superman.

Something is not right here, I think more than the cams were updated after the serial number change.
Inquiring minds want to know. Now maybe is a good time to send this thread to Kubota.
The information I have now for the L2800-L3800 shows now that these tractors have a position control 3 point lift control instead of whatever was used in the previos tractors, doing away with a jerking 3 point lift arms.

 

[Marcussen]

I will double check the ratcheting thingy. I am going out to mow right now. The grass and weeds are growing like crazy after all the rain lately. By the way I told the salesman what I was using the tractor for, mainly mowing. They sold me the tractor and the mower as a package deal. (see signature)

 

[MDM]

If you bump it down from 2300 to 900 in one quick motion, you will likely hear it. If you throttle down gradually you will not. Try this: Have your mower engaged at pto speed, and then step on the clutch. You will hear the racheting...if not, you have a newer design that we all need to find out about.

Did you have the HST oil overfill bulletin done to your tractor? If you have, that may make it harder to hear.

 

[8226hamer]

I will try and get ahold of the Kubota field Rep that I met with and ask about this, and what was changed that makes the newer tractors not ratchet. I still have his number, but I have never been able to reach him while he was in his office, just his voicemail.