L3430 HST with no H range

[PBreeder]

Just bought a new L3430 HST. After about 15 hrs of bush-hogging thistle-filled pastures with a SQ84T, the HST shifter is in the M position and the dash indicator says L. I can move the shifter from M to N to H, and the indicator on the dash says L-N-M.

It runs just fine in L, since that's where I am spending most of my time. And regardless of the shifter being at M, it is running in L. Could it be that the shift lever has been jarred to a higher setting?

This machine is a real dream to run. I just want to make sure that I am not doing it any damage by waiting to resolve this until the 50 hr servicing.

PB

 

[_RaT_]

Just bought a new L3430 HST. After about 15 hrs of bush-hogging thistle-filled pastures with a SQ84T, the HST shifter is in the M position and the dash indicator says L. I can move the shifter from M to N to H, and the indicator on the dash says L-N-M.

It runs just fine in L, since that's where I am spending most of my time. And regardless of the shifter being at M, it is running in L. Could it be that the shift lever has been jarred to a higher setting?

This machine is a real dream to run. I just want to make sure that I am not doing it any damage by waiting to resolve this until the 50 hr servicing.

PB

Are you going the speeds of medium range? Low is pretty slow at about 4 mph and medium at about 7.5 mph you ought to be able to tell the difference. In high, you will will be going about 17 mph. The range selector has a definite feel to it when shifting into other ranges and it does not always just go right in, sometimes a small amount of HST pedal is required to move the gears around to get them synched up. If yours is moving really easy, perhaps there is a disconnected componet.

 

[PBreeder]

Are you going the speeds of medium range? Low is pretty slow at about 4 mph and medium at about 7.5 mph you ought to be able to tell the difference. In high, you will will be going about 17 mph. The range selector has a definite feel to it when shifting into other ranges and it does not always just go right in, sometimes a small amount of HST pedal is required to move the gears around to get them synched up. If yours is moving really easy, perhaps there is a disconnected componet.

RaT ---
Thanks for the advice, and no, I haven't tried to "pedal" the gears into play. Good idea. I'll try that tonight. But there is no problem moving the shifter.

Also, the shift lever is forward farther than it should be. I have L-N-M-N available, and when the shift lever is just back of M (and that's as far back as I can pull it), the dash indicator is saying L. When I push the shifter all the way forward, it reads N (or occasionally, M). Usually, there are four "stops" in the forward travel of the shifter --- L-N-M-N.

It could very well be nothing more than the shifter linkage needing to be adjusted. I've got a call into the dealer --- with 15 hrs and less than a month on the machine, it's their problem, whether now or later. Good dealer, too, so I expect no issues. I just want to know if I can wait, or whether it needs to be dealt with as an emergency.

And the speeds that I can attain are what you would expect for L and M, so I am pretty certain that it's the shifter, and not the tranny itself.

That said, I've been wrong before ...
PB

 

[PBreeder]

Talked with the dealer. He said that they've seen this before, that the locking nuts on the shifter adjustment are not always shipped tight, and that the adjuster probably worked itself out of place. I'll make the adjustment to see if I can resolve it (and will definitely tighten down the locking nuts).

Else, I am told that waiting til the 50 hr service mark would not be a problem, so long as I am content without a H gear.

PBreeder