My new GC2310: yeah!

[bill177]

I guess my tractor has a very soft life. It lives in a heated garage where the temperature never gets below about 45 F.

At any temperature below 10F I recommend a block heater. Treat those engines well and they will last forever. We use them on airplane engines from 32F and down. It is the first few seconds of run that does the damage when an engine is really cold. Of course the new synthetic oils do help in the really severe cold, but not everyone is running that stuff.

Don't bother using a dip-stick heater, they are a waste of time. The stick on oil pan heaters are ok - and better, if you cover the tractor to keep the draft of it while warming. You should keep it warm at all times to ward off condensation.

Be careful using a forced flame heater, they are a good way to burn your tractor to the ground. I have seen more than one airplane burn that way.

 

[the gumbster]

-30c today and with synthetic oil and a magnetic oil pan heater left on over night it started this morning no problem. just be sure to let it sit and run warming up the hydraulics for about 15min before you move things. or you could blow a line. it sure woud have been nice to have cab on it today..... 30 min of moving snow and my feet were cold. i think i will make a cab for it this summer.

the gumbster

 

[44trxfun]

I have the GC2300 and also have an unheated garage. At the advice of the good folks here a few years ago, my first line of defense is Power Service in every jug of fuel I get. Second, I too use a trickle charger to keep the battery fully charged. (That first year, I would pull the battery on severely cold night.) Since my dealer couldn't get his hands on a block heater my first year, he installed a radiator heater. In this cold weather, I plug that in for a minimum of two hours before trying to start the tractor. After starting, I give it 15 minutes (min.) to warm up.

So far, knock on snow, wood, or whathaveyou, it's done the trick. I'd be in deep doodoo without that tractor in the winter. I use the front mount snowblower and a rear blade with extra weights as needed. No cab--but that's OK. I prefer to be out in the weather than all sealed up. Days like today though, I wonder if my head's screwed on straight.

Have fun with that 2310; just be careful out there!

 

[jayhaitch]

Thanks for the tips. I bought the white Power Service additive after the first tank and am using it at it's maximum recommended dose (32 oz per 50 gal, which interestingly enought calculated to 5ml/litre). The owners manual says at this weather to warm up the tractor for 20-30 minutes before use. I thought this was extreme, but I'm unable to move the hydro drive lever into forward, either fast or slow, until the machine has warmed up enough. It sure seems to sip fuel though, so 30 minutes of medium idle for years of longevity is a good tradeoff to me.

FYI, it dipped to -41.7C over the weekend. And some worry about global warming......

 

[LBrown59]

You can sure have fun with these things. I have the GC2300 but recently ordered the Woods backhoe for it. The dealer called and said the hoe was in but with the snow we have, I told him I didn't want to give it to him right now. I have the blower on the front and I think it works better than trying to push snow around.

1*I found that it was easy to lift the rear end when filling the FEL up with top soil.
2*I had all 4 tires foam filled. Helped alot.

Good luck with the new machine.

1*U should never use the FEL without a proper counter balance on the rear.
2*I don't have filled tires and see no need to do so on my BX23 as the BH is all the weight I need.

You should not have the front tires filled when doing loader work-likewise you shouldn't have the rears filled when using the BH.
What I don't like about filled tires is the weight always seems to be on the wrong end of the tractor for what you're doing.

 

[LBrown59]

Ya baby, another GC2310...
I added some lights which is cool...
1*I might go with a 54" MMM in the spring..
Haven't decided.
2*I'd like to just have one tractor but the MF mower and catcher is expensive...
3*I have a 42" John Deere lawn tractor I use for mowing and I

Anyways.....have fun!
Cucch

1*I'd go for the 60''
You can mow closer along ditches and banks with it than you can with the 54'' not to mention you can get done mowing quicker.
2*You have more options if you have more than 1 tractor.
3*I have a CC GT2554 with a 54'' mower to use in areas I can't get into with my BX23 with the 60'' mower . When my wife and I both mow at the same time using both tractors we cut a 114 inch wide path. Talk about getting 2.33 acres mowed in a hurry.
A 60'' MMM for your Massey and the JD 42'' would give you a 102'' cut.
Keep that JD = you'll find all kinds of uses for it even though you have the MF.

 

[keltonkrew]

3*I have a CC GT2554 with a 54'' mower to use in areas I can't get into with my BX23 with the 60'' mower . When my wife and I both mow at the same time using both tractors we cut a 114 inch wide path. Talk about getting 2.33 acres mowed in a hurry.
A 60'' MMM for your Massey and the JD 42'' would give you a 102'' cut.
Keep that JD = you'll find all kinds of uses for it even though you have the MF.

I agree....My wife has a CC 2042 and I mow with the MF and 60"MMM. Cut our cutting time down to 1/3 what it used to be

 

[LBrown59]

i purchased my 2005 unit from an agco dealer in alberta with mmm and 60 hrs on it and had it trucked to wpg. it was donated and used one summer to cut baseball fields for their little league. the 2350 fel was purchased at lawsons last spring......... when i was there i did see 2006 unit like yours in their quonset. since then i have fab'ed up a weight box for the 3pt and dolly to store the mmm in winter. i have ordered the service manual from lawsons and they just informed me it is ready for p/u. the block heater is a external mount type as there is limited room in the water jackets of the block. lawsons quoted me around 130.00 . i am using shell rotella sb in the winter ... i believe its weight is 0w 15.i have been very happy with this unit ........ it has lots of power and not often gets stuck. my next project is to fab up a hydraulic filter guard as the sight of that thing hanging down underneath ready to get snapped off scares me. i want to add a tiller and a snowblower to the unit eventually.

the gumbster!:

The 2310 comes standard with a FEL!
So why did you have to buy the FEL?

 

[loulblades]

You should not have the front tires filled when doing loader work-likewise you shouldn't have the rears filled when using the BH.
What I don't like about filled tires is the weight always seems to be on the wrong end of the tractor for what you're doing.

IMHO I would have to respectfully disagree with this statement. When doing FEL work (lifting), the front tires are the pivot point and could have the potential, in certain situations, to provide stability. At the least they would not be additive to a tipping situation since the weight is not beyond the fulcrum.

When I am using the FEL with the toothbar to rake the hard clay I have here, I am most appreciative to have the extra weight in the front tires for digging (and the rear tires for traction). This also goes (for the rear tires) when I am using the rear blade for levelling. I would suspect the extra weight in the rear tires will be beneficial for digging with my new backhoe (when I get it).

1*U should never use the FEL without a proper counter balance on the rear.

Yes I would agree. In my case I had my rear blade (with a 12" block attached and my 260 lbs) and still was able to lift the rear with a full load of damp topsoil. Stupidity always has the potential of cancelling the best laid plans...

 

[LBrown59]

1*When I am using the FEL with the tooth bar to rake the hard clay I have here, I am most appreciative to have the extra weight in the front tires for digging (and the rear tires for traction).
2*This also goes (for the rear tires) when I am using the rear blade for leveling. I would suspect the extra weight in the rear tires will be beneficial for digging with my new back hoe (when I get it).

I have 775 hours on my BX23: Most of it FEL and BH work and some mowing.
1*Uusing the FEL has worked fine for me without any extra weight on the front.
I don't have a tooth bar but I can break up the soil with the BH or I can use the Tiller on the CC GT2554 or the one on the 1966 Bolins 850. If I can get another operator I can till with the Bolins and CC at the same time.
2*I don't have a back blade so I use the CC or the 1967 Bolens 850 with a front blade.I don't need the rear tires filled to use the BH as the weight of the BH is more than enough for digging with it.