New purchase questions CC 3204

[BarryK]

I've just purchased a 2004 3204 CC with a 54" deck and have some questions about the tractor. When I got it home from the Dealer, I noticed the low fuel indication light was on but the dealer had said that he had filled the tank for me. So I checked and the tank was full. Now that I've mowed with it and the gas level is about empty, the light is going off. Additionally, the deck doesn't seem to be riding as high as it should. When fully lifted the height indicator reads midway between the 5 and 6" mark and won't move up any further. Even at the 5 1/2 reading the blades appears to be only about 4" off the ground. I only have 4 1/2 hours on the mower and am going to take it into the dealer for them to look it over, but thought I'd toss out my situation to see if there are other similar things (that appear to be setup related) that I should look for before taking the tractor back to the dealer to service? Or if there are any nifty modications I should consider making to this rider...which is my first. Thanks all.

 

[JTKub]

Barry, I'd bet the float in the gas tank was just stuck from sitting dry for a long time. Once it stays saturated in gasoline for awhile, it should float nicely. I'm not real familiar with the shaft drive 54" deck on the 3000 series, but I don't *think* the 1-6 on the deck hight adjustor is exactly calibrated in inches. The blades dont seem to be 6" off the ground on my 2005, 2544 when I have the deck set at 6. The indicator needle doesn't exactly line up either, but its really close. Check the tire air pressures real well & make sure they are set to what your manual says. Mine were WAY off. NICE TRACTOR by the way!! I was drooling over the 3K series when I bought my 2544. If you are unsure about anything, let your cub dealer worry about it! You have a 2yr bumper/bumper warranty on that baby!!
G/luck
Joel

 

[BarryK]

Thanks Joel for the fast reply. While I have the sale still fresh in the dealers mind, I think I take it on in. Air in the tires and a certain inaccuracy in the length of cut gauge sounds right... and the low fuel indicator light has gone off, but I think I'm about out of gas. If I refill, I think the light will come back on. The Service guy at the dealer said to go ahead and bring it back in and they would look at it. Is there some type of break-in period checkup that I should request as well? The manual states to change the oil after the first 5 hours...but I could find no other instructions regarding Breakin.
Thanks again,
Barry

 

[JTKub]

There's no real break-in period. Just use it as designed. An engine oil & filter change after 5hrs is important. Dont forget, that oil's been sitting in there for atleast a year. You should also change the transaxle spin on filter & top off it's oil after 5-10hrs as well.
G/luck!
Joel

 

[BarryK]

OK, I'm going to whine for a little bit. I dropped off the 3204 at the dealer this morning and have been informed this afternoon that the tractor won't be available until they get a new float to replace the defective one. The awful part of the news was that it could take a week or more for the part to get here from Cub Cadet. I know it's my fault for taking the tractor in when I had grass I wanted to mow, but who can blame me for wanting to have all the kinks ironed out on what I see as an awesome product. On a good note, I am happy with the service folks for fitting me in to their schedule. I'm supposed to call back tomorrow to see if there is a loner tractor for me to use while mine is in the shop, none where available today. They are also going to look into adjusting the deck so that it at least displays all of the available height indicator numbers. Does anybody know what the indication numbers equate to in inches?

 

[Frank03]

/forums/images/graemlins/confused.gifWhy won't they give you a loner? I got one when mine went back to the shop for warrenty work. Tell them you want one!! /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif

 

[gamble77]

Yeah, they should have the loanner, and a week wait seems a little odd to me, i never have to wait that long for parts when warranty is involved.

 

[JTKub]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( .......and a week wait seems a little odd to me, i never have to wait that long for parts when warranty is involved. )</font>

I think that all depends on the part being ordered. A gas tank level indicator float is probably not a high demand unit, so they dont keep them on the shelf. For non-critical warranty work, if you've got lots of warranty time left, you are better off having them addressed on the off season.
G/luck
Joel

 

[BarryK]

Ok, here's an update. I called the dealer today and am getting a loaner delivered later this afternoon. Hope the loaner doesn't spoil me....it's a TC25 NewHolland Compact with 60" belly mower. Don't know if it is hydrostatic or not, but hope now that the part for my Cub takes a week or so to come in /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif I'm sure I can find things to keep the TC busy. Thanks for letting me know that requesting a loaner was common and shouldn't require a special act of congress!

 

[BarryK]

Cub is back home with working low fuel indicator light. They delivered it and picked up the loaner...shoot, wish I could have had that for a little longer!!(have some half buried rocks I wanted to see if I could devise a way to yank them out..oh well...) The deck lift is still the same and they didn't give any feedback on if there is absolutely nothing that can be done. Perhaps the 54" deck is not really designed for the 3204...it is a monster...so I'll tinker around to see if there is any adjustments to the lifter arms that I can change to get the deck higher. The front casters don't come off the ground when the deck is fully lifted and the caster wheel height set in the 4 position (the deck height indicator on the floor panel of the cub indicates a setting halfway between 5 and 6).

I'm a little unsure of how to feel about the dealership at this point. They did deliver me a loaner after I asked twice for one. They did then deliver my Cub after installing the new part and picked up the loaner. The deck issue may be a non-issue. I admittedly know very little about mechancal items and rely on feedback from others to help guide my hardware purchase decisions...from tablesaw, chainsaw, brushcutter/trimmer and push mower; so maybe I am missing something in the translation of grunts and non-verbal communication from the dealer...who chose to deliver my Cub in the rain and was surprised when I said that I needed to meet them at my house when they drop it off, they just wanted to swap them while I was at work...I had their loaner locked away in my tool shed. I should stop whining...but I'm gifted at it /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif....I guess a little water won't hurt anything. I'm going to stop by the dealers and pickup a oil and trans filter for the breakin maint.
Barry

 

[gamble77]

All the 3000's that I have sold the decks didn't come very high off the ground, and like yours, the front wheels seemed to always be on the ground. Never had a customer complain about it, i think maybe just the weight of the whole deck lets it hang down low, but it "floats" up when you go to put it on a trailer or what have you. Good luck!

 

[cwarrix]

I have a 3240 with a 54" deck, my gauge goes almost all the way to 6 when fully lifted, and the wheels are definately off the ground. The gauge not being exact wouldn't be a big deal to me, I would just find where I like the grass cut and remember what the setting is, whether it's 2, 3, 5, whatever. It doesn't really need to translate to inches.

On the other hand, you did just pay a lot of money for it, and if it is important to you, you could take it back and ask that it be fixed. That's not at all unreasonable. I'd probably wiegh it out though, how important is it, how long do I want to be without my tractor, how much time do I want to spend talking to the dealer, driving back and forth, etc. Either way, good luck, and enjoy your new toy... er I mean tool /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[ducati996]

I have a 3204 with both a 44" and 48" deck both caster wheels are clearly high enough off the ground (level ground)
when raised in its highest postion. I suggest you get somewhat familiar with the functionality of the machine -deck stops, high adjustments, etc..by looking at the manual which gives a decent description of what they do. I say this because these settings can change if you ever have to remove the deck, or just re-level it for the best cut, or change blades. The front bracket (deck hanger) should have about 1/2" thread showing at each threaded nut, with the secure nut locked in tight. The front casters are quick release and by pulling the snap clip you can raise the caster wheel height, I have mine on the top position. I use a John deere leveler tool (less than $10) which does a great job on assisting in blade height correctness.

Ducati

 

[BarryK]

Here is an update. I'm supposed to pickup a new 3100 tomorrow in place of the original 3204. They seem to be the same animal when I looked at the specs. The 3204 a few more issue pop up that brought the dealer and myself to a consensus on trading it out for a new one. The deck on the 3100 definitely lifts the casters off the ground, so I'm happy on height now. They wanted me to keep my deck...but my 15year old had been studying the situation and advising that I push for the new deck so with his elbow grease, he cleaned up that old deck last night and have a clean deck sure came in handy when I asked to have the new deck. The store manager wanted to see my deck first, before agreeing to a swap. I don't know if I'll actually get any quality mowing tomorrow or not. I'm afraid the grass has gotten taller than I should mower without first breaking in the engine. And on that subject, I saw a more recent thread that talked about alternative filters for the Cubs....does anyone know the model I can pickup for this 3100 23hp Kohler? Thanks all for your comments!
Barry

 

[ducati996]

Hi Barryk,

I'm confused as to why the situation called for a new machine?
wasnt it a deck adjustment issue, which by leveling the caster wheels correctly and limit deck stop would be all that is needed?

Ducati

 

[BarryK]

Hi Ducati--
There is no easily quantifiable reason for the trade apart from the fact that neither the dealer nor I could get the deck to rise any higher, and in the process discovered several loose bolts and a bad grease zirk, in addition to a faulty fuel tank float. Combine that fodder with my desire to protect the money I had just outlaid and we have a potent situation. Needless to say, the store manager was frustrated both by the errors in setup on the tractor by CC and his staff, by the limited amount of time he had to deal with the issue, and by my persistence at seeing if the advertised height of 4 1/2 inches was verifiable on another model (as opposed the almost 3 1/2's of clearance I was getting with the 3204). Ultimately the store manager agree to let me compare the 3204 to another 3000 series and if they both had the same max deck height, then I would have to decide to cash out or keep the 3240, but if there was a difference then I could trade. When he uncrated the 2005 3100 and put on the new 54" deck we had 4 1/2 inches of air between the blade and the ground. We unloaded the 3204 from my truck and I am now waiting for the setup to be finished on the 2005 model. I hope it all ends happily. Perhaps I was too picky?
Barry

 

[gamble77]

Not sure as to the cross-over filters however, while the unit is still under warranty I highly recommend shelling out the few extra dollars and putting Kohler/Cub filters on the unit..warranty issues mainly. Better to spend a little extra money on the filters then to have something happend to the motor and Kohler/Cub not warranty it due to you using non-specified filters. Good luck with your new Cub.

 

[cwarrix]

Hi BarryK, the 3100 is a nice machine, hope you enjoy it! I wouldn't worry too much about the grass being too tall. Just raise the deck all the way up and go really slow, then lower the deck to where you normally cut and go over it again. It might take a little longer, but hey, more seat time /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif Or, you mentioned a 15 year old... put him on it for the second round. As for the filters, I'll have to agree with gamble77 and advise to stay with CC brand.

You can check out this thread for some info on different filters if you like:

filters

Or Wix has a nice cross reference, although I didn't see the 3100 in the list.

http://www.wixfilters.com/filterlookup/index2.asp?Section=4&Make=&Model=&SubModel=&Engine=&Year=&TempSection=4

I recently picked up Wix filters for my 3240 and to tell you the truth I was a bit suprised that they were not really any cheaper than the CC brand. Also, be VERY careful when you go to change the tranny fluid. I'm not sure what kind your machine uses, check your manual or ask your dealer. Even doublecheck two dealers if you have to. I had a dealer tell me yesterday that my 3240 uses 20W50 oil for the tranny. Just to double check, I ask another dealer and found out that was not the case, and if I had used the 20W50, I would be "hating life". That was his exact words. Just got to be careful. Make sure you check the manual, it will not lie... (much) /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Good luck and enjoy your new toy... I mean tool.

 

[ducati996]

Hi Barry,

I dont think you were picky at all - I just didnt see the severity until you described it in detail. The dealer setup I would think was the culprit....You still picked a great machine
I have a 3204, cant use it enough (**** rain)

Please post pictures if you can....

Duc