Hydralic problems

[Moose Doggie]

I'm a recent retireie from a job (Police Officer) that has absolutly nothing to do with farming, ranching or even gardening. In fact, up until recently I was city boy all my life. Well now I own and live on 6 acres of forested land on a mountain in South West Washington.

I bought a Kabota Tractor because I heard it was the best! I have an L Series, learned to operate it (?) and I really do love it. The machine has what I think is pretty obviously a hydralic problem. All is well until it gets good and warmed up and then hydralics slow down and will eventually become so slow they are just plain useless. This happens to both the bucket and the 3 point. Is it something as simple as needing hydralic fluid/filter change, hydralic system flush, bleeding the lines? I sure hope it's something simple.

Could really use some good advice from someone with a lot more experience than I do with tractors, I think that's just about all of you on this web site.

 

[Hook]

The L3400 has a suction hose by the brake pedal that may be the source of your problem. I would check the suction hose for leaks before doing anything else. Look at it carefully as it may be hard to detect the leak. It is not an uncommon problem with the L3400 and there are several posts about it on OTT. It is an easy fix if that is the problem.

 

[Stubbyie]

As your hydraulics slow down and then cease functioning do you detect any difference in how the unit sounds? Relief valve opening with a squeal, any chattering, pump cavitation, jerky controls?

Might need more information for folks on this Forum to better assist.

I'm leaning toward a hydraulic suction problem and the hose mentioned by poster Hook may be the problem. If it's a suction problem and if it's a or the hose you might be getting air into the system but not seeing an obvious external leak.

You need a parts schematic (downloadable from Kubota website) and perhaps a Shop Manual if you're going to have a long term relationship with your orange friend.

When you get it narrowed down and repair the problem and especially if it's a hose, plan on--at a minimum--changing one or both hydraulic filters. A deteriorating hose can shuck particles that should be trapped by the filter(s).

Depending what you find and total hours and hours since last fluid change, you might benefit from using the opportunity to change hydraulic fluid. If hydrostatic--unclear from your post--stay with Kubota's premium SUDT even though it's pricey; UDT at a minimum if GST.

Once you get it lined out you'll probably find Kubota is the best smaller-to-midrange machine on the market. A lot of people on this Forum have gone through other brands before landing on orange.

Please post back your experiences so we may all learn.