Did I do any harm? - 4 wheel on pavement

westbrooklawn · Dec 5, 2006

I had my L3400 gear drive tractor in 4-wheel drive (wet field)... I then asked my helper to drive it to my next job which was about 2 miles away. I forgot to take it out of 4 wheel drive and he drove it the whole way with the 4 wheel engaged... on dry pavement at top speed (4th gear, H position on shuttle)... about seven 90 degree turns to get there, otherwise just some sweeping curves. It seems to be OK, but do any of you think it did any permanent damage? Is there any thing in particular I should check? I know it must have felt awful driving, but my helper didn't know any better to take it out of 4 wheel.

MrJimi · Dec 5, 2006

Might of cost you some tire wear? and bad handling
Jim

herringchoker · Dec 5, 2006

I second what Jim said.

westbrooklawn · Dec 5, 2006

Thanks... so far the comments have eased my mind some. If tire wear is the only issue I feel fortunate!!

JerryG · Dec 5, 2006

What was said above plus I wouldn't make a habit of it.

I have had that happen more than once. All of use forget once in while.

alchemysa · Dec 5, 2006

Who hasn't done it ocassionally? If a tractor doesn't have the strength to take that kind of inevitable mistake I'd be surprised and disappointed. Surely Kabota knows thats going to happen. A lot of tractors work on building sites or in loading yards with a whole mixture of surfaces like dirt, concrete and asphalt - turning really tight, often with a full bucket up front. It might not be recommended practice but it shouldn't hurt ocassionally. (Do I sound like I've convinced myself).

chrisjbell · Dec 5, 2006

Mostly tire wear. A bit of excessive wear on the driveline (the front wheels don't spin exactly in concert with the rears). No big deal.

The thing that hopped out at me is that you might want to consider getting a trailer for it if you regularly need to go long distances on pavement, depending on the tires you have on it. Ag tires, for example, will wear pretty quickly on pavement even if you are in 2WD. Just a thought...

westbrooklawn · Dec 6, 2006

chrisjbell -

I already have a trailer, but it was loaded with other equipment, and for a 2 mile ride (and since I had a helper available), it was just easier to drive the tractor to the site. I normally work alone, so of course I usually trailer the tractor when it needs to be moved.

N80 · Dec 6, 2006

One of the things that might help prevent damage is that a tractor, not having a suspension, tends to bounce as it goes down the road. Its a total guess but I wonder if when it bounces and weight comes off the front end even for a fraction of a second, the axle can unload a little. Just a thought.