JD 332 hydrostat control is missing the damper

[DanMc77]

Hello!
I picked up a 332 last year. I love the machine, but the hydrostatic control is a bit jerky. I know that the 318's have a damper in there, but I can't feel one or see one in this 332, so I found a damper on ebay to install. I took off the mower deck and crawled underneath to look up in there and see where this might go and can't see any room for it.

I downloaded the exploded diagram of it and I see where the damper should go, but there's no way I could ever fit this in there. Also, the exploded diagram shows the turnbuckle for adjusting out the creep, but my machine has a flat bar running to the back and no threaded rod with a turnbuckle.

Was there a different variant of this control on some of the 332's that didn't have any provision for the damper?

Thanks!
Dan

 

[DanMc77]

I talked with one of the local JD dealers. I was looking at an exploded diagram for the wrong variant. Upon closer examination of the deere.com/parts site, there are several variants of the hydrostatic control linkage. At one point, it looks like they cost-reduced out the turnbuckle and also eliminated the damper. I figured that with the 332 being a newer model year than my older 318, that it would be better. On the contrary! My 1982 318 looks like it has the best original design while the 332 has much to be desired. Still a great tractor, but now I'm going to have to get in there and figure out how to patch in the damper if I want to have the same smooth feel that I get with the 318.

 

[crazylunker]

there used to be a linkage kit available from deere to make the hydro smoother on the late model 3 series. I don't think adding a damper will improve yours. Also I have seen a few with the late linkage with broken frames where the axles bolt to the frame.

 

[DanMc77]

I'm wondering if the whole Hyrdostat linkage assembly could be swapped out from an older junk 318.

Why wouldn't adding the damper make any improvement?

 

[crazylunker]

it had something to do with the linkage design, the later model used a cam and ramp style if I remember correctly where the old style was direct linkage.

 

[DanMc77]

I took a closer look at my 332. The serial number is 595170, built in 1989, when they made the hydrostat damper optional. What a dumb idea. There is some kind of cylinder in there, but it's hard to see how it links in to anything. When I move the hydro control lever, the cylinder does nothing.

When I have more time, I'll have to pull the seat pan off and look at the possibility of fabricating some brackets to tie in the 318 damper. The exploded diagram of the optional damper provides a starting point.

CrazyLunker: Your statement is very curious: "Also I have seen a few with the late linkage with broken frames where the axles bolt to the frame." I'm thinking about what you mean by this. As far as I can see from the JD Parts exploded diagrams, they all had the same axle supports. Are you saying that the jerky speed control due to the lack of a damper on the hydrostat control eventually led to fatigue in the axle mounts to the frame?