John Deere CT332 Question

jon3030 · Mar 12, 2011

I have a CT332 with a JD MH60 mulch head (made by Fecon). The local JD dealer just did a PIP (product Improvement program) on the mulch head, installing new hydraulic pump and lines. I have put 25 hours on it and have had two problems - a blown hydraulic hose and an o-ring seal. The mulch head always wants to bind on trees larger than 4" diameter and I have to kick the hydraulics off every time this happens, then restart them. The pressure that results from the binding seems to be too much for the mulch head. I feel that the CT332 is underpowered at only 76 net HP and if I had a machine with more HP, maybe the head would spin faster and not bind?? Any ideas?

Johndeere3720 · Mar 12, 2011

jon3030 said:
I have a CT332 with a JD MH60 mulch head (made by Fecon). The local JD dealer just did a PIP (product Improvement program) on the mulch head, installing new hydraulic pump and lines. I have put 25 hours on it and have had two problems - a blown hydraulic hose and an o-ring seal. The mulch head always wants to bind on trees larger than 4" diameter and I have to kick the hydraulics off every time this happens, then restart them. The pressure that results from the binding seems to be too much for the mulch head. I feel that the CT332 is underpowered at only 76 net HP and if I had a machine with more HP, maybe the head would spin faster and not bind?? Any ideas?

Yeah, it is kinda on the low side for hp. My thinking is that since the motor has low hp that the hydraulic pump is a little smaller and the gpm is lower than say a bobcat T320. I dont think it would be easy to upgrade to a engine with more hp and better hydraulic pressure but that would help with the binding problem.

tonyoz · Mar 12, 2011

Jon, I think you have 1 of 2 problems here-1 hydraulic pressure spike which is causing hose failure, you may have to adjust the pressure settings on the hyd motor. 2 you maybe going to fast, slow down your travel speed and allow the head to do it's thing.
Hope this helps.:thumbsup:

jon3030 · Mar 12, 2011

I hear you on going slower Tony, I will try that. Does anyone make a chip for skid steers that boost HP, like on a diesel truck?

tonyoz · Mar 12, 2011

jon3030 said:
I hear you on going slower Tony, I will try that. Does anyone make a chip for skid steers that boost HP, like on a diesel truck?

If it has a Deere engine in it check out their website. Some of those engines have a lot of different HP ratings, eg. 4045 motors from 75HP-275Hp so you may be able to get a genuine upgrade done.

tonyoz · Mar 12, 2011

J.D. website 5030tw motor can go to 99HP. Would that be enough?????

fishfactor · Mar 12, 2011

It takes a while to get the hang of running a head. When taking out 4" and up trees, raise the arms as high as possible and cut through the tree. Then treat the head like a hammer and try to drive the tree into the ground. Drop down on it and pick back up quickly before it stalls. Wait a second for the rpm's to pick back up and repeat. You will find that different trees (pine and cedar for example) you can be more aggressive with.

If your head has a pressure gauge on it, watch it. If it gets above 2500 psi and stays there much you will blow orings. A little is OK, just get it back down quick.

This is the spill I give newbie operators and it helps them a lot. Hope it helps. I also have to remind myself of this when I get out of the GT25 and into the T320. It's culture shock until I adjust.