NEW L4330 POWER QUESTION

[Muleskinner]

I used my new (9.0HR) L4330 on a job site today for the first time. With the 72" high back Gannon full of dirt and pulling through soft dirt the tractor felt a little underpowered.

I had the trans in low range and the throttle wide open and I was almost able to kill the engine. I let up on the HST pedal a little to regain RPMS and lifted the gannon up to keep forward motion. I would have thought this machine would have enough power in low range to spin all four tires before bogging down??? I did not want to push it too hard due to the low hours, but it just felt a little underpowered. Anyone with a L4330 have this problem? /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[familyman]

What's a "Gannon"?
I don't have HST, but from all I've read, more pedal gives you more speed but less power. Less pedal=more power.

 

[teddydo]

I have a 2004 Kubota 4330 and I have never sttalled it out. yours won't either if it's broken in and right.......teddy

 

[JoeR]

Whenever I have my 4330 in Low range, lots of RPM, I rarely stall. I do spin my tires in this mode. I know this is going to sound stupid, but I have to ask if you accidentally left the parking brake on? I am speaking from experience here! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Joe

 

[grandad]

I have an L4610, which at 46 hp, is just slightly more powerful than your 43 hp Kub, and a 6 ft. box. Just going on operation of my tractor, seems to me you should not have any hp problems, even with a heavy 72" box blade on your 4330. Even very wet, heavy soil should be easy for you to rip, load and move.

Just one observation from the way you stated your problem though... when you say "I let up on the HST pedal a little..." If you are trying to floor the HST pedal like the gas pedal in your car, that could be why you are feeling it's underpowered.

When you step on the gas in your car, you increase the rpm's, hp and torque output of the engine. The HST doesn't work like that... the engine RPM's, etc., set by the hand throttle, are constant, and pressing the HST pedal changes the gear ratio. More pedal = taller gear, go faster with less torque. Less pedal = lower gear, go slower with more torque.

Takes a bit of getting used to, but I think once you get comfortable with how it works, you'll find your 4330 has all the power you need.

 

[Muleskinner]

No the parking brake is not on. A "Gannon" is the brand for a 72" rear box scraper.

I have ran my B7800 for the last two years doing construction grading and it will spin all four tires standing still against a load in M or L range. I'm not sure if this L4330 will.

The rear box blade (Gannon) weighs 1140 pounds. The rear tires have about 1000 pounds of water in them. I'm not sure what the 853 FEL weighs.

I know about letting up on the HST pedal alowing the engine to rev up against a load. That's the only way I was able to pull a full rear scraper in low range. That is why I am a bit concerned. I don't want this tractor to be under powered size to weight wize. /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

 

[grandad]

Considering you are using a really heavy box, it probably does work pretty hard to pull it full in M range, but I'd probably be using L range anyways for any hard pulling like that.

Just my opinion, but unless you're just doing light grading, M range has too much ground speed for heavy ripping with the box.

Consider this: Your 853 loader is about 1,500 lbs, give or take, so you're operating with something like 7,000 lbs. of tractor there. When you snag any big roots or rocks, etc., you are making one heck of a tug on all the attachment points, etc.

Your big Gannon will probably handle anything you might hook onto by accident, but I like to be very respectful of all that nice, expensive hardware on the tractor itself, so I'd go a bit slower in L. Call me slowpoke, but I'd be doing that with an M6800 also!

 

[_RaT_]

I say your situation is typical. I have a comparable boxblade. In low range on my L48, I could hit a point where I could drag the engine down. Thats 48 HP and a low range that is even lower then the L4330. Spinning your tires does little but tell you your out of traction. Loading the engine up and not spinning your tires tells you that you have a load. Learn to back off on the HST pedal and learn to lift the 3 point as necessary. No matter what tractor I have used be it Ford 545's, JD's 210 both industrial tractors too the many compacts I have used, you encounter this situation. Some comments will be made by other folks that they are not encountering this situation, my comment would be that they are not having a similar condition to make the comparision. Take their tractor to your place and I will guarantee, the result will be similar to the one your having. Congratulations on getting a nice boxblade. Gannons are top notch and well made. Having 1000lbs on the ground is much like an anchor. Pulling it while cutting and also filling it with about 20 cu ft of material is going to put a high demand on your tractors HP be it HST or conventional. You just need to learn to work it.

 

[GeneD14]

I have had similar issues with my L4330. I have the LA853 loader, filled R1's, 300lb wheel weights, and a 6' Woods Box Blade. I have had it weighed and it is about 7,300 lbs. I have killed the engine several times digging in clay ground with the front bucket/toothbar while in low range, high RPM. Using the hydraulics on the loader to pry and dig while driving forward in tough soil seems to max it out. I think that because of the 7,300 lbs of weight plus the force of the loader prying or lifting: the tires do not spin on the hard clay. If the tractor didn't have as much weight on it I'm certain that the wheels would spin before it stalled.
I absolutely love the tractor but if I had to do it all over again I would get the L5030 for the added HP.

 

[Muleskinner]

I'm begining to agree. For the folks who wondered what gear I was in, I was using low range. I like the tractor don't get me wrong, but I am begining to wonder if I should have gotten the L50 for the type of construction grading I do. I'm sure I will learn to use the weight where the HP is lacking. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[jmc]

If your box is full of dirt, there's really no reason to keep the cutting edge in the ground.

 

[_RaT_]

If you have a manual toplink there is. I find that once the box is full, the box tends to forget about the cutting bar unless the soil is very clean, moist and has some clay in it, otherwise it tends to ride up and the cutting edge has little ability to do its job.

 

[grandad]

Sounds like the industrial L48 would be your baby. It has the same engine as the L5030 (rated -2 hp for some reason) and the industrial-strength hydraulics and chassis to stand up to commercial use. Your 4330 will no doubt give great service, but it's designed more for weekend warriors like me than it was for contractor use.

Just a suggestion, but you might want to give the idea of trading up some thought if you're going to continue using the tractor commercially for the forseeable future. I recently looked at a 4310 that obviously had several years of commercial service. The drivetrain was OK, but the cosmetics showed lots of wear and tear, so it took a hit on resale value.

 

[Muleskinner]

I looked at the L48 and the L39 before buying the L4330. I actually liked the L48 and the dealer said he would take the hoe off and replace it with a box scraper. The extra sub frame weight (1000#) concerned me, as I operate in sandy desert soil a lot. I'm sure the L43 will do fine once I get used to it. Heck, I have only had it one week! It's still brand new.

If I find I need a bigger unit down the line I will step up to a John Deere 210 loader. You can get it with a turbo also. The price is a bit steep at $54,000.00. I started with Kubota equipment and would really like to stay with Kubota. I feel Kubota makes a fine tractor with good quality. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[_RaT_]

Thats what I had, a Kubota L48 with a boxscraper. Moved a few thousand yards of material, sold it for $2000 less then I paid for it and got a L3830. I like both tractors but must say, the L3830 really fills my needs better. I don't find the power or less of it to be an issue. The JD 210 is a nice tractor. I find the old NH 545 a better landscape tractor. It rides low and simply does not want to flip over. The steepest grades are what it does and does very well.

 

[ns_in_tex]

I have a 76" Gannon with 24" tall back & hydraulic teeth, which I use on an L4610. It is possible to spill dirt over the top, but also possible to lug the engine, if I do not let up on the HST pedal. This box blade will move a lot of dirt.

If I were going to use the box blade a lot on this tractor, I would pay whatever necessary to get draft control. I think it makes the work so much easier.