[BryanThompson]

I have an L3400 HST and I am having issues keeping all 4 wheels on the ground. I had the rear tires filled with rimguard and that helped but not enough. My next plan was wheel weights but I had another thought.

Is there a hub or something I can get that will allow me to add another set of rear tires and wheels? Basically turning it into a dually. The added width along with weight of the new rimguard filled tires should make a big difference.

Can this be done? Can the tractor take the added width and weight?

 

[Volfandt]

Welcome aboard Bryan. Are you tippy when doing FEL work or are you operating on slopes?
If it's when doing FEL work you might try mounting a boxblade or ballast box or any other heavy implement. They tend to stabilize quite well.

If your on slopes have you set the rear wheels out as far as they can go?
I've seen mention of wheel spacers to get them out further on B & BX models but I'm unsure if theres spacers for the L's. You might check w/a dealer.

Besides cost, dually's can over stress the axles. I don't recall seeing dually's on a L but I have seen them on a few BX's & B's on occasion. The jury's out on them as some have snapped their axles while others haven't.

The tractor can definitely handle more weight and more weight is what you need for more stability.

Good question, perhaps we'll get more responses/ideas
Dave

 

[BryanThompson]

Dave,

It is a constant problem both on slopes and using the FEL. I have used my box blade and my 6' rotary cutter on the back and it still has issues. Hitting the slightest dip in the ground with one of the front wheels sends the opposite side rear up in the air. I have to drop the FEL as fast as I can if it is loaded or just pucker and ride it out if it is not. Luckily I have not rolled it yet and would like to keep it that way.

 

[buba]

do you have ag tires industrial tires or turf tires ? and i don't see why you couldn't run dual rear tires if you have ag tires i would be a little leery if you have the wide turf or industrial tires thow time you put a set of duels on it if you have them you would be very very wide and would be putting allot of stress on the axle especially if you high sided the dual tire on a hump of dirt or something i have a set for my ford 1900 that has ag tires and haven't had a issue but the reason i got mine was for traction when pulling the plow or disks and cultivators beans its only a two wheel drive tractor and its about the same size tractor as yours 26 hp on the pto

 

[windowgoblin]

2 old farmers bought a similar tractor to use for cleaning out barns and loading round bales of hay and silage.it is really tippy.they loaded the rear tires as well but ended up adding a factory kubota rear counterweight.around 1000 pounds which looks like a rear forklift weight.,matches tractor,and mounts to 3 point and draw bar some how.it will now load 1500-2000 pound bales of silage and load manure without tipping.the weight also has Kubota is raised letters cast into it. I think it was cheaper than adding duals and still have the narrow width to pass through doorways etc.

 

[BryanThompson]

I have ag tires so it sounds like an option. The rear counter weight is not an option because I use the 3 point for my rotary cutter and that is when I have some of the tipping issues. Thank you everyone.

 

[[email protected]]

I have ag tires so it sounds like an option. The rear counter weight is not an option because I use the 3 point for my rotary cutter and that is when I have some of the tipping issues. Thank you everyone.

When doing loader work the best option is more counter weight on the three point as the weight behind the tractor does the most good for offsetteing the load in the bucket. When doing the mowing you could remove the loader taking that weight off the front would make the tractor more stable. The QA loaders go on and off very easy.

 

[UrbanTractor]

As Dave/Volfandt mentioned, I would check into the wheel spacers first. If you can push the current wheels out by 3-4" in each direction, that should improve stability a lot with far less axle stress than dualies.

Not sure if these would work on your model, but this guy offers front and rear spacers for certain L-Series Kubotas: Wheel Spacers

 

[jbrumberg]

Widening your "footprint" can never hurt stability especially with FELwork and operating on slopes, and adequate rear end ballast can really balance out ground operation and FEL work. CUT's by their design tend to be and/or seem "tippy". They like level surfaces (which I do not have ). The geometries involving operating on slopes and FEL operation are complex; once the load goes off the ground and things become increasingly "unlevel" at the ground surface things become more unstable. I hate having wheel(s) going airborne; I am not ashamed to admit that I "pucker" frequently especially when I encounter unanticipated surface anomolies or resistance to lifting.

 

[RDR]

"I have to drop the FEL as fast as I can if it is loaded or just pucker and ride it out if it is not."

Why do you have it so high you have to drop it? How fast are you going? Load the front tires so they don't compress as much with the liquid in them. GET some rear wheel weights on it. Spend your money on weights, not duals. I think I would remove the fel when mowing. Seems like more times than not when I see a tractor on it's side it has a fel on it. If you don't make some changes, when you roll it over, if you survive and can still drive a tractor, tell us if you learned anything.

 

[aczlan]

Dave,
It is a constant problem both on slopes and using the FEL. I have used my box blade and my 6' rotary cutter on the back and it still has issues. Hitting the slightest dip in the ground with one of the front wheels sends the opposite side rear up in the air. I have to drop the FEL as fast as I can if it is loaded or just pucker and ride it out if it is not. Luckily I have not rolled it yet and would like to keep it that way.

How much do the box blade and cutter weigh?
When the back end is coming off of the ground, you need more weight in the back.
Load the tires or put on wheel weights on and your problem will be reduced or eliminated.

Aaron Z

 

[3700]

There's "tippy", fore and aft and there's "TIPPY" side to side. Notice which one has the all Caps! Load the rears for both and.....

tippy is easy to solve, weight on the three point. TIPPY is another story. The first thing to do is widen the stance of the rears, no spacers required on a 3400. You have the narrow configuration (usually as shipped) and a wider configuration which can be achieved by changing the hub/wheel mountings. For the widest stance, you need to reverse the tire direction because of the need to reverse the wheels.

I operate an L3700 in very mountainous terrain and seem to stay safe, but disaster is only one stupid move away. Realizing that, I don't do stupid.

There are kits for mounting duals but I couldn't imagine doing it. First problem is scuffing your ground which duals will do as you turn. Second is, as mentioned, too much stress on the rear axles?

Tractors, with few special exceptions, are not mountain goats but can be trained to operate on slopes with operator attention to angle of attack. Keeping a loaded bucket close to the earth should be what one does, on level or sloped ground.

Best of luck.

 

[Bluegill2]

I have loaded ag tires on my L3800 (same size as L3400) and have them set out as far as they can go on the rear. Just over 6' span from edges of tires.

When I'm mowing, The Loader Comes Off! I hate to mow with a loader on. Takes 5 minutes to remove it.

When I'm doing loader work, I have rear ballast, 500-700+ lbs, box blade with weight added. 1000 lbs would likely be better.

Mine is very stable set up this way, but I'll be adding rear wheel weights also.

The secret to having a tractor work and work well is having enough weight in the right places.

:trink39:

 

[bosshogg]

I swapped my rear ties around and set on the widest rim setting...wow what a difference!

 

[Bluegill2]

I swapped my rear ties around and set on the widest rim setting...wow what a difference!

Makes a huge difference!

But proper ballast can be just as huge!

 

[bosshogg]

Makes a huge difference!

But proper ballast can be just as huge!

My tires are filled with fluid so I was a little nervous at handling them myself. Kept them upright the entire time and swap took no more then an hour. I would recommend having a 3/4" drive socket set as those bolts have some serious torque. It looks like the Mars rover now!!!

 

[okieduc104]

When you get the bucket loaded (Don't attempt to load the bucket on a side to side slope!") Lower the bucket to where you can see over it, not under it, before traveling.

 

[bosshogg]

When you get the bucket loaded (Don't attempt to load the bucket on a side to side slope!") Lower the bucket to where you can see over it, not under it, before traveling.

Always, carry any load as low to the ground as possible. The center of gravity of the tractor, bucket and material you are carrying will determine how tippy it is base on the location of the center of gravity. Let's face it...a 5' wide anything is tippy and especially a tractor who is also fairly tall. I came within an inch of tippying my L3400 over on day 2 of ownership and I have operated heavy equipment most of my life. Be careful!!!

 

[Tx Jim]

For the widest stance, you need to reverse the tire direction because of the need to reverse the wheels.

Simple solution to keeping tire direction correct is swap sides with the wheels/tires then in wider stance tires will still be rotating correct direction.