Used l3301 thoughts/input

Mdbota1

New member

Equipment
L3301
Sep 30, 2023
14
14
3
Brookeville
Haha, bingo.... Box blade or flat blade for driveway and brush hog. Any input yall? Hope to find some used stuff on fb marketplace
 

BobInSD

Active member

Equipment
L5740
Jun 23, 2020
361
123
43
South Dakota
Capital for a day! My home was already there in 1812 as well. So I received the tractor yesterday, and test drove it, etc before handing over payment. They are getting me a WSM mailed to me. First thing I did after he left was blow off the rad screen, took out and blew out air filter, checked lug nuts, and dumped out the water in fuel/water separator which was full. Had to clean the fuel screen too that was nasty. Its got a quarter tank of diesel that seems like its been there for a bit. Water filled back up pretty quick in separator.

They gave me a new oil filter, and Im putting in 5w40 Rotella synth this weekend (oil looks brand new on dipstick though since theres only 71 hrs on machine). Ordered grease gun and grease, and will fill with fresh diesel.

These dont shift well on the fly....I guess cause they dont have synchros. I dont really need to anyway, but noticed grinding/hard to get into next gear when I did.

Thanks all for the input and help! Ill post a pic of it on the property in a sec from phone
I lived nearby in a previous life. When Georgia Ave was a quiet back-road and a halfway decent motorcycle route. I drove by the "capital for a day" sign hundreds of times. Also worked with a bunch of yuppies who pretended to be hippies and liked to eat lunch at the Olney Alehouse.

I don't know about your particular tractor, but I'd be very surprised if you should shift on the fly. Every tractor I've ever had (before this one), you put it in the gear you wanted, advanced the throttle, and let the clutch out. I don't know people that tried to shift on the fly even with my JD 3020, which was advertised to be able to shift between (some) gears on the fly. Ask guys that know about your tractor, of course
 
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Mdbota1

New member

Equipment
L3301
Sep 30, 2023
14
14
3
Brookeville
I lived nearby in a previous life. When Georgia Ave was a quiet back-road and a halfway decent motorcycle route. I drove by the "capital for a day" sign hundreds of times. Also worked with a bunch of yuppies who pretended to be hippies and liked to eat lunch at the Olney Alehouse.

I don't know about your particular tractor, but I'd be very surprised if you should shift on the fly. Every tractor I've ever had (before this one), you put it in the gear you wanted, advanced the throttle, and let the clutch out. I don't know people that tried to shift on the fly even with my JD 3020, which was advertised to be able to shift between (some) gears on the fly. Ask guys that know about your tractor, of course
Yep, been driving new Hampshire Ave daily for over 30yrs now. Still love the area, but it's changed a lot.... But at the same time not at all.

Good to know.... I got on it and proceeded to drive it like my manual car. When shifting from a stop into any of the 8 gears it's fine. Didn't know tractors just went from 0 to go in any gear. Now I know, haha
 
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PaulL

Well-known member

Equipment
B2601
Jul 17, 2017
2,441
1,365
113
NZ
You can double clutch old style, if you're real good. No synchros normally.

Land plane for driveways is often the recommendation. Google some videos.
 
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Runs With Scissors

Well-known member

Equipment
L2501 TLB , Grappel, Brush Hog, Box Blade, Ballast box, Forks, Tiller, PH digger
Jan 25, 2023
2,442
2,818
113
Michigan
Haha, bingo.... Box blade or flat blade for driveway and brush hog. Any input yall? Hope to find some used stuff on fb marketplace
I have a Homestead "Pinnacle Series " box blade that I am happy with. I am sure there are others that are as good or better, so my only advice is to be mindful of how the Scarifiers are adjusted if you decide on a box blade.

Some designs use "special clips" which I am not crazy about. (Land Pride BB12 series pops to mind)

I liked the simple "pin" style adjustments and the "beefiness" of the Homestead Pinnacle series and their military discount helped too.
 
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RCW

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Lifetime Member

Equipment
BX2360, FEL, MMM, BX2750D snowblower. 1953 Minneapolis Moline ZAU
Apr 28, 2013
9,159
5,252
113
Chenango County, NY
Your driveway looks very similar to mine.

Definitely land plane or box blade. I prefer box blade, others land plane. Skip the rear blade, unless you want to move snow with it (I have one for snow).
 
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OntheRidge

Well-known member
Lifetime Member

Equipment
Kubota L47 TLB, Homestead 55" grapple, LP 1684 rear blade, WR Long 84" snowplow
Nov 1, 2020
328
382
63
25427
Haha, bingo.... Box blade or flat blade for driveway and brush hog. Any input yall? Hope to find some used stuff on fb marketplace
I have a Homestead Pinnacle series box blade, 72", that I am trying to sell. I'm not too far away, Hedgesville WV.
 

old and tired

Well-known member

Equipment
L2800 HST; 2005; R4
For changing the hydraulic filters, if you use a shopvac stuck into the hydraulic fill hole at the back of the tractor, you will not lose much fluid. Just make sure you have the vac set to suction and NOT to blow... What a mess THAT made...
 
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jerseybud

New member

Equipment
L245dt, B7510, L3901, Deere 2550 and 6410
Jan 16, 2022
3
7
3
Maine
Good to know.... I got on it and proceeded to drive it like my manual car. When shifting from a stop into any of the 8 gears it's fine. Didn't know tractors just went from 0 to go in any gear. Now I know, haha
I'm late to this party, but pretty sure the only gears synchronized are 3-4 (7-8). At least on my 3901, which should be same trans as 3301. I would strongly advise against trying to shift from 1-2(5-6) or 2-3(6-7) on the fly, though with low load and low rpm it usually goes smoothly. Somewhere, either in the owners manual or the product brochure it mentions which one is synchronized.
Our L245DT was like this as well except nothing was synchronized. After 40 years of use, it became synchronized though dt wear.
 

Mdbota1

New member

Equipment
L3301
Sep 30, 2023
14
14
3
Brookeville
I'm late to this party, but pretty sure the only gears synchronized are 3-4 (7-8). At least on my 3901, which should be same trans as 3301. I would strongly advise against trying to shift from 1-2(5-6) or 2-3(6-7) on the fly, though with low load and low rpm it usually goes smoothly. Somewhere, either in the owners manual or the product brochure it mentions which one is synchronized.
Our L245DT was like this as well except nothing was synchronized. After 40 years of use, it became synchronized though dt wear.
I finally was able to get the op manual that states to come to a complete stop when shifting gears. Doesn't say anything about 3/4 synch or dog eared gears. It's fine and not a problem to stop, but moving from stop to 4H loads the clutch a little more than I'd like for longevity.
 

TheOldHokie

Well-known member
Lifetime Member

Equipment
L3901/LA525, B7200DT/B1630, G2160/RCK60, G2460/RCK60
Apr 6, 2021
8,763
4,501
113
Myersville, MD
windyridgefarm.us
Capital for a day! My home was already there in 1812 as well. So I received the tractor yesterday, and test drove it, etc before handing over payment. They are getting me a WSM mailed to me. First thing I did after he left was blow off the rad screen, took out and blew out air filter, checked lug nuts, and dumped out the water in fuel/water separator which was full. Had to clean the fuel screen too that was nasty. Its got a quarter tank of diesel that seems like its been there for a bit. Water filled back up pretty quick in separator.

They gave me a new oil filter, and Im putting in 5w40 Rotella synth this weekend (oil looks brand new on dipstick though since theres only 71 hrs on machine). Ordered grease gun and grease, and will fill with fresh diesel.

These dont shift well on the fly....I guess cause they dont have synchros. I dont really need to anyway, but noticed grinding/hard to get into next gear when I did.

Thanks all for the input and help! Ill post a pic of it on the property in a sec from phone
Messicks is right up the road from you and I order most of my parts from them. I have no use for the old Gaithersburg Tractor dealership.

I lived in Kensington, home of the original Jerry's Subs, for several years and played golf on lands that are now townhouses and malls. At that point in time Boyd's was considered the boonies....

Dan
 
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PaulL

Well-known member

Equipment
B2601
Jul 17, 2017
2,441
1,365
113
NZ
I finally was able to get the op manual that states to come to a complete stop when shifting gears. Doesn't say anything about 3/4 synch or dog eared gears. It's fine and not a problem to stop, but moving from stop to 4H loads the clutch a little more than I'd like for longevity.
Most tractors have synchros only on the split shifts - so if you have H/M/L that has no synchro, then 1,2,3,4,R usually has no synchro, and then if you also have a H/L or a shuttle shift, that would have a synchro on it.

If you want to shift when moving you'd typically need to learn to double declutch (double clutch in the US). Which is usually hard to do on a tractor with the heavy clutch they usually have, and means the by the time you've finished doing it you've come to a stop anyway. :)
 

Mdbota1

New member

Equipment
L3301
Sep 30, 2023
14
14
3
Brookeville
Most tractors have synchros only on the split shifts - so if you have H/M/L that has no synchro, then 1,2,3,4,R usually has no synchro, and then if you also have a H/L or a shuttle shift, that would have a synchro on it.

If you want to shift when moving you'd typically need to learn to double declutch (double clutch in the US). Which is usually hard to do on a tractor with the heavy clutch they usually have, and means the by the time you've finished doing it you've come to a stop anyway. :)
Haha, yea I quickly learned that with double clutching as a fix