I have a l3901 that the lift arms stay up and never go down after sitting months.i bought a l6060 and overnight, the lift arms are down . Are my hydraulics bad on the l6060 ?
Should hydraulic rear lift arms go down after 1 sitting over night ?
- Thread starter Poophead
- Start date
well gravity sucks.... arms will go down, eventually. Now how fast or slow depends upon the quality/condition of the ram seals and the precision of the control valve.
Russell King
Well-known member
Lifetime Member
Equipment
L185F, Modern Ag Competitor 4’ shredder, Rhino tiller, rear dirt scoop
In short you probably don’t have a problem.
The arms will go down due to leakage at the seal on the cylinder that moves those arms. They also can go down due to leakage in the control valve. Unless the leakage rate exceeds what is acceptable to the operator during use of the tractor it is not a problem. So overnight is probably not a problem but if the implement drifts down so quickly during use that you have to adjust it frequently then that is a problem.
You can repair the cylinder seal but the control valve has to be replaced as far as I know.
If you adjust the speed control knob it can lock the arms in position and they probably won’t move down for a very long time. Perhaps that is the difference between the two tractors? But you need to exercise that knob ever so often or it will rust in place and become a problem to fix.
And implements should be lowered to the ground when you are not using the tractor for safety reasons.
The arms will go down due to leakage at the seal on the cylinder that moves those arms. They also can go down due to leakage in the control valve. Unless the leakage rate exceeds what is acceptable to the operator during use of the tractor it is not a problem. So overnight is probably not a problem but if the implement drifts down so quickly during use that you have to adjust it frequently then that is a problem.
You can repair the cylinder seal but the control valve has to be replaced as far as I know.
If you adjust the speed control knob it can lock the arms in position and they probably won’t move down for a very long time. Perhaps that is the difference between the two tractors? But you need to exercise that knob ever so often or it will rust in place and become a problem to fix.
And implements should be lowered to the ground when you are not using the tractor for safety reasons.
I have zero experience with the L6060 but I would expect it to hold just like the L3901.
A simple leakdown test is to raise the 3pt with an implement on it and fully close the lowering speed valve. If the 3pt leaks down the seals on one or both lift cylinders are leaking. Personally, as long as you are not loosing lift capacity and theres no issue when the tractor is running I would not worry about overnight leakdown.
Dan
Such symptoms would certainly not be acceptable for a new tractor and would be a warranty issue.
It is highly unlikely that the leakage is due to lift cylinder leakage as the L6060 has dual, external lift cylinders. Any external leakage?
Leakage is almost certainly in the control valve or other optional equipment. Does your tractor have remote valves and/or optional (dealer installed) draft control?
Might want to have the dealer inspect the feedback link and verify adjustment.
If your tractor has draft control, I would expect the problem to be due to improper adjustment of such. Proper adjustment of the Rube Goldberg draft control system used on the L6060 is time consuming and few if any dealers do so.
Should also advise that you should verify that the draft control lever (if equipped) is fully "off."
I think you need to revist the hydrauluc circuit diagram and operation.. With the tractor off the only thing that is holding 3pt pressure is the control valve, safety/check valve, and lift cylinders. Remotes and position/draft control linkages are not involved. Closing the lowering speed valve will isolate the lift cylinders and safety valve. Both are very plausible sources of leakage and easily tested.
Dan
PS> He never said the tractor is new. It could by 1o+ years old.
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"PS> He never said the tractor is new. It could by 1o+ years old."
Nor did I.
Nor did I assume such, but if it is, simply take it back to the dealer for warranty repair. End of discussion which is why I addressed warranty in my very first sentence.
Shoot, on my old L2500, I have left a heavy 7-foot LandPride blade hang on the 3-point (off the ground) for months at a time, and it barely moves, if at all.
Lately, I've decided to not let that be a practice, but 3-point lift function is the same as it ever was, either way.
PO had a fully-loaded weightbox hanging on the rear lift for a long time before I bought the tractor.
-Paul
Lately, I've decided to not let that be a practice, but 3-point lift function is the same as it ever was, either way.
PO had a fully-loaded weightbox hanging on the rear lift for a long time before I bought the tractor.
-Paul
I believe your rate/control knob is probably tightened completely. (the knob beneath your seat and between your legs)
Loosen it and the lift arms should lower.
If the lift arms stay up for months as you say….. Then it‘s time to celebrate…because your 3pt seals are really good.
Read his post again. His L3901 works fine and when shutoff will hold a load for months. His problem is the L6060 leaks down when shutoff.
Dan
Well…. I guess I was talking about his L3901.
If the L3901 will stay up with implements while it’s running……and only leaks down completely overnight…I’d be happy with that. My Ford 9N would leak down after killing the engine in about 30 minutes…but it worked just fine for almost 20 yrs lifting a 72” Rhino shredder (very heavy) and a 6 ft heavy box blade without any troubles as long as the engine was running. As long as it did that…I wasn’t about to trouble myself with rebuilding the cylinder. YMMV
(Thx Hokie…. I did actually mis-read it, tho’’)
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This ain't 1939. The design, materials, valves, and lift cylinders on a modern Kubota are vastly superior to anything Ford used on the N', Hundred, and early Thousand series tractors.
Like the OP my L3901 will hold 3pt pressure indefinitly. I would expect the same of other models.
Runs With Scissors
Well-known member
Equipment
L2501 TLB , Grappel, Brush Hog, Box Blade, Ballast box, Forks, Tiller, PH digger
Can’t help with a 6060, but my 2501 leaks down with a “load" overnight, and it has since it was “Brand spanking new" in 2021 (Box Blade is the load….few hundred pounds?)
I would say that it leaks down about "3’ish" inchs overnight, not all the way.
I was lead to believe that it was “normal”.
I would say that it leaks down about "3’ish" inchs overnight, not all the way.
I was lead to believe that it was “normal”.
Why does it matter if the lift arms "go down" overnight? If the fuel tank level goes down overnight I'd be concerned, but lift arms?
It doesnt matter but its one indicator of leakage.
Obviously we would like no leakage but thats not always realistic . 3pt leakage becomes an actual problem when:
- You lose hydraulic lifting force.
- Position control has to keep adjusting the lift to account for drift and the lift starts to oscillate in normal use.
I typically put any rear implements on the ground when parking the tractors, so that includes things like the snow blower, box blade, rear blade, land leveler etc., so I don't track leak down. I do remember a couple of years ago leaving the ~900 lb box blade on the M6060 off the ground and noticing that around a week later it was just about on the dirt. Perhaps it'd take less time now, but as I mentioned, I just don't do that typically so I wouldn't know or care, until the issues mentioned above start showing up.
Interesting. My L3901 will hold my 700 pound mower indefinitly with no noticeable drift.
Dan
I would expect oil temperature to play a part in this since viscosity is a function of temperature. So in use with an HST the oil is going to get plenty hot and I wonder if drift would show up when working a tractor hard. More stuff that I don't worry about.
Kubota has hydraulic bleed down info. Check with their spec to see if you have an unusual problem.