Kubota L3901 PTO will not engage

Mrhullett1206

New member

Equipment
KUBOTA L3901
Apr 6, 2019
2
1
0
Nashville Tennessee
I recently purchased a brand new L3901 from a dealer. It only has 12 hours on it. I was cutting brush with my 52 in land pride cutter and took about an hour break. When I attempted to resume cutting the pto would not engage and it just made a grinding noise. Any suggestions?
 
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mickeyd

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Lifetime Member

Equipment
2014 L3200 DT w/LA524 FEL, 2019 Kubota Z121S w/ 48" Pro Dec, TG1860G w/RCK54TG
Mar 21, 2014
1,192
18
38
Guin, AL
Welcome to the OTT forum. :)

Since you have a live PTO, how are you using the clutch?
 
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Fido Farms

Member

Equipment
L3901, 35 Massey, Summit X 146, Polaris 700 RMK, Yamaha Viking
May 27, 2018
114
5
18
Canada
Well since it***8217;s brand new first call should be to the dealer for advice ... on mine when it was new it had an occassional click/clunk noise comming from the rear end. Dealer couldn***8217;t figure it out and said it***8217;s under warranty drive it till we see what fails. Ffs that was nice . However I figured out after trouble shooting it myself that the PTO cable linkage was set to tight and caused cams to hit. Adjusted and it***8217;s been mint since.
 

eserv

Well-known member

Equipment
BX24, A1000 Kubota Generator
May 27, 2009
2,140
139
63
Hardisty, Alberta
I recently purchased a brand new L3901 from a dealer. It only has 12 hours on it. I was cutting brush with my 52 in land pride cutter and took about an hour break. When I attempted to resume cutting the pto would not engage and it just made a grinding noise. Any suggestions?
You are using the clutch pedal when you engage the PTO aren't you?
 

whitetiger

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Kubota tech..BX2370, RCK60, B7100HST, RTV900 w plow, Ford 1100 FWA
Nov 20, 2011
2,921
1,383
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Kansas City, KS
You are using the clutch pedal when you engage the PTO aren't you?
Depending on which transmission he has, he may not have a clutch pedal. New L01's with a hydro have brakes on the left side and utilize a live PTO.

I agree that from his description that he must have a gear transmission and is not clutching to engage his PTO.
 

eserv

Well-known member

Equipment
BX24, A1000 Kubota Generator
May 27, 2009
2,140
139
63
Hardisty, Alberta
Depending on which transmission he has, he may not have a clutch pedal. New L01's with a hydro have brakes on the left side and utilize a live PTO.

I agree that from his description that he must have a gear transmission and is not clutching to engage his PTO.
The hydraulic clutch really couldn't grind though if that is what he has.
 

Fido Farms

Member

Equipment
L3901, 35 Massey, Summit X 146, Polaris 700 RMK, Yamaha Viking
May 27, 2018
114
5
18
Canada
The only L series with brakes on left is the L4701.
 

Mrhullett1206

New member

Equipment
KUBOTA L3901
Apr 6, 2019
2
1
0
Nashville Tennessee
Yes. I am using the clutch pedal and waiting until the gears stop, tractor in neutral. I have the gear transmission 4wd not the HST.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk
 

lugbolt

Well-known member

Equipment
ZG127S-54
Oct 15, 2015
5,207
1,893
113
Mid, South, USA
if it's grinding with the clutch pushed all the way down, and won't engage without grinding, the secondary clutch isn't releasing all the way. Could be a lot of reasons for that. Linkage. Throwout. Smoked clutch. Etc.

12 hours doesn't seem like much but I've seen them destroyed in under 1 hour use, so improper use can hurt it pretty quickly. This is almost exclusively with gear drive tractors that have a loader, never have to put a clutch in an HST tractor. Well one or two, but not dozens like the gear drives.

Might try to adjust it first.

One can pull the inspection plate (if accessible) and sniff inside the hold. Does it smell like burnt brakes? If so...get ready to buy a new clutch. Per the warranty booklet, Warranty doesn't' cover clutch and brake linings, they're considered wear items. BUT if there's something defective that caused the clutch to slip and burn, they might help with that. But the dealer will have to prove that defect.

Worth mentioning, but those have a 2 stage clutch. You push the pedal down, about halfway it should kinda get a little stiffer. That's where the second stage starts to disengage, which is for your PTO. To disengage the PTO clutch enough to pull the lever up without grinding, you have to push the pedal ALL the way down, which is why linkage adjustment is critical. The WSM outlines it.
 

Cmiller198418

New member

Equipment
L3901 HST/RCR1260
May 16, 2021
1
0
1
Perryville, Mo
I recently purchased a brand new L3901 from a dealer. It only has 12 hours on it. I was cutting brush with my 52 in land pride cutter and took about an hour break. When I attempted to resume cutting the pto would not engage and it just made a grinding noise. Any suggestions?
I am also having this problem. Did you get it fixed?
 

DaveFromMi

Well-known member

Equipment
L3901 RCR1260
Apr 14, 2021
610
530
93
Indiana
Check your owners manual for clutch linkage adjustment. Should be a required 50 hour maintenance item.