L3301 LA525 Front Loader Valve Lock Stuck

[Alexjojo]

Hi folks,

I'm new to tractors and this forum.

The Valve Lock on my L3301 with front loader LA525 is stuck. I forgot to lower the bucket all the way to the ground before I left for a hunting trip. When I got back, the bucket had lowered a little bit and now the valve lock won't move which means I cannot move the bucket at all; the controls are locked. Before I head down to the local dealer for some help, I was hoping someone on here might have some ideas on how to fix this.

Thanks,

Paul.

 

[Blondie70]

I'm just guessing here, but could you not jack up the bucket to get the pressure off the system and unlock then ????
Good luck, Pete

 

[mdhughes]

I have a L3901Dt and I have used the lock a couple of times, have you tried moving the control stick while trying to move the valve lock? I don't think the FEL leaking down will do anything to stop you from moving the valve lock.

 

[Ryansweatt2004]

Try cracking open a fitting near the valve to bleed off a little pressure.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

The loader settling will have no effect on the lock, it's not a pressure issue (besides the loader falling would indicate it lost pressure not built it up!), the lock lever just locks movement of the stick!

Do as mdhughes suggested, wiggle the stick while trying to unlock it.

 

[Alexjojo]

I have the bucket on blocks to release some of the pressure but Valve is still locked. However the bucket is not at the same height as where I left it before hunting. Not sure that will matter.

I have tried wiggling both controls and valve at the same time. Nothing happened but I'll try again now the bucket is off the ground.

I have not tried to release one of the fittings yet which I'll try this weekend.

Thanks for the advice. Let's hope one of these things works or I'll be heading to the dealer.

 

[MikeyA]

The joystick lock is not related to the hydraulic system in any way other than being a mechanical lockout to prevent lever from moving. My B2650 had sat outside for a considerable amount of time before I purchased it and the loader valve lockout was very difficult to operate. Judicious lubrication and a little wiggling of joystick will get it unstuck. It was definitely a pain when I first got it, but it is becoming easier to move as I have used it a few times...again, squirt it good with LPS or a good lubricant, NOT WD40...

 

[Ike]

This is going to sound dumb and I don't mean it to be, buy you have to move the lock lever either forward ar backwards to line it up with the slot to unlock it. On mine it will not move to the unlock until I move it I think down then you can move it to the left

 

[Alexjojo]

Thanks and doesn't sound dumb at all. I'll double check that I am pulling/pushing in the right groove and I'll see if some lub will help as well.

 

[JD318]

. Does your joystick lock look like the attached picture from my LA 302? If so, the same thing happened to me, I easily locked the joystick one day after taking the loader off so I would not bump it (after releasing pressure), then for an hour I could not get it to unlock when hooking my front snow-thrower. -I tried everything! I thought I was going to have tear the valve body apart! Then my wife walked over and said "honey, you have to use your muscles!" Sure enough, she put all her strength into it and the lever moved to the unlock position -very slowly at first- now it moves freely again : )


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Yooper]

I took a look at how the lock works and I can see how easy it would be for ice to lock this up. Dirt could be the culprit also.

I'll suggest to try tapping it LIGHTLY after pulling the handle towards you to the unlock position. BTW, when you do pull it towards you, does it feel free? Mine works very easy. If it doesn't, its either ice or dirt.

Its a shaft inside of another shaft with not a lot of slop that is the mechanism. Good luck.

 

[Nicklentini1]

The same exact thing happened to me last week. I took off the plastic cover and saw how the lock worked. Its just a pin that slides into the two valves. Just spray some wd-40 there and wiggle it and use your muscle. It will release, you wont break anything.

 

[Alexjojo]

Thanks guys, in the process of taking off the plastic cover to get to the pin. The pin moved out a little bit and I was able to move it to the unlock position. It would not move prior to taking the cover off. The pin was pretty dry so I applied some lube and everything it working now. Thanks for the information.

Merry Christmas.

Paul

 

[George V.]

There's an easy fix for the stuck loader valve. Remove the four 10mm bolts from the bottom of the black plastic cover and pull the cover up out of the way. The joystick knob and the knob on the valve lock do not have to be removed. The black plastic cover will clear the valve lock knob when it's pulled up. Now you can see how this thing works. There's a pin that slides between two holes that looks like a slide lock on a fence. Take a screwdriver and push the pin to the unlock position. Then take a drill with a bit the same size as the holes and ream the holes out to smooth and remove rough spots. Use some WD-40 to clean the pin and holes. Put some white grease on the pin, put the cover back on and you are done.

 

[PaulR]

BTT, having this problem with my BX 23S this morning. I flipped the lock lever, sat for 3 days. Was able to back out of the garage then lost all function...everything. Lock lever is jammed in lock position. Hopefully with more wiggles it will come free.

 

[PaulR]

semi-false alarm / disaster averted / newbie with a tractor. It's scary when that lockout lever takes away all your hydraulic function...as intended. It was the first time I used this lever and it got jammed in the lock position. After 30 seconds of wiggling the joystick while pushing on the lever at the same time it went back to the unlock position. Phew

 

[GoBills]

semi-false alarm / disaster averted / newbie with a tractor. It's scary when that lockout lever takes away all your hydraulic function...as intended. It was the first time I used this lever and it got jammed in the lock position. After 30 seconds of wiggling the joystick while pushing on the lever at the same time it went back to the unlock position. Phew

A big thanks to the above post about "wiggling the joystick while pushing on the lever at the same time."

I had the same problem after the lock lever popped out of "unlock".

The above advice worked wonders! Thanks again very much!