What I Learned by Renting a Tractor. . .

[K5lwq]

I use hand throttle on my tractors 90% of the time. But I do pull it back to idle before clutching.

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

The only time I use the hand throttle at all is when I'm running something off the pto that needs the rpm.

Rest of the time, I use the foot throttle. That's why it's there. Linked pedals are great.

50 years ago tractors didn't have them...

100 years ago, cars still had hand cranks on the front of the engine to start them. Now they have electric motors driven by a key switch or a push button.

You guys prefer the hand cranks? I wouldn't.

 

[i7win7]

How about that Trend Pro Helmet. If it worked well, I wouldn't mind that.
View attachment 665307

Can't say how long it runs per charge, use it intermittently.
Have 9" HF angle grinder with 7" diamond blade, huge dust cloud when it touches cement. Takes some getting use it at first. Deep breath, start cutting, when you finally have to exhale clean fresh air is available. (yes, I cut cement before buying helmet) Bought it for wood working, some exotics have nasty (toxic) dust. It's heavier than a face shield, weight about same as high quality hard hat. Think I could wear a couple hours without problems.

 

[Tinhack]

When I first got this property, I didn't have any more than a 20" push mower. I rented tractors to mow, cut a driveway, put in a septic system, move a telephone pole, cut in a water line, lay phone cable, bury electric conduit, and mow again. The largest piece was a road grader to cut the driveway. I was on first name bases with the rental shop. After the house was built, I rented a tractor and mower about 2-3 times a year. It just depended on how much rain we had. I did that for about five years. But I still had my push mower for around the house. I went to a lot of auctions back then and have accumulated many tools. I'd still like to get a 6-7' box blade for driveway work though. And no, a land plane won't do it. The clay and sand is too hard.

 

[Takman]

I won't buy new equipment unless the dealer is willing to drop one at my house so I can test in "the conditions" I will use it in.....

 

[mred2]

For those that use a foot throttle most of the time, how do you keep your rpm's at 2400 (as recommended). Some of my land has so many holes that when I mow, my feet are going up and down as well as my back side. Both have their place. And I still have an old 1949 H model that has a hand crank, wouldn't sell it for the world.

 

[rScotty]

I don't run at 2400. I don't like to run full throttle and don't think it makes sense. Instead, I use the auto-throttle setting on the dash of the Kubota which automatically returns to idle when there is no load, and then automatically revs up to match the load - usually that is in response to pushing on the HST treadle. So the rpm varies. Half the time I am at idle.

That old H will outlast us all.
rScotty

 

[ptsg]

For those that use a foot throttle most of the time, how do you keep your rpm's at 2400 (as recommended). Some of my land has so many holes that when I mow, my feet are going up and down as well as my back side. Both have their place. And I still have an old 1949 H model that has a hand crank, wouldn't sell it for the world.

For PTO work, like mowing, tilling, etc, I often use the hand throttle. Not always tho, if I have short runs like when tilling the orchards, I just use the foot throttle. It's not hard at all to keep the RPMs where I need and I just take the foot of the throttle at the end of the run, to change direction.

For longer runs, I do use the hand throttle.

For loader work, moving around, roading, etc, I just use the foot throttle. I hate seeing the engines at full throttle just to move around or doing loader work.

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

For those that use a foot throttle most of the time, how do you keep your rpm's at 2400 (as recommended). Some of my land has so many holes that when I mow, my feet are going up and down as well as my back side. Both have their place. And I still have an old 1949 H model that has a hand crank, wouldn't sell it for the world.

The only time I "need" any specific rpm, is if I'm actually powering a pto-driven attachment, like a mower or tiller, etc. The rest of the time, if I'm doing grading or FEL/forklift work, I certainly don't need to be running the ball-sack out of my engine.

But if I'm running a pto driven tool, then I run the hand throttle up where it needs to be while using the tool, and then take it back down to idle speed when I'm done and transporting back to the shed.

 

[K5lwq]

When I use the hand throttle I just take it up to what ever RPM I need to perform that task.

In my case, it is just out of habit from all the years row cropping. When pulling a disk, plow, planter or whatever, we would set the engine in it's peak power curve and use the gears to establish proper ground speed. Then idle down at the end of the rows, lift the implement and then your feet are free to use the brakes to help turn around.

I would go hours doing that and never need to use the clutch. I still operate the same way on a much smaller scale. I plan my activity and pattern to limit the need to clutch or change gears. I like having my feet free.

Funny how different we like to do the same tasks. But at the end of the day, the result is the same. :confused3:

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

Very true K,

I was just answering Mred's question on what us foot pedal'ers (is that a thing now? ) do when we need a specific (say 2400 in his example) rpm.

 

[3gunr]

I agree with slim. Foot pedal for most operations except high rpm pto work . not hard to understand.

 

[K5lwq]

That is funny Slim, I hate to think of what name will be used for those of us that like to run things by hand! :laughing:

 

[crazyal]

I think renting was a good idea but for the type of things you plan on doing a 30hp tractor is too small. One thing you will need to remember is if you have a cab you will want AC. Just having it alone would mean adding an extra 5hp IMO. A 7' brush hog is going to need at least 35hp at the PTO, that's at last a 45hp tractor. Once you get in that range the HST wine is nothing like what a smaller tractor will make. HST will require at least 5hp to 10hp over a geared tractor. I personally wouldn't go with a geared tractor unless most (75%) of what I plan on doing was going to be shift into a specific gear and leave it there. Stuff like loader work would drive me crazy trying to do it with a stick.

My backhoe is 'shuttle shift' or sometimes called 'power reverser', very similar to GST. You pick the gear and then a level shifts between forward, neutral, and reverse. Once you get over 60hp it's pretty much your only option vs gear. It's like an automatic car. You have to rev the motor up to move. This means that if you are doing PTO work (like a brush hog) when you slow down to take a corner or turn around the attachment also slows down. It's also why others are talking about the hand vs foot throttle. With HST you set the RPMs you want and then control the speed the tractor moves forward with the foot pedal or cruise control lever.

 

[jezreel]

Yep, I would say 65% of my use will be mowing. The rest of the work will be varied, and a gear drive wouldn't be an issue. And YES, that tractor I rented was too small. When I was window shopping for NEW, I was looking at the Kubota L4701, but now that I am looking at USED, I am looking at the 55-70hp range. There are a decent amount of low hour machines out there in that HP range for under $29K. I would like to try one of the "Glide Shift Transmissions" or "Shuttle Shift Transmissions" to see what that is all about.

I will probably have to rent a tractor at least once, maybe two times, before I buy. I just wish I could find a place that rented something other than the JD 3038e. But that seems to be the go-to rental around here. The weeds in my pastures will be ready to mow in another month.

Thanks so much for all the input! ! !

 

[mred2]

K, how many people on here use their brakes to steer?

 

[ptsg]

K, how many people on here use their brakes to steer?

Kinda rare but every once in a while I do use the brakes to steer. But with 47º turning angle, it's not needed that often. I can squeeze on the orchards just fine.

 

[K5lwq]

I do but not near as much as when we were row cropping. If I use all 47 degrees of steering on the Branson I will to relieve pressure on the front end.

 

[Tinhack]

K, how many people on here use their brakes to steer?

I do for sharp turns. Like mowing around trees or cactus. You better have your seat belt on!

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

I use my split brakes all winter long while pushing snow.

Other than that, I don't think I use them any other time.

Like others have said, the turning radius is so tight on mine as well, you can turn a 180 and the inside rear wheel barely moves.