Need advise on a new tractor purchase

[bmhibinger]

Hello all,
I have been tractor shopping lately and could use some input on what tractor may fit me best. I am a 34 year old who is paralyzed from the waist down, so I need to find what could work best for me with the least amount of modification. I understand some modifications will be needed (some sort of lift to get into the tractor, hand controls, etc.) but would like to hear some suggestions on what might work best. We have a 120 acre beef cattle farm in SE Ohio, so most of the tractor use will be making and feeding hay and brush hogging pastures. Occasional loader work here and there.
The tractors I am looking most closely at right now are a Case I-H Farmall 75C with power shuttle, a New Holland T4.75 with power shuttle and a Kubota L6060 with Hydrostatic Trans. I was told the 75C was "clutchless"...which led me to believe you didn't need to work the clutch (other than start-up). But looking through the literature, I only see anything about forward to reverse. Anything with a power shuttle can do that. Does anyone know if gears, ranges, etc. can be shifted on these without the clutch? The Hydrostatic Kubota is still in the hunt, but just thought a clutchless (or at least limited clutching) tractor would work best for me.
Any help is greatly appreciated.
B

 

[jimpen]

I would look at Mahindra's HST tractors. The forward/reverse is a fwd/rev pedal so the adaption would be a way to push down on the front/rev with a straight "stick". The clutch pedal is only used on initial start and firing up the PTO's. Brakes aren't really used. Everything else is pretty much hand controls.

There are some Mahindra dealers around Columbus.

Just throwing out an idea.

Good luck on your search.

 

[TSO]

With your condition, there's no way I'd go with anything but hydro. Like already mentioned, it would be very easy to retrofit hand controls for operation, since the HST foot pedals basically just open the valve sending hydraulic pressure for forward/reverse movement.

In my opinion, one of the very best things about HST, that people often neglect to mention, is that while in gear (range), the unit has "braking" built into the directional pedals. So, for your case, if you have a hand lever made to control the direction & speed, you can also "brake" by returning the lever to neutral.

I've owned a shuttle shift tractor, and I've driven "clutchless" power shuttles ... none come close to the ease of use of HST.

There are plenty of tasks that will keep even someone with an extra set of hands or feet busy while operating a tractor (lots of multitasking) ... If I was in your situation, I'd want to keep everything as simplistic & intuitive as possible.

The Kubota L6060 HST (or out going L5740), Massey 1759 HST, JD 4520/4720 HST, Kioti NX6010 HST, & finally the Mahindra 6010 HST ... are the highest HP HST tractors available. I'd find the one that will be easiest to customize and go with it (along with your own egress & comfort).

Good luck

 

[paulfun9]

I would definitely be looking at HST tractors with electric over hydraulic PTO and4x4 activation as well as cruise control.

 

[Deerherd]

On my tractor and on some of the larger Deere's, they have an electronic hi-lo on the shifter that allows you to switch up or down a gear without depressing the clutch. I think that would be a great feature for you to have.

If you are mowing and it starts to bog down you can just press the button to get back in the power band, no clutch required. At first glance, a power shuttle would require no modification for directional changes and would seem to have an advantage over cost of conversion vs an HST transmission.

Both types have a manual throttle so that would be good. The advantage that many find with the HST transmission may not be realized for someone that must now accomplish those same tasks with their hands and arms and could be quite tiring.

Welcome to the forum and please let us know what you decide. I have attached a photo to show you the hi-lo buttons on the shifter.

 

[MHarryE]

The hydro would work best if you can convert the hydro pedal to a forward/reverse lever. Power shifts are nice - but once in neutral they need braking. Hydros have dynamic braking - I only use the brakes on my L5740 for a parking brake. You need a tractor set up like a skid steer or mini-excavator - all controls at your hands - direction, loader, speed, braking.

 

[art]

The L-6060 would be a great tractor for you with very little modification needed and it is a very roomy area to work from. Hydro foot petals can be relocated to hand if needed and the tractor comes with cruise control from the factory.

 

[TSO]

The L-6060 would be a great tractor for you with very little modification needed and it is a very roomy area to work from. Hydro foot petals can be relocated to hand if needed and the tractor comes with cruise control from the factory.

All modern cab HST's come with Cruise Control from the factory ...

And the Kioti cab is roomier than the Kubota cab....


FYI

 

[MinnesotaEric]

Hello all,
I have been tractor shopping lately and could use some input on what tractor may fit me best. I am a 34 year old who is paralyzed from the waist down, so I need to find what could work best for me with the least amount of modification. I understand some modifications will be needed (some sort of lift to get into the tractor, hand controls, etc.) but would like to hear some suggestions on what might work best. We have a 120 acre beef cattle farm in SE Ohio, so most of the tractor use will be making and feeding hay and brush hogging pastures. Occasional loader work here and there.
The tractors I am looking most closely at right now are a Case I-H Farmall 75C with power shuttle, a New Holland T4.75 with power shuttle and a Kubota L6060 with Hydrostatic Trans. I was told the 75C was "clutchless"...which led me to believe you didn't need to work the clutch (other than start-up). But looking through the literature, I only see anything about forward to reverse. Anything with a power shuttle can do that. Does anyone know if gears, ranges, etc. can be shifted on these without the clutch? The Hydrostatic Kubota is still in the hunt, but just thought a clutchless (or at least limited clutching) tractor would work best for me.
Any help is greatly appreciated.
B

This tractor may be too small to suit your needs but it is a direct competitor to the Kubota L6060. I have a really bad back and don't want to lean forward and so I went with the Kioti NX6010 because most every control was at the fingertips of the operator seat. Since I purchased the tractor, I have been crawling all over my new Kioti NX6010 HST (60 hp, 48 PTO hp) modifying things. Recognizing that you'd need a fabricator, the NX series HST uses a position sensor to determine forward and reverse demand. With the electronic HST transmission, it drives like an automatic that stops itself when the forward and reverse pedals are released. Alternatively, you can set the throttle and go any speed up to 18 mph forward and reverse in High range. The basic forward and reverse pedals could be duplicated anywhere as hand levers with far lighter over center springs so that the controls could be operated by hand. Same way with the brake. The brake is mechanical hydraulic brakes, but a lever could be welded onto the top of the brake pedal providing the leverage to hit the brakes, and more importantly, set the parking brake. The basic set throttle, up to three remotes, PTO on off, all the lights and what not are all on the right side of the operator's seat.

Another issue is how to get you into the seat. Off-hand some kind of ramp with the platform at the top that would allow you to roll the tractor up along side so you could get on and off.

I'd like to show a better photo of the interior layout, but my tractor kind of looks like an exploded parts diagram right now. The PTO on/off and all the lights are located on the right side B pillar (where the door hinges) that is missing in the following photo. The two levers along the right side of where the seat would go are the 3 point position and draft controls. On the other side where you cannot see is a three range shift lever for the HST (not sychroed so the shifting must be done stopped) a big cupholder and a flat tray.

The stock B pillar has the top two front and rear work lights, the front window wiper washer switch and the auto PTO switch. Options are the rear wiper washer and I've added two more light switches as well as the bigfoot light switch. The PTO switch is located just below this switch group, off photo.

Linked brakes, orange parking brake lever, and metal tilt adjustment.

Leftside. All I can say is that the lever is the H-M-L with neutral stops.

Rightside control center. You can see both the PTO cruise as well as speed cruise.

Dash. I've tilted the wheel all the way back and took the photo while standing on my quick hitch through the back window attempting to simulate the seating position POV. The two switches on the right below the hi/low beam turn signal horn stalk are hazard and four wheel drive left to right.

 

[Danno1]

.


Eric,

I have no idea if this is what the OP needs, but nice post. That is a great job describing your tractor's controls.


DC.


.

 

[FogBurn]

If you are running the engine at pto speeds the shuttle is going to be very abrupt and really rough without the clutch, the engine needs to be running pretty slow to smoothly change direction. The HST pedal on the 60 series is light and easy to work i am sure it could run it with a stick if need be. Unless i am completely reading the parts diagram wrong it looks like the hst pedal just uses a electronic sensor so you may be able to relocate it anywhere you want in the cab as long as you can run wires. There is a plunger the goes through the floor but seems to only connect to the auto throttle advance cam, maybe it would work without this? . I am only guessing though from quickly looking at the parts, worth taking a look at.

 

[MinnesotaEric]

If you are running the engine at pto speeds the shuttle is going to be very abrupt and really rough without the clutch, the engine needs to be running pretty slow to smoothly change direction. The HST pedal on the 60 series is light and easy to work i am sure it could run it with a stick if need be. Unless i am completely reading the parts diagram wrong it looks like the hst pedal just uses a electronic sensor so you may be able to relocate it anywhere you want in the cab as long as you can run wires. There is a plunger the goes through the floor but seems to only connect to the auto throttle advance cam, maybe it would work without this? View attachment 385691. I am only guessing though from quickly looking at the parts, worth taking a look at.

That looks like the Kubota L6060 uses a rotary potentiometer to tell the HST controller user movement request and that would be reasonably easy to relocate.

bmhibinger should share how he would like to work the controls as there are aftermarket joystick handles that can use a variable potentiometer that could control HST movement straight from the joystick lever leaving the lefthand free to steer.

 

[dieselcrawler]

Egress will likely be more of an issue than retrofitting the controls. I helped a buddy of mine install hand controls and a small winch/lift with sling to get him into his lifted chevy 2500 a few years ago. He is also paraplegic, as well as leg-less from just below the hips. Getting from the wheel chair to the operator's seat thru the narrow passage common with tractors both cab and open station will be a challenge.

OP, I wish you well... please post your results as they come about. Id like to see the solutions you come up with. Good luck!

 

[Deerherd]

A big limiting factor with an HST transmission is that they aren't made in larger hp. If he needs/wants a larger tractor he HAS to make a different choice. Power shuttle or a CVT transmission are pretty much his options.

 

[skyhook]

To the original poster,, have a look at this thread,

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/kubota-owning-operating/319172-l4630-gst.html#post3859337

 

[MinnesotaEric]

I looked through the HST control system of the Kioti NX series and it literally is as easy as moving an electric sensor up so the hand can control it. In fact, the very same sensor that sets the throttle speed is used to determine HST pedal position.

 

[TripleR]

Here is a somewhat relevant thread: http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/customization/278845-finished-hand-controls-paraplegic.html

You have gotten some excellent advice and I really can only add an opinion; may help, may not.

I have limited use of my left leg and my primary tractors are a Kubota L5740HSTC and M8540HDC. Hand controls would be relatively easy to set up for either, I never use the foot clutch on my 8540, I change gears, ranges and direction by hand, works the same on other brands so equipped.

I have an air ride seat on my L5740, but the larger tractor rides much smoother and since you are going to need a platform or lift for ingress and egress, I would go with the larger tractor for comfort and room.

I really like my Kubotas, but the cabs are less roomy than other brands, so would look for the most room and best layout as mentioned by EricTheOracle, all make really good tractors.

You might want to look at some of the modification threads here and on You Tube by Waxman and 4shorts, they have backup cameras and lots of other stuff you might find helpful and you might want to PM them, both hav been very helpful to me and many other members.

Keep us informed on your progress.

 

[DWTools]

Hello all,
I have been tractor shopping lately and could use some input on what tractor may fit me best. I am a 34 year old who is paralyzed from the waist down, so I need to find what could work best for me with the least amount of modification. I understand some modifications will be needed (some sort of lift to get into the tractor, hand controls, etc.) but would like to hear some suggestions on what might work best. We have a 120 acre beef cattle farm in SE Ohio, so most of the tractor use will be making and feeding hay and brush hogging pastures. Occasional loader work here and there.
The tractors I am looking most closely at right now are a Case I-H Farmall 75C with power shuttle, a New Holland T4.75 with power shuttle and a Kubota L6060 with Hydrostatic Trans. I was told the 75C was "clutchless"...which led me to believe you didn't need to work the clutch (other than start-up). But looking through the literature, I only see anything about forward to reverse. Anything with a power shuttle can do that. Does anyone know if gears, ranges, etc. can be shifted on these without the clutch? The Hydrostatic Kubota is still in the hunt, but just thought a clutchless (or at least limited clutching) tractor would work best for me.
Any help is greatly appreciated.
B

Ohio AgrAbility Home | Ohio AgrAbility is a non-profit that can help farmers with disabilities adapt their equipment and farms to keep doing their work. disabilityworktools.com also has alot of ideas for farming with a disability, especially getting on/off equipment and hitching.