Tell Me How Kiot Power Shuttle Works?

[WesternMN]

In addition to a NX5510 hydro I'm considering at a RX7320 with Power Shuttle shift. My only experience is with an old John Deere "reverser" which simply goes between forward and reverse without clutching or shifting. There is no neural between F and R and you need to clutch and stop before changing gears. Does the Kioti Power Shuttle tranny have a neutral in between F and R? Can you shift gears without stopping?

 

[MinnesotaEric]

Power shuttle.

You shift without using a clutch from forward to reverse or into neutral from either. I hate them for doing loader work in comparison to HST. The 135X I'm operating in the video would auto shift the speed in the three gears around the speed range I selected and I hated that feature because it would whip me around with hard shifts. Kioti doesn't auto shift the gear range, but the power shuttle works the same way: a lever on the left of the console. I much prefer the foot pedals and easy control of HST.

 

[DT86]

Eric, you could deselect the auto shift.

 

[WesternMN]

Thanks Eric. So there is neutral on the directional controller between forward and reverse, that would be handy. What about shifting between gears? It looks like you can do so on the fly but i'm not sure if it requires clutching?

I have no doubt that hydro would be nice, I'm just worried that the NX5510 that I've been looking at will feel too small when I get it home and that the RX line will be more versatile and capable for things like moving round bales, moving snow, running tillers and mowers, ect. Too bad they don't make a bigger tractor in a hydrostatic.

 

[WoodChuckDad]

The power shuttle has three positions. Forward, neutral and reverse. You can just flip from forward to reverse without the clutch and it will slow down and change direction. There is some adjustment available on how fast it changes (according to the manual). But I haven't messed with it. There are plenty of times where I just use the power shuttle lever and there are also times where I use the clutch and brakes as well because I'm on a hill or want more control for what I am doing. I like it. My wife loves it as well. My son in law has also used it quite a bit and took to it easily. The only issue my wife has is that she drives that thing like mad max.

What kind of use and what kind of terrain are you looking at using it for?

 

[WesternMN]

The power shuttle has three positions. Forward, neutral and reverse. You can just flip from forward to reverse without the clutch and it will slow down and change direction. There is some adjustment available on how fast it changes (according to the manual). But I haven't messed with it. There are plenty of times where I just use the power shuttle lever and there are also times where I use the clutch and brakes as well because I'm on a hill or want more control for what I am doing. I like it. My wife loves it as well. My son in law has also used it quite a bit and took to it easily. The only issue my wife has is that she drives that thing like mad max.

What kind of use and what kind of terrain are you looking at using it for?

Regarding use, I've got a small acreage with a stream running through it. It is relatively flat, sloping fairly gently down to the creek. I'm just getting started raising pasture pigs and intend to grow the operation slowly over the next several years.

I'd be using it (as of now) to clean up some deadfall, remove some trees, mow a few acres of pasture that is being planted with food-plot type forage, run a 6' roto-tiller, 3 point post hole digger, disc mower, brush hog, handle round bales, move snow, ect. In the future I could see myself getting some more acreage and possibly cutting my own hay and needing to do some light tillage work.

I'm torn between the NX and RX series. I think the more compact size and tighter turning radius along with the hydro of the NX could be an advantage for working in the relatively tight quarters of my smallish pasture paddocks as well as inside of a 100' x 70' shed that will end up housing some winter farrowing pens. However, I don't want to spend $30,000 on a tractor just to quickly realize that I should have purchased something bigger.

I test drove a NX with hydro transmission and it seemed strange to me but probably just because I'm not used to it. It seemed sluggish to start moving and the FEL response was slower than I was hoping. Also, the steering seemed to wander around quite a bit. Maybe that is how all 4wd tractors are, I haven't operated any small ones before, just large AG machines.

I didn't test drive the RX but I definitely liked the extra cab space better when I sat inside it.

Price wise, I think I can buy a barely used RX7320 for about the same price as an NX5510.

 

[countrybumpkin]

I have a NX5510 shuttle, I looked at a RX 6610, think it was and for me the size difference from my kubota to the NX was about as much difference again as the NX to RX , so I stayed with the NX. I move a few rounds a year but not many, it handles them fine but the RX would be even better. I use mine around the house and do a bunch of garden work and am able to use the equipment I had with no issues, where as the RX would have been a bit big for. Also I haul mine a few times a month, so I would have to have bought another trailer. So made more sense for me to go with the NX, if I were just starting out and going to buy equipment and such after the tractor purchase I would have looked harder at the RX line. I also did a bunch of dirt work in and around my shop , 40 X 80 , while the NX size was nice to turn around and maneuver inside , I don't think the RX would have been that much more of a issue.

 

[MinnesotaEric]

Eric, you could deselect the auto shift.

I never figured out how to turn that nutty thing off and there wasn't a RFM to consult.

WesternMN, take the RX for a spin to get a feel for it.

I use my NX for plowing and do not have a problem, but I wish i had a "gear" in-between medium and high or that the range selector was synchronized so that I could shift my range while moving like can be done with synchronized gear power shuttle set-ups.