What size tractor can we get by with?

[CADplans]

All that "HYDRO" stuff being said,,,, even by me,,
I still prefer a Power Reverser as compared to a Hydrostatic,, or a true Gear Drive,,

 

[5030]

Having 100% hydrostats prior to my M's I will say I find the dry clutchless hydraulic shuttle (Kubota) to be a much more user friendly transmission and way simpler too, especially for loader work and loading round bales on semi trucks. All it takes is your left hand to change directions and the Kubota Hydraulic shuttle is also load sensitive so wet clutch engagement is dependent on sensed load. I've only adjusted the wet pack ONE time on one unit at that was at 5000 hours and adjustment is easy too. All you need is a liquid filled pressure gage and the correct fitting. and 'clutch' pedal freeplay is a thing of the past as well and if you are one of those people that 'ride' the clutch pedal, no issue, whereas riding a dry clutch is a BIG issue. In fact, Kubota recommends half clutching a hydraulic shuttle as you really cannot hurt it.

 

[rScotty]

BIG mistake not considering a hydrostatic,, especially for your type work.
i have both,,
I let my novice son-in-law use the hydrostatic anytime he wants it,,
The pic is his first ever attempt at using a landscape rake, after an excavator took out a bunch of trees,,

BUT,,
he NEVER gets near my gear drives.

Hydro is just so much easier to do work with,,

You will have fewer mechanical failures if you have a hydro,,
especially if you use a loader,,
Loaders are hard on gear drive tractors.

Hydro or not? Chosing a transmission seems to me to be personal preference. I prefer my hydrostat tranny, because it is easier and faster - but the type of transmission really doesn't make that much difference in the job getting done. They all work about the same and are equally reliable.
a gear transmission does often have the advantage of more ratios.
For the same extra price, I'd rather have a front end loader than a hydrostatic transmission.

The thing about clutches being hard to use is just an urban rumor. Many cars, truck, and tractors had clutches and gears until recently. ]t didn't take my wife ten minutes to figure out how to work our little gear drive tractor. And she is definitely not the mechanical type.

rScotty

 

[5030]

A dry clutch will ALWAYS be the weakest link in the (drive) train and always expensive to replace as well because it will always entail a split.

 

[CloverKnollFarms]

Even running a tiller, I’d now personally not like less than 40pto HP if you are talking about ACRES. We have clay loam, but it’s virgin… and let me tell you a 72” tiller will make the tractor work. What do you plan to use to work the soil? Ground engaging implements will require HP and weight to do the work. A tiller will require PTO hp. It just depends on how much time you want to spend working the ground. It took me two hours PER PASS to till one acre with our setup. Three passes total to get a good working depth. Now, it moves faster since getting it worked well.

 

[rScotty]

So, If it's similar to my L285; 100% Can and Will get water in hydralic around the shift lever if left out in rain. What this leads too; is you end up with an emulsion-slime build up in the transmission. Then, slowly (or not so slowly) as the trans warms up, it gets loose and stuck in the very fine mesh of the hydralic filter. You clean the filter, but it (very slimy), but there is a ton of emulsion-slime still in reservoir. Then you randomly have to clean again and again. Each time, avoiding getting air in the hydralic lines or letting air out, under pressure (not really that safe, and not much fun).

Absolutely right. Watery hydraulic fluid actually works just fine in the tractor. It can work for years until the emulsified goo plugs up the filters and blocks the suction flow to the hydraulic pump. The most common fix for water in the hydraulic fluid is to clean the removeable strainer, change the spin on hydraulic filter, and put in fresh trans/hydraulic fluid.
That is what I would do first - and the most important of those to do is to clean the removeable strainer/filter if it has one. That costs nothing to do, is homeowner periodic type maintenance, and may well get it going again.
Those were simply too good of a model to be giving up on for something so simple as hydraulic flow.
rScotty

 

[rScotty]

A dry clutch will ALWAYS be the weakest link in the (drive) train and always expensive to replace as well because it will always entail a split.

As a long time mechanic I'd agree with that. A clutch is the weakest link in a tractor drive train. No question about it. And a clutch is a real pain to replace on most models.

But even so, let's be careful not give the wrong impression here. A dry clutch is still good for thousands of hours - just how many thousand depends on the operator. I've seen far more old Ag tractors with 2000 to 4000 hrs that didn't need a cluch job than those that did.

And most homeowners will never put 3000 hours on their tractor.
My favorite tranny just might be a wet clutch power shift with reverser.

rScotty

 

[5030]

The other issue with a dry clutch is not frequent usage and the unit out in the weather. Clutch plates have a bad habit of rusting to the flywheel if the clutch pedal isn't depressed and blocked down. Lots of tractors have a hook near the clutch pedal just for that but a wooden block works just as well.

I've never had water in my gearbox but then I make sure any place it might get in is secure. Prime culprit is the main shift boot. I've replaced mine before on the open station.

 

[sandman2234]

Temperature changes will also alow some condensation into the hydraulic reservoir, so keep temps from being radically different when possible.
David from jax

 

[rScotty]

Temperature changes will also alow some condensation into the hydraulic reservoir, so keep temps from being radically different when possible.
David from jax

Most tractor sumps are simply vented into the atmosphere through an open tube. They breath through the vent, so that is a path for condensation.
It's a pretty easy mod to run the vent tube into a filter and dessicant pack. That will solve the condensation problem. Vent filters are common on commercial hydraulics, but I haven't seen them on utility tractors.
rScotty