Winco PTO Generator

[vsteel]

Winco 10Kw and 15Kw are not made in China, these generators are Italian heads made by Mecc Alte with Italian gearboxes. They have clean power THD < 6%. Special note, these want 515 RPM at the PTO and not the standard 540 RPM. Your tractor might not make as much HP at the lower RPM which may or may not be an issue depending on tractor/generator/power draw sizing.
The 25Kw are made by Winco in the US, power quality they say clean power but the THD ~ 8% which puts it outside of the clean power definition.

 

[sixdogs]

I'm nearly ready to order a 15K Winco. What I'm not sure of is if the trailer mount or three point hitch is the better option. I figure the three-point needs time to hook up while the trailed model is faster and easier in the event you need it in a hurry. Any thoughts from others on this?

 

[Industrial Toys]

I had my Onan mounted to a 3ph carry-all type of contraption. Major PITA!

Then, I built this trailer. MUCH, MUCH better. I made the tongue detachable, for better storage.

 

[sixdogs]

Detachable tongue--what a great idea. How long is the tongue and any problem with getting driveshaft or the angle it runs at?

 

[sixdogs]

I figure as well with a trailer that in a downpour I could leave the tractor outside the garage door while the generator is inside the door and lower the door to keep most of the rain out. Bad idea?

 

[Industrial Toys]

That tongue was much longer then needed and I just put a pin through at the appropriate place.

The straighter the shaft, the better. Almost perfectly straight is obviously the best.

I had a friend with a crooked arrangement and his lights always flickered. I don't know if this was the reason or not. I can't believe that it didn't drive him crazy!

As far as the 3ph goes. You want to stream line the whole operation as much as possible. I had a 12 volt florescent light mounted in the middle of the garage connected to a 12 volt alarm panel battery that was always charged. It was controlled by a clockwork type switch with a green flashing LED beside it, so I can find it in the dark. Nothing like trying to attach a 3ph unit, in a crowded messy shop with just a flash light!

And then, the power comes back on.

The chicken barn where I got my genset, had a hole in the wall for the pto shaft. The genset was just sitting on some blocks!

 

[Fallon]

I picked up a 25kw running 35kw sustained Winco around Christmas a year and a half ago. The thing might be as old as I am (20+ years at the minimum). It tested just fine. Came with the PTO & a trailer for $1k. Finally got the house wired with a generator disconnect as part of my solar install just before the end of last year.

Still haven't gotten the generator up & running though. It had old pin style connectors on it & buying new Anderson style plugs for the generator & cable was going to be a LOT cheaper than just the pins for the cable. It's currently sitting partially apart in my shop in line to be put back together with the new safer easier Anderson plugs. Once it's back together I'm looking at $300-500+ for 30' or so of wire to get to the house. :-0

It does single or 3 phase, so it may end up getting used as a rotary converter or something if I ever find that killer deal on a old lathe, mill or something with a 3 phase motor.

 

[sixdogs]

Does 15K sound like enough for a newer average house with A/C, well and furnace? I've got a Generac gas engine 10K/12K surge now and it seems fine. 10K seems too little and 15K too much but better more than less? Do you prefer 3 pt mounted or trailer?

 

[Fallon]

Realistically any reasonable tractor will spin a generator somewhat in the ballpark. You only have problems when the power draw exceeds the PTO HP. You'd be file hooking up a 20hp tractor to a 50kw generator & using 10kw of power. When you hit 13-15kw of usage, you'd stall the tractor though.

Combine that with the fact using something at 100% of its rated capacity burns it up faster & you should look at the bigger generator. Loafing putting out 10kw on a 20kw generator is fine. Putting out 20kw on a 20kw generator is more likely to run into problems (overheat, wear out bearings, pop breakers, etc.). If in doubt, go bigger.

I got mine with a trailer because that's what I found on CL at a good price. 3pt will be more compact, but might be more prone to less favorable PTO shaft angles. All things being equal, a longer PTO shaft will have less angle & less stress & wear to wear on the U joints.

 

[sixdogs]

Well, should I go with more than 15K? There is a 20K or 25K that looks good. I probably only need 10K to 12K.