Buying Advice Glide shift transmission versus hydrostatic

rjsats · Apr 13, 2017

Got some great advice before on here, and decided on the L4060. I'd appreciate some advice on the choice between the glide shift transmission versus the hydrostatic on this size of tractor. Some data I'd guess matters: property around 31 acres, mostly wooded, some wet areas, fairly sloping with an average grade of
5 or 6%. Main uses: wood hauling, snow blowing, tilling, blade work, loader work.

Thanks fellas!

mike69440 · Apr 13, 2017

L4060, First better watch what Grand L you buy, the lower HP ones come with really wimpy loaders. I will only speak for myself, but I find that weak loader performance is a curse. If it is not the L10XX, stay away.
GST will work well on a low HP tractor, getting most power to the ground, but the HST plus is very nice and fairly quiet.

Drive both and you decide.

boggen · Apr 13, 2017

Johnson City Kubota

sounds like an extra lever for shifting between the gears. if that is the case. forget it, and go with an HST.

most of the jobs you listed, 1 hand FEL or 3pt hitch, 1 hand steering wheel, 1 foot gas/hst peddle. 1 foot split brakes.

while yes HST has some range selections / gears. you will only be hitting that lever when you get done doing what ever with FEL or 3pt hitch and on a straight away, and be cruizing that speed for some time.

on other hand the glide shift transmission, do you have a 3rd hand to mess around with another lever?

with above said, you can over do a HST transmission, by having it in to high of a range/gear selection and trying to drive to fast. there really is no tall tell sign that i know of. that tells you to drop down to a lower range for an HST, beyond having a transmission temperature gauge. a manual gear transmission the motor stalls out and possibly dies if you are in to high of a gear.

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shuttle shift with lever beside steering wheel i personally like!

check to see if you get option for same speed forward and reverse. some times you go faster forward than in reverse.

David_Kb7uns · Apr 13, 2017

Have a Grand L3130GST had since 2005. GST good for pulling logs and hauling stuff with loader, once it is in gear it is solid gear drive. The main clutch does not need to be used much if at all as you have hydraulic forward reverse shuttle clutches. Transmission is fully synchronized with the shifting forks operated by hydraulic pistons so shifting can be done while moving and helps in the higher gears while using the throttle to work the gears.

Not sure about the changes on anything newer models but the GST ECU tracks tractor speed, engine speed, and other parameters to gauge the modulation of the solenoids for the shuttle clutches to provide smoothest shifting. If ECU goes down you can disconnect ECU and there are 2 plugs you connect that forces transmission into first gear.

Ok for the bad parts. When engine is not running there is no way to lock tractor in a gear because of no hydraulic pressure to the clutches so transmission will just free wheel with engine off. You must set parting brake hard enough to keep tractor from moving or block wheels with a chock on steep hills. Another issue is if snow blowing you are still stuck to the 12 speeds forward or 8 reverse, the transmission is set up so the first few notches match forward and reverse speed for speed but as you go higher in speeds forward the reverse is mapped to a slower speed for reverse. Snow blowing may limit you to a slightly slower gear so you do not out run the blower where a HST is infinite in speeds.

When doing loader work I will set a base throttle with the lever to give good hydraulic function then will use the foot throttle to power into what I am loading and you learn to use the shifiting delay to drop throttle and shift the shuttle into reverse before you stall. Once you get used to the GST you can do loader work similar to how a HST transmission works. The GST will beat the HST sometimes in loader work if you need to carry the load a distance as you do not need to shift HST ranges never have driven the HST plus so do not if that makes it better not.

With the snow blowing and tilling requirements the HST may be better but the wood hauling and blade work the gear drive puts more power to the ground. There are a few times I wish I had the HST but GST has been very reliable and works best for my pulling requirements.

As far as maintenance you use Super UDT as that is what the ECU has the best calibration for in the shifting. Transmission operation depends on hydraulic flow from power steering section of hydraulic pump with a regulating valve setting operating pressure for valves.

The small frame Grand Ls can have a 500 or 700 series loader, loader subframe on larger loaders may affect mid mount or forward mount options.

David

Fallon · Apr 14, 2017

mike69440 said:
L4060, First better watch what Grand L you buy, the lower HP ones come with really wimpy loaders. I will only speak for myself, but I find that weak loader performance is a curse. If it is not the L10XX, stay away.
GST will work well on a low HP tractor, getting most power to the ground, but the HST plus is very nice and fairly quiet.

Drive both and you decide.

The LA1055 is only avalible on the L4760, L5060, L5460 & L6060, despite all the grands but the L3560 having the same frame. The L4060 is avalible with the LA805, or the smaller one. The LA805 on my L4060 works well, wish I could have gotten a LA1055, but have yet to run into limitations on my 805.

I'm a fan of HSTs for loader work & general flexibility. HST robs 15% of your HP, but it is worth it for the ease of use & flexibility. Push pedal to go faster, let off pedal & it brakes for you. I have no qualms about putting pallet forks within inches of the window on my truck loading or unloading stuff. I've driven a GST & it's easy to drive, but not quite as easy as a HST. In the couple hours I was operating it I didn't get a good feel for the shift timing & kept resorting to the dry clutch. A few more hours would probably have ended up with me only using the hydraulic shuttle handle rather than clutch.

I wish for a few more HP on my L4060, but I'm at Colorado altitudes, eating a few HP & didn't want to pay for a L4760. If I had it to do over I'd get another L4060 again. I road a lot & it bogs on hills a bit, but does real work just fine. If you do a lot of mowing some extra HP would let you run a bigger mower though. A GST would eat less HP than my HST, but no way I'd give up my HST.

mike69440 · Apr 14, 2017

I've kind of gotten familiar with my GST on my L39 in 12 years and +2,000 hours. Tractor runs great, and is modded to suit me so I'm not looking to ever replace it, and in general I am not fanboy of HST, especially the 2 speed type used on some little tractors. I hate HST wine and having to keep the motor reved up.
If I were starting over the HST + is such a sweet HST, I would have no problem with the GST no longer offered on the TLB's. My friends L45 is smooth quiet, and not lacking for gear speed selection.
OP needs to spend a few hours on each.
For whatever difference in cost, I suspect the L4760, HST+ and LA1055 with maybe a CAB would leave him with no regrets, just a little poorer.

mike69440 · Apr 14, 2017

David_Kb7uns said:
Have a Grand L3130GST had since 2005. GST good for pulling logs and hauling stuff with loader, once it is in gear it is solid gear drive. The main clutch does not need to be used much if at all as you have hydraulic forward reverse shuttle clutches. Transmission is fully synchronized with the shifting forks operated by hydraulic pistons so shifting can be done while moving and helps in the higher gears while using the throttle to work the gears.

David

David, be really glad you do not have the L3130HST. I have used my wife's friend's L3130HST several times, and it is a dog power wise, a real slug, even compared to my heavy & under-powered L39. A decent machine otherwise, but with HST, just has no oomph.

David_Kb7uns · Apr 14, 2017

Only time I bog down is when I have the backhoe on or going up a steep hill, otherwise the tractor is a fairly good balance at running out of power or sometimes traction before you start breaking things.

David

Oldoak · Apr 15, 2017

Glide shift transmission versus hydrostatic?

My choice would be a GST. I would not give up my L4200 GST accept for maybe a new L5060 GST.

It's my all around general purpose tractor, field and woods, log pulling, snow blowing, grading, etc., etc. I never found it lacking for a suitable gear selection or a handicap for front end loader work. I think the GST is more efficient by putting the most HP to the work at hand and generates less heat that the hydro transmission.

Definitely drive both before making a purchase. While many like it, I don't care for the single "treadle pedal", forward/reverse pedal, on Kubota's hydrostatic tractors.

David_Kb7uns · Apr 15, 2017

Oldoak said:
Glide shift transmission versus hydrostatic?

My choice would be a GST. I would not give up my L4200 GST accept for maybe a new L5060 GST.

It's my all around general purpose tractor, field and woods, log pulling, snow blowing, grading, etc., etc. I never found it lacking for a suitable gear selection or a handicap for front end loader work. I think the GST is more efficient by putting the most HP to the work at hand and generates less heat that the hydro transmission.

Definitely drive both before making a purchase. While many like it, I don't care for the single "treadle pedal", forward/reverse pedal, on Kubota's hydrostatic tractors.