New to me massey 135 - PTO speeds and operating

[phib]

Hi all, I am new to this forum and new to the whole tractor thing I am afraid so have a few daft questions I wonder if someone could help me with.

My 135 all works well and I running a 6ft topper on flat ground with just normal grass, it is a bit high at the moment.

Can anyone tell me which gear I should be topping in ?

I have it in high 1st gear and its is fine but occasionally is bogging down, should it be in low range ?

Is there anyway of adjusting the pto speed separately to the engine speed ?

Or am I doing this all wrong !!!!!

Thanks for any advice

Phib

 

[mcfarmall]

PTO speed is directly proportional to the engine speed. If you have a tachometer on the dash there should be a line or mark labeled "540 PTO". Increase engine speed to line the tach needle up with the mark. Change gears with the transmission to an appropriate speed so the engine doesn't bog down when cutting grass. If it does, then drop down a gear.

 

[phib]

Many thanks that makes perfect sense, is it a big no no to lift the topper slightly when cutting longer grass ? say 6 inches off the ground on the first pass ?

Thanks

 

[Birdhunter1]

I don't know what you mean by a topper, if it is what most people call a bushhog/rotary mower then no it doesn't hurt to lift it unless your shaft comes in contact with the deck or the universal joints bind up.
I don't know transmission and pto setup your 135 has, my dads old one had a Multi-power transmission with three gears and two ranges. Third gear low range was what I used with a bushhog mostly unless it was real thick and I'd go into second gear low range. A few times the grass was thin enough to use first gear high range but not often and if I did use first/high I found myself shifting back into third/low often.

Depending on the PTO configuration, your speed is either engine pto or 'ground speed pto.' I'm thinking ground speed was better situated for pulling a PTO powered manure spreader or hay rake. In ground speed the pto was only engaged if you were moving but I don't know what the ratio was in terms of ground speed/pto speed. I never used the ground speed option or read into it much.

For engine pto there is a line on the tachometer that reads '540 pto' and that is where the engine speed needs to be to keep your pto speed at 540 rpms, in thick grass I increased the throttle and had it above this line many times. Ground speed for me was limited to whatever the engine rpm's were in third gear low range... and when the multi-power worked it was nice to be able to be in low for turns, thick grass or crossing a ditch and high was nice for the thinner areas.

 

[phib]

Thanks guys for all your help !!

Tried all these things things yesterday 3rd gear low, set to 540 and topper on the ground and it works perfectly !!!

Thanks so much for all your advice I can now look forwards to a few hours in the fields knowing I am not going break it !!!

Thanks again

Phib

 

[PatrickS2222]

Thanks guys for all your help !!

Tried all these things things yesterday 3rd gear low, set to 540 and topper on the ground and it works perfectly !!!

Thanks so much for all your advice I can now look forwards to a few hours in the fields knowing I am not going break it !!!

Thanks again

Phib

HaHa :laughing: Good to hear! Harry Ferguson and his team had it all worked out decades ago ... this design originates way back in the mid-50s in FE35s and similar models, and is almost unchanged in the 135&c form.
Yes, "topper" British for "slasher" Australian or "bush-hog" American is the same implement. I have spent countless hours on our 35 & 135 as a boy using our slasher and a lot of other work too. Usually 4th gear, 3rd gear in heavy going, occasionally 2nd in extremely thick stuff. That 135's Perkins engine would handle our 5ft scrub slasher well - even in heavy going. I believe engine speed at 1700rpm is PTO at 540rpm. If you need to downshift, do so to avoid labouring (bogging down) the engine - this will prevent choking the slasher resulting in some thicker stems not cleanly cut off. This is a better method than lifting the implement, which results in that section requiring a second pass. Also keep in mind, there is no rule stating that you must cut at the full-width of the slasher ... a 2/3rd width pass cut neatly is an alternative to downshifting one gear.
***Pictures please!!! And look after that gem ... one of the all-time best tractors built. :thumbsup: We still have ours .... will never be sold!:laughing: