Front brakes on a tractor, are there any?

[Zebrafive]

Our case ih has 32 mph road speed and fwd drive engages if you apply both left and right brake pedals, or in park. If only one brake is applied only that rear wheel brakes. That makes it highly important to lock the pedals together for road travel. The set up works well, like you said, For turning.

Interesting. My JD 6415 will only do 18mph. I noticed MFWD engages when braking with the pedals coupled. I need to see if MFWD engages when only one brake pedal is used. A test for warmer weather.

 

[npalen]

I never had any of my tires sliding on the road. You would probably turn off the drive shaft before skidding with you front tires on a dry road. With a larger tractor that is. But on ice I guess you would get that differential action.

Yeah, snow or ice under one front wheel and dry pavement under the other. That's where I was wondering what all happens when braking in FWA mode at road speed. Just trying to visualize what's happening mechanically with the front differential as well as the rest of the drivetrain.

 

[CDN Farm Boy]

Interesting. My JD 6415 will only do 18mph. I noticed MFWD engages when braking with the pedals coupled. I need to see if MFWD engages when only one brake pedal is used. A test for warmer weather.

Yeah, snow or ice under one front wheel and dry pavement under the other. That's where I was wondering what all happens when braking in FWA mode at road speed. Just trying to visualize what's happening mechanically with the front differential as well as the rest of the drivetrain.

I run a brand new Case 120 Maximum doing snow removal on residential driveways (Does 25 Mph -- I wish it was the 28 Mph of the Deer 6330 I ran last year). I run with the brake pedals unhooked at all times -- big feet -- no issue hitting both pedals when I want to. When I only hit one pedal, it only brakes that one rear wheel, even at road speed, regardless of if it's in 2wd or 4wd. When I hit both pedals, all 4 brake in 2wd or 4. No issue with the snow/ice vs dry -- happens all the time. No issue from a usability standpoint or control that is.

 

[redfarmer]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9CpNEIjpp0&feature=youtube_gdata_player
This might be interesting to you. Check out the front differential action at 2 min 44 sec. in the video.
And yes they do make some tractors with bake pads on all 4 wheels. But not in this video.

 

[MHarryE]

Europe does allow some countries leeway on the standards so you may have a point about UK not needing to meet CE spec with limits, but I just read the standard and the machine is not supposed to be labeled CE if that is the case. Of course CE is basically self policing so a company can label it CE and wait for someone o prove them wrong. My predecessor did that with a machine by giving the customer what they asked for - speeds up to 30 km/hr but when I took over one of our customers asked how it could be labeled CE if it didn't ave supplemental steer. So I had to assign a group to design a supplemental steer system and retrofit it because the customers wouldn't go for the different final drive ratio that slowed it to the limit. But I do also have the pics of one of our competitors not meeting the braking spec and the house destroyed when the driver went off a mountain road as a result. Oh, the final result, company out of business.

 

[scrappy isb67]

Personally I wouldnt want 4 wheel braking unless it would only work when in its highest gear for road travel only. Any other time and it would be a hindrance to turning with the steering brakes. If using the brakes for turning sharply, you need the front wheels to roll not not lock up and with 4 WD you would want the front to pull you around not stop. I would just see front brakes as an unnecessary expense to maintain and a hindrance to proper operation of the tractor. Most tractors here in the states only travel 25 MPH or less in road gear and there is no need for extra braking.

Our case ih has 32 mph road speed and fwd drive engages if you apply both left and right brake pedals, or in park. If only one brake is applied only that rear wheel brakes. That makes it highly important to lock the pedals together for road travel. The set up works well, like you said, For turning.

and more than likely, if you hit only one pedal the MFWD disengages when already engaged(in AUTO). I know that is how the JD MFWD auto mode works

 

[redfarmer]

and more than likely, if you hit only one pedal the MFWD disengages when already engaged(in AUTO). I know that is how the JD MFWD auto mode works

You are correct on that.

 

[CDN Farm Boy]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9CpNEIjpp0&feature=youtube_gdata_player
This might be interesting to you. Check out the front differential action at 2 min 44 sec. in the video.
And yes they do make some tractors with bake pads on all 4 wheels. But not in this video.

That's awsome. Too bad the boss just bought 35 of the 120s at the start of the winter.....I'll take one with the super-steer please

 

[Gary Fowler]

I follow your posts a lot Gary and value your opinion / experience, but I'm afraid to say I do differ in opinion on this one...

Firstly tractors which are 4-wheel braking normally have electronic activation - meaning you can switch it off in field to still be able to use the independent brakes for turning.

Also having worked for a large agricultural contractor for many years in the UK, we unfortunately saw many incidents where tractors towing heavy loads / large balers etc... could have used front brakes - especially when going down slippery steep hills. Most of the accidents I've seen have actually been on the road, with tractors travelling at conventional speeds (under 25kph), but which have lost the traction on tarmac. An Ag tractor tyre doesn't have much contact with the road compared to a conventional tyre, so it is easy to loose the traction when only relying on two wheels (as oppose 4) to stop you!

Luckily I've never had an accident, but have had a few occasions when I wished I had 4-wheel braking - or automatic 4WD as has already been mentioned. :thumbsup:

Remember I said personally. If I roaded the tractor a lot pulling heavy trailers hauling grain or other farm subsidity at speeds above 25 MPH like many of the European tractors are used, it MIGHT be of use. For me, I don't road my tractor at all. I put it on the rural road by my house for about 1 km just to see how fast it would go when I first bought it and it hasn't been back on the road since except when it was loaded on a trailer.

I am still a bit skeptical on what kind of damage you would do to the drive train on a tractor slamming it in gear when travelling 32 MPH as one guy said his Case did and locked in the FWD when applying both brakes. This cant be good for the tractor. HOW many times do you need to stop that quickly if you are on the highway. First of all you should be paying attention to traffic conditions in front of you, not tailgating anyone moving slower than you which shouldn't be anyone other than another tractor and one shouldn't be right on the tires of the person in front in any situation. Being on the larger tractors, you should have a better view of the road ahead than anyone else so you can see any situation before anyone else also. If all else fails, your tractor IS an offroad vehicle, so if you had your head up your **** and not paying attention, take to the median or ditch if you cant stop.
I still maintain that the tractor can stop itself quicker than any car by using only the rear tires and would be better served if pulling a heavy load to have the brakes on the trailer or whatever its pulling with a brake controller just like trucks.

 

[RickB]

Remember I said personally. If I roaded the tractor a lot pulling heavy trailers hauling grain or other farm subsidity at speeds above 25 MPH like many of the European tractors are used, it MIGHT be of use. For me, I don't road my tractor at all. I put it on the rural road by my house for about 1 km just to see how fast it would go when I first bought it and it hasn't been back on the road since except when it was loaded on a trailer.

I am still a bit skeptical on what kind of damage you would do to the drive train on a tractor slamming it in gear when travelling 32 MPH as one guy said his Case did and locked in the FWD when applying both brakes. This cant be good for the tractor. HOW many times do you need to stop that quickly if you are on the highway. First of all you should be paying attention to traffic conditions in front of you, not tailgating anyone moving slower than you which shouldn't be anyone other than another tractor and one shouldn't be right on the tires of the person in front in any situation. Being on the larger tractors, you should have a better view of the road ahead than anyone else so you can see any situation before anyone else also. If all else fails, your tractor IS an offroad vehicle, so if you had your head up your **** and not paying attention, take to the median or ditch if you cant stop.
I still maintain that the tractor can stop itself quicker than any car by using only the rear tires and would be better served if pulling a heavy load to have the brakes on the trailer or whatever its pulling with a brake controller just like trucks.

You are entitled to your opinions just like anyone else.
The fact remains that 4 wheel brakes on wheel tractors came about purely as a result of regulatory action by certain governmental jurisdictions. 4 wheel braking removes your concerns about MFD clutch engagement at speed and provides a measure of safety in parts of the world where tractors are made to travel much faster and are used on highways doing work that would fall to over-the-road trucks in than in Arkansas or the rest of the US. Trailer brake hydraulic valves are everyday items across the pond, as well. Ford tractor parts catalogs have been published for decades listing components used worldwide in a single publication. Not too hard to find European spec parts & pieces installed & cataloged to meet local requirements if you take a minute to look. Circumstances vary around the world from what we see from our front porches.