I Learned a Valuable lesson last night!!

[s219]

We see one of these posts about 1-2 times a year. I imagine it's a common scenario. I probably never would have thought about it if didn't have people here to learn from.

 

[jejeosborne]

I'm curious as I never had any slides with my old TO-20 Ferguson in 20 years of nothing but 2WD . I feel like I'm missing out on something important here since I just got a 4x4 Massey. I only put 55 hours on the new one so far but rarely use the 4WD. By any chance were those R4 tires you guys were sliding with? I heard from other guys about them being infamous sliders in mud . That's why I insisted on farm tires with their rough ride and tendency to tear up the lawn.

R1 tires do offer better traction but I can guarantee you my 30 HP 4wd on R4s will go places the TO-20 wouldn't even think of trying. For this reason, owners who are accustomed to a 4wd, put their tractors on more severe terrain without batting an eye. This is all great and good until the operator realizes they forget to engage 4wd. People traverse the same hill hundreds of times with no problem in 4wd and then that one day comes along and you forget you switched it out of 4wd earlier.
Drivers who own 2wd machines never get that I can go anywhere I want feeling and also don't have a lever to forget.

 

[dieselcrawler]

R1 tires do offer better traction but I can guarantee you my 30 HP 4wd on R4s will go places the TO-20 wouldn't even think of trying. For this reason, owners who are accustomed to a 4wd, put their tractors on more severe terrain without batting an eye. This is all great and good until the operator realizes they forget to engage 4wd. People traverse the same hill hundreds of times with no problem in 4wd and then that one day comes along and you forget you switched it out of 4wd earlier.
Drivers who own 2wd machines never get that I can go anywhere I want feeling and also don't have a lever to forget.

Having grown up on an ol' MF 135 then getting some seat time on an L2850 4x4, brush hogging was never the same on the 135. Now that I have my 3005, and live on 117 ac of nothing but hillside, 4x4 is in as soon as I get outta the barn and across the pavement. Lever is easy to shift in/out with my left foot. Unreal where it'll climb with 4x4, brush hog out back and loader holdin down the front.

 

[Deerherd]

To take it one step further, most tractors do not have rear brakes, as few if any newer SCUT/CUT/Utility tractors actually have brake drums/discs out on the axle ends like a car. Instead they have wet or dry drum or disc brakes that mount somewhere on the drivetrain and stop all of the drivetrain (less the PTO of course) that is engaged. By default, the rear axle is always engaged. The front is selectable.

As mentioned above, if you are moving along at 5 mph or so on a slick surface (or loose gravel) in 2wd, your stopping distance is not good and the rear tires will slide a bunch. Put it in 4wd and you stop so fast to almost put you over the steering wheel. It is an easy test to see if your 4wd is working.

The LS with the electronic front axle engagement when the brakes are applied in 2wd seems like a great idea. My only concern with that sort of design would be longevity of whatever device is used to electrically engage the axle. Seems it would get a lot of work if a guy ran mostly in 2wd and used the brakes often.

There is a single controller under the dash that works the 4wd/brakes/differential lock. The way I read it is it uses the 4wd solenoid to engage the axle. Basically just a foot switch for the 4wd. Not sure what the life expectancy of the solenoid is but for the few times this feature has come in really handy, I'll accept the wear. Heck, it remembered to do the thing I forgot to!

Twenty years ago I wouldn't have wanted electronic 4wd engagement and preferred moving a lever, but feel these systems have become pretty bullet-proof. Besides, the technology has created so many other features such as electronic Hi/Lo gear changing, I really wouldn't want to do without. And besides, I don't need any more levers!

I think like most people, in reality use the brakes very little on a tractor, unless you spend a lot of time on the road. Even when doing loader work I don't use the brakes very much and I have a power shuttle.

And when I am in the steep areas my tractor is always in 4wd and geared low enough so I don't have to touch the brakes. I prefer the under power controlled descent versus the more exciting albeit faster 2wd trip. But should I forget it's nice to know that feature is available.

 

[JoeL4330]

A few years back I had my Kioti DK40 (loaded R4 tires)with my 6ft finish mower on a slight hill with wet grass and away I went down the hill as I tried to drop my front loader on the ground to keep from tipping over.Scared the crap out of me.Heck of a pucker factor on my tractor seat.Glad to hear you are ok and nothing worse happened.

If your mower was "on the ground"--as in "mowing"--then raising your 3pt should have helped, as it would weight the rears, no?

 

[Code54]

I think like most people, in reality use the brakes very little on a tractor, unless you spend a lot of time on the road. Even when doing loader work I don't use the brakes very much and I have a power shuttle.

They have brakes??????? LOL

 

[MHarryE]

When the engine is off the electronic fwd is not connected. The electric control is actually electro-hydraulic and you need hydraulic pressure to engage the clutch pack. All of our tractors except the CUT with manual select have either a lever parking brake (new Holland and Kubota) or park position (Deere). So all clutches release when the engine is shut down and they are free to roll.