Sysop
Elite Member
- Joined
- Jun 7, 2013
- Messages
- 3,301
- Location
- Fairmont, WV
- Tractor
- Mahindra 4035HST purchased 2013 - Husqvarna TS348-D purchased 2019 - Craftsman 42" HST purchased 2003
I have a new 4035HST and while HST does rob you of a significant portion of the power over geared transmissions, the machine should be anything but gutless. I'm not sure how much it is bogging or on what size slopes, but any change (even tiny changes) in the operating load will make a difference on the engine RPMs if you hold steady on the HST pedal. Slight increases in slope increase the load, with everything else remaining constant, the RPMs are guaranteed to decrease. The only way to counter it is to decrease pressure on the pedal to decrease the load, or increase the throttle to provide more fuel to overcome the increased load. The 4035HST is a HEAVY tractor for 40 horsepower to move around when 31 of it is sent to the PTO and some is lost on the ease of operation that comes with HST.
I generally run my finish mower with the tractor in medium range, and have a enbankment of about 20% I go down and come back up. I keep the RPMs set at PTO speed on flat ground, and press the forward HST pedal nearly all the way down for mowing the flat ground. When I go down the grade I must release some of the pressure on the HST pedal or the tractor gains too much speed for a good cut. After I loop around and go back up the hill, I keep the HST pedal steady and throttle up as the the RPMs become affected by the load. In doing this, I maintain a relatively steady speed, the HST doesn't make any of the "whining" noises that come from not having enough pressure inside to perform the task you're demanding of it, and it keeps the engine and everything operating at the proper PTO RPM. I back off the throttle as I crest the hill to keep from letting the RPMs go too high. If I were to leave the throttle set where it needs to be pulling a hill, it would rev up to about 3200RPM on flat ground. Naturally the weight of the implement plays a large role in how much throttle you'd need, and at a certain point, the only solution to prevent premature engine wear is to use a lower gear range.
That being said, my tractor does seem to have a noticable difference in small changes of load. That somewhat indicates to me the tractor is operating at or near it's available capacity and I think I maybe should have went with a 5035...
I generally run my finish mower with the tractor in medium range, and have a enbankment of about 20% I go down and come back up. I keep the RPMs set at PTO speed on flat ground, and press the forward HST pedal nearly all the way down for mowing the flat ground. When I go down the grade I must release some of the pressure on the HST pedal or the tractor gains too much speed for a good cut. After I loop around and go back up the hill, I keep the HST pedal steady and throttle up as the the RPMs become affected by the load. In doing this, I maintain a relatively steady speed, the HST doesn't make any of the "whining" noises that come from not having enough pressure inside to perform the task you're demanding of it, and it keeps the engine and everything operating at the proper PTO RPM. I back off the throttle as I crest the hill to keep from letting the RPMs go too high. If I were to leave the throttle set where it needs to be pulling a hill, it would rev up to about 3200RPM on flat ground. Naturally the weight of the implement plays a large role in how much throttle you'd need, and at a certain point, the only solution to prevent premature engine wear is to use a lower gear range.
That being said, my tractor does seem to have a noticable difference in small changes of load. That somewhat indicates to me the tractor is operating at or near it's available capacity and I think I maybe should have went with a 5035...
