Questions for everyone:
1. HST vs geared transmission, preference or am I missing something big not having a manual transmission in my conditions?
2. Anything valuable for mid-PTO use besides an under carriage mower? Looks like a few references to certain snow blowers, which might peak my interest.
3. Is there a difference between PTO in a gear (ie manual) vs HST? I drove tractors growing up on our farm, but back then I think they were all geared.
4. 12.8 vs 11.6 gpm implement flow? Should I be concerned about having 12.8 vs 11.6? I believe this is probably based on the attachment being used, but wondering if there is some cutoff value that is important to have.
1. If you are going same speed in the same direction all the time geared is better IMO. HST is better for loader work where you are constantly changing speed and direction. Most newer tractors like the Kubota Grand L series have cruise control in the HST for mowing in the field type conditions. It really comes down to preference. I went back to HST from a geared tractor because I have a lot of cleanup to do on my new property where I need to grab things with the grapple and move it in various directions. Geared was nice for my larger meadows I had at my last farm.
2. Mid pto on larger tractors is usually for front mount implements like snow blowers, sweepers, or flail mowers. This setup, at least on Kubota Grand L series, is expensive. Hence you will have to likely step down significantly in HP if you want to consider a mid mount mower. I didn’t get the mid pto option but was told it can be added later. The front implements were way out of my price range even long term.
3. Can only speak to the Kubota Grand L I own but no difference in HST versus geared regarding the PTO. It is an electric on/off switch (technically controls some hydraulics to make it engage). I personally don’t like this as my last tractor had a hand clutch to engage so I could engage the pto softly at any engine speed. Seems to be a new trend to have the switches now. I don’t know if any of the more modern tractors have the pto tied to the same clutch pedal as the transmission, but I doubt it.
4. Can’t speak much to this my knowledge of hydraulics is enough to connect hoses at this point
Flow is mainly going to matter for the speed of your hydraulic implements such as the loader, backhoe, and anything else you may use. The faster that flow the faster things are going to respond. I could see it being a concern if you had a hydraulic implement with a hydraulic motor like a sweeper where you needed to keep it moving quick. Not sure where else it would matter to you.
You asked earlier about attachments and compatibility. Loader won’t be as compatible across models and definitely not manufactures. Almost any three point implement on the back is going to work with any manufacture and model as long as the hitch category on the tractor matches the implement. Most things you will likely purchase will be cat 1 or 2 or will work with either. Typically the main difference is the pin sizes which are usually easy to change. However for true cat 2 implements they may not hitch to a cat 1 hitch due to the change in dimensions on the hitch type. I’ve not known anyone to have this issue enough to be concerned with it, but if you are then purchasing a tractor with a cat1/2 hitch should mostly eliminate those concerns. The only other thing you could run into is the pto shaft could be too long or short on something you buy used but you can either shorten or purchase longer shafts if you ran into something like that. I’ve yet to had any compatibility issues from the 3 tractors I have owned in the past decade with the implements I have owned.
Front implements if you get a tractor with a skid steer quick attach then they will all be interchangeable. Only issue might be something hydraulic like a grapple where you might have to easily switch out a coupler.
Bottom line is your loader will likely be an investment that is staying with your tractor but all your front and back implements will be interchangeable (except a backhoe).
Also on the backhoe subject I have not tried to remove any stumps with mine yet, but from what I read it’s a bad idea to do it a lot. My work schedule prevents me from renting anything and not getting called and losing time on the rental so I bought the backhoe option. It has been this far for helping resolve grade issues, digging drainage ditches to save my driveway, and will be put to a lot of use installing drainage lines when it finally dries up. If you have a lot of major work and can rent it likely would be better to get a larger dedicated machine. The tractor hoe is also slow due to getting out of the cab and going around back over and over when you have to reposition the tractor.
Ps: typing on my phone so excuse the grammar as my phone loves to auto correct something meaningful to something crazy.
