3 speed PTO and my finish mower

[Reg]

I have to agree with Greg here. Yes you can run it at other pto speeds but is it the best practice. It would be like driving you truck around not using 1st and 2nd gear but instead starting off in 3rd or higher. This would put alot of stress on the moving parts and probably end up using more fuel due to the longer spin up time and higher throttle positions required to maintain a good cutting speed when in heavier grass.

Just do as the manual states and you will enjoy trouble free tractor time.

Chris

I think of it the other way around;
i.e. using ONLY the 540 output gear is kinda/sorta like running a truck in O/D lockout when not carrying a load or pulling a trailer on flat terrain with a following wind (-:

It just makes so much SENSE to allow 5th or 6th overdrive gear to drop the engine revs 15 or 20% - maybe more.
As said, as long as the power is there and for lightweight tasks it typically is.

I don't have numbers on this, i.e. the power split between moving the tractor and driving a (typical) mower, but if it is OK to drive the tractor in higher gears than first there can be no good reason to not drive the mower in a higher gear than "first" (540).

A single point of "data".
Yesterday I was mowing fairly wet grass & weeds for their first time this year.
It was about 18 to 24 inches high, quite thick in parts.
I was able to run in 8th gear (4th of 2nd range) with a 42 HP Kukje tractor with the 6ft flail mower on the 1,000 RPM output gear at about 1300 engine RPM.
I tried to take notes, during the wettest spots and slight upgrades the revs dropped to about 1250 RPM.
I don't consider that to be loading down or bogging, i.e. adequate power was "there" to do the job and I am convinced that it tired me a lot less than if I had been running on the 540 output gear at 2500 or so RPM.
Yeah, I kinda/sorta care more about my own comfort than that of the tractor - selfish ain't I ?

 

[skspurling]

I think of it the other way around;
i.e. using ONLY the 540 output gear is kinda/sorta like running a truck in O/D lockout when not carrying a load or pulling a trailer on flat terrain with a following wind (-:

It just makes so much SENSE to allow 5th or 6th overdrive gear to drop the engine revs 15 or 20% - maybe more.
As said, as long as the power is there and for lightweight tasks it typically is.

I don't have numbers on this, i.e. the power split between moving the tractor and driving a (typical) mower, but if it is OK to drive the tractor in higher gears than first there can be no good reason to not drive the mower in a higher gear than "first" (540).

A single point of "data".
Yesterday I was mowing fairly wet grass & weeds for their first time this year.
It was about 18 to 24 inches high, quite thick in parts.
I was able to run in 8th gear (4th of 2nd range) with a 42 HP Kukje tractor with the 6ft flail mower on the 1,000 RPM output gear at about 1300 engine RPM.
I tried to take notes, during the wettest spots and slight upgrades the revs dropped to about 1250 RPM.
I don't consider that to be loading down or bogging, i.e. adequate power was "there" to do the job and I am convinced that it tired me a lot less than if I had been running on the 540 output gear at 2500 or so RPM.
Yeah, I kinda/sorta care more about my own comfort than that of the tractor - selfish ain't I ?

This has to be thought of as a manual transmission or a 4wd transfer case. Using the 1000RPM output gear is more like running in 4th gear or high range, and running the 540RPM gear is more like 2nd or low range. Pulling a PTO implement is like pulling a big trailer loaded down with stuff. So if you take your manual truck and put it in 4th, and pull a trailer full of stuff, you will lug down the motor. If you put in second, you will hear the motor wind up, but it won't lug going up hills. The motor can hold its RPM's better because you are on a better part of the power curve. Now, forget about shifting. Shifting is where you use a lower gear to move up to an acceptable point on the power curve that the higher gear can operate. In a tractor, you are going to be tied directly to a gear. You aren't supposed to spin that thing at anything other than 540RPM, so running at the higher range and lugging the motor you are going to put more strain on the engine and see more variation on RPM on the implement.

As for it tiring you out. Why should that be? The tractor is the one doing all the work. Just relax and let it do its job, and stop worrying about the engine revving. It was built to do that. Relax, be aware, and let it work. I guarantee you will feel less worn out if you stop sweating it. :thumbsup:

That's another pet peeve. People complain all the time about 4cylinder imports lacking power, when they are afraid of revving them out. You have to let the motor run in the way it was designed. Same with the tractor. Rev the sucker when you are making it do work. It will reward you for letting it open up. It is also easier on the engine than holding it down and lugging it all the time.