I can pull a loaded trailer on the road with my geared 35hp tractor easily in the highest gear (High range, 4rd gear). Show me an hydro doing the same.
Hydrostatic transmissions in medium or high definitely lack the ability to put power to the ground compared to a geared tractor. In low range they are more comparable, depending on tire type. Hydrostats also lack good consistent speed control on hills compared to a geared tractor. If doing heavy ground engaging work then a hydrostat struggles with transmission heat dissipation and can cook itself.
However the learning curve on hst tractors is much shorter than it is on a geared tractor. I have seen this time and time again. Two hours on a hst and the operator is efficient enough to be productive. A geared tractor is probably closer to 12 hours.
It is easier to do detailed tight work with a hst, the ability to creep up to something then speed away is much easier. However a good geared tractor operator can do it with similar accuracy, but it takes much more skill.
So selling, advising and working on tractors for over a dozen years, there are many instances of me steering a person toward a hydro. One of the biggest reasons being multiple operators and physical disabilities.
When the average compact tractor is used 27 hours a year it is hard to gain expertise. Every time the operator gets on the tractor it is like new. They might feel like they are an experienced operator, but with only a few hundred hours under their belt they are not. This is why hst makes sense for most operators of compact tractors. I am not in tractor sales, but recommend to all my non farmer friends to try a geared vs hydrostat. Just take a scoop of gravel, back up, take a 3 point turn, drive in a circle then dump the gravel back in the pile. All of them have gone with hydrostats when buying their own tractors, not based on hearsay, but their experience. All of them are casual users.
However when we have worked on projects moving dirt a few hundred feet. I am at least 30% faster, some of this is experience, but it is mostly because geared tractors can climb hills with reduced speed loss, and I can upshift when going down hill. In flat level ground I would not out pace them as much.
Don't be sad about people choosing hydros - at least with tractors, they won't quit making gear drive tractors just because people like to buy hydros.
I respectfully disagree, some examples are the Kubota BX, John Deere 1000 and 2000 series are all hst and do not offer a geared version. In Japan were the tractors are used in production agriculture Kubota offers a geared version of the BX the B11?1. I suspect we will see less geared options going forward. Kubota has almost killed off the GST powershift transmissions in the USA.
Both geared and hst transmission have their advantages and disadvantages. I prefer geared tractors, my non farmer friends all prefer hydrostat, most my farmer friends prefer geared. At the end of the day we still can be friends and respect each others choices.
