B2920 Hourmeter

[SBA]

Hello all!

Just finally decided to register after over a year and a half of "researching" on the forum. First I would like to thank everyone who has posted in this forum. Your posts helped me weed through the different brands. This info allowed me to have some insight and "experience" as I was looking before I bought. About a year ago I made what I still feel was the excellent decision to buy the B2920.:thumbsup:

Now, on to my question. What engine RPM does the hourmeter have a 1:1 ratio with real time? Is it at PTO speed?
I like to run at 1900 RPM. This seems to be the sweet spot for me/tractor. The engine sounds most comfortable, the hydraulics are strong and it is a mizer on fuel. By running at 1900 RPM the hourmeter reads about .6-.7 per real hour. Now that I know it, I have adjusted my billing and maintenace. It was weird, my first few jobs, I was going off of the hourmeter and it just didn't seem to add up. Oh well, learn by experience.

I now have 260+hrs. on the tractor but it's really like 340+/-hrs.

Are your tractors like this, what RPM do you use?

 

[amigauser]

I believe some Kubota models are based on a certain RPM which is generally PTO speed like you said. Other models track actual time the engine is running which is what you would expect.

 

[newbury]

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/kubota-owning-operating/150221-b7610-hour-meter-tach-rpm.html

Yes. I don't "bill". I like to think of it as my REALITY, because when I'm putting around on the tractor it's SEAT TIME. I like seat time. It goes to fast anyways.

In a similar vein when I put bigger tires on my TDI I didn't change the odometer. A trip that used to take me 12 hours and 820 miles now still takes me 12 hours, but it's only 780 miles Even though Google says it's still 820 miles.

Sort of the reverse of "dog years".

So if I spend time on it I can tell SWMBO "well I only used it for 3 hours, check the meter".

 

[SBA]

I like the term "seat time".

It does go by fast, I just put about 35 hrs of seat time this week.

 

[bandit67]

Now, on to my question. What engine RPM does the hourmeter have a 1:1 ratio with real time? Is it at PTO speed?
I like to run at 1900 RPM. This seems to be the sweet spot for me/tractor. The engine sounds most comfortable, the hydraulics are strong and it is a mizer on fuel. By running at 1900 RPM the hourmeter reads about .6-.7 per real hour. Now that I know it, I have adjusted my billing and maintenace. It was weird, my first few jobs, I was going off of the hourmeter and it just didn't seem to add up. Oh well, learn by experience.

I now have 260+hrs. on the tractor but it's really like 340+/-hrs.

Are your tractors like this, what RPM do you use?

You should always bill based on clock hours instead of the hour meter, because of all the variables when running the machine - idling, pto speed, mid range rpm, shutting down to get off and do some manual labor, etc. Basically, if your machine is on-site, customers should be paying, unless you like to stand around on break more than you work like some of the union road crews.

Most, if not all customers, recognize that they should be paying for the time you and the machine are on their property working, even if the machine is not actually running part of the time while you are working off machine. I assume you also charge in some way for transport?

But the jist of all of this is that you don't need to try to recalculate for what you think the hours "really" are. They are what the hour meter says, and your maintenance intervals should be based on the machine's hour meter.

 

[SBA]

Thanks for the replys.
Glad to know I was on track, just wanted to verify my suspicions.
Since those first two jobs, I calculate from site arrival to departure each day. During a full day I have less than an hour of lunch/breaks. The clients also know if they try to talk too long it is on the clock. Length of job calculates on transport charges.
As to the maintenance time, I have just based upon the hourmeter at the .6-.7 realtime conversion, ie. 6-7 hours-lube loader; and since I run full synthetic engine oil I run about 120-140 hours on the meter. Already changed the hydro at 50 and will change it again at 400 on the meter.

 

[Verticaltrx]

Thanks for the replys.
Glad to know I was on track, just wanted to verify my suspicions.
Since those first two jobs, I calculate from site arrival to departure each day. During a full day I have less than an hour of lunch/breaks. The clients also know if they try to talk too long it is on the clock. Length of job calculates on transport charges.
As to the maintenance time, I have just based upon the hourmeter at the .6-.7 realtime conversion, ie. 6-7 hours-lube loader; and since I run full synthetic engine oil I run about 120-140 hours on the meter. Already changed the hydro at 50 and will change it again at 400 on the meter.

Do all the tractor maintenance based on the hour meter. Considering then engine is getting roughly half the wear at 1000 rpm as it is a 2000, the hour meter is still a good indication of wear despite not being actual clock hours. An exception to this is the loader or backhoe. I grease mine after every full day of work, or every 10 clock hours.

As for billing, I charge starting when I load the tractor on the trailer in the morning, until I'm done in the evening. I don't charge for hauling it home, nor do I charge 'transport time' if the tractor is already on site and I'm commuting back and forth to use it.

What kind of work are you using it for? Any pics?

 

[SBA]

I have not taken any pics of my work. Would be a good idea if could think about it before starting.
As I have what I consider a fair enough rate to include transport charges, it just seems easier to quote site time and let them know I don't have "delivery" charges. If the equipment can stay onsite, I am comfortable with giving the extra hours of work per job. It's always about looking forward to the next job and the referral a happy customer makes.

I have been using it for recontouring residential properties, lawn/sod prep, moving dirt around to fill sinkholes or create swales.
I am currently moving a 3-4ft high x 70ft x 40ft ridge out of a front yard to a steep back yard to make a flat grass area. I have 2, 2-3ft pine stumps (luckily in the center of the ridge), 1 gone and the other should be moved today. This will make the front yard flat as the street and house are on virtally the same level.
I have also created a landscape/raised bed/berm system at my home. The raised beds are really small berms that house azaleas and other flowering bushes to hide the kids little dirt bike path snaking trough my 1/2 acre front yard (nobody is the wiser).
Wow, just going through that made me love that tractor that much more, Thanks Guys!

 

[newbury]

Since you are running a business and using "full synthetic" you probably should think of running a Used Oil Analysis. It only costs about $25 from Blackstone and can help establish a plan for when you REALLY need to change the oil, versus just the mfg wild guess on your tractor usage. I found on my F350 I could probably double the mileage between oil changes, probably largely because of my usage pattern, long trips at a steady 65mph.