Brought my new M7060 home today , need some advise

[ovrszd]

Yep, you'll be fine.

You'll get the hang of the shuttle too.

I use my foot clutch a lot. Shuttle being used for direction change.

 

[ovrszd]

Is your JD110 TLB as handy as I imagine it would be?

 

[Little General]

The JD 110TLB is a great little backhoe. Its built like a full size JD backhoe and will work all day.

 

[bensonjv]

You did not get a lot of feedback on the question of your shift technique so thought I'd share some of my experience. While the shuttle's primary purpose is to facilitate direction change without using the clutch, I am not aware of any mechanical or functional reason why you can't shift gears by moving the shuttle from F-N-F versus using the clutch. But I imagine you still experience some 'jump' as you described it when you move the shuttle back to F (much the same as the 'jump' when using the shuttle to go from F to R or vice versa).

I am assuming the main issue you want to address is the jolting of the tractor during starts and gear changes. I've found the use of two techniques help keep starts as well as direction and gear changes smooth.

Direction changes using throttle roll-off:
For direction changes using the shuttle, most often I am using the foot throttle. I 'roll-off' the throttle just as I am moving the shuttle from F to R or R to F. As the transmission engages in the new direction, I roll back on the throttle. That significantly reduces the jolt compared with direction changes when the hand throttle lever is set at a higher RPM.

Starts and gear changes on the move using the friction zone:
What works for me is using the friction zone. For those who are unfamiliar with the term, the friction zone is a small area of travel of the clutch (pedal for cars/tractors, lever for a motorcycle) that controls the connection between the engine and the power to the wheels. The zone begins where power starts to be applied to the wheels and ends when power is fully applied to the wheels. It takes some practice to master on this tractor but the concept is exactly the same as it is for a car on a motorcycle. When properly employed, smooth starts and shifts are possible that all but eliminate the jumping you described. Mastering this technique is also very useful for close-in loader work such as using pallet forks to load or unload trucks, move palletized items around enclosed areas, operating around people, etc.

Combining both throttle roll-on/off and use of the friction zone is the best way to smooth out gear changes. Match engine RPMs to tractor speed when moving through the friction zone after a gear change up and especially down. Of course, that's not an option when running PTO equipment. In that case, you simply need to master the friction zone.

OK , I got my tires filled today and it drives much more "planted" to the ground. I tried to widen the rear wheels, but I was by myself and they were stuck together so I canned that idea. Most of my land is flat. When I am mowing and want to gear down or up, using the clutch and shifting seems to make the tractor jump at pto speed, I tried just knocking the shuttle to n and changing gears and then back to f, any reason I can't do it that way? her the pic I promised
View attachment 615461

 

[RoyKing]

There really is no clutch, the pics will clear it up. So the shuttle use is OK.

 

[5030]

I think hou missed something. They wouldn't be stuck together. Soon as you remove the bolts the rim will try to separate from the center. Now that they are filled this will be a dangerous job. I don't think you should try it.

+10 0n that. I'm against filling tractor tires in general because of the compaction issue. I run cast centers instead. You dismount a loaded tire and it gets slightly out of vertical, very bad things happen very quickly. You can get crushed for one. If it falls on your foot, you just broke your foot Sizeable loaded tires should only be handled by a tire man with a cherry picker on his truck. Even my cast center wheels (unloaded) require 2 grown men to move about and like loaded tires, you don't want to drop one.

Don't apply to compact tractors but for a mid sized utility like yours, tires can be lethal or at least debilitating.

Haven't been following along but if you have a hydraulic shuttle, there in NO clutch. All there is, is a damper plate that has radial springs (much like a clutch plate) but is splined one way to act on the springs and the other way to transmit power, all it does is mitigate shock load when shuttling from forward to reverse while moving.

The hydraulic shuttle is a wet pack (like the PTO clutch is) but unlike the PTO clutch, the shuttle pack is controlled (lock up) by the clutch pedal action on a proportioning valve on the side of the main gearcase, so yes you can 'clutch to shift' and 'slip the clutch or feather it as you call it because all you are doing ins controlling lock up pressure. There is no 'clutch' in the ordinary sense of the word. Why all I run are hydraulic shuttles. They have all the benefits of dry clutch operation without the associated wear.

When you shuttle from forward to reverse the shuttle lever over rides the proportioning valve and releases the pack to allow you to change direction. All the benefits and efficiency of a gear drive tractor without the weak link, a dry clutch. Only way I buy my Kubota's.

You can wear the pack out but it probably won't happen while you own the tractor. Having said that, a dry clutch (especially doing loader work) will fail much, much sooner.

 

[5030]

When I road my tractors in high range, Typically I'll start in 2nd, flip the shuttle lever into neutral, upshift the main box and put the shuttle lever back in forward. When I do that (lever in neutral), I'm removing the lockup pressure on the clutch pack and that allows the main box to get sloppy enough to let you upshift gears. I hardly ever use the 'clutch' pedal except when getting moving. Like I said, not really a clutch at all, just a hard link to the proportioning valve.

It's a great system.

 

[Tx Jim]

+10 0n that. I'm against filling tractor tires in general because of the compaction issue. I run cast centers instead.

I seriously doubt you have proof 500#s of cast weight compacts soil less than 500#s of liquid ballast? I know my liquid ballast(H20) cost a lot less than cast weights.

 

[5030]

I seriously doubt you have proof 500#s of cast weight compacts soil less than 500#s of liquid ballast? I know my liquid ballast(H20) cost a lot less than cast weights.

I worry more about crushing hay established hay plants than anything else. Both my M's came with cast centers new. My issue with filled tires is two fold. One, it's a PITA to deal with when replacing tires of having them repaired and two, it robs power and increases fuel consumption when roading and my fields require a lit of road use.

Finally though not an issue for me, the tire service I deal with don't like dealing with filled tires. Full size filled tires weigh a ton (literally) are a PITA to deal with and if one falls over you need another tractor with a loader (or a cherry picker to get it vertical again).

 

[5030]

Different strokes for different folks. In my case, I'll never have filled tires. Not even washer fluid.