Hydro or Shuttle for the long haul?

[the old grind]

I've never stalled an HST when operating in the correct range for the work. I stalled clutched tractors regularly by being slow to de-clutch, say when when cutting a pile or discing w/o draft control. 'Some guy on the internet' bought just one lottery ticket and hit the jackpot. I didn't take that to mean my next ticket would be a winner.

I don't buy cars/trucks with manual transmissions despite the 'parasitic losses' of an automatic. My pickup is a tow vehicle, a work truck, not an entertainment center with wheels. Like my CUTs it does the work or gets broomed.

btw, I don't get treadle pedal fuss, maybe because I don't try to get my foot on both ends of the pedal. It's just long enough for heel on footplate to use forward pedal or ball of foot on footplate to go in reverse with my heel, which for me is easy to find when I'm turned half-way around in the seat vs reaching for a SxS pedal w/o looking. YMMV

Clutching is 'for the long haul', but IMO if a guy is young enough and wants the exercise ... :2cents:

 

[3gunr]

I have 4 tractors with 4 different trannys, Hydro being the newest.I was not sure i would like it. Wrong . I have bad knees and clutching was getting old. i do lots of fel work and lots of mowing around trees the hydro is great. If i were doing a lot of ground engaging work i would go with my shuttle.

 

[jenkinsph]

Blue Mule,
It can be tough choosing a new tractor for sure. You have mentioned the aluminum housings on some of the Deere tractors and appear to feel these are inferior. I don't see that as a concern.

I have not seen where it is difficult to spin tires on any small tractor. Meaning you gear down and tie on to a heavy enough object and you can spin the tires. You will find that hydro trannies and gear trannies can both spin out. Since spinning out is not desirable ballast your tractor for your needs.

Hydrostatic tractors will cost a few percent more to operate. With a small tractor you may have to spend an extra $10 a year for fuel. Up to you to decide if the difference in operating is worth it to you. I have always been amazed how much work I can get done with a tank of fuel on any equipment.

 

[rademamj1]

For these small tractors under 26hp, go with the HST. After 20+ years now of HST experience and design improvements within the industry, they have gotten alot more reliable. As to what model to choose: Kubota LX2610, Kioti CK2610 and John Deere 2025R would be the short list I would start with. All are incredibly reliable and meet Tier4 emmissions with out any DOC and DPF. For cost benefits my choice would be the Kioti CK2610.

 

[buck12]

To the OP. Find the tractor you prefer to operate. I owned a gear drive Mahindra for 12 years and liked it. I moved to a HST tractor 1.5 years ago and much prefer hydro for my uses. It is more precise and less tiring for me.

As to the pedal configuration that has been debated on TBN for years, I have owned a JD GT 235 with the twin pedal system for 15 or so years and now also have a Kubota with the treadle pedal. They both work for me.

If I were looking for a forever tractor I would look at tractors that have as little plastic as possible. The plastic on my JD has not aged well.

 

[the old grind]

CT2025 is a white Ck2610 with a different FEL. Only the wheels need painted and you can't see the hood stickers from the seat.

Kubo has a nice <25hp (Tier 3) that compares as well where it counts, weight and tire size(s). (Kubo fronts a tad smaller than Kioti/Bobcat.)

 

[lostcause]

Overall my impressions are that the JD has slightly better appearance, fit, and finish with a nicer design and attention to detail. It makes the NH look like a tractor from a third world country. But the NH offers "more tractor" for the money with standard features for getting work done that cost thousands extra on the JD.

At this point I've pretty much eliminated all of the "grey market" tractors from my search and it's solely down to either the Deere or New Holland because there are dealers within 30 minutes of me and both have extensive parts and service networks.

Sigh.... when I got into this I never imagined that choosing something like a tractor would be so hard!

I'm still struggling over hydro vs. gear. Hydro is MUCH easier to operate especially when doing loader work, but I've seen some videos where guys using hydro tractors to pull hard are nearly stalling out the engine before the tires even break loose. That's awful. But, that could have a lot to do with the 25 horse engine on a large frame compact too I guess. 25 horses seems to be on the edge of underpowered for a 2,500 lb. machine on 40+ inch tires. But gosh I just really don't want a DPF. And I don't really want a used tractor. I have one of those now. Lol. Sigh.....

I went through a similar issue when I bought my first tractor back in the late 90's. Kubota & JD were both close by, and supported by well established dealerships - nothing else was. at the time, the two most comparable tractors I looked at were the same price, but the Kubota was just slightly bigger or more capable in most areas, though it also was less refined. the entry between the loader frame and fender was tight, the loader control was still a 2-stick, to shut it off was a key turn and kill switch pull, etc. I went with the deere and it suited my limited needs fine. I'm sure the Kubota would have also grown on me too. I've just recently upgraded to a lightly used Deere 3039R and did a lot of the same searching again. most of us hate the second guessing we do, but i'm sure in the end whatever you choose will do just fine.

 

[Blue Mule]

A lot of good opinions and helpful experience here guys. I do appreciate it.

I think the New Holland Workmaster 25 with hydro trans. is going to be my tractor. It just has every single thing I want without paying extra, there's a dealer 30 minutes down the road, and they're going to throw in free liquid tire ballast for me. With our trade in New Holland TC29 that has a broken hour meter, my payments are only going to be $150 which ain't bad for a new machine. I intend to pay it off early.

They should be delivering it on Thursday, which just happens to be my birthday.

 

[daugen]

Now that's a happy birthday and a happy ending :thumbsup:

 

[big bubba]

A lot of good opinions and helpful experience here guys. I do appreciate it.

I think the New Holland Workmaster 25 with hydro trans. is going to be my tractor. It just has every single thing I want without paying extra, there's a dealer 30 minutes down the road, and they're going to throw in free liquid tire ballast for me. With our trade in New Holland TC29 that has a broken hour meter, my payments are only going to be $150 which ain't bad for a new machine. I intend to pay it off early.

They should be delivering it on Thursday, which just happens to be my birthday.

congrat on your new purchase. you've done your homework & sounds like it has paid off for you