Hydro with and with out a clutch

Cliff_Johns · Feb 2, 2005

( I can use the clutch to instantly stop everything all the while using my other leg on the brake. It works every time. Using my left leg on the clutch to stop the PTO is faster then reaching for the PTO lever.)

I gather from this that on your machine there is a nutral or off position on the PTO lever rather than a big PTO push knob on the dash which you can hit to disenguage the PTO anytime?

I don't remember how the PTO setting worked on the other machines I looked at when I was buying, but on the one I have, there is a PTO lever on the fender which sets the PTO to rear, middle or both, then there is a big yellow button on the dash next to the steering wheel which you pull out to enguage the PTO and you push in to turn it off. Thus my understanding that to stop everything, you just hit the button and take your foot off the pedals.

So on a tractor with a clutch, is there a lever which has rear, middle, both and then also nutral or off and no separate button to just turn the PTO off? If so, you'd pretty much have to use the clutch-break stomp to stop everything, I guess.

There sure are a lot of variations on the theme.

Cliff

WhiteRock · Feb 2, 2005

There sure are a lot of variations on the theme. 

There does seem to be a lot of variations. My large (non-HST) tractor's PTO has a lever that activates the hydraulic clutch/braking. The clutch does nothing related to the PTO. I haven't decided if I like this or not. It is also located at my 5 o'clock position. I don't think I like that, but when I am turn around watching my PTO action, Its real handy.

My smaller tractor (HST) has the PTO lever on the left fender that is activated by the clutch. When I want to release the PTO, I grab the lever and apply pressure toward netural. If the PTO is not heavily loaded, it slides right out of gear. Else a very quick tap of the clutch will release it to netural. The PTO has to be stopped to re-engage. The other side of netural turns my mid and rear PTO on. I don't know why... I think the B24/B27/B29 series have positions for rear/N/front/both.

_RaT_ · Feb 2, 2005

The L30's from Kubota have a lever that will also gradually engage the PTO or quickly disenage it. It is a mechanical engagement not solenoid. It is on the right of the driver. The clutch is faster. When using my PHD, I have one hand on the wheel or throttle, one hand on the 3 pt hitch, one foot on the brakes and the other on the clutch. Works great. I cannot think of a better setup for digging holes then an HST. The clutch is certainly secondary to that at best. Your button, my clutch, in the end I think either would work well with neither being a make or break deal on any tractor. I prefer the clutch but certainly could accomodate a big yellow button very quickly. Rat...

Freds · Feb 2, 2005

Yes, I like the idea of a panic style button on the dash... as long as you didn't have to reach through or around the steering wheel. I imagine it could be reached just as quickly like the clutch stomp, as long as you didn't have to toss your coffee mug first /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif. The way my setup is now and being that my land is mostly flat, I'll go with a little roll from disengaging the clutch if I need to get the PTO shut down quickly. Seems the lesser of two evils.
I thought my dealer told me that the switch on the L series for the PTO was electric??? I have last year's 3130.

kensfarm · Feb 2, 2005

Jinman.. you forgot the kill all.. if you're in gear or have the pto running.. just stand up.. if you don't have the seat safety switch disabled.. the engine will cut out.

OkeeDon · Feb 2, 2005

The NH TC18 Hydro has a clutch. I don't know if it's possible to start the tractor with the clutch depressed; I'll have to try that. For sure, the safety switch is on the range shifter -- it will only start when in neutral; I doubt whether the clutch overrides that. So, One typical use for the clutch is gone.

It's not only possible to shift the range lever from neutral to low or high (the TC18 only has two ranges) without the clutch, it seems like the best way to do it. Whenever the range lever seems a little "stuck" or hard to engage, pressing the clutch really doesn't help. Pressing the hydro pedal just a tiny bit, either forwards or backwards, seems to release all the pressure and make the range lever easy to engage. So, another potential use of the clutch is gone.

Stopping the tractor in a panic is simple -- the hydro is on a treadle -- just lift your foot off the pedal, it returns to the center, and the tractor stops. The biggest hill within 50 miles of my property is the swale alongside the highway, which is about 4' deep, so I have never used the brakes in well over 400 hours! Another "normal" use of the clutch bites the dust. However, pressing the clutch DOES stop all forward motion, regardless of the position of the hydro, so read on to discover the advantage...

But, it's absolutely impossible to engage either PTO (rear or mid) without using the clutch, and I've never been successful at disengaging the PTO without using the clutch. It appears that the sole useful purpose for the clutch is engaging and disengaging the PTOs. Each PTO has it's own lever on the left fender, next to the range lever. The PTO levers are either "engaged" or "disengaged". One gets used to associating the clutch with the PTO.

Therefore, the "panic" use of the clutch is very useful. When I'm brush hogging and get into a situation where I'm putting too much strain on it, I dump the clutch. This immediately stops the tractor and takes the torque away from the cuttter. Some of the "situations" are nearly stalling because the brush/weeds/etc. are too thich, high centering on an ant hill, just starting to hit a stump or rock, getting tangled in some wire on the ground, etc. The use of the clutch is so efficient that I've never broken a shear pin; my son-in-law broke a couple of them until I taught him to use the clutch. Stopping the forward motion of the tractor AND stopping the PTO all at once is the advantage; keeps the cutter out of trouble.

Even if I had hills, I don't think this would be a problem. Frankly, with the types of situations I get into with the cutter, I don't think the tractor would roll very far, it's hung up too well. With totally flat land, of course, I'll never find out.

By the way, the rest of the rescue procedure for the cutter is to disengage the PTO lever while the clutch is still in, release the clutch and use the hydro pedal to back up up bit to get out of the situation, the re-engage the PTO s-l-o-w-l-y with the clutch, and gingerly approach the problem area again. This is usually enough to take care of any problem except the tangled wire, which fortunately has only happened to me twice, once each on two different properties.

markie61 · Feb 2, 2005

( .. just stand up.. )
Hard to do when you are belted in.... /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif
Mark

_RaT_ · Feb 2, 2005

I hate killing the engine too just because my auger chips a rock that breaks off and pulls out. The clutch kills the auger instantly which saves shear pins as well. My Kubota has a slight delay on seat kill to allow maybe 1/2 second of readjusting yourself in the seat and then of course, my engine does not stop instantaneously either. Now if my tractor did not have a clutch and was hydro, I'd figure it out.