patrick_g
Elite Member
If speed is importanty in initiating a stop then you can't beat my Kubota HST. Most folks don't drive much of the time with a hand on the throttle or a foot on the brake. With my HST as soon as you let up on the HST pedal, where your foot is much of the time, the tractor slows very quickly. Much of the time it will be stopped or nearly so before you can get your foot on the brake. This effects a stop faster than taking your hand off of the joystick or steering wheel and reducing throttle or whatever your procedure is before putting a foot on the brake.
Now is this a big deal? NO! Not usually, but if it were to matter and you were trained to reach for the throttle first you wouldn't stop as fast. People react in an emergency the way they trained in normal ops. (A fact of life that can be confirmed with any military commander.)
Do folks usually let up on the HST "all at once?" No, because it stops way faster than is comfortable for routine ops. You can always let your foot up at a rate that reduces speed comfortably, just like using a brake to make a smooth stop. While letting up on the pedal you can reach up and reduce the throttle if you are stopping or need an RPM reduction.
I intend no put down for any other type of tranny, there are good reasons for all types. My intention is to point out some differences that may not be common knowledge to folks who have not operated an HST very much.
Not to make fun of any individual but sometimes watching a newby operating a geared tractor is entertaining. A newby may take some seat time to get comfortable with a hand throttle and sometimes things get out of control. With an HST if you just let up on the HST, a very natural action for an automobile driver because of the similarity to an accelerator pedal, the tractor rapidly slows or stops, RIGHT NOW.
Some of this is of little or not import to the seasoned hands here but it can make the difference between early success and a frightening introduction and possible disaster to a first timer. The HST IS NOT training wheels, it is a serious tool with many applications for which it is superior but just happens to be the easiest to learn. I hold no illusions about HST being the best choice for all tasks as it clearly isn't. Pulling an implement like a plow, disk, etc. for hours and hours, round and round with little manuvering is not the sort of task that would recommend an HST.
Lots of manuvering with a mower, box blade, or FEL shows the HST to be superior with the shuttle shifts and automatic clutch machines a pretty closse second.
I have a friend with a terrific tractor but it was designed for row cropping (geared 2 wheel drive) and he is a cattleman. He has a nice FEL but the front end of his two wheel drive won't let him work the FEL anywhere near capacity and it is a real PITA to manuver in even moderately confined spaces (especially using the FEL.) The only thing I have seen it excell at is disking fire breaks prior to a controlled burn and hauling a large tank trailer with engine driven pump for fire control/suppression. It would do OK brush hogging but he doesn't do much of that. An example of a great used tractor bargain at a good price but it is like buying a hammer at a super low price when the job is driving and removing screws.
My claim is NOT that HST is the best at everything. My claim is that the HST is easier to learn and use and is a superior choice for many tasks. If you just need to pull hard and drive in big circles HST is not first choice. In many instances the difference between HST and the close competition of shuttle shift and auto-clutch gets to be a fine line easily crossed to save a few bucks.
I have never heard anyone complain that their tractor was too powerful or too easy to use. Too big, yup... too hard to manuver, yup...too lots of things but never too powerful, too comfortable, or too easy to use.
I can rub my tummy and pat my head at the same time or vice versa or walk and chew bubble gum (or blow bubbles) at the same time but I don't think you require more coordination to use HST efficiently, I suspect it requires less. You can use an HST just fine without having to be good at multi-tasking.
Pat
Now is this a big deal? NO! Not usually, but if it were to matter and you were trained to reach for the throttle first you wouldn't stop as fast. People react in an emergency the way they trained in normal ops. (A fact of life that can be confirmed with any military commander.)
Do folks usually let up on the HST "all at once?" No, because it stops way faster than is comfortable for routine ops. You can always let your foot up at a rate that reduces speed comfortably, just like using a brake to make a smooth stop. While letting up on the pedal you can reach up and reduce the throttle if you are stopping or need an RPM reduction.
I intend no put down for any other type of tranny, there are good reasons for all types. My intention is to point out some differences that may not be common knowledge to folks who have not operated an HST very much.
Not to make fun of any individual but sometimes watching a newby operating a geared tractor is entertaining. A newby may take some seat time to get comfortable with a hand throttle and sometimes things get out of control. With an HST if you just let up on the HST, a very natural action for an automobile driver because of the similarity to an accelerator pedal, the tractor rapidly slows or stops, RIGHT NOW.
Some of this is of little or not import to the seasoned hands here but it can make the difference between early success and a frightening introduction and possible disaster to a first timer. The HST IS NOT training wheels, it is a serious tool with many applications for which it is superior but just happens to be the easiest to learn. I hold no illusions about HST being the best choice for all tasks as it clearly isn't. Pulling an implement like a plow, disk, etc. for hours and hours, round and round with little manuvering is not the sort of task that would recommend an HST.
Lots of manuvering with a mower, box blade, or FEL shows the HST to be superior with the shuttle shifts and automatic clutch machines a pretty closse second.
I have a friend with a terrific tractor but it was designed for row cropping (geared 2 wheel drive) and he is a cattleman. He has a nice FEL but the front end of his two wheel drive won't let him work the FEL anywhere near capacity and it is a real PITA to manuver in even moderately confined spaces (especially using the FEL.) The only thing I have seen it excell at is disking fire breaks prior to a controlled burn and hauling a large tank trailer with engine driven pump for fire control/suppression. It would do OK brush hogging but he doesn't do much of that. An example of a great used tractor bargain at a good price but it is like buying a hammer at a super low price when the job is driving and removing screws.
My claim is NOT that HST is the best at everything. My claim is that the HST is easier to learn and use and is a superior choice for many tasks. If you just need to pull hard and drive in big circles HST is not first choice. In many instances the difference between HST and the close competition of shuttle shift and auto-clutch gets to be a fine line easily crossed to save a few bucks.
I have never heard anyone complain that their tractor was too powerful or too easy to use. Too big, yup... too hard to manuver, yup...too lots of things but never too powerful, too comfortable, or too easy to use.
I can rub my tummy and pat my head at the same time or vice versa or walk and chew bubble gum (or blow bubbles) at the same time but I don't think you require more coordination to use HST efficiently, I suspect it requires less. You can use an HST just fine without having to be good at multi-tasking.
Pat
