New-To-Me 790 -- Gear Question & Tips?

[eventer79]

After a convoluted & arduous tractor quest that dragged on for way too long, I just brought home a 2002 JD 790 in excellent condition, just 517 hrs on it & runs great. I was a little anxious on how it would handle my 600 lb bush hog, but I hooked it up for the first time today & needn't have worried -- it feels like an excellent little workhorse, didn't even flinch at the steep side of my pond dam with super thick grass on it. I have a 10-acre farm (horses), so most of what I do is mowing (& dragging) pastures, with occasional carrying things around in loader, although I do also have a 0.3 mi driveway that needs help (but I can't afford a box blade anytime soon, so it's just staying bumpy for now).

My question: I mowed today in 1st gear in low (straight shift, only has L/H range) -- I tried 2nd & it was way too fast (my land is bumpy & my back is arthritic, heh). While the speed in 1st with enough RPMs for bushhog was just right for what I wanted today...what happens when I want to mow (or do other work) slower if I have no lower gears? For example, mid-summer, I usually cut a bottomland that gets super thick & in the past, I've had to chug along in 4WD low gear to do that (previous tractors used were mid-90s Fords).

Range selector is definitely in the low position. Tractor looks like someone has taken very good care of it, shifts cleanly & smoothly, sounds great, it doesn't even have dents on it (which I can't believe at 18 yrs old!).

I did read the manual, & it feels like kind of a dumb question, but this forum is full of so much great experience, I figured someone could tell me if I need to learn a new trick or if my brain is just having a fail.

Also, as I have not owned a green thing before, if you have any general tips/tricks/quirks about this series, I'd love to hear them. Thank you in advance!

 

[Peter 315]

That's it first gear low range is all your gonna get you might have to take less of a cut if its to much for the tractor..

 

[eventer79]

Thanks for the response. I figured that was the case, but it has been a very long week this past week, so I pretty much don't trust my brain with much at this point. Wanted to make sure I wasn't missing some hidden knob in there somewhere. I guess on the flip side, 4th gear high must be really fast if I'm ever in a hurry to get somewhere...

 

[RobS]

I always ran my 5' rotary cutter in 2nd gear, high range unless it was the spring cutting of the prairie. 790 is a great tractor!

 

[dieselcrawler]

The 790/3005 is a good little tractor. I've had my 3005 (rebadged 790) since new in 2013, with about the same hours as yours, 530-ish.

I'm surprised by your gearing issue. I normally use 3rd low at wide open throttle to run my 5' brush hog, dropping to 2nd only for thick grass on steep hills. I doubt they changed the gearing... I normally find reverse in low range to be just a little too slow also...

Regardless, it's a good tractor... I've used mine HARD since day one... but it just keeps on taking the abuse... including getting stuck in the holler yesterday! I've added a roll cage and wheel spacers, a brush screen for the back of the ROPS, and fork for the loader...

 

[beenthere]

dc
Were you able to push yourself back out from being stuck - with the forks?

 

[Industrial Toys]

I had a new 770. Almost same machine except they added a step.

That was my beef. Never enough gears when you needed high RPM for operating an implement. Also, a little weak in the 3ph lift capacity. You probably can't find a higher quality tractor though.

That would have been some tractor with a hydro. The 855 (hydro) at the time, didn't have the large wheels I like to see in a tractor.

Nice tractor to drive down the road with. With practice you can shift gears on the fly pretty good.

 

[dieselcrawler]

dc
Were you able to push yourself back out from being stuck - with the forks?

No... it took 2 Honda atvs, chains and come-a-long, and half the life of the clutch to get back up and out of that little creek... soft loamy soil, damp too... wife and oldest son on the bikes, 12yo son on the come-a-long... it came out shortly after. Forks just dug ditches, bucket would have worked much better for self-extraction.

 

[dodge man]

You can do some grading on your driveway with just the bucket. Kind of take a slight cut with the bucket to loosen material than back drag to smooth things out. If it’s packed down hard that makes it harder as the bucket just wants to skip along but it is possible.

 

[eventer79]

dieselcrawler, well done, haha -- glad you got it out. I have done that with my riding mower a time or two (I never learn that it really won't make it through that one low spot), & have had to resort to "borrowing" the winch on my work truck to rescue it. Also, I own a 7.3L F250 too -- best vehicle I've ever owned.

Industrial Toys -- I saw that the 3pt was rated a little light, but that shouldn't be a problem for me. The only other implement I will acquire will be a chain harrow to drag pastures & even with a lift frame, it wouldn't weigh more than my bushhog.

dodge man -- thanks for the great bucket tip! That's a really good idea. I have not been very good at "fine" bucket skills in the past, but this loader feels a little more responsive, so I will practice more. It did come with the mini-bucket on it, with the 70 loader, which I'm a tiny bit bummed about, but honestly, I don't do a lot of loader work, as long as it carries some stuff, & I do like that the smaller 4' bucket will be MUCH easier to maneuver while I bushhog my many corners & alleys (I have a crushed downspout on the back of my house that was a victim of a previous 5' bucket...and a very loose fencepost...oops).

Glad to hear the good words about the tractor itself! I just wanted something that would get the job done & be reliable so I don't have to think about it, I was impressed with how capable this one feels. I will definitely play around with the gears some more -- if my neighbour times it right, she may see a green, wailing blur go by when she comes up her driveway, LOL.