Oil & Fuel Overloading A Diesel

[wkpoor]

I was heading back up the road last week on my 5400 with a wagon full of logs in tow. The road has a few hills and the load was heavy. I was in top gear and throttle full. It was maintaining RPM with an occasional wisp of black smoke but it felt and sounded like it was pulling hard...to the max. Most of the time this tractor has way more power than I ever need so hardest thing it does is pull a load up the road in road gear. What is a good indication (other than gut feeling) that I'm seriously overloading it? Like I said RPM's were holding good but the way it was rattling it sure sounded bad. Wonder if it good blowed out good.

 

[RollingsFarms]

I was heading back up the road last week on my 5400 with a wagon full of logs in tow. The road has a few hills and the load was heavy. I was in top gear and throttle full. It was maintaining RPM with an occasional wisp of black smoke but it felt and sounded like it was pulling hard...to the max. Most of the time this tractor has way more power than I ever need so hardest thing it does is pull a load up the road in road gear. What is a good indication (other than gut feeling) that I'm seriously overloading it? Like I said RPM's were holding good but the way it was rattling it sure sounded bad. Wonder if it good blowed out good.

doesn't sound to me like it was overloaded at all. working hard maybe, but diesels love that. if it made you feel any better about it, could you drop down a gear perhaps? i know you said you were on a road(probably a public highway from what i gather) so it's not like you need worry about speeding or anything. was your temp holding like normal?

 

[ToadHill]

I never use high (Road) gear if I have any load hooked up. I was always taught that you only used top gear to get from one place to another on the road if you were pulling a light load like an empty wagon. The brakes on tractors will not stop the heavy load and tractor fast enough if an emergency happens.

 

[wkpoor]

if it made you feel any better about it, could you drop down a gear perhaps?

Sure I could have but I was already on the hill and didn't want to stop and restart it there. Plus I was just wanting to see how well it would do.

The brakes on tractors will not stop the heavy load and tractor fast enough if an emergency happens.

Quite the contrary.First off this tractor has fantastic brakes and I usually test the load to find out and it could have stopped just as fast as my truck if not faster as the tractor weighs about 9000lbs as it was (loaded tires/loader with grapple/and splitter on the back).

 

[pat32rf]

I often run my 4300HST over to my BILs, a 3 mile trip with a few hills. Some days it will pull certain hills in high range 2500rpm with no problem, other days I have to trip the cruise switch and let up on the go pedal in order to maintain rpm on the same hills. I put it down to the humidity, temperature, and phase of the moon....

 

[driver444]

Diesels let you know when you're overloading them when you hear them "lugging." It doesn't sound like that's what you were doing since you were able to keep your RPMs up.

If your were able to maintain RPM, or if you're engine loses RPM when a load is applied, but is able to regain the RPM on its own through the engines governor, you're fine. Black smoke is normal when the initial load is applied, but should all but go away afterwards.

 

[ToadHill]

I guess I fine it hard to understand how mechanical brakes on only two wheels will stop a vehicle as fast as hyd brakes on on four.

 

[nmu98]

I guess I fine it hard to understand how mechanical brakes on only two wheels will stop a vehicle as fast as hyd brakes on on four.

That comparison is as good as saying: I wonder why a 350HP semi tows 40K and my 350HP truck can only tow 15K.

You are not comparing apples to apples.

 

[wkpoor]

I guess I fine it hard to understand how mechanical brakes on only two wheels will stop a vehicle as fast as hyd brakes on on four.

The 5400 has hydraulic brakes from independent master cylinders. That combined with the tire size and load that is on them give very good stopping ability. I'm surprised at that comment. This isn't the antique tractor site we are on.

 

[RobJ]

I was heading back up the road last week on my 5400 with a wagon full of logs in tow. The road has a few hills and the load was heavy. I was in top gear and throttle full. It was maintaining RPM with an occasional wisp of black smoke but it felt and sounded like it was pulling hard...to the max. Most of the time this tractor has way more power than I ever need so hardest thing it does is pull a load up the road in road gear. What is a good indication (other than gut feeling) that I'm seriously overloading it? Like I said RPM's were holding good but the way it was rattling it sure sounded bad. Wonder if it good blowed out good.

If the motor stalls, you've overloaded it!! sounds like you had plently left in the tank!