Buying Advice Power Trac 1445 (Buying Questions)

[AKDirtGrubber]

Hey Guys,

With much thought and testing different equipment out on our new farm, we have decided that the PT 1445 will be the tractor of choice. I will be visiting Tazewell and trying out the 1445 in about a month. In April/May I'll be towing one home.
Haha maybe I should start a thread here when I pick it up and do a travel log from Tazewell to Anchorage.

In a previous thread I was asking about the 1430. Just wanted to thank everyone for their comments. It helped greatly my wife and I decide on the 1445, a bit bigger with a little bit more oomph.

My questions to you all are now directed toward the 1445.

What Deutz engine (model number) does this PT use?
Has the 45hp engine model number changed in the last few years?

Who out there (active TBNers) has a PT 1445? What year is your machine?

As for the attachments:

How effective is the stump grinder? The vid PT has for the 1430 is, well, pathetic. This could be just the operator though. Tazewell has said that the newer stump grinders have replaceable teeth which is an improvement over what is featured in their marketing material.

Are there attachments that PT makes that are weak in one way or another that I should just plan on getting a competitors version instead?
Could you all throw out some names of 2nd party attachments and brands that you've modified to work with your PT? Such as Lacklender ect.

Thanks!

Brad

 

[ernemats]

I don't have a 1445 but I have the 1845 with a 45 hp Deutz, it is an older model 1996 year. it has a F3L 1011 F . I don't know if they still use the same or not. It has been a good engine for me I bought it used and I have about 2,200 hours on it according to the hour meter. That will be a long tow to get it home.

 

[AKDirtGrubber]

I don't have a 1445 but I have the 1845 with a 45 hp Deutz, it is an older model 1996 year. it has a F3L 1011 F . I don't know if they still use the same or not. It has been a good engine for me I bought it used and I have about 2,200 hours on it according to the hour meter. That will be a long tow to get it home.

I hope our '45 will just last and last too. What kind of work do you do with your 1845? As far as the tow home... well yes that will be a hike but since the initial shipping quote was over 11k I'm a little more inclined to buy a truck and trailer in the lower 48 and make a fun trip of it.

 

[MossRoad]

Hey, it's only a 76 hour drive each way to Tazewell and back.....

:laughing:

 

[ponytug]

I have a 2007 1445. The Deutz is a FL2011. I don't know what they are using now. One thing that you should know is that Deutz parts can be specific to a given serial number, so if you call Deutz wanting a part, don't be surprised if you need your engine serial number and it takes awhile.

I use the light material bucket constantly.
The forks get used for moving pallets of materials and I use it as a way to make a work platform that can be moved to a remote location and worked from. (e.g. Painting- generator, paint, airless sprayer, misc. tools all on one pallet. Makes for easy setup, tear down and use.) I have also used it to pry roots out of the ground for Poison Oak and elderberries.
The 4N1 is great when I need it.
The brush cutter is amazing- just expect it to throw chunks a long way.
The trencher and rototiller both work well in my soil.
The post driver works really well, but is best used on low slope conditions. (Easy to tip the tractor with 600lbs 9' in the air if you aren't careful. Also hard to keep the tractor in place on a steep slope.)
The hitch plate hasn't been as useful as I thought, but has been invaluable for stump pulling and fencepost removals.

You might ask Terry if the charging unit is connected back to the tank. If not, I'd buy the kit. Basically, it weeps a little oil each cycle, and the kit takes it back to the main tank. You might also ask about glow heaters for the intake (mine takes one or two), and the oil heater. Deutz offers an engine oil heater for some models.

Trying to push the brush cutter up a 35 degree hill doesn't work for me. I can back up the hill, or go at an angle. The draft control really helps on slopes, as do chains.

Your mileage will vary depending on your uses, soil, and terrain.

I would expect to tighten all of the hydraulic couplings and bolts every 10-20 hours as the tractor breaks in.
Try not exceed 50% throttle for 10-20 hours to give the pump and drive motor seals a chance to bed in. i.e. take it easy for a while, including the brush cutter and tiller motors.

I'd also get a heavy duty tarp or two to cover the trailer and attachments to get everything to AK relatively free of dust and gravel. I'd think about doing something to make the 1445 hard to steal on the drive back.

All the best,

Peter

 

[ernemats]

Mostly what I use it for is mowing, I have the 72 inch finish mower, it will mow tall grass and weeds but does not do a good job on it. I had the boom mower when I purchased the tractor but I did not like it too heavy and I really did not need it but it came with the 1845. The only other thing I use on it is the snow blade.

 

[jfh28]

I have found all the pt attachments I have are built solid and haven't had any problems with them.......did add bullet proof slime to the brush cutter wheels and have never had a problem with them......and bent the edge of the snow blade when I ran it to close to a tree.....20" of snow tends to hide things.....haha......light material bucket is my go to attachment from work platform when I'm to lazy to get out the ladder to grading the drive......backhoe is probably my most used attachment from digging to scraping ice from the drive to acting as my emergency brake......snow blade is on all winter and has the most hours of any of the attachments I have........brush cutter is powerful and as been mentioned it will throw things a far distance....if I'm down by the road I'll shut it off if I see a car coming until it passes.........but I find that I don't use it as much as I thought I would....in 10 years probably have less then 10 hours on it........stump grinder is another attachment I thought I'd use more but don't......mine has the replaceable teeth...pines and softwoods it seems ok but hardwoods like oak and maple it takes forever........might be due to operator experience.....lol......I did try it to remove ice on the drive one bad winter and it worked but took so long I realized it would be july before I was done.......so back in the garage it went..........I realize this is probably a one off trip for you so you'll want to get every attachment you can on this run....but do think about what you really need and what you'll really use.....also the type of land you have will dictate how well the attachment will work.......for instance I've got rock and shale so getting the auger would have been a waste of money.....even with the backhoe I'll run out of digging power long before I reach the limits of the backhoes depth.....Jack

 

[woodlandfarms]

There is lots of info here in this forum on PT and purchasing PT's. As it is cold and dark where you are at, you probably have tons of time to catch up ;-) If not, no question is too stupid.

I built my own stump grinder on a machine that produces 18GPM at 3K PSI. You are at 15GPM.. IMO you will have success, but it will not be as good as if you bought a dedicated machine (and I mean a big machine, not one of those back yard stump grinders). So you have to to ballance out if going a bit slower on grinding outweighs the loss of dollars in your pocket.

I also built my own Post Hole Digger. I have had a dig off contest with my neighbor who is on a normal 3pt and, well, it is crazy how great a hydrualic post hold digger is. You can get bits for rocky soil (not cheap) but those bits only work well on Hydraulic or 3pts with downforce.

I am pretty sure it is the 2011F series in the 1445. It is the update to the 1011 engine most of us have. Super duper solid. We have upgrades you can do which I feel help keep the engine running cool.

 

[AKDirtGrubber]

Peter-

I heard back from Terry via email this morning and he said they are using the Deutz D2011 L engine currently. I went to Deutz 2011 Parts & Engines | F3L2011 | BF4L2011 | F4M2011 | BF4M2011 and took a look around. Looks like there is a Turbo for $2,500+ bucks (ouch) but kinda neat that it is available. Thanks for all the great tips and advice.

Excuse my ignorance but what is this "charging unit" you spoke of? Is this something of an option or a "they should have put it on" when it was new kind of thing?

 

[AKDirtGrubber]

There is lots of info here in this forum on PT and purchasing PT's. As it is cold and dark where you are at, you probably have tons of time to catch up ;-) If not, no question is too stupid.

Woodlands- Your right about all the info on the PT's here. It is the reason why we are going to commit to one. I think over the last year or so I have read most all of the posts. It is just not info but history. Some of you have had your machines for a long time and it is very encouraging.

 

[ponytug]

The 1445 come with an automatic brake. When the hydraulic pressure exceeds something like 600psi, the brakes come off, like air brakes in a truck. Conversely, when the engine stalls on slope, the brakes are supposed to come on automatically. The device that pressurizes the braking system, without dumping hydraulic fluid through a pressure regulator is the charging system.

All the best,

Peter

Peter-

I heard back from Terry via email this morning and he said they are using the Deutz D2011 L engine currently. I went to Deutz 2011 Parts & Engines | F3L2011 | BF4L2011 | F4M2011 | BF4M2011 and took a look around. Looks like there is a Turbo for $2,500+ bucks (ouch) but kinda neat that it is available. Thanks for all the great tips and advice.

Excuse my ignorance but what is this "charging unit" you spoke of? Is this something of an option or a "they should have put it on" when it was new kind of thing?

 

[woodlandfarms]

Clearly AK you did not have any communication with Terry. I am confident he has no clue how to send an email ;-)

All kidding aside, I hope you know by this point this group is here to support. I truly am probably one of the most ingnorant members in the group and these guys have always been around to give me support, and especially to spend my money. Right now one member has me chasing a $100 grinding wheel for my chainsaw. Clearly not something I really need but....

 

[SpringHollow]

The turbocharger is not an add on - you need to have the engine designed for it from the start. At least that was true with the 1011 series per Deutz when I discussed adding it to mine (there are some deals on Ebau every so often for the turbo chargers).

Ken

 

[SpringHollow]

BTW, I had good luck with their old style stump grinder. Mine was heavily used when I got it and leaks oil but I was doing hardwood stumps fine with it. I know I did over 20 hardwood stumps in half a day at a friend's house. But the PT/stump grinder were definitely taking a beating.

Ken

 

[AKDirtGrubber]

Clearly AK you did not have any communication with Terry. I am confident he has no clue how to send an email ;-).

Woodlands - I was lucky, the Internets were turned on in Tazewell that day! Seriously though Terry was good enough to respond to me via email. I appreciated it.

 

[AKDirtGrubber]

The turbocharger is not an add on - you need to have the engine designed for it from the start. At least that was true with the 1011 series per Deutz when I discussed adding it to mine (there are some deals on Ebau every so often for the turbo chargers).

Ken

Ken - Looks like the 2011 series has a few more do-dads available Deutz Turbochargers | 2011 Engines . Thanks for your feedback concerning the stump grinder. A quality birch is as hard of a tree as we have up here so if you can buzz through what you were going through then it is most adequate for my purposes.

Brad

 

[SpringHollow]

Brad, Those are available for the 1011 as well. What the deutz shop said was that they should not be added to a deutz engine that did not come from the factory with a turbo already on it, that the engine itself was built a little different in order to handle the extra power that the turbo produced. So it was ok to purchase one of those units to replace a broken turbo but it was not ok to use one of those units to add turbo capability to an engine that had not been built as a turbo to begin with. I can not promise that what he told me was correct but that is what he said.

Ken

 

[AKDirtGrubber]

Ken- Aaaahh education! It is a wonderful thing. Thank you.

Brad, Those are available for the 1011 as well. What the deutz shop said was that they should not be added to a deutz engine that did not come from the factory with a turbo already on it, that the engine itself was built a little different in order to handle the extra power that the turbo produced. So it was ok to purchase one of those units to replace a broken turbo but it was not ok to use one of those units to add turbo capability to an engine that had not been built as a turbo to begin with. I can not promise that what he told me was correct but that is what he said.

 

[AKDirtGrubber]

While Carl has a nice thread going concerning his replacement tires, I was wondering which you all would choose new from the factory? I have a choice between the bar type and the loader type. I'm familiar with the skid-steer loader type (just put a new set on my Bobcat) but have never been very impressed with them on hills. Are the bar type the better of the two for side-hilling?

Brad

 

[woodlandfarms]

Get the bar type. It is what I am going to end up with again. Also go buy some quality chains. I dream of quad tires on this thing but that is never going to happen. Well, it might, I may put them on the outside for traction and the inside will remain the heavy duty tires but all TBD.