Speedometer for your tractor.

oldgoat2 · Jul 5, 2006

Sorry if this is old news. I have a Kubota L3400 which is a no frills tractor. One advantage of moving up the model lines in any brand is you eventually get a speedometer.

The frills are of no interest to me, but when spraying a speedometer is very handy. I use a Garmin Forerunner 101 . It is a wrist worn GPS unit that can be easily mounted to the tractor for the afternoon with its strap if you prefer. It does a lot of stuff but all you have to do to get your speed in 10th's of a MPH is turn it on. Many companies make this type of unit and I picked this one because it is so small. It even works in my larger tractor's cab. Just an idea for those wishing for a speedometer.

lhfarm · Jul 6, 2006

Interesting idea. I've got a bike speedometer that cost $20, but I'm still trying to figure out how to mount the pickup unit. It was going to be a weekend project, but this might be a more interesting alternative - but more expensive. Guess if I took up running I could justify it as a muliti-tasking device.

Thanks for posting the idea.

Soundguy · Jul 6, 2006

Does your tractor not have a tachometer? If so, you can get ground speed in mph by looking at your engine speed and trans/diffy/wheels ratio. it's very likely that your op manual has a chart showing gear/eng speed/mph-kph.

I know my no-frills ford / NH units do.

Soundguy

oldgoat2 said:
Sorry if this is old news. I have a Kubota L3400 which is a no frills tractor. One advantage of moving up the model lines in any brand is you eventually get a speedometer.

The frills are of no interest to me, but when spraying a speedometer is very handy. I use a Garmin Forerunner 101 . It is a wrist worn GPS unit that can be easily mounted to the tractor for the afternoon with its strap if you prefer. It does a lot of stuff but all you have to do to get your speed in 10th's of a MPH is turn it on. Many companies make this type of unit and I picked this one because it is so small. It even works in my larger tractor's cab. Just an idea for those wishing for a speedometer.

ccsial · Jul 6, 2006

If you don't have a chart you could borrow a hand held GPS (assuming you know someone) and make your own chart for the speeds that are important to you. A hydrostatic may have a little lag with this method but on fairly level ground it would be good.

Billy_S · Jul 6, 2006

Good idea, OldGoat. I have a Garmin GPS 12 that my brother gave me a few years back. I checked one out on ebay and you can buy one for less than $50. They are pretty cool on long trips.

oldgoat2 · Jul 6, 2006

IHFarm - The Forerunner I use is actually my wifes that she uses on her bicycle. It does lots of stuff but I like that the speedometer comes on when the unit comes on.

I know the charts are in the books and the ratio's can be figured. I just like the simplicity of the GPS. When spraying, I set the pressure on the sprayer and then slide the hydro to the correct MPH. The rate turns out just right.

PineRidge · Jul 7, 2006

GPS hmmm.... interesting concept. And all this time I've been dropping chocolate chip cookie crumbs to find my way back home.

deere_x475guy · Jul 10, 2006

I have been using a Garmin Legend to keep track of my speed, time spent with engine running for various tasks and it also is capable of figuring acres for me. Now I don't have to guess at how many acres I will be tilling or bushhogging and I can figure out how many acres I can bushhog/till per hour.

cisco · Jul 10, 2006

OK, I put a good portable GPS unit in my wife's car, so she wouldn't get lost (alas, that didn't work), and I got some wrist mounted units for my "kids", who are in to triathelons, and I've a fancy GPS and "fish finder" combination in my boat. However, having 1 for a tractor didn't occur to me. Speedometer?? If I get to more than ? 6-8 MPH while mowing it gets bumpy and I tend to nick the myriad of trees on my property. Get lost - how??? (of course, if I break my vow to limit beers to 1 per hour while mowing, I guess after 6-8 hours, it's possible). Figure acreage?? - if I stand on the seat of my tractor I can see all I need to mow, grade or whatever.
So, information is great, but overload is also possible.
Now, there are some real neat GPS tricks with tractors, like making "alien" patterns in wheat fields, and large farms rely on them for delineating watering, fertilizing and similar patterns, but, for most of us small property owners, a GPS is about as useful as your tractor's 0-60 mph stats --- OK, 0-15 mph.

AndyMA · Jul 12, 2006

ccsial said:
If you don't have a chart you could borrow a hand held GPS (assuming you know someone) and make your own chart for the speeds that are important to you. A hydrostatic may have a little lag with this method but on fairly level ground it would be good.

That seems like a hard way to do it. It's easy to make a chart knowing tire circumference and gear ratios.

Andy