Transmission explanation?

[scrimshaw33]

I'm in search of a new tractor as I posted in another thread. Am looking at around a 45 hp New Holland, John Deere, or Kubota.

I've seen several types of transmissions in my search including hydrostatic, manual, power shift...what's the difference in these and which is best?

From my research, it seems the best for me to get and which I'm trying to find is a 4 WD and diesel engine. Any other specs I should include in my search?

I'm using the tractor on my 100 acre farm for bushogging, planting deer food plots (some as large as 10 acres), moving trees and brush, etc.

 

[LAWALLSTRACTOR]

All of your choices will get the job done, but for what you are doing, I would go with a manual gear transmission. It is simple, tried and true technology. Power shifts require electricity, and hydraulics to shift the tractor (more points of failure), but are handy in back and forth tasks. Hydrostatic transmissions are all hydraulic and require constant pressure on a pedal to operate them. The nice thing about hydrostatic is you have infinate ground speed control.
I don't want you to get me wrong and think I mean some of the transmission options are bad, as they are all quite reliable today.
I hope this helps.

 

[JerryG]

Different types of Manual Transmissions
1. Manual Shift: plain old standard shift transmission. No synchronizers thus you have to stop and clutch for each gear change. You can't shift on the go without grinding gears. Usually have 6-8 forward gears and 1-2 reverses.

2. Synchro-Shift: Basically the same as the manual shift except it has synchronizers and can be shifted on the go. The clutch should always be used for starts, stops as well as shifting. Usually has 6-8 forward gears and 1-2 reverses.

3. Shuttle-Shift or Synchro-Shuttle: This is a standard transmission that may have as many gears in reverse as forward. There is lever on the left of the steering that performs the forward to reverse gear change. Most Shuttle Shifts have some synchronized gears or they may be fully synchronized. The clutch must be used to start, stop and change directions. Usually has 9, 12 or 16 gears in each direction. May have a gear as low as ï½¼ MPH on the 16 speed models.

4. Power-Shuttle: With this Standard transmission, you can change forward to reverse directions and also start and stop without using the clutch. Most if not all Power Shuttle transmissions have fully synchronized gears. Usually has 9, 12 or 16 gears in each direction. May have a gear as low as ¼ MPH on the 16 speed models. (JD calls this a Power Reverser)

5. Power-Shift: This standard transmission has all of the benefits of the power shuttle as well as being able to shift between gears without the clutch. It can be started, stopped, changed from forward to reverse and the gears shifted without the clutch. Usually has 9, 12 or 16 gears in each direction. May have a gear as low as ¼ MPH on the 16 speed models. (Massey Ferguson DynaQPS is a Powershift and Kubota GST is essentially a Powershift.)

 

[polo1665]

Different types of Manual Transmissions
1. Manual Shift: plain old standard shift transmission. No synchronizers thus you have to stop and clutch for each gear change. You can't shift on the go without grinding gears. Usually have 6-8 forward gears and 1-2 reverses.

2. Synchro-Shift: Basically the same as the manual shift except it has synchronizers and can be shifted on the go. The clutch should always be used for starts, stops as well as shifting. Usually has 6-8 forward gears and 1-2 reverses.

3. Shuttle-Shift or Synchro-Shuttle: This is a standard transmission that may have as many gears in reverse as forward. There is lever on the left of the steering that performs the forward to reverse gear change. Most Shuttle Shifts have some synchronized gears or they may be fully synchronized. The clutch must be used to start, stop and change directions. Usually has 9, 12 or 16 gears in each direction. May have a gear as low as ?ｼ MPH on the 16 speed models.

4. Power-Shuttle: With this Standard transmission, you can change forward to reverse directions and also start and stop without using the clutch. Most if not all Power Shuttle transmissions have fully synchronized gears. Usually has 9, 12 or 16 gears in each direction. May have a gear as low as ｼ MPH on the 16 speed models. (JD calls this a Power Reverser)

5. Power-Shift: This standard transmission has all of the benefits of the power shuttle as well as being able to shift between gears without the clutch. It can be started, stopped, changed from forward to reverse and the gears shifted without the clutch. Usually has 9, 12 or 16 gears in each direction. May have a gear as low as ｼ MPH on the 16 speed models. (Massey Ferguson DynaQPS is a Powershift and Kubota GST is essentially a Powershift.)

Really nice explanation, thanks for posting it.

Mark

 

[scrimshaw33]

Thanks so much!

 

[Soundguy]

and the hst is a variable swash plate tranny ( not like an automatic in a car )... continously variable flow thus speed.. usually has some gear ranges.

soundguy

 

[Ken45101]

If you are going to have to do a lot of turning with your mowing, the NH tractors have a lot larger turning radius than most other tractors. That can mean a lot of wasted space and time on each turn. Now I've heard about a "super steer" option that improves that issue. I had a NH TT60 for a few months and traded it on a Kubota.

 

[flINTLOCK]

The supersteer option is great. Best turning radius around. Only way I could navigate some of my woods trails. My buddy's Kubota works well in the fields.

 

[RPW]

My JD has a shuttle shift. On the left side is the range selector and on the right is the main shift. What JD did was using a standard "H" pattern reversed the 1st and 2nd gear. This allows easy shifting from forward to reverse for when using a FEL. With 3 ranges and 3 gears gives me 9 forward and 3 reverse. My uses have been mowing, digging, scaping and moving large round bales. So far it's done everything I've asked of it.

Good luck with your choice and purchase.
Richard

 

[OCD]

Appreciate the explanation above. I have been looking at CUTs in shuttle and HST. How easy is it to keep a HST at constant speed on rougher terrain? Does pedal movements caused by hitting ruts and such cause much change in speed?

 

[Hematite]

Appreciate the explanation above. I have been looking at CUTs in shuttle and HST. How easy is it to keep a HST at constant speed on rougher terrain? Does pedal movements caused by hitting ruts and such cause much change in speed?

Of course, they all have a "cruise control" on hydros, really no need to keep your foot on it when doing some tasks. On rougher terrain, you won't use speed control but if the terrain is rough enough to throw you around, you probably would be better off with a hydro because you can react quicker to the terrain by just pulling your foot back off the pedal to slow down immediately.
It's very easy to maintain a speed with a hydro, they don't require a lot of pressure on the pedal and the infinite speeds available can be very nice in most situations.

 

[flusher]

Appreciate the explanation above. I have been looking at CUTs in shuttle and HST. How easy is it to keep a HST at constant speed on rougher terrain? Does pedal movements caused by hitting ruts and such cause much change in speed?

There usually is a way to lock the HST go pedal in a given position. My 2005 Kubota B7510HST had a lever on the dashboard for locking and unlocking that pedal. The lever on the Kubota was a pretty crude device--didn't have a very reassuring feeling that it would stay put in the locked position.