Hello folks. I have a 1984 Massey Ferguson 30E tractor/loader with a power shuttle transmission. This is the first tractor I have owned and I have a question regarding using the PTO with a rear mounted snow blower while controlling the speed of the tractor in reverse gear.. I purchased a used snow thrower at a MF dealer, connected it to the 3-point hitch and rear PTO. The dealer said the PTO must be turning at a minimum of 1800rpm for the snow thrower to operate properly. Here's the problem. I set the gear range lever into low, set my engine rpm to 1800, then move the directional control lever into reverse. The tractor engages into reverse smoothly nat that rpm, but moves far too fast in reverse to safely blow the snow off my driveway. I have spoken to the dealer about this and he said because I have a power shuttle transmission, I would not be able to set the rpm of the PTO at 1800 while independently controlling the speed of the tractor. Is this true? I'm a newbie at this, but it seems strange to me that there is no way to independently control the speed of the PTO while controlling the speed of the tractor at the same time. I’ve looked through the operator’s manual, but there is no mention of this situation. Any advice you might have would be much appreciated.
Using the PTO with a Power Shuttle Transmission
- Thread starter RonMF30
- Start date
workinonit
Elite Member
Most tractor implements are 540 PTO RPM. If you have a 2 speed PTO you could run your engine RPM around 1800 in economy PTO. Otherwise you will likely be in the 2300 RPM range. I don't think you can get 1800 PTO RPM from that tractor unless it has a 1000 RPM stub shaft. Either you or the dealer are confused or both of you and if that's not the case then I may not understand your tractor. I know some JD tractors have a 2000 RPM mid PTO but I have no idea about MF. You need to get this squared away so you don't over drive that snow machine.
fishheadbob
Platinum Member
Something isn't making sense. Most PTOs run at 540 RPM. A few usually bigger tractors have a 1000 RPM pto, often in addition to a 540 rpm. Can't say I've ever heard of an 1800 rpm pto. Did maybe the dealer say the engine RPMs have to be at 1800 RPM for the tractor PTO to reach 540 ? That would be reasonable. Take a look at your tachometer/hour meter. Somewhere on it it will indicate where 540 RPM PTO speed is, and I would bet that the pto speed on the dial is right around 1800 engine RPMs.
Meanwhile if you are in the lowest available reverse gear and you still are backing up like a bat out of hell at PTO speed your tractor and blower aren't really compatible. Be certain you are in the lowest reverse gear you have. I had an 8 by 8 power shuttle. You did not want to be backing up in 8th gear at 20 miles per hour.
Meanwhile if you are in the lowest available reverse gear and you still are backing up like a bat out of hell at PTO speed your tractor and blower aren't really compatible. Be certain you are in the lowest reverse gear you have. I had an 8 by 8 power shuttle. You did not want to be backing up in 8th gear at 20 miles per hour.
I'm sorry for the confusion, yes, the dealer said that the engine rpm of the tractor must be at least 1800rpm for the snow blower to do its job. I'm not sure how fast the PTO is spinning when engine rpm is 1800, however, the blower performs well. My problem is, that with engine rpm at 1800 and the gear range in low, when I put the tractor in reverse it moves far too quickly to safely blow the driveway. If I slow the speed tractor down by reducing engine rpm, the blower clogs and will not throw snow. Is there something on this MF 30E I'm missing, or is that just the way it is with the power shuttle transmission and no clutch? Thanks for responses.
ericm979
Super Member
That's how it is with geared transmissions no matter what kind of clutch or shuttle. A given gear + range at a fixed rpm will deliver a fixed speed. HST lets you vary the tractor speed in each range while keeping the PTO speed the same.
If you're already in low range, that's as slow as its going to go. With more experience you may become more comfortable with the speed.
If you're already in low range, that's as slow as its going to go. With more experience you may become more comfortable with the speed.
If the snow is deep the first run is going to be a bit of a hassle if the tractor can not go slow enough. The trick is to do the first run in lowest gear and letting the snow build up a bit until it is a little higher than the top of the blower and shift to neutral and let the blower clear its self. Once snow stops coming out of the chute, re-engage the gear and repeat this process until you reach the end. On subsequent runs only cut into the snow with half of the blower or less so that you don't have to continuously stop. You can very this amount as you go. Another way, if the snow is not too deep, is to lift the blower for the first run as long as the tractor can make it through what is left on the ground and get the rest with a second run and repeat with half scoops on subsequent runs. A bit of a pain but that is how I do it.
I hope this helps!!
mcfarmall
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Typically the forward and reverse speeds of a shuttle transmission are the same or very close. I'm puzzled that the speed while backing up is so much greater than when going forward, if no gear changes were made. On my M5660 Kubota with power shuttle tranny, high 4 in reverse AND forward is almost 17 mph. A quick check at tractordata.com shows forward and reverse speeds are the same for each given gear. TD shows 540 PTO rpm is at 1788 engine rpm, so 1800 is close enough.
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K5lwq
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I agree with mcfarmall. My question to the OP is what gear is the gear shift in? I understand the range shift is in low but if you are in Low First gear I can not imagine reverse is too fast.