What Does Horsepower Really Mean

[sd455dan]

The University of Nebraska's tests are very useful but only performed on some tractors, and generally not the ones most people here are looking at.

The University of Nebraska currently only does its full set of tests on tractors of over 100 PTO HP that are to be sold in Nebraska, per state law. If a manufacturer doesn't want to sell in Nebraska, they don't have to have their tractors tested. Tractors less than 100 PTO HP do not have to be tested to legally be sold in Nebraska but a manufacturer can voluntarily have them tested. It is rare to see anything smaller than a full-sized utility tractor tested today and even of those, it is generally only CNH and Deere that have theirs tested. The University of Nebraska will perform an abbreviated set of tests on <100 PTO HP tractors that does not test drawbar horsepower. They hook it up to a PTO dyno and determine maximum PTO power and fuel usage, they test hydraulic pressure and maximum flow, and test 3 point lift.

Interesting .

Does that mean Mahindra will be selling tractors and have dealerships in Nebraska? Years back I went on their dealer listing site and it had a picture of Nebraska with a different color for the state showing No dealers.

Actually seems they still don't?

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Nebraska Mahindra Dealers: Mahindra Tractor Dealers in Nebraska

Mahindra Dealers in Nebraska. Find a Mahindra Tractor Dealer in Nebraska, and map the nearest dealership to you.

www.tractor.com

 

[JasperFrank]

I have suspicions on the Steam Engine V John Deere pulling contest also. Seems most Youtube videos aren't telling the whole story. There are little bits, whereby the JD could turn four wheel drive on or off. On 4W, the Steam Tractor looks like it could lose to the JD, but in just rear wheel, the JD didn't stand a chance.

 

[4570Man]

I understand hp is derived from torque, and remember Horsepower = Torque x RPM / 5,252
If you see a hp/torque graph for an engine, from 1 to 10,000 hp the two curves cross at 5,252. At that rpm hp=torque.
You have to be older to remember the great Smokey Yunick (we met him years ago at his shop in Daytona. He said if you look at two motor graphs, I'll take the one with a flatter curve. Motorcycles for example may rev to the moon but hp is "peaky".
I pulled our farrier's Dodge Ram 3500 diesel out of a ditch last winter in the snow with my 140hp F-150 six cyl.4x4 pickup 4 speed farm truck. It's geared low and has a granny 4x4 low 1st gear. Just above idle...probably 4mph.
If you connected my 14hp 1cyl. Economy tractor to my two Cub 24hp 2cyl mowers it would drag them wherever you wanted.
Watch this...probably 100:1 ratio of horsepower difference and 100+ years apart!

With enough gear ratio and substantial weight those steamers could pull anything.

 

[mo1]

Interesting .

Does that mean Mahindra will be selling tractors and have dealerships in Nebraska? Years back I went on their dealer listing site and it had a picture of Nebraska with a different color for the state showing No dealers.

Actually seems they still don't?

​

Found 0 Mahindra Tractor Dealers in Nebraska​

DEALER NOT FOUND

Nebraska Mahindra Dealers: Mahindra Tractor Dealers in Nebraska

Mahindra Dealers in Nebraska. Find a Mahindra Tractor Dealer in Nebraska, and map the nearest dealership to you.

www.tractor.com

I have no idea if Mahindra will sell tractors in Nebraska or not. I live hundreds of miles from Nebraska and the few people I know that live up there no longer farm, so I have no clue what the locals there think of Mahindra tractors.

I can see Mahindra has not tested any of their tractors in Nebraska so they can't sell any 100+ PTO HP units in that state. But, they could sell anything under 100 PTO HP, which appears to be all but one tractor they currently sell here in the U.S.

 

[sd455dan]

I have no idea if Mahindra will sell tractors in Nebraska or not. I live hundreds of miles from Nebraska and the few people I know that live up there no longer farm, so I have no clue what the locals there think of Mahindra tractors.

I can see Mahindra has not tested any of their tractors in Nebraska so they can't sell any 100+ PTO HP units in that state. But, they could sell anything under 100 PTO HP, which appears to be all but one tractor they currently sell here in the U.S.

After reading that they could sell CUTs in Nebraska, just surprised to see they still have not moved forward dealer wise in all these years.

 

[Hay Dude]

I think those stiff wide rear cleated steel wheels would be able to pull that Deere backwards on that soft turf easily. That steam tractor gotta weigh 20 tons. The Deere is not in 4WD during the pull. You only see the back tires kicking dirt. The Deere is heavily modified though.

 

[Moxie 15]

I have suspicions on the Steam Engine V John Deere pulling contest also. Seems most Youtube videos aren't telling the whole story. There are little bits, whereby the JD could turn four wheel drive on or off. On 4W, the Steam Tractor looks like it could lose to the JD, but in just rear wheel, the JD didn't stand a chance.

A steam engine requires about half the oxygen of a diesel internal combustion engine to operate. This became painfully apparent when diesels replaced steam trains. It takes nearly twice the Horse power ( the power to move 550 lbs 1 foot in 1 second) for a diesel to pull the same load over the mountains. Progress?

 

[5030]

Hyce on YT does an in depth dissertation about steam and diesel and power. Very interesting.

 

[jaydee325]

A steam engine requires about half the oxygen of a diesel internal combustion engine to operate. This became painfully apparent when diesels replaced steam trains. It takes nearly twice the Horse power ( the power to move 550 lbs 1 foot in 1 second) for a diesel to pull the same load over the mountains. Progress?

Yes progress.

See this website on the 150hp Case steam tractor.

Certainly is exciting to watch it pull a 50 bottom plow, but look at what it required in man power too! These tractors were phased out simply from an economics stand point. Consider how long and how many man-hours would be required for the Case and the 50 bottom plow to do 1000 acres?

 

[JohnDeereJoey]

... RPM and the division by 5,252 seems to be entirely unneeded. Torque is the one and only value that needs a measurement. ... ... HP just didn't make sense as any meaningful rating of power. ...

WOW!

Torque, without any rotation, equals zero horsepower. Which means no work being done. (This concept, using different units of measure, applies to linear motion as well.)

Without torque and rotation (i.e. horsepower) tractors, cars, boats...will not move.

For WAY longer than I can remember, horsepower has been a meaningful measurement in rotational motion. I'd be willing to bet it will stay that way.