8 speed vs Hydro

[Hodge71 664]

Ok, here goes another taboo question that I'm sure will get dander up. I cannot understand for the life of me why so many on here feel that gear trannys are better than hydros. If you make everything equal and not worry about durability, simplicity, lack of maintenance of a gear vs hydro. Just looking at doing a task with one, say tilling or snowthrowing. I can run the throttle up to 3400 on my Dads 12 auto and that thing will till at 1/2 mph if I want to, but yet opinion is hydros can't till like a gear tranny. What am I missing here? Ive heard many time hydros cant till, you need the low gear of a gear drive. I think they're both very capable units and you use whats preferential to you. Same 12 auto lived its life with a lawn vaccum on it and it ran like a top, if the grass was really dense in 1 spot I slow down a bit, as it thinned out, back up to any speed suitable for the task. You cant do that with a gear tranny without stopping and shifting gears. If hydros are so bad why did the put them in the D series? Why not throw gear trannys in a D. Mount the engine sideways and throw pulleys on it. Why is my brain having a mental block accepting that 8speeds rock and hydros suck?

[Rollerman 290]

I think a lot of Horse owners prefer the gear drives just for the simplicity of them & durability.

I mean keep a good belt on them, the set screws tight on the hubs & pullies, & keep oil in them there pretty much set for life if they're not abused.

Hydro's work good too & make quick work of anything that requires a lot of direction changes.

Hydro's with the power lift offer them up another advantage.

I don't think anyone will argue....Hydro's can't & won't take the same abuse a gear trans will.

If you don't maintane them them, fresh oil, specified filter...they won't last.

The Sundstrands can be a little fussy too once the cam plate & cam follower pin become worn.

(Ever push the pedal to stop & your hydro Horse wouldn't?)

Both types of Sundstrands (hydrogear & piston to piston) & the Eatons (700 & 1100 series) are prone to failure if they oil becomes contaminated.

The issue with hydros & tilling.

You see this mostly with older hydros...especially if the cam plate, & cam follower our worn or out of adjustment...the action of the tiller will push a hydro sometimes forceing the operator to hold back the tractor with the Direction Control Lever.

With gear drive tractors, especially an 8 speed you can set the tractor in low range, put the trans in 1st gear & go.

Again with a hydro some models have the HYD lift so you don't have to strong arm an implement....unless your gear trans Horse has an electric lift.

Then there is the whole deal with a hydros parisitic horsepower loss due to the hydro robbing some for it's own operation.

For whats it's worth I really do like hydro's, just not for everything.....or tilling.

[kpinnc 12,471]

I really like my hydros. I have to agree though- they can't take the abuse a gear drive can.

I wouldn't care either, if replacement parts were available and cheap to boot. Unfortunately they are not, and each time I use a hydro I have to question if what I'm doing will damage it. That is the only real complaint I have with them. Just my two cents...

[Jim_M 178]

I prefer a hydro for mowing and snow blowing. I use a gear drive for tilling and plowing.

[pfrederi 17,876]

The tiller will try very hard to push the tractor ahead. the low range in a gear drive will hold it back better than having to twiddle with the DCL on a hydro.

But the big reason is durability and repair cost. Other than failure of the 1533 bearing any problem in a 8 speed can be fixed in an afternoon for not much money.

the other big reason is when buying a used machine you can pretty quickly figure out if the tranny is ok on a 8 speed. Hydros are a whole different story and they can sort of work. If you are buying from an individual you maybe able to try out a hydro long enough to really get it hot and see how it works. if you are buying at an auction the best they do is show it can move. Have learned my lesson at auctions i won't pay more than parts tractor price for a hydro even if they claim (It worked the last time we used it! )

It is one thing if the machine is like your fathers one owner, and well maintained but most used machines are not one owner and most have not been well maintained, in which case I want the 8 speed.

[refracman 167]

I really dont understand this adversion with hydro's. I pretty much only have hydros, All my FELs are hydros and never had a problem with them and trust me Ive abused the heck out of them. I've found them to be very durable. I have had maybe 50+ tractors and never got a bad one.

I think the hydros are gettin a bad rap man :snooty:

[Forest Road 594]

I have a gear drive and a hydro. I use the hydro for mowing, snow blowing, and trailer towing. The gear drive pulls logs around the property, grades 1/2 mile driveway twice a year, and basically does ALL the dirty work!!!! I really do enjoy my hydro. I just wasn't it to last.

[Hodge71 664]

Rerfrac, I totally agree with you, if hydros were such junk they never would have put them in a D series, which is the heavy duty tractor wheel horse made, Even the formidable C-195 "Super C" had a hydro and not a gear tranny. Paul I totally understand your points also. As far as the others saying the tiller pushes a hydro and not a gear, the only time the tiller ever pushed his tractor was due to lack of traction because of turf savers. I always till with tire chains on and havent had the tractor get pushed at all. I really think its all in peoples heads. Its a personal preference issue. I know gears are more rugged but I did say in the beginning, forget about all that stuff and just look at the task at hand. I think the hydros are just as capable, they do use power unlike a gear, theyre not going to be a pulling tractor platform like a gear but I think they do just fine at the jobs they do.

[wh-jason 32]

both of my workers are hydro units (c-121 & 418-A) never had an issue with either one.

[liketoplayto 6]

I HAVE HYDRO AND MANUAL TRACTORS I USE THEM BOTH I PREFER THE HYDRO FOR THE LIFTING OF IMPLEMENTS LOT EASIER ON THE OLD SHOULDERS BUT AS FAR AS DEPENDABILITY LESS MAINTANANCE U CANT BEAT A MANUAL JUST MY THOUGHTS ID USE EITHER OR AS LONG AS ITS RED AND HAS A HORSE HEAD ON IT LOL

[Jim_M 178]

I don't think anybody ever said the hydros are no good. There are some jobs that a hydro does better and some jobs that a gear drive does better and I think that's the point people are trying to make, not that hydros are junk.

I have more hydros around here than gear drives. I keep certain attachments on the hydros and other attachments on the gear drives.

Like Steve, my loader tractor is also a hydro with a foot control. I know I've abused it and it's never let me down. I couldn't imagine running a F.E.L. on a gear drive tractor, I would waste way too much time clutching and shifting.

I do however prefer tilling with a gear drive, I've tried with hydros, but still prefer to put an 8 speed in 1st gear, low range and open the throttle up. It's just more comfortable for me to travel at a certain speed without having to play with the DCL, and one pass is usually all I need to till a perfect seed bed. A hydro is handier when you get to the end of the row and want to turn around quickly, but all in all I still prefer to till with an 8 speed.

I'll probably never mow with a gear drive again if I can help it. I can never seem to find the right speed, I don't have that problem with a hydro.

[Wheel Horse Kid 105]

I agree with what some of the others have said. I think a gear transmisson does better for the heavy work like tilling. I think that a hydro does better for lighter work like mowing. I have only had 1 hydro and the rest of my tractors have been gear tractors. The hydro that I had was a Allis Chalmers 912. It was an AWESOME tractor for mowing! The only reason why I sold it was because it was too big for our yard, otherwise I would probably still have it!

[can whlvr 993]

my hydros can and do work just as hard as the rest of them,ya i had a sundstrand go bad,i had an 8 speed go bad,its nice to have both,and use them for the best suited task at the time,and my hydros can pull every bit as much as the gear driven,so its a mith that they cant work as hard

[leeave96 487]

We have got to come to grips with these hydro vs. gear drive debates - after all we are talking Wheelhorse here!!!!

Now if we were talking about another color tractor - maybe a debate.

Gear/hydro's have their advantages and each fall short where the other excels.

I strongly encourage everyone to own BOTH!!!!

Long live the Wheelhorse!

Bill

[ben06351 19]

Well I agree with Bill,

Own one of each.

BEN

[can whlvr 993]

yep its nice to have both

[Rideawaysenior 25]

I had a D160 that is a hydro unit. My nephew used it to pull in a local tractor pull and it dragged 5,000 lbs of concrete in a stone boat down a clay track and it didn't even hesitate. Thats my two cents.

[JamesBe1 82]

I have both a hydro and an 8-speed. The hydro is dedicated to cutting the grass due to it's ease of speed control. It pulls the tractor, runs the deck and lawn vac and pulls the overly large dump cart without much issue. It's key attribute is the speed control which really makes a big difference.

The 8-speed pretty much does everything else from running a chipper to pulling a large trailer around the yard when I need to and everything in between. I would be using it as a snowblower, but it has terrible traction in the snow even with the AG tires. If I had another hydro, I would probably permanently attach the snowblower to that because of the ease of speed control. The few times that I tried to use the 8-speed with the snowblower, I found it was a pain to have to constantly change gears at the end of ever pass.

When either of them has broken, I can say that the 8-speed was a heck of a lot easier and cheaper to repair. There are some days I wish my D-180 was an 8-speed!