![]() “You want to pay attention when to change your oils and fluids,” Balducci said. Unlike cars that base these schedules on mileage, tractors operate in terms of hours in use. “Then they don’t raise them ever again when using the tractor that’s a bad habit.” How do I take care of my tractor? Gabor DegreĮvery tractor is sold with an operations manual that outlines daily, weekly, monthly and annual maintenance requirements. “A lot of times people will take those bars off or lower them so the tractor fits in a garage,” Balducci said. Tractors also have a high center of gravity, which means they can tip over more easily than a car or truck, Balducci said.Īll new tractors come equipped with roll-over protection systems, or roll bars that extend up and over the driver and which help prevent serious injury from being crushed if the tractor overturns, If not covered with the appropriate safety shields, fast moving parts like the PTO can harm or even kill the most experienced operator. “It’s not the same as a new car and you really have to respect it for what it is.” “What scares me the most is people buy a tractor, it’s dropped off and you are on your own,” he said. Never, ever underestimate how dangerous a tractor can be, regardless of how many safety features it has on it, Balducci said. If you are operating your diesel tractor in extreme colds, there are fuel additives on the market that can be mixed with the diesel fuel in the tractor to prevent it from gelling up. “But a gas motor would heat up and can overheat and damage the motor if it runs all day.”ĭiesel does have a reputation for solidifying or “gelling” if it gets too cold, but Balducci said modern diesel is a bit more cold-weather tolerant. “You can hook up a log splitter to your diesel tractor and let it run all day,” Balducci said. ![]() Unlike a gas-powered motor, diesel engines can run for hours on end without heating up, Balducci said. “Older tractors from the sixties and early seventies with gasoline engines can be quite aggravating to keep running smoothly, especially the ones made before electronic ignition.” “Not many farm tractors come with gasoline engines anymore,” Taber said. Gas vs Diesel?īalducci and Taber agree diesel fuel is the only way to go when it comes to feeding your farm tractor. Shaped like a triangle or the letter A, and as its name implies, the hitch connects to an implement like a plow or mower at three points - top and either side. Three-point hitches are mounted to the back of a tractor and is the most common device for attaching implements to a tractor. Hydraulic fluid power operates by forcing the fluids under high pressure through rubber pipes or lines connected from from the tractor to the attachments. The PTO uses a series of gears and cogs to transfer power from the tractor’s running engine to the implement. The power take-off - or PTO - is a cylinder that extends out of the front or back of the tractor and attaches directly to an implement. Modern tractors all use one of three, or a combination of three, power sources to lift, lower, turn and operate attachments - Power Take-Off, hydraulic fluid and three-point-hitches. “You can use your mower then take it off in just a few minutes and attach a grader to go work on your roads.” How are the implements powered? “These days attachments are made to go on and off easily,” Balducci said. In the hands of a practiced operator, the bucket can be manipulated to smooth dirt, dig trenches and backfill holes.įrom there you can add implements like “brush hogs,” - a sort of giant lawn mower pulled by the tractor for cutting brush in fields, a blade that mounts on the back of the tractor for grading roads or driveways, a backhoe for serious digging projects, a front or rear mounted snowblower, post hole digger and a pallet fork for lifting items loaded on pallets. ![]() Mounted on the front of the tractor, bucket loaders can scoop, lift and carry a lot of things from hay to water to manure. “That’s the implement that is going to do the heavy lifting for you.” “A bucket loader is a must,” Balducci said. When it comes to tractor-powered farm implements, there is an attachment for almost every job.
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