Abby’s Guide > Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) > Discussions > What is/are the benefits of hydrostatic transmissions ?
Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions |
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Bill_H
Location: Maine
Joined: Jan 12, 2008
Points: 354
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Re: What is/are the benefits of hydrostatic transmissions ?
Reply #2 Nov 12, 2010 1:28 am |
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Variable infinite speed and very high efficiency are the benefits, along with high reliability. The downside is they are terribly expensive. Despite the reliability, they can and do fail. You usually can't fix it yourself and repairs are very expensive, if even possible - you might just end up having to replace the whole thing. Parts are often proprietary and thus expensive, if even available. You already know about the lack of freewheeling. A hydrostatic is an enclosed unit that contains a variable speed hydraulic pump, valving, and motor(s). None of these would be terribly expensive but they are all custom parts. A true hydraulic drive, as is found on some tractors (not "lawn" tractors), has separate single speed pump(s), valving, a differential, and motor(s) which are fairly universal and easily replaceable - and often they are "rebuildable". The penalty for this is a loss of efficiency (more power to move = less available for work) and it's nowhere near as compact. That is acceptable on a tractor, but not so much on a walk behind that has to be kept small and light (relatively speaking). When you change fluid on your hydrostatic, be very careful that you do not allow any foreign particles into it.
Who the hell let all the morning people run things?
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chefwong
Joined: Dec 18, 2004
Points: 175
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Re: What is/are the benefits of hydrostatic transmissions ?
Reply #7 Nov 12, 2010 10:01 am |
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I'll try. Sometimes I get into the heat of the moment and just wrench on.. This time of the year is crazy...even taking 4 days before T day to prep, it's always a madhouse... I'm trying to cram sealing/finishing the cedar, build shed foundation, trim bushes, build shed all between now and 10 days from now. That is just on my short list of of to dos ----all thanks to this new red bucket of mine. Eeeks - Does that mean 10 days minus 4 days of Tday Prep = 6 days.
This message was modified Nov 12, 2010 by chefwong
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Steve_Cebu
Joined: Dec 17, 2009
Points: 888
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Re: What is/are the benefits of hydrostatic transmissions ?
Reply #8 Nov 12, 2010 11:49 am |
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I think it's okay to shift from forward to reverse without declutching, move the lever to neutral slowly so you don't shock the drivetrain. It's probably okay on ice or snow, since, the tracks or wheels will slip a little, but probably very abusive to the drive train on clean pavement. Use common sense, you wouldn't want to pull the e-brake on AWD car to drift unless you like to get a new differential.
Actually you should be able to pull the e-brake to drift on an AWD car to drifty with no problem. You can see Ken Brock doing it in his videos. But You pull it just enough and then let it go.
I'd say the hydrostatic is similar to a cars automatic transmission. How fast do you want to be going forward and then jam it into reverse? On my 928TAS I came to a stop and then reversed it. I think reversing it while moving would be a bad idea.
"If you have more miles on your snow blower than your car, you live in New England." "If you can drive 75 mph through 2 feet of snow during a raging blizzard without flinching, you live in New England."
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