synthetic trans/hydraulic fluid.

[Todd T]

OH boy, i can't believe I'm doing this.



I have a hydrostatic driven compact tractor. i have noticed when the weather is hot and i run the tractor for several hours at a time. the hydrostatic drive starts to cavitate and not have as much power for hills and such. to take it a notch further, i use this tractor to mow 5 acres a week with. the mower is belly mounted and driven off the PTO in a mid mount configuration. this is the same trans/hydro oil that the hydrostatic drive uses. this gear housing and all parts around it get very hot (cant hold my hand on them without getting burned). I feel like heat is killing my fluid and this creates the problem i talked about in the hydro drive. the pedal starts to vibrate and i have to let off or it wont go. the system is full and the fluid and filters are new. i have bled all the air out and so on.



I have looked into putting aux. coolers on it and there just aint a good place for one. when they say compact they really mean a lot of parts in a very small place



this brings me to the question. it is a Masey Ferguson, i use masey's perma something III trans/hyd fluid that is recomended by them. there is no oil weight listed on the label. this stuff looks like transmission fluid.



what about using a heavier weight oil?



can someone tell me if i switched to a synthetic, will it outperform this and if so which one should i go with.



this is a serious question and not entended to start an oil wars thread. I will listen to all answers and make a determination from there.



Thanks for your help guys

Todd

 

[Bob Horrell]

I have a John Deere hydrostatic tractor (48hp) that I use in a commercial business and work pretty hard. John Deere has 2 oils, their standard and a low viscosity oil. The low viscisity oil is recommended for the hydrostatic. I have used both but finally settled on the regular instead of the low viscosity since I live in Southern California and have mild to hot temperatures year round. Both oils work good even when working the tractor hard and the fittings getting so hot you can't put your hands on them. You might want to try one of these oils and see if it helps. The regular viscosity is quite a bit cheaper than the low viscosity and works just a well in my opinion.

 

[illflem]

My MF 585 had the same problem, even worse when I put a gauge on it and was able to see how just hot it was getting, up to 300°F after several hours. The cooler was a joke, just 12" of steel line with fins on it in front of the radiator. One hydraulic leak after another probably due to the heat. I finally added a AT cooler and electric fan from the junk yard, about $50. It blows out to the side, I just turn it on manually when the gauge gets to 180°, it goes no higher. Sure made the tractor better to operate, before it was like taking a sauna, I recorded temps up to 150° on the seat! I just use JD Hy-Trans fluid.

 

[Sled Puller]

Todd,

A company called Ventrac, a spinnoff of Steiner, had problems with overheating the hydraulic system. They tried a synthetic instead of a bigger cooler, and it worked for them, saved them a lot of money over redesign, etc. I'll let you guess what brand.



Several 0-turn tractors use synthetics also.



A heavier oil will make it worse.



Gene



Sig down, due to Steve messing with things!!!

 

[Todd T]

thanks guys, their just isnt an easy way to put a cooler on this thing. the suction line is about 1-1 1/4" I dont see any other fittings or filter housings in can tap into. I figured i would switch to another oil first. trade it on a new one second

 

[illflem]

Thing to beware of if you switch to synthetics is the oil that is in any removed implements. Some of my implements hold a couple quarts to several gallons, sure would be a lot to replace.

 

[amsoilman]

Todd T,

Amsoil makes a Synthetic tractor Hydraulic/Transmission Fluid just for this type of application. It is rated as ISO 46, SAE 30. It has a"pour point" of -40 F and a "flash point" of 446 F. It will not foam as well. Check it out. www.amsoil.com



Wayne

 

[Todd T]

thanks Wayne, your talking about the ATH product line right?



I'll order some and let you guys know what gives



Todd

 

[amsoilman]

Todd,

Yes it was the ATH product. You can get it in qts. 5 gallon, 30 gal and 55 gal containers.



Wayne