Dl6—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, April 19,1980
Choosing a tractor
using Nebraska method
The purchase of a tractor
is a major investment that
requires careful con-
sideration of various makes
and models before a final
purchase decision is made.
The Nebraska Tractors
Tests are a valuable source
of information for com
parison, and for predicting a
particular tractor’s per
formance.
Several factors detailed in
the tests—fuel efficiency,
maximum available power,
lugging ability, and gear
spacing—should be con
sidered in tractor
evaluation. These factors
will affect your long range
cost of operation.
Fuel Efficiency
Fuel Efficiency deserves
high priority as it will help
determine farm fuel costs
for many years to come.
The efficiency with which
a tractor converts fuel to
useful work is best
represented by a hor
sepower-hours per gallon
(hp-hr per gal) value. The
fuel efficiency rating for
tractors is similar to the
miles per gallon rating for
cars; the larger the value,
the more efficient the
tractor.
The Nebraska tests give
horsepower hours per gallon
value for 8 Power Take-Off
(PTO) tests and 4 drawbar
tests, which may be very
confusing.
The best way to compare
various tractors is to use
average value for Varying
Power PTO Performance
Tests which averages tests
6 different loads on the
power take-off shaft. The
test provides the most ac
curate relative fuel
efficiency rating of a general
usage tractor.
A difference of one or two
horsepower hours per gallon
will make a significant
difference in the fuel bills
paid over the lifetime of a
tractor.
The effect upon fuel ef
ficiency of the gear-up and
Prei
Bu
pe
Whc
dour
staine
by termites Won’t rot, And stays
beautiful for kf ops
This deck was built with Wolmamzed ' lumber Outdoor wood It’s ordinary
wood pressure treated with U olman"' preservative e hemicals to ke op it handsome,
sturdy, md worry free for dozens of y e irs
( omidcring how long Outdoor wood I ists it’s n htive ly mexpe nsivc Use Outdoor
wood for your next project You can be sure it will h i\c the appe n mee mdshapo
holdmgejuahtirs you expect be cause Outdoor wewd is i high gride of mite rial
Be sure to look for the Outdoor™ wood mark on each piece of lumber.
If it doesn t have the mark, it isn’t genuine Outdoor brand wood.
H.M. STAUFFER & SONS, INC.
Cf A 33 GLENOLA drive
dTAUZZ@IT LEOLA, PA 17540
717-656-2811
throttle-down practice is
illustrated by the Drawbar
Performance Test 50% of
Pull at Reduced Engine
Speed. The fuel efficiency
rating for this test should be
compared against the value
given for the same load at
wide-open throttle.
A comparison of the
Nebraska tests on diesel and
gasoline powered tractors
also reveals that diesel
engines use fuel much more
efficiently than gasoline
engines. For the same
amount of work done, a
diesel tractor consumes
about 30 percent less fuel
than a gasoline engine.
Horsepower Ratings
Another important con
sideration is a tractor’s
available power. The tractor
tests provide information on
maximum PTO horsepower,
an convenient ments to
compare the relative size of
most tractors.
This does not tell a farmer
how much power will be
available in the field,
however. Because the
maximum available
drawbar horsepower is
determined in test situations
on a concrete track, the
rating does not provide an
accurate indication of what
to expect in the field.
Lugging Ability
Another series of tests that
you should consider when
purchasing a tractor are the
Lagging Ability in Rated
Gear tests.
The ability of a tractor to
pull through momentary
overloads without shifting
gears is extremely im
portant.
This lugging ability is
evaluated m the Nebraska
tests by dropping engine
speed at 10 percent in
crements from rated speed
to at least 50 percent of rated
speed.
For normal field
operations, the first 20
percent reduction in engine
speed is critical. A tractor
whose pulling power rises
substantially during this
first 20 percent reduction in
speed has excellent lugging
ability characteristics.
After this point, pulling
power should.not begin to
decline until a 30 percent
reduction m engine speed
occurs.
Gear Spacing
From the Nebraska
Tractor Tests you can also
determine the number and
spacing and tractor gears.
A reasonable number of
evenly spaced gears for field
operations, within a normal
field speed range, permits a
greater number of choices
for operating the tractor at a
speed and power level ap
propriate for a particular
implement.
This is very important for
sprayers, where speed in
fluences application rate.
Tillage equipment also
produces the most desirable
results within a fairly
narrow field speed range.
A transmission with
several evenly spaced gears
offers greater opportunity to
gear-up and throttle-down
while maintaining a
reasonable field speed.
Wild Dogs
Scientists believe wild
dogs were the first animals
to be tamed oy people
at least 12,000 years ago
The first wild dog to be
tamed probably was a wolf,
and it is believed that
most pet dogs are its des
cendants
... the H 2 and 3-Section Offset Disc
Flexibility is the key word because these
totally flexible discs offer flexibility in
rough or terraced terrain without gouging
or buckling Precision pre set gang angle
on the Model H insures a straight pulling
disc because the gang cutting angle is
always in the proper relationship to the
pull point (the hitch) Also because of the
pre set gangs set up time has been cut to
a baie minimum
Some of the features offered on the
Model H are heavy duty 4” square tubular
steel frame heavy duty lifting mechanism
wheel adjustments exclusive adjustable
tongue greasable sleeves at hinge joints
for longer life machined spools and high
When we say the new Sunflower Tandem
Disc Harrow performs that's just what we
mean The Sunflower Tandem's flexible
wings stretch out and follow ground
contour without skipping gouging or
buckling and the engineering concepts
we ve used have completely eliminated
any possibility of sidedraft that’s per
formance 1
Heavy duty wing and lift cylinders big
22 ’ 8 gauge disc blades and a high
carbon 11/?I 1 /? ' gang shaft are just a few of
the distinctions that set it aprat from other
tandem discs in its class
If we haven t convinced you so far of the
CUMMINGS & BRICKER, INC.
Distributors of Farm & Irrigation Equipment
RDI, Claremont Rd. (Stover Drive)
Carlisle, PA 17013
717-249-6720
Serving Farmers Through Farm Equipment Dealers
. . . the Tandem Disc Harrow
Distributed by
quality disc blades However you look at it
from an engineers point of view or from
your point of view you just can't beat the
quality of manufacturing of dependability
or the Sunflower Model H 2 and 3 Section
Flexible Offset Disc Available in sizes 12
14 16 18 & 20 ft
See your Sunflower Dealer he'll show yu
that the Model H 2 and 3 Section Disc has a
size to fit your needs
CSUNFLOWER
Sunflower Manufacturing Co Inc
A Subsidiary of CORE 'ndustnes Inc
superior quality of the Sunflower Tandem
Disc compare l Compare your standard
features Compare your design and
craftsmanship And when you are through
comparing see your Sunflower dealer
he II show you that pound for pound dollar
fot dollar you can t buy better than the
best the Sunflower Tandem Disc
Harrow a new breed of animal 1
CSUNFLOWER
Sunflower Manufacturing Co Inc
A Subsidiary of CORE Industries Inc