Clutch life expectancy?

Bob88 · Jan 20, 2019

I have a 1979 John Deere 850 and it is single stage clutch it has snow blower 3pt blade and a belly mower just curious the clutch life expectancy of a machine like this since with the snow blower it does a lot of forward and reverse I do wait for everything to stop before I change gears or directions. Also would this be a good machine for a front loader?

old · Jan 20, 2019

A whole lot depends on how much you slip the clutch. I have tractor that I have had for over a decade and have yet to replace a clutch including ones with loaders

caterpillar guy · Jan 20, 2019

Operators make more difference in clutch life than anything else. Adjustment is next.

showcrop · Jan 21, 2019

You don't mention loader, they are the biggest wearer of clutches. easily 2,000 hours difference.

Bruce from Can. · Jan 21, 2019

If you are always making the tractor work at or near it?s maximum capacity while using it, no doubt the life of the clutch will be diminished. Also some tractors just have a better overall design

jon f mn · Jan 21, 2019

My 53 case DC still has the original clutch and has been a loader tractor it's whole life. Of course it has the advantage of having a wet clutch. I've been running tractors since the late 60s and can't think of any that we have had to replace the clutch on. Of course the family mostly had cases and they are known for tough clutches, but it's mostly about how you drive them. I put a million miles on my 05 international semi truck and the only clutch I put in it was because the center broke on the plate at about 900,000 miles, and the disc was still in good shape then.

showcrop · Jan 21, 2019

(quoted from post at 04:08:32 01/21/19) My 53 case DC still has the original clutch and has been a loader tractor it's whole life. Of course it has the advantage of having a wet clutch. I've been running tractors since the late 60s and can't think of any that we have had to replace the clutch on. Of course the family mostly had cases and they are known for tough clutches, but it's mostly about how you drive them. I put a million miles on my 05 international semi truck and the only clutch I put in it was because the center broke on the plate at about 900,000 miles, and the disc was still in good shape then.

Jon, I used to drive an old Mack that would never have worn the clutch disc out because none of the drivers used it. Not even for starting and stopping.

centash · Jan 21, 2019

2955 with 7000 hours, 2120 with 11000 and both still going, replaced 2755 at 6000. 44 Massey shows 6700 hours and has never been split. Some guys can take a clutch out in half a year.
Ben

Donald Lehman · Jan 21, 2019

Old pretty well summed it up. Technique is everything.

Pitch · Jan 21, 2019

Biggest killer of clutches is multiple operators. One man can have a clutch last a lifetime. No one engages a clutch like anyone else. Your clutch wears to your usage. Putting someone else on with either slip it or engage rougher causing a different wear pattern thereby using more material.
Some folks may call BS but then again I am also of the belief that the seat of your pants is the best guage available for proper operation. Some have the feel some will learn the feel others never will.

SDE · Jan 21, 2019

On the first day on a job, an employee killed the clutch on a truck. After it was repaired, the same employee killed the clutch again. The owner fired the employee.

Traditional Farmer · Jan 21, 2019

Its mostly on the operator,let the clutch out cleanly, get the foot of the pedal it'll last a long time.Half way letting the clutch out,starting off with a high throttle and high gear and leaving
the foot on the clutch while operating it won't last long.

RedMF40 · Jan 21, 2019

My Massey is a loader tractor with 2-stage clutch. Very strong and the tractor is very old. Not sure if it has been replaced, since I'm not the original owner. I engage at low RPM and generally get long life out of clutches. As others have mentioned, clutch life is most often affected by the operator/driver.

Brings to mind a car show on the radio called Click and Clack. People would call in and the two brothers would answer their car-related questions. One woman had just bought a new VW bug with manual transmission and was teaching her young daughter how to drive in a parking lot. Car had about zero miles on it, fresh from the dealer. After about an hour in the parking lot, she explained that there was a lot of smoke and the car wouldn't move. Otherwise the engine was running fine. The two brothers gave her the bad news.

Janicholson · Jan 21, 2019

I have a 350U with the original clutch and TA. Use it like a switch and all is well. I was on a school bus in 1967 when the substitute driver held the bus on a RR track grade in 2nd (grandma 1st he was told not to use). All us farm kids were yelling at him, he would not listen. We started drifting backwards and almost hit a car behind us till he realized he had to use the brakes !!!. It filled the bus with that smoked resin and asbestos smell. He never drove again. (buses) Jim

WGM · Jan 21, 2019

Depends on the operator. Treat a clutch right and it will last forever.

jddrawbar · Jan 21, 2019

As for a good loader tractor.....power steering is the key. Most 850's did not have PS. That is what I would use to determine whether to put a loader on or not.

Bob88 · Jan 21, 2019

Ok I have to be at or near PTO speed on this machine to get going with both mower and snowblower I try to ease clutch when engaging no matter engine speed it does have power steering on it. Other than that it spends most of time in low range mowing in summer and then snowblowing in winter and spring and fall I blade the driveway. That?s about all if I had a loader I imagine I would use it a little more. I?ve owned since May 2018 got 40 hours on it since then.

Kansasredneck · Jan 21, 2019

Clutch life expectancy? Do you have teenagers?

Goose · Jan 21, 2019

The worst thing you can do to a clutch is to "try to ease it". The more you slip a clutch, the faster it's going to wear out.

You have to start out in a low enough gear so you can basically "pop" the clutch with very little slippage.

oldtanker · Jan 21, 2019

Not only the operator makes a difference but the conditions make a difference too.

Friend went to work as a truck mechanic for a company that rand day cabs and 9 speeds. He said they averaged about 10 months on a clutch no matter who the driver was. All driving was in Chicago. When he switched to a company running over the road they hardly ever touched a clutch.

It's one of the reasons they started putting shuttle and power shifts on equipment that did a lot of back and forth like a loader or dozer. Not only did it really reduce down time it really increased productivity a lot.

Rick

ss55 · Jan 21, 2019

Front end loader work and snow blowing can be harder on clutches than most other work, but are not clutch-killers. If you do have to replace your clutch too often, consider a using a tractor with a hydrostatic transmission or maybe a power-shift transmission would be suitable.

David G · Jan 21, 2019

I have been very hard on the clutch on my loader tractor, slip the clutch instead of shifting gears.

Just confessing my sin.

jon f mn · Jan 22, 2019

Confession is good for the soul, but bad for the reputation. Lol.

Clutch life expectancy?

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