I consider myself to be pretty frugal. Sometimes to my detriment. I have a STX 375 quadtrac that has been chipped to 485 hp for the last 8 years. It has the standard 40 GPM hydraulic pump on it as well as a PTO (so nowhere to mount a second pump - other than onto the PTO). Also, it is short on power for pulling our seeding implement in our hills at the depth I pull it. We have a JD 1870 Conservapak with a 430 bu. tow between cart. With this combo, it gets the job done - albeit slowly (4 to 4.5 MPH). We seed between 3500 and 4500 acres a year. The tractor has 7600 hours on it, but just went through a CaseIH inspection last year. It also has new front tracks, an aftermarket cab suspension, aftermarket LED lights, and has never left me shut down for over 12 hours. No emissions BS. It weighs 55,000 pounds and is a little light in the front end for our hills. It also always runs at 180 F, unless I am using most of the hydraulic capacity - then there are serious issues over 26 C. If it is just pulling heavy harrows or a protill on a HOT day, I've never seen it over 185.
Which finally brings me to my question. I am tired of this tractor limiting my seeding speed with this outfit due to lack of HP and also limiting my ability to upgrade to a newer parallel linkage seeding system. We ran a Seedhawk for 10 years prior to this Conservapak and I miss certain things about it. Would I be stupid to build a self contained diesel hydraulic pump/system to run fans on an airdrill rather than buying a new-to-me $250,000 tractor with 110 GPM flow, tracks, PTO? I think I could sell this tractor/blade for $100,000, but it is my main snow moving machine when we have a big dump of snow. So, by the time I throw a blade on a newer one (don't want a piece of junk someone else has trashed with a blade in the patch) would cost $300,000. Which is a $200,000 difference. I think I can build a unit based off of the back of a CaseIH 8820 swather (3.9L cummins w/ fan, radiator, oil cooler, etc.) for less than $15,000 that I would mount on the blade brackets and give myself more traction on the tractor at the same time. Should be able to run 50 GPM pump putting out around 3000 psi. Engine would be out in front and therefore out of the dust. Would reverse the fan so it didn't push hot air in front of the tractor radiator. This is a 80 HP engine and in my mind should be nearly the equivalent of having an extra 60 or 70 HP (if it is flowing 40 to 50 GPM). Essentially giving me a 485 hp tractor PLUS 60 hp that will never get hot or really be short of hydraulic capacity. $15,000 VS. $200,000
Pleas talk me out of it. Or tell me what I am forgetting. Thank you.
Which finally brings me to my question. I am tired of this tractor limiting my seeding speed with this outfit due to lack of HP and also limiting my ability to upgrade to a newer parallel linkage seeding system. We ran a Seedhawk for 10 years prior to this Conservapak and I miss certain things about it. Would I be stupid to build a self contained diesel hydraulic pump/system to run fans on an airdrill rather than buying a new-to-me $250,000 tractor with 110 GPM flow, tracks, PTO? I think I could sell this tractor/blade for $100,000, but it is my main snow moving machine when we have a big dump of snow. So, by the time I throw a blade on a newer one (don't want a piece of junk someone else has trashed with a blade in the patch) would cost $300,000. Which is a $200,000 difference. I think I can build a unit based off of the back of a CaseIH 8820 swather (3.9L cummins w/ fan, radiator, oil cooler, etc.) for less than $15,000 that I would mount on the blade brackets and give myself more traction on the tractor at the same time. Should be able to run 50 GPM pump putting out around 3000 psi. Engine would be out in front and therefore out of the dust. Would reverse the fan so it didn't push hot air in front of the tractor radiator. This is a 80 HP engine and in my mind should be nearly the equivalent of having an extra 60 or 70 HP (if it is flowing 40 to 50 GPM). Essentially giving me a 485 hp tractor PLUS 60 hp that will never get hot or really be short of hydraulic capacity. $15,000 VS. $200,000
Pleas talk me out of it. Or tell me what I am forgetting. Thank you.
