Paul, convenience, ease of operation, durability, and safety are what I'd consider the main advantages of the HST. Of course, it depends on what use you make of the tractor. It's a lot more convenient to change speeds just with a foot pedal than having to shift a gear, you can go forward and backwards without having to use the clutch, if you do a lot of slow, tight, maneuvering or direction changes, you're not slipping a clutch (and putting wear on it), and if you need to stop quickly you don't have to use both feet on brakes and clutch, and you're not going to let you foot slip off the clutch like my brother-in-law did backing into his shed and stuck his brush hog right through the wall. Of course, there are also those people who learned to drive autos with automatic transmissions and have never learned to use a clutch properly, so it's easier for them to get used to the HST than a geared tractor. There are certainly uses for both kinds of transmissions (guess that's why they make both), but I love the HST myself (even though I have a lot more experience and time on geared tractors).

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