Tires TC-40 with calcium/water filled rear tires

[nickel plate]

My 2002 NH TC-40 has liquid filled rear 13.6-24 tires. My main concern is that I occasionally tow it 100 miles each way once or twice a month (50% mountain driving) and will hopefully soon be adding a Woods BH90-X backhoe and hydraulic thumb. The total package weight including the trailer, tractor with 1/2 tank of fuel and filled tires, FEL and backhoe will be about 12,300 lbs. The trailer alone can carry a little over 16,000 so I'm ok there, but my Ford F-250 diesel 4x4 TV is rated to tow up to 13,300 lbs. This only leaves me about 1000 lbs of margin.
How much does the fluid weigh in each of the rear tractor tires or how many gallons of fluid do they hold? Are they generally filled full or partial? Would there be a signifigant towing weight savings if I drain them?
When I use the 6' FEL I always have my Gearmore 6' scrapper box with 6 ripper teeth attached for counter balance. Do I still need the fluid filled tires for counter balance? Soil is not an issue so filled or unfilled tires will make no difference.

 

[wedge40]

according to Rim Guard your tires will hold about 38 gallons of fluid when filled to 75%. That would be about 760lbs. If it were me I'd leave the fluid in the tires. That 1000lb margin should be enough. Remember when they spec the trucks they include a margin as well. I would pick and choose what I hauled each trip..

Wedge

 

[Opti-Mist]

According to the charts when I had mine filled, the 13.6-24 tire will weigh 507 pounds with the standard 75% fill of CaCl. With the valve stem at top dead center, it will be at the fluid level when full. The volume above the valve stem is the other 25% and is all air. I would prefer to keep the ballast of filled tires to provide better counterweight and traction, especially if you use the tractor for other than backhoe work. That said, a tractor-loader-backhoe as an industrial unit can get by without liquid ballast because the backhoe generally is never removed.

 

[Hooked_on_HP]

Can your trailer carry 16,000 or does it have a 16,000 gvw which is the weight of the trailer + what you are hauling.
Bill

 

[AndyG]

Remember when they spec the trucks they include a margin as well.

Don't count on that margin to much. Do you ever wonder why trucks and trailers continue to get lighter yet their "capacity" stays the same or even increases. The manufacturers are including much less safety factor (margin) in their designs than they used to. For example, park my 1982 1 ton next to a brand new one. I would feel much more comfortable loading the old one heavily.

 

[nickel plate]

Can your trailer carry 16,000 or does it have a 16,000 gvw which is the weight of the trailer + what you are hauling.
Bill

Hello Bill,
The trailer's GVWR is 21,000 lbs less the trailer weight of 4850 lbs equals 16150 lbs of load (tractor, etc.) weight. In the photo, I just got back from a public scale and found out as it sits, the trailer, tractor, 16LA FEL, 1/2 tank of fuel and chains and binders weigh 10360 lbs standing alone on the scale. No rear attachment was taken because I want to at some point add a Woods BH90-X backhoe to the package and that will be the heaviest implement to haul around.

 

[jimmysisson]

Wow, that's some beautiful hills out back!
Jim

 

[jinman]

Wow, that's some beautiful hills out back!
Jim

Yes, they are! And, it's a great lookin' barn with a sweet lookin' tractor on a terrific trailer parked in front. I know I'm partial to these tractors, but that TC is one beautiful tractor. The sloping hood and 16LA loader are a thing of beauty. Nickel Plate, that looks like a first class rig to me.

 

[nickel plate]

Yes, they are! And, it's a great lookin' barn with a sweet lookin' tractor on a terrific trailer parked in front. I know I'm partial to these tractors, but that TC is one beautiful tractor. The sloping hood and 16LA loader are a thing of beauty. Nickel Plate, that looks like a first class rig to me.

jinman, thanks for the kind words. That hill out back is Colvin mountain 1400' elev. to the west and three or four times a year we sit out in back and watch the cattle drives go across it, several hundred cows and usually a dozen cowboys and their dogs.
If I turned the camera 180 degrees, you would see the snow capped Sierra of Sequoia National Forest. We are going to sell this place when the market (and it will) corrects and go build on a few acres that we own south of Mariposa (south of Yosemite).
I built the 32'x40' shop myself. That center bay has a 12' opening. Drew the plans, framed the walls on the 6" concrete slab and we had a "barn raising party" one weekend. All the walls were up, plumbed and lined and braced off in about three hours. I got to hand it to the country folks. It's real peaceful out here concidering this is California.

 

[LoneCowboy]

Hello Bill,
The trailer's GVWR is 21,000 lbs less the trailer weight of 4850 lbs equals 16150 lbs of load (tractor, etc.) weight. In the photo, I just got back from a public scale and found out as it sits, the trailer, tractor, 16LA FEL, 1/2 tank of fuel and chains and binders weigh 10360 lbs standing alone on the scale. No rear attachment was taken because I want to at some point add a Woods BH90-X backhoe to the package and that will be the heaviest implement to haul around.

Are you sure on that trailer?
Those look like single tires, single axles, which typically rate in the 6000/7000/8000 range (each so 12k, 14k,16k)
I've never seen a single tire axle rate for 10k, always takes duals.

What do the tires rate for?
What do the axles rate for?