L5740 Changing R4 to R14 on front only?

[LouNY]

I see no issue with putting R14's on the fronts with R4's still on the rear. The tractor doesn't care what the tread pattern is as long as the loaded radius is correct.

 

[dstig1]

Opinions are fine pro and con on mixing tire types, etc. Trying to justify an opinion by the vague modern day threat of lawyers taking some absurd position is not valid, in my opinion. For one thing, exactly what kind of "warrantee claim" would you expect to see based on having used 2 different tire types? None because that is absurd too.

Precisely...Plus the very first words of the OP's post:

I have a 12 year old L5740

Not much risk of voiding a warranty on a 12y-o tractor...

 

[FatTire]

A guy at the tire shop determined that the reason that tire loses air is that there is a rough area (likely damage from one of the earlier flat episodes) on the tire bead. He put 80 psi in it and there was no leak when submerged. But these tires are 6 ply and only rated at 45 psi so we dropped it to 45. Although the L5740 manual specifies only 20 psi for R4 on the front, I've been running at close to 30. One day after getting home that tire was at 38psi. My shop floor is probably colder than the tire shop right now, so that may be some of the loss. I inflated back to 45 just to see what happens. Will check it in a couple of days. Meanwhile, just to clarify, my R4 fronts don't look great close up. There are chunks missing due to running tire chains or from sharp rocks, and the edges are so round that they're even worse on slick surfaces than ever. That's why I can see spending money. No intention of replacing the rears until they need it. The difference of R4 and R14 for the front is about $50 per tire. Not that big of a deal.

 

[CH4Ohio]

A guy at the tire shop determined that the reason that tire loses air is that there is a rough area (likely damage from one of the earlier flat episodes) on the tire bead. He put 80 psi in it and there was no leak when submerged. But these tires are 6 ply and only rated at 45 psi so we dropped it to 45. Although the L5740 manual specifies only 20 psi for R4 on the front, I've been running at close to 30. One day after getting home that tire was at 38psi. My shop floor is probably colder than the tire shop right now, so that may be some of the loss. I inflated back to 45 just to see what happens. Will check it in a couple of days. Meanwhile, just to clarify, my R4 fronts don't look great close up. There are chunks missing due to running tire chains or from sharp rocks, and the edges are so round that they're even worse on slick surfaces than ever. That's why I can see spending money. No intention of replacing the rears until they need it. The difference of R4 and R14 for the front is about $50 per tire. Not that big of a deal.

Go for it. I wouldn't be concerned about changing the tread pattern if you're going to replace the tires anyway. And I'd pay the difference for R14 too.

Seems like running your tires at 45 PSI when max inflation is supposed to be 20 PSI would cause it to really ride hard and bounce. Also seems like that additional inflation would help your chains chew the tires up since they're much less flexible when over-inflated to that extent. Mine rides hard enough as it is. Just saying . . .

 

[FatTire]

Go for it. I wouldn't be concerned about changing the tread pattern if you're going to replace the tires anyway. And I'd pay the difference for R14 too.

Seems like running your tires at 45 PSI when max inflation is supposed to be 20 PSI would cause it to really ride hard and bounce. Also seems like that additional inflation would help your chains chew the tires up since they're much less flexible when over-inflated to that extent. Mine rides hard enough as it is. Just saying . . .

Yep. I don't know how long I'll last, but if the bead isn't compressed well and it leaks at 40 psi this will be a short experiment .

 

[LouNY]

Or break the bead lose again and coat it with bead sealer and reseat, could go for a few more years then.

 

[CH4Ohio]

I think I missed your point in previous post.

The tire guy determined that the wheel has a rough spot -- right? That's pretty common.

They usually use an air powered brush to buff those areas smooth when mounting or repairing tires. Did he smooth it out? Or was his solution to just put 80 PSI in the tire?

Like Lou said, bead sealer or smoothing up the rough spot are both options . . .

 

[JWR]

I think I missed your point in previous post.

The tire guy determined that the wheel has a rough spot -- right? That's pretty common.

They usually use an air powered brush to buff those areas smooth when mounting or repairing tires. Did he smooth it out? Or was his solution to just put 80 PSI in the tire?

Like Lou said, bead sealer or smoothing up the rough spot are both options . . .

... and exactly what kept you from putting tubes in them !!??