New Owner - tire, chain, scraper questions

   / New Owner - tire, chain, scraper questions #1  

ChrisC

New member
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Dec 6, 2009
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23
Hi all - just purchased a used Kubota B2910 with FEL. Came with a brush hog and used it to cut the fields. The tractor came with turf tires and as I get ready for winter, I have a few questions.

Our property is pretty hilly. I plan to use the tractor to mow the fields 2x a year. I also plan to use the tractor for snow removal. Our driveway is 200-300' long and flat. It is not paved. I plan to get a scraper blade to remove snow. Scrape it out of the way and use the bucket if the piles get too big and I need to "relocate" them. There is a bit of a rise from where the tractor will be parked to the driveway.

I'd also plan to use the tractor to help with pulling cordwood from the land 蔓possibly pulling trees to a landing.

Turf tires worked fairly well for mowing the field. There were one or two spots that were pretty wet and I avoided them so that I wouldn't get stuck (again, first time using the tractor).

My question:

Do I need to get new tires? I have concerns about the turf tires for snow removal. I'm pretty certain they wouldn't cut it in the woods with snow on the ground. Can I get away with chains, or do I need to go with ag tires (or ag tires with chains)? I'll need new rims for ag tires, and it's getting pretty pricey (tractor, plus pole barn for the tractor, plus new tires and rims... )

I've been lurking here for a while and I appreciate the great information.

Chris
 
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   / New Owner - tire, chain, scraper questions #2  
I don't know if your tractor is four wheel drive, but if it is, turf tires will be fine. I have about five hundred feet of drive and it is up a pretty steep hill (both ways :)) and my turf tires do just fine. We get lots of snow and I have never had any problem. When I first bought the tractor I asked the dealer to price out chains and his response was that if I ever needed chains he would give them to me. He was right. There has been times when I started to spin and the I realized I was in two wheel. HTH
 
   / New Owner - tire, chain, scraper questions
  • Thread Starter
#3  
Thanks for the quick reply. That's good to know about plowing the driveway.

What about working in the woods during the winter?
 
   / New Owner - tire, chain, scraper questions #4  
The turfs will be fine for snow removal if its not steep but the rest of the work you may as well forget it. I would get some R'1 for winter use and pulling the wood. You get the turfs full of snow and they will be like trying to use your car to pull wood.

Chris
 
   / New Owner - tire, chain, scraper questions #5  
I'd suggest chains as a first step - make a huge difference and not a huge cost versus new tires. Turfs are generally felt to be good on snow and not sure how much difference underlying tire type makes once you add chains. I would question turfs in bush conditions with respect to mud or punctures (e.g. sharp sticks, rocks) where R4's are best for toughness, R1's best for grip in mud.
 
   / New Owner - tire, chain, scraper questions #6  
I feel turf tires and chains are one of the most versatile set ups a person can have. This is especially so if you load your rears with beet juice or calcium cloride ( definitely use tubes if you go the cc route). Put chains on all fours with 4wd and you should go just about anywhere you want in the woods. Get chains that have double cross links and they'll give the tires good protection as lungdoc makes a good point about tire toughness when in the wood. Chains on all 4's made my tractor a different tractor in the woods during skidding operations and I have R1's which has much less chain to ground contact than chains on turfs. They also made a huge difference with snow and I have the same set up you are thinking about for your tractor. There's a picture of a member digging a ditch with his fel in the sloppiest goo you can imagine . He has turfs with chains on. (was that yours Egon?) Take the chains off and you can still use your tractor on the grass. Something I cannot do with R1's
 
   / New Owner - tire, chain, scraper questions #7  
I'd vote for chains, but I really think you should run the winter as is. you would want to learn how your tractor handle in default mode. You might have trouble with no chains since you would be pulling the snow with a rear blade instead of pushing it. remember if you do get stuck- always think hydraulics. for example, if you are driving down the driveway with rear blade pulling snow off to the side and its the wet heavy kind and its deep and you get stuck. no problem- just lift the back blade to put wieght on the rear tires, use the FEL to crab your way back out. The crabbing procedure is curl bucket almost all the way forward. lower the ground into the ground and curl "up" while driving backwards. you will find 99.99% of time you will always be able to get out with no problems. Once you get out, you have the FEL to scoop up the wet stuff and move it.

Since you have 4 wheel drive, most of the time you should be fine. Where are you located? Are your rears loaded ? if not you might want to do that before the snow falls. They do help.
 
   / New Owner - tire, chain, scraper questions #8  
I'm on my third tractor with unloaded turfs and have never owned chains. I have been stuck twice, enough to need a pull, over the years. I think I would have been stuck regardless of the type of tires both those times, just stuck worse as a more aggresive tire tends to dig a hole a lot faster. Nice thing about turfs is they don't tend to dig holes.
I use a blower to clear snow so don't need as much traction as you will using a blade. I do like to go into the forest with the tractor at all times of the year, so far I have never had to walk back, the turfs have always managed to pull through with the front wheel assist and occasionally the differential lock. Using the FEL to push back out of a tough spot is a good thing to be aware of too.
I agree, try your first winter with the tractor as is and see how it does. Depending on your snow conditions there is a good chance the turfs will do well. Where I live the winters tend to be cold and the snow fairly dry, good snow conditions for turfs.
If you fill out your profile so we know the area you live in it will help the rest of us give you more informed advice.
 
   / New Owner - tire, chain, scraper questions #9  
I'm on my third tractor with unloaded turfs and have never owned chains. I have been stuck twice, enough to need a pull, over the years. I think I would have been stuck regardless of the type of tires both those times, just stuck worse as a more aggresive tire tends to dig a hole a lot faster. Nice thing about turfs is they don't tend to dig holes.
I use a blower to clear snow so don't need as much traction as you will using a blade. I do like to go into the forest with the tractor at all times of the year, so far I have never had to walk back, the turfs have always managed to pull through with the front wheel assist and occasionally the differential lock. Using the FEL to push back out of a tough spot is a good thing to be aware of too.
I agree, try your first winter with the tractor as is and see how it does. Depending on your snow conditions there is a good chance the turfs will do well. Where I live the winters tend to be cold and the snow fairly dry, good snow conditions for turfs.
If you fill out your profile so we know the area you live in it will help the rest of us give you more informed advice.

My sentiments,exactly!
 
   / New Owner - tire, chain, scraper questions #10  
My sentiments,exactly!

I think tires have a lot to do with dirt type and snow type. I can tell you for a fact where I live turfs would not cut it. Our snow is very wet and sticky. R4's are not much better than turfs because they just load up and turn to slicks. Same thing with our dirt. There is no rock, just sticky top soil with no sand or loom then 4" down even sticker clay. The only choice is R1's unless you are talking a 20,000# piece of equipment. Chains if its ice on any tire still rules the roost.

Chris
 
 
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