Tire Chains on industrial tires?

[atgreene]

Chains should only be on the front when there is also chains on the rear.

Chains should be used on the front primarily for steering, not so you can dig more or deeper. I have snapped a front drive in my old Kubota, but I did not have enough ballast on the rear.

Whatever you do, always have more traction in the rear than the front to avoid issues. A full bucket and a front-end that can't spin is a recipe for disaster. JMHO.

 

[beenthere]

Here's a pic of my tire chains on R-4's (JD 4300)

 

[downslope]

Thanks, all, for the info. I am plowing with a rear blade and of course, the loader when necessary. The idea of chains just on the front is pretty appealing as it would be both cheaper and easier. Since the tractor is rarely if ever used for anything other than snow removal in the winter, having them on for the whole winter is not a problem, either.

Chains on only the front is appealing from an ease of install perspective but from a purely operational standpoint you would be better to start with chains on the rear. They can help prevent the tractor from slipping sideways on unlevel ground and will also be easier on the front driveline components. Many utility tractors are sold with the option of either 2WD and 4WD for the same model. So the rear drivetrain is designed to go it alone if necessary. If you install chains only on the front there will be situations where the front could be doing almost 100% of the pulling/pushing, especially with a loader up front and the wheels making a turn. Some posters here have said they get away with it while others have stated the dealer says not to do it. If you can leave the chains on all winter, I would say put them on the rear and then add front chains later if necessary.

 

[123rday]

I asked my dealer if it would void my warranty if I were to install chains on the front of my 3038e whether I used rear chains or not. Their response was no.
But thinking of all the times my grandfather used rear chains on his 8n and it only being 2wd has me wondering if I really need them for my front. Of course with this last snow fall (10"-12") we had last Tuesday night I didn't have any chains on and could only plow so far with my 7' rear blade without having to lift it, back up and finish pushing with the FEL. My uncle who has possession of the 8n now, gave me the duo grip chains that were used on it. I had to shorten them a little and still need to do some adjustments somewhere for clearence issues but tried them after I got those on and man what a difference it made pulling the snow. I have a set of truck chains I got free from a customer of mine that I will make up a set for the front when I have time, since the only time I lift the FEL when pushing snow is when I'm at the pile already. 2 are better than none, 4 should be better than 2, at least in most cases.

 

[RedDog]

I run 4 link ladder bar chains front and rear on my R-4's.
They work great. The 4 link ladders give me all the traction I need.

I have to agree with you Vince.

I put my 4 link ladders on yesterday. Made a big difference! I need to take a picture of them on all fours. I also have some of the larger tires in this thread, which made me very strong putting them on!! 100 pounds each chain for the rears!!

 

[ernemats]

RedDog what type of tires do you have. I have been looking at the 4 link ladder and was told the chains would fall between the lugs and not be much good. I have R-1 ag tires about 75 % tread.

 

[beenthere]

.......... I have been looking at the 4 link ladder and was told the chains would fall between the lugs and not be much good. .........

IMO, just doesn't happen, especially if the chains are fitted and not snugged so tight that the cross links cannot move out of the lugs as the tires come around (and if there are no tightening chains of springs on the outside )

 

[RedDog]

RedDog what type of tires do you have. I have been looking at the 4 link ladder and was told the chains would fall between the lugs and not be much good. I have R-1 ag tires about 75 % tread.

I have R-4's. 14x17.5 fronts, 18.4x24 rears.

 

[jdgreg]

This snowfall has caused me to rethink my opinion on front chains only. Allow me to elaborate. I had been running front chains only for two reasons, a) that was all I had on hand at the time, and b) they were there primarily to keep the front snow blade from pushing the front end around and for better steering control. They also made it easier to make it up some of my neighbors steep drives. And the snowfall we would get really wasnt that significant to warrant chains on all 4.

However, this past weekend I put the bucket on so that I could move the piles back a little further from the drive. While working the bucket, I could see how chains on the front tires could cause added stress on the front driveline. This seemed especially true when the front wheels were deep into a snow bank/ice, preventing forward motion, or in a similar situation, while the bucket was full of snow/ice or happened to take too big a big and the loader was straining to lift/curl, etc.

If I had it to do over again, I would start out with rear chains, or just go with all four. This winter is the first since 95-96 that I've really needed chains all the way around, and boy am I glad I got them!

 

[mustangsallysdad]

This snowfall has caused me to rethink my opinion on front chains only. Allow me to elaborate. I had been running front chains only for two reasons, a) that was all I had on hand at the time, and b) they were there primarily to keep the front snow blade from pushing the front end around and for better steering control. They also made it easier to make it up some of my neighbors steep drives. And the snowfall we would get really wasnt that significant to warrant chains on all 4.

However, this past weekend I put the bucket on so that I could move the piles back a little further from the drive. While working the bucket, I could see how chains on the front tires could cause added stress on the front driveline. This seemed especially true when the front wheels were deep into a snow bank/ice, preventing forward motion, or in a similar situation, while the bucket was full of snow/ice or happened to take too big a big and the loader was straining to lift/curl, etc.

If I had it to do over again, I would start out with rear chains, or just go with all four. This winter is the first since 95-96 that I've really needed chains all the way around, and boy am I glad I got them!

Hey guys...I've used 2 link ladder chains on all 4 on a 2004 GC2310 TLB for the past 6 years (maybe a month of use a year cumulitively) and have never suffered any kind of front end damage... I am careful though). Another poster heard back from AGCO and said it was not a concern. I currently have around 1700 hours. It really helps with the steering aspect.