Loading tires

[MedicZman]

I am looking for information on loading tires with ballast. Particularly the types of ballast and how they can affect the rims, tires, valve stems, and environment. I know that Calcium will eat the rims and must only be used in tubed tires. I have heard that windshield washer fluid and/or antifreeze can be used. Do they have any negative effect on the items that I listed? I have read good things about Rim Guard. It is a bit pricey for my needs and I would like to do the loading myself. I have a 1949 Ford 8N that I basically use for plowing snow in the winter and mowing fields in the summer. I am trying to find a balance between the two. Namely enough weight the stop me from sliding all over the place in winter and not too much that I will get swamped in the wet fields in the late spring. Any information would be greatly appreciated.

 

[LBrown59]

I am looking for information on loading tires with ballast. Particularly the types of ballast and how they can affect the rims, tires, valve stems, and environment. I know that Calcium will eat the rims and must only be used in tubed tires. I have heard that windshield washer fluid and/or antifreeze can be used. Do they have any negative effect on the items that I listed? I have read good things about Rim Guard. It is a bit pricey for my needs and I would like to do the loading myself. I have a 1949 Ford 8N that I basically use for plowing snow in the winter and mowing fields in the summer. I am trying to find a balance between the two.
Namely enough weight the stop me from sliding all over the place in winter and not too much that I will get swamped in the wet fields in the late spring.
Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Going back and forth between these 2 it looks like you need weight that you can add/remove as need rather than a permanent weight like filled tires.

 

[LBrown59]

TractorByNet.com - Search Results

 

[radioman]

try rimgaurd. I have rimgaurd in mine. no tubes needed, rimgaurd acts as a protectant to metal and wont hurt crops/lawns if you have a punture in your tire. I have rimgaurd in mine since fall and time will tell how well I like it, but so far its all positive experience.

 

[ctown75]

My buddy has same year tractor as you and uses it for the same purposes, he has removable wheel weights for that reason. they aren't easy to handle as they weigh about 150lbs each, but you can put them on in winter, off in summer. His tractor still sinks in mud and still spins on hard packed snow, but they definitely help.

 

[xlr82v2]

I would definitely recommend the Rim Guard. My 8N is loaded with CaCl, and the rims show it. Our ground gets pretty soft here in the spring time, but I think you're better off with the weight even when it's soft, ESPECIALLY when it's soft... it helps the lugs bite in and not slip/spin.

If you've got 12.4-28 tires on your 8N, you'll add about 730 pounds IIRC with a 75% fill with the RimGuard.

I loaded the rears of my 3525 with RimGuard last Spring, and it made a huge difference doing loader work on softer ground... much better traction. Your 8N will gain the same benefits, even though you probably don't have a loader on it.

 

[ctown75]

I agree that once you're stuck it's better to have the weight, but the goal is to not get stuck. The lighter tractor is less likely to sink, rut, and get stuck.

 

[xlr82v2]

...... The lighter tractor is less likely to sink, rut, and get stuck.

I totally disagree, especially with a 2WD tractor. Let's look at his 8N, for example.

Remember, the front wheels do nothing but steer and carry the front of the tractor. So, your fronts are going to sink anyway, regardless of whether or not you ballast the rears.

If you've already made the mistake of going too far into the muck to where your front end is sinking, I definitely would rather have the loaded rears to help me get enough traction to get through/out of that pickle. With unloaded tires, you won't get as much traction because the tires will have more of a tendency to "float" on the muck and just spin. If you let it spin, then the tires just dig holes, and you're done. Where's the chain and another tractor?

What we need to keep in mind is that the practice of ballasting the tractor is not intended to enhance the "mud-ability" of a tractor, but to reduce wheel slip to more optimum levels. Wheel slip especially is a problem on the compact utility tractors, where they generally have much higher horsepower to weight ratios compared to full size ag tractors.

If the ground is soft enough that you're leaving ruts, you probably shouldn't be there in the first place. But, if you find yourself there, I'd rather have the weight on the tractor to help the tires bite in and get through rather than just spinning on top.

With my 3525, I could tell little difference on how much the rears sank into the ground when mowing my yard in the spring when the ground was rather soft. But I COULD tell that they slipped less and did less damage in the turns after ballasting.

I highly recommend loading the rear tires.

 

[ctown75]

I still disagree with you but we are trying to prove points based on a different scenarios. I won't tell you that you are wrong, because whatever works best for you is best for you, and I'm okay with that. If you mow swamp lands, yeah you should probably load the tires, but at the same time you probably ought to invest in a 4wd tractor. I don't mow swamps. I mow a field that has poor drainage and when it rains a lot holds some water. When I was mowing with my old allis, it did better with out rear wheel weights than with. Different tractor, different yard. I still think the best bet is to keep the rig as light as possible to prevent rutting because if you're not digging into the mud you don't have to dig out of it. Just take a little weight off the mower deck using the 3pt to help take weight off the front of the tractor, you're gravy train. That also helps transfer weight to the rear wheels.

 

[radioman]

lifting a bush hog to transfer weight to rear wheels is same as loaded tires. BUT- what if you dont have it connected ? then what ?

I think loaded tires helps more then it makes it worse. HMM, meaning you have better then 50 % chance using loaded tractor in different scenerios then trying to be light as possible. Well , I dont know about you, but I'll take those odds.

I have the same exact issue of a poorly drained lawn on one side of house and the loaded tires seemed to help and i really dont see much of a difference in creating new ruts. just my 2 cents.