Chains

[SpringHollow]

Chains with studs are much better than studs alone. Studs are good for ice (bad for concrete and pavement). I used to run studded snows on rear wheel drive cars back in the day. Chains are good for ice and everything else except they still can be rough on pavement but not nearly as much as studs are. I have an outside concrete pad and you can see where the tires slipped when pushing back piles of snow.

Ken

Wow, $1/stud - ouch

 

[RegL]

Chains with studs are much better than studs alone. Studs are good for ice (bad for concrete and pavement). I used to run studded snows on rear wheel drive cars back in the day. Chains are good for ice and everything else except they still can be rough on pavement but not nearly as much as studs are. I have an outside concrete pad and you can see where the tires slipped when pushing back piles of snow.

Ken

Wow, $1/stud - ouch

Yea, looks like studs would run about $100/ wheel for a pt. How much are the chains? I agree that chains with studs would provide better traction. Studs would probably provide smoother ride and less hassle.

 

[SpringHollow]

It looks like they have come way down in price. They are $136/pair now. They were cheaper and then went up to over $230 now a much more reasonable $136.

Ken

 

[ponytug]

First: a major thank you to the forum. I would not have bought chains without the advice here.

Second: OMG! Adding chains is like pulling on your spidey suit. The PT1445 now just powers straight up the hills. Mowing 30 degree slopes is no longer scary.

Without chains, mowing thistles on the slope was scary, to put it mildly. The wet sap would cause the tires to slip a little and the brush hog would torque the mower downslope. Occasionally, the tractor would slip sideways as it lost traction. There was never any sign of "getting light" or tipping, just a disconcerting sideways movement. With the chains on, the tractor is stuck to the hillside like glue. It honestly feels like being a gecko; you are just stuck to the hillside.

I bought the european net chains from tirechains.com
SkidSteer Net Tire Chains (Fits the 1445).
These chains have traction links, and come with an integrated tension spring in addition to the cam to tighten the chains. The system looks a little confusing, but print out the photos, and it is straightforward, and quick.

Overall, I think that for me the chains are a phenomenal addition to the PT on slopes. During dry weather, it has always been traction limited on hills, and the chains cure that. In fact, I think that the tractor with chains is less damaging than without, since it doesn't spin out at all. These chains seem to be fine on my asphalt, but mine is weathered, so it doesn't show scuff marks readily. If you have just topcoated your asphalt, I wouldn't bet on it.

The downside? The tractor is stapled to the hillside. I am very glad that I had lots of seat time before getting chains. I can see that with chains, it would be much easier to drive the tractor to the limit (or beyond). With lots of seat time, I think that I have a reasonable feeling for the limits of the machine. If I had had chains earlier, I can see that I might have done some some unsafe maneuvers.

Thanks for the pointers on the chains!

All the best,

Peter

 

[woodlandfarms]

Hey Ken

Think these would work with dualies?

 

[SpringHollow]

Hi Carl,

They seem more aggressive than necessary for summer work but they look like a nice set of chains. Clearance against the wheel motors is the biggest issue as singles, less of an issue when running on the outside of duals.

Ken

 

[ponytug]

Ken- I agree that they seem like more chain than would be necessary, but they are the recommended chain for the tires on the 1445. As an aside, the double links seem to make the chains less damaging to pavement.

I will say that the tension system gets them on the tires very tightly. No chain noise and no movement once they are tensioned up. On the 1445 there are no clearance issues, but I can't speak to the 18XXs.

Carl- are these available in a size that meets your needs? Duallies?

All the best,

Peter

Hi Carl,

They seem more aggressive than necessary for summer work but they look like a nice set of chains. Clearance against the wheel motors is the biggest issue as singles, less of an issue when running on the outside of duals.

Ken

 

[Clumber]

One trick that I read about recently is to deflate the tire somewhat, install the chain, then reinflate the tire as needed to tighten the chain so it won't move.

 

[MossRoad]

One trick that I read about recently is to deflate the tire somewhat, install the chain, then reinflate the tire as needed to tighten the chain so it won't move.

I used to do that on an old Simplicity tractor we had. The chain was just a tad loose and I could not man-handle the latch into the next link. So, deflate the tire, move to next link, inflate the tire and good all winter.