Head to your local tractor supply and get some of the chain links that you can either bolt or splice and then attach two rows together in the middle. That will keep them from falling in between the tire treads. I did this with the chains on my old 9N. It was cheap and easy. Haven't needed chains on the Max yet.
Mahindra Snow Thread
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Shift4200
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Shift try loosening the chains a bit. I have 4 link on my R1's and at the top, they fall between the lugs. I couldn't care less what they look like on the upper portions of the tire. I use no chain tensioners and when the tire comes around, the chain is loose enough that it sags to make earth (or snow) contact first. Mine grip very well. Also if you can, fill the rears if you have not already.
OP
Shift4200
Gold Member
Hey Bud...
That's another great idea. Funny that you mention it as this morning while my truck was warming up I looked over and noticed the chains looked tight, and wondered if loosening them would help. I don't have tensioners but i am using a couple small bungee cords to keep them taught. No snow in our forecast right now, but next time i can get at her in the light I'll make those adjustments and see what happens.
Thanks again guys.
-J
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Shift4200
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Arrow,
I did this for our last storm and had zero issues with traction. Thanks for the suggestion. I have not yet filled the rears, did you have this done locally or did you do it yourself?
-J
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Sorry Shift. Hadn't seen your reply until now. There are two ways to fill your tires. (I'm assuming we're talking beet juice here) You can take them off, bring them to Dubay's and the guy that fills his tires will fill yours while there. or 2. Call up Dale to get his filler to come to your place and fill them while on the tractor. He is coming from Conn. so there is a nominal travel charge for the tire guy.Glad to hear you have added traction with loosened chains. I have filled tires myself but it was with calcium chloride. Had this stuff in tubes for 28 years on my other tractor. RimGard (beet juice) is not conducive to self filling as one has to buy it in bulk and they seem to only want to sell the stuff to dealers who use large quantities..
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Shift4200
Gold Member
Just chatted with Dale at Dubay. We're in the "discussion" phase of a possible warranty repair for my hydraulics (I made a post about it if you're curious). As of now it's looking like the Max will go in for a repair sometime in the near future. I'll have the tires filled then..... as i really see no reason not to. I like the idea of the beet juice with it's anti-corrosive qualities as well as being safe for the pets. Good friend of mine has an old JD that the wheels rotted off from filling with calcium. Until now i really didn't have any idea there was an alternative. Gotta love the internets....
-J
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Hmm, it sounds minor whatever the problem. Something about blocking flow. Make sure all your fel hoses with quick disconnects are fully engaged. You may want to try "blowing out" your lines by disconnecting them systematically from bucket back and then starting the tractor and engaging the fel. This will make a major mess unless you use something to confine the hydraulic oil as it blows out of hoses. (plastic bags with zip ties works for me). If you go this route, don't forget to inspect the inlet of whatever you removed the hose from for debris. Any debris in the hoses should flow out with this method instead of trapped within a fitting if indeed this is the problem. Only other thing I can think of is something wrong with float on the spool valve itself. I'll check mine and see if it does the same thing.
OP
Shift4200
Gold Member
Thanks for the info Arrow, and again thanks for checking out your machine for me as well. I had high hopes of trying out your suggestion this past weekend, but with the Max still under warranty, and nice days so few and far between.... i opted to take the opportunity to get some firewood processed and stacked instead.
I've got another message in for Dale over at Dubay... hoping to hear from him today.
-J
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Shift4200
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Heavy snow last night. Roughly 7in fell thru the day, i started clearing around 5pm and finished about 630.
No traction issues since loosening the chains on the rear tires. Got em to spin once, but that was my own fault. Bit off a little more than Max could chew.
Loader worked perfect, with bucket curl/dump working in float mode like it used to. Reached out to the dealer to let him know that the problem mysteriously fixed itself. Going to put this in a holding pattern until the next storm goes by.
Only complaint so far is I'm wishing I'd gone with a 72in rear blade so I would have a wider drag with the blade at 15deg. But, with hopes of getting the front mount snow blade for next year, i guess this will be a moot point.
-J
No traction issues since loosening the chains on the rear tires. Got em to spin once, but that was my own fault. Bit off a little more than Max could chew.
Loader worked perfect, with bucket curl/dump working in float mode like it used to. Reached out to the dealer to let him know that the problem mysteriously fixed itself. Going to put this in a holding pattern until the next storm goes by.
Only complaint so far is I'm wishing I'd gone with a 72in rear blade so I would have a wider drag with the blade at 15deg. But, with hopes of getting the front mount snow blade for next year, i guess this will be a moot point.
-J
