MBJones
New member
I've searched forums and dealerships for answers to various technical questions prior to purchasing or making mods. There is a lot of misinformation or lack of accurate information on certain topics, so I've joined in order to share my experiences. I'm a degreed mechanical engineer with 35 years experience in new product design and manufacture. Recently I purchased a green tractor and a Normand Hybrid blower and experienced traction issues with R4s. So here is a summary of my experiences.
1st, I grooved my tires with a pattern that would keep the snow captured within the rubber. If the snow is allowed to dynamically extrude out of the grooves, its adhesion to the snow on the ground is compromised since it is always on the move, breaking the mechanical snow bond. Car tires are different since water and snow need to be allowed to leave the tread in order to avoid hydroplaning. Tractors don't have the same requirement. My grooving was initially conservative and I saw much improvement in traction. As I added more grooves I noticed a proportional improvement of traction in snow. Once happy with the snow traction, I found the ice traction lacking. I added sipes to the front and rear tires which helped dramatically on the ice.
My Normand Hybrid 74" blower weighs almost 1100# and should ideally be dragged with full weight on the surface. My initial traction with R4s was so poor, I had to lift the blower a bit off the ground to alleviate the drag resistance and transfer that weight to the rear tires. Once grooved, I no longer had traction issues with the full weight on the blower. My grooves were made with an Ideal 250watt tool with #4 blade(about 1/4" wide). The grooves were made 1/4" deep. For the sipes, I added a few washer spacers in order to spread the distance between slits to 1/2". Placement of the sipes and grooves was such that I am confident that during summer FEL work, there will be no chunking or compromise of structural integrity. More sipes are better for ice traction, but too many also weakens the tire tread.
So, otherwise useless R4 tires can be used successfully in snow and ice if they are grooved and siped. Both help significantly.
1st, I grooved my tires with a pattern that would keep the snow captured within the rubber. If the snow is allowed to dynamically extrude out of the grooves, its adhesion to the snow on the ground is compromised since it is always on the move, breaking the mechanical snow bond. Car tires are different since water and snow need to be allowed to leave the tread in order to avoid hydroplaning. Tractors don't have the same requirement. My grooving was initially conservative and I saw much improvement in traction. As I added more grooves I noticed a proportional improvement of traction in snow. Once happy with the snow traction, I found the ice traction lacking. I added sipes to the front and rear tires which helped dramatically on the ice.
My Normand Hybrid 74" blower weighs almost 1100# and should ideally be dragged with full weight on the surface. My initial traction with R4s was so poor, I had to lift the blower a bit off the ground to alleviate the drag resistance and transfer that weight to the rear tires. Once grooved, I no longer had traction issues with the full weight on the blower. My grooves were made with an Ideal 250watt tool with #4 blade(about 1/4" wide). The grooves were made 1/4" deep. For the sipes, I added a few washer spacers in order to spread the distance between slits to 1/2". Placement of the sipes and grooves was such that I am confident that during summer FEL work, there will be no chunking or compromise of structural integrity. More sipes are better for ice traction, but too many also weakens the tire tread.
So, otherwise useless R4 tires can be used successfully in snow and ice if they are grooved and siped. Both help significantly.
