Industrial Tires

[jbrumberg]

Thanks for the information .

 

[Mark Page]

I wonder if anyone makes a front 4 rib tire with the same circumference as the ind fronts I have now.

 

[powerpace]

I have had Turf, R1 and R4 tires on different tractors. B3200 has R4's and is good in mud up to it's belly with a backhoe mounted and round bale in front. On all slopes even with light attachments I use 4wd. It's just better control.
I have had R1's on tractors slip sideways on slopes. Each tire has it's place but I prefer R4's.

The big logging equipment around here all have the R4 style or similar. For 90% of the year they are good without chains. I have never seen a ag tread tire used.

 

[IndyIan]

I wonder if anyone makes a front 4 rib tire with the same circumference as the ind fronts I have now.

The Kioti manual also gives instructions on how to calculate actual rolling circumference of tires with your typical loading and it can be adjusted with air pressure.
If it was always dry I'm sure 4 ribs would work surprisingly well in 4wd, any kind of dampness or wet grass though, you'd have to assume you have a 2wd tractor!
R4's should be OK on grass though in 2wd so why would you need 4 ribbers?

 

[beppington]

My new machine has industrial tires on all 4 corners.
Since there is no grass to mow, snow to push and the manure pile is frozen, I decided to get in some seat time with my new Massey 2615. I made a couple of passes around the property, shifting gears etc. Decided to run up one of the steeper slopes, about 15-20 degrees. The ground is frozen and slightly wet from the melting frost. Got half way up the hill and the rear tires started spinning. This didn't seem right, tried down shifting and kicked in the diff lock, no help. Put it in 4wd and finished the climb.
It was bugging me that those tires wouldn't pull the hill. Went back out and fired up my 2wd 231s with ag tires on the rear and 4 ribs on the front. The 2615 is heavier than the 231s. Put it in high range 1st gear which is my normal mowing speed and it walked right up the hill, no slipping or sliding. Both machines have ballast in the tires.
I probably should have chosen the ag tire option on 2615, but I didn't want to tear up the turf on tight turns.
Not sure who came up with the ag tire idea, but I'm not impressed.

It sounds to me like they worked exactly like they're supposed to: R4's (industrial's) are easier on your turf than R1's (ag's) with the trade-off of reduced traction.

 

[jbrumberg]

Just to make this thread a little more interesting- there are/were a couple of old timers out my way who used their tractors for logging. They were running R-1's, but they reversed /switched the front tires so they had a better "chance" of being able to go in reverse in the everpresent mud up here. R-1's "goo" forward in mud much better than they "goo" in reverse (I can really attest to that.). By switching the fronts they were going "forward" in reverse. There is no perfect tire. One must make the choice(s) and move on from there. I will say that a R-1 owner/operator should look at # of sidewall plies on the front tires- for FEL work R-1's need as much support as possible.

 

[20 20]

when getting traction more comes into play then just tires. Horse power weight speed range etc.... A log skidder may run an R4 and get great traction because of wieght and balance. A tractor with no extra weight may do better with an ag tire but once an attachment is added it more then likely will tear things up{lawn}. In order for a tire to work at its best there has to be a balance between many factors.

 

[Jay4200]

There is no perfect tire.

THIS is the perfect solution:

JayC

 

[IndyIan]

THIS is the perfect solution:

JayC

I think that might cut up a lawn on full lock:laughing:
Also any snowmobiler who's ever had a track come half off miles from home, must cringe thinking about using those in the woods. I'm sure they are probably fine, but there's something to be said for the simplicity of a tire...

 

[ddb123]

Mark, now that you've had the tractor a while longer, what are your impressions? I'm in the same position as you -- 2wd ags, looking to procure 4wd with ags or indies. Mow the yard and have some slopes too.