Need some advice for Kioti ck35 snow plowing.

[DK35vince]

I have a DK 35 with loaded rear tires.
The R-4 (industrial tires) were useless in snow/ice for plowing.
Chains on all 4 made a world of differance.

 

[gouldy2]

where should I buy a set of tire chains for my CK 35 Kioti Tractor???Thanks

 

[lungdoc]

Tirechains.com is pretty good. There are other places too. Do a bit of reading here on the topic of chains. Clearance for the chains, surface you will be on (V-bar types are rough on concrete/asphalt but great grip) and tire type matter. For R4 or R1 rears a "Duo-grip" or H pattern is useful to avoid chains falling between the lugs of the tires.

 

[airbiscuit]

KCO,

I envy you having a rear pull snowblower. I have a conventional 3pt snowblower, and it works great for rear ballast and snowblowing, but does involve a lot of looking backwards. The problem is that if you look long enough, you can find a good deal on a conventional 3pt snowblower, but never a rear pull.

 

[powerscol]

So I just bought a newer kioti ck35 with cab and FEL the machine should weigh in around 4500 pounds. It has industrial tires on it that are not loaded and I have no rear weights. I use it to plow my drive way in the winter. I have only farted around with it for a few hours but find it does a lot of spinning and has no real pushing power duw to lack of traction. I am really leaning towards a snowblower as I plow a single lane gravel drive way that is probably over 500 feet as well as our parking area and a round about (all gravel.) Average annual snowfall is 122". The snow we get is usually quite fluffy powder type snow. The main drive is narrow and does not have a lot of room to pile snow due to a weird lot profile and trees.

I am wondering what I should purchase to help with snow plowing. I dont think a rear blade will work as there is not a lot of room to pile snow on side of drive way. Current bucket is 60" and is quite low capacity. I dont think filling tires would be good as I want to use it for finish mowing in summer. I think a rear blower would be the way to go as it would be nice to still have the FEL attached and it would be easy to blow snow into trees and not have to worry about snow piles. I am thinking a 3 point hitch pull type would be nice for the not having to look back but I don't think that would be the end of the world either. I do not have rear hydraulics (yet) and have a cab so shute manipulation will be an issue. I am guessing the advantage to rear facing blower is you dont drive over and pack down the snow with the tires.

I keep thinking chains might be a good option as well as our winters are long (6 months) and I could just install and remove once a year. As well I have no concrete or similar to worry about damaging. I have read that chains on the front axle can lead to problems but think it would be nice to have as tractor is four wheel drive and I picture it helping with steering. However I have no idea and do not want to wreck anything.

My wife does not want to buy a snow blower as she thinks the bucket is fine but I keep thinking I will need to add chains and some kind of rear weight to make the tractor adequate at FEL snow removal and perhaps the addition of a larger bucket.

I appologize for the length of the post just want to give all the facts and see what your thoughts our as I am new to tractors and want to make some informed decisions.

First get you rear tires loaded - you will find this a benefit in the summer too. Now as to the chains - I have the twin to yours, so first measure the inside fender clearance. I suspect you have 2" about 5" down from the tread. Most stock chain sets out there are 16" wide for our tire size (assuming you have 15x19.5). I searched around and could not find anyone that had a narrower set for my size, until I talked with Quality Chain (See my thread on tire chains revisited) They are making a diamond v-bar set at 13" wide to sit higher on the tread wall for clearance. Otherwise wheel spacers need to be used.

Hope this helps

 

[joeyd]

I don't know what your wheel clearance is like but I would check with my dealer for recommendations on how to run chains on your tractor. I run 4 link v-bars on all 4 of my R-4 tires, they do not fall between the treads for me as some mention. I have a hilly and at times icy driveway and road to work on. We average about 100" of snow at my elevation and I cannot handle that without the blower to move it away from the road. Here is a picture of the chains on my R-4's. 4 links do bounce a bit as you drive and it shows when I used my back blade leaving chatter marks on the hard packed snow. Tirechains.com were a pleasure to work with and the prices are competitive.

 

[powerscol]

joeyd

Where did you get the rear chain tensioners? (Tirechains.com) What model were they. Looks like the ticket to keep things tight

 

[aeblank]

tirechains.com will hook you up.


v-bar ladders. They're a rough ride, but are unstoppable (pretty much, anyway).

 

[joeyd]

joeyd

Where did you get the rear chain tensioners? (Tirechains.com) What model were they. Looks like the ticket to keep things tight

I got them from Tirechains.com, make sure you get the binder tool to help get them on. Sometimes I use a ratchet strap also to help pull the spring enough to hook the tension chain.

 

[mrtwister]

I have ds4510 which is a bit bigger but same principle when it comes to snow removal....loaded rear tires, rear snow blower, front blade, industrial tires which are not great in the snow....I considered chains on the rear tires but insufficient clearance between tire and fender so I installed chains on front only....that, by itself made a world of difference...I can plow as much snow as my 6.5' blade can handle....some people advise against front chains only but I see no problem with this....there is enough slippage with snow that it is not an issue as far as possible damage to drive gears...Kiotis have pretty beefy front ends.