R1 or R4 tires? Newbie needs help....

[felonius]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( LBrown59,

<font color="blue"> How big and how hevey is the machine ? </font>

6000+ with FEL, BH and loaded tires. I agree its a weight issue, but the 5205 felonius mentioned is in the same weight class. )</font>

What do you mean when you say "you agree it's a weight issue"?

 

[felonius]

OK so now I'm not so sure! Unless there is a lot of rain, the clay soil in my area stays pretty hard packed. My only worry is the bottom part of the pasture.

Also, I will be selectively clearing smaller trees and dead wood out of a fairly mature stand of hardwoods. I would like to do as little damage as possible to the larger trees. Will the R4's significantly reduce the chance of damaging the root structure of these trees as I negotiate my way around them to clear out the dead/dying stuff? I am new to this, and don't have any idea how much damage a 6000lb tractor would do to larger trees in terms of soil compaction.

My other challenge will be to drag/carry this stuff down a medium grade hill to the field for burning. This steeper ground is under mature trees so there is little to no vegetation on the forest floor. It seems fairly well packed, but perhaps could get a bit slippery.

 

[Dk45_Jeff]

<font color="blue">What do you mean when you say "you agree it's a weight issue"? </font>

Just that the heavier a machine will disturb the ground more then a lighter machine with a similar tire type. I use AG style tires on my garden tractor and it can travel across the lawn without damage. It all comes down to ground pressure which is determined by how much of tire surface is in ground contact and the machine’s weight.

We tend to think of this in static terms, measure the tire PSI at rest and that’s the ground pressure. But this ignores tires don’t have a uniform surface shape. The surface area of a rolling tire in contact with the ground varies instant to instant during the revolution. A slick tread tire has essentially the same amount of tire surface in contact during the revolution. As the tire tread becomes more radical the greater variation in surface area during its revolution. This lets the tire “dig in” and creates more traction with aggressive treads.

In your last post you were asking about possible damage to tree roots from soil compaction. Neither tire style will be an issue with trees; below the first couple of inches from the surface they will cause an equal amount of compaction. As the various posters have said, R1 provide more traction while R4 cause less surface disturbance. R4 usually have thicker sidewalls making them be more puncture resistant. Either will work for you, the differences are merely a matter of degree. But for the tractor and the uses you described R1, in my opinion, is the better choice.

<font color="blue">Unless there is a lot of rain, the clay soil in my area stays pretty hard packed </font>
Late winter and early spring, in this area, are often the worst time for wet soil conditions. Usually there are several weeks when the ground is thawing on the surface but still hard underneath.

 

[Dartagnan]

I have NH TC30 with r4s, loaded rears and woods fel. It leaves "prints" on the lawn unless drought conditions. So I don't use it to finish mow, craftsman takes care of that. (for the price of a finish mower, and more manuverable to boot)

That said, I do have some clay content and have encountered some traction issues, usually having something to do with bigger tap roots than I thought were going to be there, or it's so wet I shouldn't have been out to begin with /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

And yes, I would get the R4's again, if they're leaving tracks I imagine the ags would have just plain tore it up. And I might be (Might) 3k with the hog on.

Dart

 

[OrangeAlex]

I was in the same boat. In the end the decision for me was obvious. I have about 20 acres of woods to manage with the same tasks as you list. I decided that I did not want to end up with a lot of lawn area to maintain. 1 to 1.5 acres was enough lawn for me. the more lawn the more time and more you have to spend. Lawn is expensive (water, chemicals, mowing, etc). I bought the heavy expensive tractor to give me max performance in the woods. Lowering my capabilites out in the woods just so I could manage the lawn was silly. It was best in my case to have a seperate solution for the lawn. Just how much lawn do you have or expect to have?

As for buying a seperate set of R4 tires and rim just for the lawn. I didn't think that was very time or cost effective. The tires, rims and finish mower would have cost me as much or more then a seperate standalone mower. Not to mention the hassle or messing around with jacks and getting loaded rear wheels on and off the machine.

btw, do you already own this machine?

 

[John_Mc]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I will be selectively clearing smaller trees and dead wood out of a fairly mature stand of hardwoods. I would like to do as little damage as possible to the larger trees. Will the R4's significantly reduce the chance of damaging the root structure of these trees as I negotiate my way around them to clear out the dead/dying stuff?)</font>

Soil compaction and shearing of the fine root structures (typically the fine hair-like roots are not very deep) can be a significant issue for the long-term health of your forest if you are in there on a regular basis. R4 tires would have a slight advantage here because they spread the load out over more area, but the difference between the two is not nearly as important as when you go into the forest. The best time is to go in only when the ground is frozen. If that's not an option in your area, then go when the soil conditions are as dry as possible.

Another thing you might consider is a logging winch (Farmi and Fransgard make some good ones). This will let you pull out trees a good way from your access roads and trails without bringing the tractor right up to the tree.

John Mc

 

[LBrown59]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I think for your primary uses, the R1 are the better choice.
1*The 5205 is a bit much for general lawn mowing.
2*The 5205 for the heavy work and a lawn tractor for the lawn would be best. )</font>
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1*Me thinks it would be hard on a lawn regardless of which type of tires it had on it.
2*Makes more sense than wasting more money on other tires that still might not work because the tractor is to big and heavy for lawn work.

Seems to me like sometimes folks get so hung up on tires when the real issue may be one of weight and size.

 

[JerryG]

Given the type of land that you have and the amount of clay, I would say get the R-1s. Anything else and you will have a lot less traction.

 

[Jrrcorp]

For now go with the R-1's. Load them. For what your doing, you need all the traction you can get.