radial tires and liquid ballast

[ovrszd]

And you can't do anything with a moderate leak. I don't think Ive ever seen a small leak in a tractor tire, unless the valve stem needs tightened. I have a service truck and mainly do mechanic type work, but a lot of tires come along with it. I have fixed some flats in my life.

I use my tractors for utility work. I've probably plugged a dozen small leaks in the last ten years. Just plugged a front tire on the [AFFILIATE=1, nofollow=true, newwindow=true, title="Kubota"]Kubota[/AFFILIATE] a couple weeks ago. A tube would have required disassembly.

 

[ovrszd]

I've seen several small leaks in tractor tires over the years. A few we have let go for years just airing the tire up once or twice a week.
Leaks that were hard to find on the mounted tire.

The front tire leak I talked about had been going on for about a year. Got aggravated enough to address it after the tractor setting in the machine shed for a month in cold weather. I skidded it along on the FEL bucket to the shop for repair and air.

 

[Vigo327]

I think just about everything has been covered (that it's mostly a non-issue at low speeds) but one thing about having a smaller 'air pocket' due to tire fill is that it also affects the pressure rise, or 'rate of gain', when you hit things. Basically, if the whole tire is full of air and you bump into something hard the pressure might spike from 20 to 25, just as an example. If you fill most of the tire and have a smaller air pocket, that same impact might spike pressure from 20 to 50, making the tire feel a lot stiffer. Air acts like a 'progressive rate spring' and the smaller the air volume, the quicker the progression. I dont think it's a factor for most people but technically speaking if you are buying radials partially for ride quality, then yes, filling it 75% with noncompressible liquid leaving only 25% air is going to make the tire feel stiffer, giving away some indeterminate amount of the ride quality gain.

 

[ruffdog]

"Liquid ballast reduces performance by inhibiting the sidewall’s deflection in a radial tire."

To Ballast or Not – What to Tell Your Ag Tire Customers - Tire Review Magazine

 

[Hay Dude]

If you road and haul you will see and feel a considerable difference between bolt on iron and liquid fill.
On many of the roads we haul wagons on, liquid fill will cost at least a gear on the hills.
Also a liquid filled tire has more tendency to start hopping at speed.

^^ This.
Whenever I road haul with baler, I noticed poor ride from filled tires. I emptied them and installed wheel weights. Much better ride.

 

[ovrszd]

No doubt that cast weights are better. If you can afford them.

In the case of the OP, he's weighting a small tractor that probably has a high gear speed of 10mph.

I see no way, assessing his needs, that he should spend $1.00 per pound for weight when he can spend .20 cents per pound.

 

[mo1]

So ya ain't hunting all over the country to replace a rusty rim. I have seen 8n tractors with original good rims. Other old tractors too. We have six tractors, logging equipment, skid steers, all have tubes.

That was true back in the days when calcium chloride in water was what tires were filled with. Most of what is used today is methanol and water and a tube is generally only used if the tire requires one.

And you can't do anything with a moderate leak. I don't think Ive ever seen a small leak in a tractor tire, unless the valve stem needs tightened. I have a service truck and mainly do mechanic type work, but a lot of tires come along with it. I have fixed some flats in my life.

I have seen a bunch of moderate and slow leaks, thorns will certainly do that.

 

[Hay Dude]

Fluid in tires immediately reduces your tractors reliability compared to cast rims or cast weights.
Immediately, you have to be more careful. The last thing you want to do is make your tractor into a “china doll”.
Just spend the money and get proper cast weights. Heck, I’d run a 3 point weight box before fluid, but then you can’t run rear mount implements.

 

[ovrszd]

That was true back in the days when calcium chloride in water was what tires were filled with. Most of what is used today is methanol and water and a tube is generally only used if the tire requires one.



I have seen a bunch of moderate and slow leaks, thorns will certainly do that.

Reminds me, as a kid, Dad's tractor tires, especially the front ones, would get so full of hedge thorns that you couldn't keep air in them. I distinctly remember Dad cussing Hedge trees for that reason. He always declared War on any that were growing wildly in the pastures, etc. Only ones he let survive were in fencerows. Great source for hedge posts.

Problem with hedge, and honey locust is when you remove the tree ten more sprout up from the roots. Those were the ones getting ran over and puncturing the tractor tires.

 

[ovrszd]

Fluid in tires immediately reduces your tractors reliability compared to cast rims or cast weights.
Immediately, you have to be more careful. The last thing you want to do is make your tractor into a “china doll”.
Just spend the money and get proper cast weights. Heck, I’d run a 3 point weight box before fluid, but then you can’t run rear mount implements.

What is the "China Doll" syndrome you mentioned?