"" How will it affect the life of the tire motors? ""
Perhaps, a little, but only in unique situations.
Visualize that the footprint at the wide wheel setting overlaps the footprint of the narrow wheel setting by 67%, since the inner 7" of the wide setting sits on the same ground as the outer 7" of the narrow setting.
When sitting on a flat hard surface, there would be little, if any, added stress because the wide stiff tire would resist any slight leverage effect, and the position of the hub/wheel interface has not been changed.
Now visualize the tire riding lengthwise along a 1" diameter pipe. In this unique situation the wheel can rotate radially.
If the pipe was positioned under the shared 65% of the footprints, the hub would experience the same radial torque at either setting.
If the pipe was positioned somewhere under the outer 3.5" of the wide setting, there would be a slight increase in radial torque, but I doubt that it would be a significant amount, or that it would exceed the design limits of the motor.
This is a scenario that would seldom be duplicated in the real world, except, perhaps, riding over a small stone or root near the outer edge of the tire where the entire load was supported at that point, a condition which seldom occurs, and if it does, it does so for a very short duration.
There are many factors which can increase the wear on, or reduce the service life of, a Power Trac, or any vehicle. Liquid filled tires, for example, greatly increase stress on wheel motor shafts due to the large reduction in tire compliance.
I believe that the benefits of reversing wheels for SOME owners, in SOME situations, may far exceed any slight, if any, detrimental effects!! However, this is a decision, like many others regarding the use and care of a PT-425, which must ultimately be addressed by the OWNER for HIS machine being used by HIM in HIS situation!!
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