Tractor weight on soft ground

[buck12]

With your conditions and a 25-horsepower tractor, not quite sure why you ordered loaded rear tires, weight on all the time. The main reason to load rear tires is to improve tractor traction; yet with 25-horsepower it is unlikely you will have enough power to break rear wheel traction except under unusual conditions.

~~You may have good reasons for loaded tires which you have not posted.~~

If you do not foresee needing to lift max loads with the FEL, drop your 400 pounds of TPH counterbalance.

(( 400 pounds on TPH should be ample counterbalance for max FEL lifts with air inflated rear tires. ))

I would retain the FEL. It is very useful for pushing/leveraging the tractor out of a partially bogged situation.

Mud and wet are when R1/ag tires are superior to other tires.


"Wait a couple weeks and you will not have to spend the remainder of the summer repairing ruts."

Good advice from OOSIK.

I owned a 26 hp for 12 years and it often spun all four wheels.

 

[tradosaurus]

After 20-something posts it is time to insert your LOCATION into your T-B-N PROFILE, to add clarity to your situation.

Just curious. What did you do for a living before you retired?

 

[tradosaurus]

This reminds me of getting stuck with a rented skid steer. The weather had been fine for about a week and I was humming along with a Bradco ground shark on the front when I hit a very weak area and sunk the skid steer within seconds. Of course the total weight was 12,000 lbs with the implement.
Fortunately I was close to the road so a tow truck could help me get it unstuck.

 

[jeff9366]

Just curious. What did you do for a living before you retired?

I spent 37 years in the wine business.

The last 24 years employed by California wineries.

 

[sea2summit]

Cant overstate this enough. PSI is king.

Tractor can weigh 100k #'s and still be pushing down on the ground, here's an example running 14PSI.

Now, in your situation you're saying you don't care about damage you only care about getting stuck. Just remember that damage will probably drain even worse than what you have and create more mud or worse future obstacles for your small tractor. I wouldn't overlook the damage side of this equation.

But if you want to drive on it and not get stuck, decreasing the PSI is probably the way to go either through making the tractor lighter or getting larger tires.

 

[sea2summit]

Just curious. What did you do for a living before you retired?

He may be an over opinionated old fart, but he's our over opinionated old fart

 

[LD48750]

I have a Kioti CX2510 with loaded rear tires. It came with a FEL as well. I built a compact 400lb rear ballast. My land is overgrown farm land, about a foot of black dirt then mostly clay. This time of year the water table is close to the surface so the ground is soft but held together with the overgrown grasses and trees. My question is, will i do better with more weight, keeping my FEL on and rear ballast or will i do better if i take these things off and lighten the tractor? Not worried about leaving ruts but just worried about getting stuck. I have the new R-14 tires. What is best? I'm new at this tractor stuff.

What is it you are trying to do?
Just riding around? Lighten it up & go.
With the ballast, I would assume you are using the FEL and that may require high tire pressures in the front & lower in the rear.
Higher pressures will sink further & increase the possibility of getting stuck.
Everything depends on what you want to do.

 

[sparkyjohn]

With wet condition described and a 25-horsepower tractor, not quite sure why you ordered loaded rear tires, weight on all the time.
~~You may have good reasons for loaded tires which you have not posted.~~

If you do not foresee needing to lift max loads with the FEL, drop your 400 pounds of TPH counterbalance.

(( 400 pounds on TPH should be ample counterbalance for max FEL lifts with air inflated rear tires. ))

I would retain the FEL. It is very useful for pushing/leveraging the tractor out of a partially bogged situation.

Mud and wet are when R1/ag tires are superior to other tires.


"Wait a couple weeks and you will not have to spend the remainder of the summer repairing ruts."

Good advice from OOSIK.

Why did i ask for loaded rear tires, because in my first post, when shopping i was told on a small tractor weight is king and buying the heaviest tractor is the number 1 consideration. Why did i build the ballast, because even with the loaded tires [about 300lb add] when driving on snow, with the FEL the back felt light. I also loaded the tires for some snow work in the winter. I am in Michigan.

 

[sparkyjohn]

My question was more of a general question, on soft ground is it better to be light or heavy. I am waiting till it drys out, then i want to clear some brush and till in a couple food plots. Some areas stay soft year round, a few low areas that after a rain, even a few days after, they are soft or almost muddy spots.

 

[tradosaurus]

I spent 37 years in the wine business.

The last 24 years employed by California wineries.