Who makes R4 tires for the 3520?

[tuolumne]

I noticed that the larger R4 tires appear to be 4-ply while the smaller ones are 6-ply. Am I reading this correctly? How can I find the actual tire capacities? Who is the manufacturer? Will I need to be extra cautious about backing over things with these tires and a backhoe? How is the track record for the larger R4 tires on the 3x20 series? Thanks.

 

[thcri]

Not sure what brand you have been Titan does make a lot of the R4's for the different manufactures. You could look them up on the web.


murph

 

[NoMo]

I don't know who makes the bigger R4s, but the "small" 6-ply R4 tires are made by Galaxy (www.galaxytire.com).

The owner's manual states that the larger R4 tires are NOT approved for use with the 300CX loader (small R4s are ok) so you'd definitely want to check the backhoe manual to see what it says.

On edit:
Looks like the smaller tires have over 1,000 lbs higher load-carrying capacity than the larger R4s:
43x16.00-20 3130 lbs
15-19.5 6 4170 lbs

 

[tuolumne]

I don't know who makes the bigger R4s, but the "small" 6-ply R4 tires are made by Galaxy (www.galaxytire.com).

The owner's manual states that the larger R4 tires are NOT approved for use with the 300CX loader (small R4s are ok) so you'd definitely want to check the backhoe manual to see what it says.

On edit:
Looks like the smaller tires have over 1,000 lbs higher load-carrying capacity than the larger R4s:
43x16.00-20 3130 lbs
15-19.5 6 4170 lbs

Now I'm really confused The manual on-line (I don't have the tractor yet) indicates capacity for the large R4 front tire to be 1654 lbs and the small R4 tire to be 1367 lbs. It seems the larger tire is better suited for the loader work. But, if I have a full bucket at 1500 lbs, and an equivalent ballast between the weighted rear tires and the backhoe etc. I could easily have 3308 lbs teetering on the front axle. This means I just blew both front tires!? I would have though the front tire capacity should be well in excess of the loader capacity. Did the lawyers write the manual? Has anyone had problems with this?

The large R4 rear tires are listed at 3131 lbs (20 psi) and the smaller rear R4s are listed at 3946 (30 psi). Again, in the large R4 I could have 700 lbs beet juice (not sure how this affects the tire load capacity, maybe it helps) + 2000 lbs (machine and loader/2 pulling a wheelie) + 1000 lbs (backhoe/2) + wheel weights if I had them = I blew the rear tires too. Are not tractors supposed to be rugged considering their intended use? I would not think these the tires would be designed so borderline. Again, I no one has ever had any problems with my setup, I'll still rest easy. I'm sure I'll go easier on this machine than many commercial operators.

I did not see the comment in the manual regarding the larger tires not being approved for use with the 300cx loader, and this does not make sense since the larger front tire has more capacity.

Edit: It also appears that the R1 tires standard with this machine are woefully under capacity at 2183 lbs per rear tire and 948 lbs per front tire.

 

[NoMo]

I did not see the comment in the manual regarding the larger tires not being approved for use with the 300cx loader, and this does not make sense since the larger front tire has more capacity.

Loader Manual
Approved Front Tires-300CX
Approved Rear Tires-300CX

Keep in mind that we have made some assumptions that the larger R4s (and R1s) are also provided by Galaxy. Perhaps someone can confirm or refute this assumption.

 

[tuolumne]

Odd that they indicate an approved tire size, but no brand etc. I'm sure the rating varies from brand to brand. Wouldn't the rated capacity be most important? I would think the 300cx manual should state..."front tires should have a minimum rated capacity of ...." or something like that. The R1s are on the approved tire list, and their capacity is lower than the large R4s.

How did you find this manual on-line, and how can I find a manual for the 448?

 

[NoMo]

Tons of good info in the Deere FAQs here at TBN:
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/jd-owning-operating/75676-jd-owning-operating-faq-please.html

Deere Technical Publications
Don't know what happened- if it is Deere or something on my end, but a few months ago some of the manual links stopped working for me. Search for 448 and see if the link comes up OK for you.

 

[jcmseven]

I have noticed this 300cx loader disclaimer also, seems strange since the JD owner's DVD shows a 3520 with a 300cx loader and large R4's. Also, I believe that Galaxy also makes the larger R4 tires. They are called the Marathoner, due to their long wearing unique tire tread.

John M

 

[BTDT]

Firestone Agricultural Tire Division : Tire Details

May have to type in your zip code for a dealer near you. Maybe this will help.

 

[putt_putt_green]

I saw both sets of R4s yesterday at the dealer. They were both made by Galaxy. The dealer said Deere has the right to change tire manufacturers, which is why the brand name is not stated. Basically the smaller R4s are 2 inches shorter and 1 inch narrower. The tractor width is 57.3-58.9 for the small R4s and 58.1-59.7 for the larger R4s. Ground clearance is 10.5 inches for the smaller R4s versus 11.6 inches for the larger R4s. The rear tires on the smaller R4s is 6 ply versus 4 ply on the larger R4s. The smaller R4s give more space for tire chains.