Toolguy
Platinum Member
Ice racing with motorcycles. Sounds crazy but it is big time fun. I haven't rode in a few years but back when I did, the trick rear wheel setup for serious racing was to take a worn out 350-19 rib tire from a street bike, cut the beads off and stuff it inside a 400-18 Kenda or, if you could find them, a Carlise semi-knob tire. The ones that have a V shape pattern sorta like a tractor tire. The tire was mounted with the V pointing backwards, opposite of the way they are mounted on a tractor. Then take 1" Kold Kutters and screw them in in a special pattern known to racers that gives unbelievable traction on ice. I'm talking footpeg dragging, wheelie traction. The tire liner and the 1" screws prevent the knobs from being ripped right off of the tire. For the front tire and for trail riding 5/8" screws work pretty good but if you race you need the 1"ers in the rear. They should work just as good on a tractor. I would think at least 5/8" or 3/4" would work best. Maybe even longer if the tread is tall. The bikes use 1/4" hex head screws. I think standard 5/16" sheet metal would be good on a tractor. They may not last very long if used on cement but on ice they wouldn't wear at all. They will scratch pavement when new and sharp. Even on the bikes they would scratch a cement floor just rolling it around the shop. All the racers use old tubes to put over the tires to keep the screws sharp. It's something to think about.