Tire Selection Zero turn bar tires

[Hay Dude]

I am not new to operating equipment (farmer), but I am new to operating a zero turn.
Today was my first day running my used Kubota ZD331. It came with 1/2 tread depth turf tires.
On flat ground or mild-moderate hills, it's fine.
However, I am cutting an HOA with a very steep hill with a pond at the bottom. The hill is 300' high and steep enough that one lapse of judgement could mean me and machine going for a swim. Going up/down the hill is NOT an option because of the pond and for the property owner. To make matters worse, there's a pump house, a rock outcropping, and a few trees about 1/2 way up the steep hill. Going around them brought some butt-puckering moments. I slid sideways a few times, but recovered. I need to improve the situation.
So, I am looking at a combination of my lack of experience and the possibility of better tires as sources of improvement.
Would the bar-type tires make a big difference on that sliding sensation on a steep hill? I can't help but be sure it will improve when I turn uphill or downhill.....I think.
Or is there another tire I dont know about?
Thanks for reading and suggestions.

 

[DK35vince]

I went from a turf tire on my Hustler Super Z to bar tires (Chevron AT 101) and it made a HUGE difference in traction/control on hills.
The turfs were awful.

 

[4570Man]

Take the turfs off and throw them in the pond where they belong. Maybe the fish can use them. I have bar tires on mine and it makes a huge difference.

 

[Scook222]

The grasshopper mowers around here come with a bar tread pattern. It has a lot better grip on taller we grass and doesn’t make riots as bad as the turf tires unless you get stuck. Lots of people love the bar tread moving ditch banks and hillsides with them. Both my mom and mother in law have husqvarna zero turns with tie tires and will be glad to put better tires on them soon.

 

[Hay Dude]

what about "sideways slide", when mowing along a steep bank?

 

[mikester]

what about "sideways slide", when mowing along a steep bank?

I put a set of Carlisle WT300 tires on my ZD326 and they will definitely help with what you are asking for. Heres a link to my blog on my ZD mods with photos of the tires
Quest for a better Zero Turn – Kubota ZD326-6P Modifications – Divergent Stuff

I mow on some slopes with a pond at the bottom and its a day and night difference in control with the bar tires. My only regret is not putting them on years ago. You get way more control on the bar tires. They work great in the soft wet stuff that the turfs just spin in. You can also tear up the turf easily if you dont use finesse.

Inexperience, steep hills and wet grass can be a dangerous combination.

 

[Birdhunter1]

I have a Grasshopper front deck with bar tread tires and I filled them with water. It made them extremely stable on a sidehill and as good of traction as I can get going uphill. If you are on a midmount you will get better traction going uphill forwards but very little if trying to go backwards up a hill. The best thing to do if you start to slide is not try and control it and just stop the controls.

 

[kf4uda]

Here is my thread when I was asking for advice on bar tires:

https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums...t/387141-zero-turn-rear-tire-suggestions.html

As you can read in the thread I went with the bar tires. They are far superior to turf tires on a zero turn.

I now have the recipe for a good zero turn mower (in my opinion)

1) Suspension seat (if the mower does not have a suspension system)

2) Mulching kit

3) Bar tires

In a few years I will replace my current mower with a new one. It will have all of the above when it comes home.

 

[Hay Dude]

So I found out the "Grasshopper" style bar tires arent available in my size (26-12.00-12).
I have decided to go with the Carlisle tires.
They are going on this afternoon.

 

[ProjectKing]

So I found out the "Grasshopper" style bar tires arent available in my size (26-12.00-12).
I have decided to go with the Carlisle tires.
They are going on this afternoon.

Interested to see how they perform for you. Be very careful on that hill. Steep hills and z turns don’t get along.

 

[Hay Dude]

So I got them installed and I was itching to find out how they would work on steep ground and, would they damage the lawn.
I got the Carlisle tires and man are they aggressive. Almost an AG tire. I headed over to another kind of steep bank with more sparse grass, moss, and weakly-rooted weeds that I cut every other week for a guy. What I found was that the tires were very rough on that area. Unless you drove very delicately, the bar tires made unacceptable marks in the sparse weakly-rooted "grass". I was kind of disappointed, but not surprised. I was very pleased with the traction, but if you put a cowboy on a zero turn with those bar tires, it'll look ripped-up in no time.
I then went home to my 3 acres of healthy lawn and cut some of it. My lawn is nearly flat. There, it went a lot better. My grass is pretty thick. It can take the "bite" of the bar treads and even some light slipping from the bar tires without leaving marks. I made some fairly tight, but not "zero-tight" turns and not much if any damage. However, anywhere where the ground was soft or patchy, making a turn leaves a pretty nasty mark.
The final analysis wont happen until I can cut the huge bank with the pond at the bottom. The grass there is not as good as my lawn. There's a lot of moving pieces to all this. I want to do a good job, but not slide sideways and end up in the pond. I also don't want to damage their lawn.
The traction is unquestionably there. Now can I keep the damage minimal.

On a slightly related topic, I have my eyes on either a used Deere 1565 or a used Kubota 3680. These machines are part time 4WD and offer much better traction. Even with turf tires, they get very good traction. However, they sit higher (higher center of gravity) so not as good under tree branches and not quite as maneuverable. I promised myself I would get 2 used machines. It will be interesting to see which one does better on the pond bank.

 

[4570Man]

With practice you should be able to do it with no damage. If you’re not a good operator or are careless you can rip up a yard in a hurry. I’ve never received a complaint from torn up turf from my machine.

 

[LouNY]

So I got them installed and I was itching to find out how they would work on steep ground and, would they damage the lawn.
I got the Carlisle tires and man are they aggressive. Almost an AG tire. I headed over to another kind of steep bank with more sparse grass, moss, and weakly-rooted weeds that I cut every other week for a guy. What I found was that the tires were very rough on that area. Unless you drove very delicately, the bar tires made unacceptable marks in the sparse weakly-rooted "grass". I was kind of disappointed, but not surprised. I was very pleased with the traction, but if you put a cowboy on a zero turn with those bar tires, it'll look ripped-up in no time.
I then went home to my 3 acres of healthy lawn and cut some of it. My lawn is nearly flat. There, it went a lot better. My grass is pretty thick. It can take the "bite" of the bar treads and even some light slipping from the bar tires without leaving marks. I made some fairly tight, but not "zero-tight" turns and not much if any damage. However, anywhere where the ground was soft or patchy, making a turn leaves a pretty nasty mark.
The final analysis wont happen until I can cut the huge bank with the pond at the bottom. The grass there is not as good as my lawn. There's a lot of moving pieces to all this. I want to do a good job, but not slide sideways and end up in the pond. I also don't want to damage their lawn.
The traction is unquestionably there. Now can I keep the damage minimal.

On a slightly related topic, I have my eyes on either a used Deere 1565 or a used Kubota 3680. These machines are part time 4WD and offer much better traction. Even with turf tires, they get very good traction. However, they sit higher (higher center of gravity) so not as good under tree branches and not quite as maneuverable. I promised myself I would get 2 used machines. It will be interesting to see which one does better on the pond bank.

Nice Magnum in your profile pic.
As far as your zero turn can't help on that much, only thing would be if your air pressure can be lowered without losing stability on the side hills.
I didn't get a 3680 but I did get an old Kubota F2000 last year after trying out several zero turns and other newer mowers including a ventrac, the F2000 with that big front deck sticking out and 4wd is the best mower I have ever purchased, I would recommend any of the 4wd front deck mowers for steep areas mine feels almost as stable as the Ventrac was.

 

[4570Man]

My midmount Grasshopper is a better hill mower than the F2560 Kubota. I’ve nearly tipped the Kubota on hills the Grasshopper is solid on.

 

[mikester]

What I found was that the tires were very rough on that area. Unless you drove very delicately, the bar tires made unacceptable marks in the sparse weakly-rooted "grass". I was kind of disappointed, but not surprised. I was very pleased with the traction, but if you put a cowboy on a zero turn with those bar tires, it'll look ripped-up in no time.

Finesse is key! It's easy to shred the ground with a ZTR even with turf tires. With the bar tires I find you get way more control and less sliding but that doesn't mean you can operate the controls like toggle switches.

If I had really steep slopes to worry about I'd choose a 4WD CUT or SCUT with R4's. Even turf tires on a tractor will slide on steep slopes. In 4WD the tractor will tear up the turf in the turns too.

 

[Ford850]

Hay Dude, what psi are you running in the new tires? On Grasshoppers they use only 8psi, and get better traction, smoother ride, and less damage.

 

[Hay Dude]

Hay Dude, what psi are you running in the new tires? On Grasshoppers they use only 8psi, and get better traction, smoother ride, and less damage.

Right now theyre inflated to ~20psi.
I'm in agreement with you that lower inflation may "soften" the tires, but there may be an unexpected downside.
The tires are very "rigid". I would have preferred something a little softer. maybe underinflation would help.

 

[DK35vince]

20 PSI makes for an unnecessarily rough ride.
I've always ran 8 PSI (front and rear) on my zero turns.

 

[Hay Dude]

Going to try 15. Mowed some more healthy lawn today. Barely left a mark.
I think it's going to work

 

[DK35vince]

15 PSI is still to high IMO.
Been running 8 PSI for the past 10 years, never an issue.
Much smoother ride.