Best traction: Weights, Chains or Agro type tractor tires?

[Machria 78]

So I currently have regular turf tires with chains on them.  I'm going to use my GT14 for snow blowing in winter, and to pull wood out of the woods (firewood) via a small buggy, and sometimes just drag large logs out....   No hills for the most part, just flat woodsy, grassy, brush/leaves/mud ground.

 

What tire setup woudl be best?   What do the weights really do, and how much better are tractor tires instead of turf tires with chains?

[mattd860 162]

Honestly - I have found that turfs with chains & weights are better for the winter and snow, when the ground is firm. During the warm season when the ground is soft, AG tires with weights grip better than the turfs with chains. AG tires really need to dig into the ground to get any traction and snow and wet mud do NOT count either. I've compared both sets of tires on my grassy lawn, gravel driveway, and neighbors paved driveway - during all four seasons so I'm comfortable giving my opinion. 

 

I have a 520h with turfs & chains and a 418-8 with AG tires....and during the winter, the 520h never loses traction. But during the summer, the 418-8 is unstoppable. 

 

I was always wondering the same thing as you were but now that I have two tractors with both sets of tires, I now know the results. 

[rexman72 210]

The 417A with the blade on it and the front and back wheel weights and the rear weight is about 1200 pounds and with the chains on the tires i have been moving snow around all winter and we have been pounded with snow.

[squonk 42,570]

Fill the tires!!

 

[KC9KAS 4,744]

I too have turf tires, chains and weight in the tires...Works good for me!

[Jake Kuhn 1,579]

I use weights, chains, and turfs and have had good luck. Lars(knusern) had a really nice set of chains he used on ags. Maybe he'll put a pictures of them on here and I think they would go through anything.

Jake

[GlenPettit 1,717]

What you have will work just fine with your situation, just add weight, lots of weight.

I would recommend having the tires filled with "RimGuard", (a tube is just an extra precaution, you don't need it but it's a good backup), and a pair of weights (but they may be very hard to find for your larger size wheel).

Good Luck.

[bewford 21]

Washer fluid works great to fill wheels, and its cheap. Just make such you use the good stuff and not the 32 degree stuff

[EZRYDER 1]

Brookhaven is two towns from me (East patchogue). I recently started my horse collection after 3 craftsman which I still have.  I have a 1979 C-121 with thrower, mower, bagger which was partially restored by prev owner.  I am about to pick up another horse Saturday which needs some work.  Maybe we could hook up in person and share horse stories.

Larry

So I currently have regular turf tires with chains on them.  I'm going to use my GT14 for snow blowing in winter, and to pull wood out of the woods (firewood) via a small buggy, and sometimes just drag large logs out....   No hills for the most part, just flat woodsy, grassy, brush/leaves/mud ground.

 

What tire setup woudl be best?   What do the weights really do, and how much better are tractor tires instead of turf tires with chains?

[Machria 78]

Brookhaven is two towns from me (East patchogue). I recently started my horse collection after 3 craftsman which I still have.  I have a 1979 C-121 with thrower, mower, bagger which was partially restored by prev owner.  I am about to pick up another horse Saturday which needs some work.  Maybe we could hook up in person and share horse stories.

Larry

 

Hey Larry!  I keep my boat in E.Patch at Sunset Harbor... (the old Dockside 500).  Would love to get together to discuss Wheelhorses...   I've been looking for somebody or a recomendation of a company around here that will do some work on my GT14.  I'd like to get the linkages all tighted/tiddy'd up, they are all a bit loose and sloppy.  I think it would run a bit better...

[EZRYDER 1]

Brookhaven is two towns from me (East patchogue). I recently started my horse collection after 3 craftsman which I still have.  I have a 1979 C-121 with thrower, mower, bagger which was partially restored by prev owner.  I am about to pick up another horse Saturday which needs some work.  Maybe we could hook up in person and share horse stories.

Larry

 

Hey Larry!  I keep my boat in E.Patch at Sunset Harbor... (the old Dockside 500).  Would love to get together to discuss Wheelhorses...   I've been looking for somebody or a recomendation of a company around here that will do some work on my GT14.  I'd like to get the linkages all tighted/tiddy'd up, they are all a bit loose and sloppy.  I think it would run a bit better...

Great! I live 1/4 mile East of the turn off to Sunset harbor.  I have a terrific mechanic who works from his house on Orchard which is one block East of me. I'll be glad to intro you.

My email in the afternoons is lryder@mdipower.com other times "ryderlj@optonline.net

Feel free to email me there at those times.

Larry

[Challenger 27]

This season I'm going to try a set of HDAP tires.  These are discussed at length on another garden tractor site.  Folks there seem to like them a lot.

[Butch 194]

I used rubber chains for 6" of wet snow and had no problem at all. They're just expensive.

[Stigian 1,234]

Fill the tires!!

 

 

I'm with Mike, filled tires are the way to go. With filled ag's fitted to my 312 I never had any traction problems unless I was really pushing my luck through very deep mud towing a very heavy trailer..

[6wheeler 666]

This topic will probably always be discussed over and over again. On the farm we still put chains on the loader and manure hauling tractors in the winter. Even though they are 15,000 and 19,000 pound tractors, they still slide all over creation on snow and ice. On my WH's I just use turf tires. I don't  use any of them during winter so I do not use chains. But in the spring, I use them and my JD's for garden duty. Even when plowing or other "field" work the turfs with fluid work just fine. It probably doesn't hurt to have a 250# seat weight either. I don't think Ag's on my lawn would be good as the tractors do dual duty. Even the 3600 Ford I use out here occasionally leaves bar marks in the lawn if its soft. So, I decided to stay away from them(Ag's). I guess it is just a personal choice for what you think will work or look cool. Personally, I feel that the machine does have its limitations. I don't plan to hook 2000 pounds behind any of my GT's and expect them to pull it. Nor do I ever think any of them will push a mountain of snow the size of my house. I do however think that "rib" tires on the front would help with garden duty for steering purposes. But, again. Knowing what tri-ribbed tires do to an alfalfa field when turning hard, makes me stay away from them also for lawn equipment. just my  .

[EZRYDER 1]

Could someone please clarify "filling tires" How do you do it and how do you undo it?

Larry

This topic will probably always be discussed over and over again. On the farm we still put chains on the loader and manure hauling tractors in the winter. Even though they are 15,000 and 19,000 pound tractors, they still slide all over creation on snow and ice. On my WH's I just use turf tires. I don't  use any of them during winter so I do not use chains. But in the spring, I use them and my JD's for garden duty. Even when plowing or other "field" work the turfs with fluid work just fine. It probably doesn't hurt to have a 250# seat weight either. I don't think Ag's on my lawn would be good as the tractors do dual duty. Even the 3600 Ford I use out here occasionally leaves bar marks in the lawn if its soft. So, I decided to stay away from them(Ag's). I guess it is just a personal choice for what you think will work or look cool. Personally, I feel that the machine does have its limitations. I don't plan to hook 2000 pounds behind any of my GT's and expect them to pull it. Nor do I ever think any of them will push a mountain of snow the size of my house. I do however think that "rib" tires on the front would help with garden duty for steering purposes. But, again. Knowing what tri-ribbed tires do to an alfalfa field when turning hard, makes me stay away from them also for lawn equipment. just my  .

[Machria 78]

Here ya go:   

 

Could someone please clarify "filling tires" How do you do it and how do you undo it?

Larry

This topic will probably always be discussed over and over again. On the farm we still put chains on the loader and manure hauling tractors in the winter. Even though they are 15,000 and 19,000 pound tractors, they still slide all over creation on snow and ice. On my WH's I just use turf tires. I don't  use any of them during winter so I do not use chains. But in the spring, I use them and my JD's for garden duty. Even when plowing or other "field" work the turfs with fluid work just fine. It probably doesn't hurt to have a 250# seat weight either. I don't think Ag's on my lawn would be good as the tractors do dual duty. Even the 3600 Ford I use out here occasionally leaves bar marks in the lawn if its soft. So, I decided to stay away from them(Ag's). I guess it is just a personal choice for what you think will work or look cool. Personally, I feel that the machine does have its limitations. I don't plan to hook 2000 pounds behind any of my GT's and expect them to pull it. Nor do I ever think any of them will push a mountain of snow the size of my house. I do however think that "rib" tires on the front would help with garden duty for steering purposes. But, again. Knowing what tri-ribbed tires do to an alfalfa field when turning hard, makes me stay away from them also for lawn equipment. just my  .

[EZRYDER 1]

Great! Somehow filling tires with fluid seems WRONG but I guess I need to try it!

Larry

Here ya go:   

 

 

Could someone please clarify "filling tires" How do you do it and how do you undo it?

Larry

This topic will probably always be discussed over and over again. On the farm we still put chains on the loader and manure hauling tractors in the winter. Even though they are 15,000 and 19,000 pound tractors, they still slide all over creation on snow and ice. On my WH's I just use turf tires. I don't  use any of them during winter so I do not use chains. But in the spring, I use them and my JD's for garden duty. Even when plowing or other "field" work the turfs with fluid work just fine. It probably doesn't hurt to have a 250# seat weight either. I don't think Ag's on my lawn would be good as the tractors do dual duty. Even the 3600 Ford I use out here occasionally leaves bar marks in the lawn if its soft. So, I decided to stay away from them(Ag's). I guess it is just a personal choice for what you think will work or look cool. Personally, I feel that the machine does have its limitations. I don't plan to hook 2000 pounds behind any of my GT's and expect them to pull it. Nor do I ever think any of them will push a mountain of snow the size of my house. I do however think that "rib" tires on the front would help with garden duty for steering purposes. But, again. Knowing what tri-ribbed tires do to an alfalfa field when turning hard, makes me stay away from them also for lawn equipment. just my  .

[bitten 134]

Your GT14 takes a special wheel weight and they are hard to come by. Took me 5 years before I got mine. So filling them with fluid or coming up with some other weight system might be your best bet. As for the tires, IDK. I use age with chains and have no problems but I have not tried turf tires so I have nothing to compare with. 

Good Luck.

[Cutlas3391 776]

Do you guys keep your rear weights on all the time? Even when you not using the plow or snowblower? This might sound like a dumb question do you think leaving the rear wheel weights on all the time do some harm to your transmission and rear end? wear and tear?

[GlenPettit 1,717]

Yes; I leave the weighted tires  on all year, it's too much work to change them, twice-a-year.   For some tractors I have two sets of tires, one light/wide for the summer mowing and the other very heavy & with chains for Winter Plowing.  (10psi Summer, 20psi Winter).  

My 416 tilling tractor has had the same weight and tiller on it for the last 8 years, all year (80# RimGuard in tubes, 50# outside Steel plus 30# inside Steel weights, = 160# per rear tire), no flat spots, holds pressure perfect (plus the fronts at 60# each) for a total of 440# added weight and the tiller stays attached all year also.  All that extra weight makes tilling just perfect, nothing slows it down and I have not noticed any problems, I just hope I  never do  get stuck.

[JC 1965 1,532]

   I just ran across this topic and I have a question  Can you fill the tires with fluid if you have tubes in them ?     I read all the posts but didn't see that anywhere. Just wanted to know !!!  Thanks  

[Whmaverick 54]

No problem with tubes, actually better, go for it you won't be disappointed. I grew up on a dairy farm and I agree with these posts, farm tractors and garden tractors both benefit greatly by filling tires with a freeze proof liquid. Lots of post on here on the subject. Just be careful when your tractor becomes unstoppable and you try telling unbelievers about it. Might get your head chewed off. LOL