Tearing up the lawn on the down hill..

[mikeeyre74 289]

What's the secret trick for going down relatively short, but steep inclines on my lawn so I don't tear the surface up? Because of the open type diff on my '77 B-80, when I go down some of the inclines, the tractor starts to go faster than the wheels are spinning, and then it unloads a wheel on the uphill unloaded side and spins that tire backwards for a sec until it slows back down.. but that just chews up the lawn. applying the break seems to be even worse, because it hits just one tire, so the OTHER one starts doing the same thing on the right hand side.. what's the secret, fellows? 

[ScottCT 15]

I have had a similar problem with my c121 going downhill with fire wood. A set of ag tires did the trick for me when there wasn't snow on the ground and a set of chains in the snow. The trick is to do what it takes to keep the wheels biting the ground. I should also mention that I have a set of wheel weights to help keep it planted. If you aren't towing anything a more aggressive set of turf tires or just adding wheel weights may do the trick. I hope this helps.
 

[dcrage 625]

I have found that slower speeds are better but not a cure all. Some slopes are just too steep and then weights, chains, and Ags are your only hope. 

[alswagg 128]

How about filling the inside of the tire with a tube full of RV antifreeze.  This will add weight to the ground plus you don't need much air pressure due to minimal compression of the liquid   Both help with traction greatly.  

[Don1977 604]

How steep, once you get past a certain point there isn't much you can do about it. I used wheel weights on the Carlisle Turf Savers 23 8.50 12  that came on the tractor. I switched to 23 10.50 12 Carlisle Turf Masters and didn't need the weights. My banks might not be as steep.

[bmsgaffer 2,043]

Yep, what they said. Weight, more aggressive tire, slower approach speed (i.e. lower gear)

[can whlvr 993]

I too have a steep area,mowing for 30 years and NOTHING helps with sliding down,its too steep

Edited June 27, 2015 by can whlvr

[boovuc 1,090]

I bought my first set of ag tires for a very steep shale heavy side hill I mowed years ago. The wider, the better and experiment once you install the ag tires, if they still slip, then add weight. The better solution is to add washer fluid or RV antifreeze to them rather than wheel weights. Alswagg's statement is spot on.
I didn't need the weights at first but as those bars wore down on the edges, I put weight on them to keep me from becoming road kill at the bottom of the yard! 

[AMC RULES 37,125]

Have you tried airing down your tires to increase your traction? 

[skrusins 128]

I have a B80 and I keep my chains and weights on all the time. It's ruff at first but I got use to it.

[mikeeyre74 289]

Well, I have the wheel weights already, I guess I can throw them on there and give that a try. I've never used them before.. just got them. I was trying to leave them off to save the compaction on the grass as mutes possible, but if compaction is the lesser of the two evils, I guess I'll have to take it. 

[alswagg 128]

Lower your air pressure also.  Try 8 psi maybe 10 at the most.  

[ScottCT 15]

Lower your air pressure also.  Try 8 psi maybe 10 at the most.  

Be careful lowering your air pressure on hilly terrain. Low pressure works great on relatively flat ground but I've found that the tractor becomes unstable when you move to a hill with low psi tires. I had a set of 2 ply Titan turf tires on my 312-8 I use for mowing and they felt "squishy" and wobbly on hills. I also had trouble with tire flex when turning on the hill unloading the inside tire causing it to spin so I switched to a set of Carlisle turf masters for the 4 plys, better tread, and higher air pressure. They proved to be much more stable and the traction was far superior. That combination works for mowing but the ags still work better for towing in my circumstance.