New (Ag) shoes

[DennisThornton 4,771]

Strange, I ran loaded ags last winter because they were on the tractor when I bought it and found that any kind of decent grade would lose traction. They are great in the dirt and on the flat. This year it is turfs with wheel weights and chains.

Visually you would think that Ags are the answer for everything, but as you discovered, they are not.  But gads they look good!  Not nearly as good looking is double crosses with ice cleats, but they work real good!

[Pullstart 64,768]

Though I'm an advocate for ags on everything tractor too, I can hear a conversation playing out like:

Why did you have to have these tires again?
I had to have them because of that one hill and that one time I slipped pushing too much snow and these will make it so that will never happen again.
What did your tractor friends on your website say about it?
(while many people are saying turfs and chains are better than ags and chains) Not much on this one, there must be a better topic going right now. 

[Coadster32 793]

Direct anyone asking you that question to the "loose lips" thread going on right now.

[bob's toy 32]

Love those ag tires..have them on my 1267 I am in the process of tearing down for frame up restore. My question to any of you fellow Wheel Horse lovers, where can I find the three ribbed front tires I see on so many fine looking machines?

[AMC RULES 37,147]

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odkw=4.00-8+tire&_osacat=0&_from=R40&_trksid=p2045573.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.X4.00-8+tri+rib+tire.TRS0&_nkw=4.00-8+tri+rib+tire&_sacat=0

[clip 185]

Miller Tire has a selection of 3 rib as well as the Vredestein V61 for the wider fronts.

[bob's toy 32]

Knew I could count on my fellow Wheel Horse Fans. Thank you so much for the information...found just what I need, I never thought to try E-bay..LOL Thanks again..

[tractorhogg 612]

I've purchased over 20 complete set of tires since the fall of 2011, my first set of AGs were Deestone 23x10.50-12 I used them one winter in Oklahoma to push two fairly good snows of eight inches each on a 200 yard driveway. That activity reduced the tread considerably to what it was originally which wasn't very much to start with. As the saying goes you get what you pay for. Deestones are probably the cheapest AGs you can buy, mine were under 125.00 from GCT 2011. After that I went to BKT Trenchers that had a taller narrower lug that was closer together and they worked okay, but I wasn't that impressed. I plow, disc, and till peoples gardens up to 1 acre to make a living while in college, it doesn't pay a lot, but I can make my own hours. After seeing what was out there, Deestome, Hi-Run, "Tru Power"  I decide to look at ATV tires which I found to be far superior to garden tractor AGs. On a side note many tires like "Tru Powers" are more of a pulling tire than a garden tractor tire and will have less than optimal results in gardening activities, because that is not what they are designed to do. That brings me to my point. You have to decide what you want your tires to do and there seems to be two schools of thought. 1) I want my tractor tires to look "cool" and 2) I want my tractor tires to be able to mow up and down steep hills, plow virgin soil, push 12" of snow, and pull 24" logs up from the creek. Now if you are in school of thought 1) you have absolutely no problem, however if you are in school 2) you have the dilemma that they really don't make one tire to do all what you want from a tire. To attempt to solve the problem of a tire that will accomplish all these things it takes two things, more money and a little creativity in searching for tires. I say creativity, because while I support those that just want "cool" tires the promotion of a tire like a Deestone AG does little to overcome getting to position 2). Now back to more money, when I say more money that is only more money initially spent, not more money in the long run. Buying the right tire may allow you to never have to buy another tire, barring damage, in your lifetime. I have several tires like that and while they were 35-40 dollars more per tire than the Deestone, Hi-Run, and Cheng-Shen tires, I don't have to worry about replacing them in a couple of years.  As I said, I plow, disc, till around a dozen gardens a year and maintain a 200 yard drive, using at least 4 different tractors for those chores, if I used the cheaper tires even sharing chores I would have been into a second set in 4 years, which makes the cheap tire expensive. There are two tires I currently use for AG duties, the first is a very aggressive AG tire and it is a rough ride on concrete/asphalt, but in dirt, mud, plowing, or any kind of dirt work there are none better, and that is the Interco 25x8-12 ITP589 or ITP 489 if you want to save some money. The other tire I really like can be used on turf, dirt, snow, or anything, it is very well suited to snow and ice conditions, wears chains well, and is a good candidate for studs if needed. Those tires are the Duro Frontiers or Maxxis Ceros (same tire), they come in many sizes, I use 25x9-12, both these tires are better suited to 8.5 inch rims and on 7 or 7.5 inch rims will be taller and narrower. 

Edited November 8, 2015 by tractorhogg

[WNYPCRepair 1,923]

I like the Duro. It's probably better suited for me than the ags. My back yard is wet(lands) until into the summer, and turf tires spin. I needed a more aggressive tread, so I decided to give the ags a try, but those Duros would be perfect. Next tractor up, I'll give those a shot.
 

[clip 185]

Hogg, have you tried the Tru-Powers? I've seen similar results with Deestone, etc ag treads but all the Carlisle tires I've owned, including three sets of ags (two on tillers, one on the WH) have been considerably more expensive and seemed to outlast other tires, turf or ag tread.

Also, wanted to ask if you've tried the Carlisle All Trail or the Kenda Terra Trac. Think some All Trails might be my next purchase for the Cub Cadet.

[tractorhogg 612]

Hogg, have you tried the Tru-Powers? I've seen similar results with Deestone, etc ag treads but all the Carlisle tires I've owned, including three sets of ags (two on tillers, one on the WH) have been considerably more expensive and seemed to outlast other tires, turf or ag tread.

Also, wanted to ask if you've tried the Carlisle All Trail or the Kenda Terra Trac. Think some All Trails might be my next purchase for the Cub Cadet.

Carlisle's are a very well made tire, and yes they do last. I have All-Trails on the rear of a mower tractor, but they are almost as much as the Duro or Maxxis and not nearly the tire. As I said in my post, the Tru Powers are a tire that is more suited for pulling, its flat top design and lug placement is often used for those in stock class pulling events where the Dick Cepak or "cut" tires are either excluded or can't be afforded They are a great tire used for what they were intended to be used for, stock pulling and coolness. They really are not your best (or only) choice tire for gardening or winter work, especially for what they cost. If that design worked well in farming conditions or snow traction, you would see very wide flat top tires that stay on top of the surface rather than move through it, AKA flotation design, on farm tractors and snow removal vehicles, you do not. They are the number 1 "cool" tire, but as for being the better work tire they are not. That said, it doesn't mean that they wont work for you, or cant work, its just not designed for that application as much as a tire with deeper lugs, and a taller narrower profile than the Tru-Power. My post was never meant to disparage any tire, only to share information so people could make an informed decision as to whether they wanted to be in group 1, that was only concerned with having a cool looking tire (which is not bad) or those that wanted to be in group 2 that needed a tire that would perform well in a variety of conditions. If you are sitting on your tractor trying to remove snow from your driveway and your tires are spinning in place on a 10 percent grade you're not going to look that cool to the neighbors looking out the window. If your wide rear AG tire and front turf tire don't line up in a furrow while plowing, your tractor maybe powerful enough to get through it, but not cleanly and not without substantial wear on the tractor. Lastly if you are having traction issues on turf, weight may help, but its not the only answer, the right tire is a better answer.

Edited November 8, 2015 by tractorhogg

[clip 185]

Agreed in full about the floatation tires, I got mine in 23x8.5 for more ground pressure and the self-cleaning action of the ag lugs. Similar to the tall skinny tires on my Cub, which work great for ground-engaging work, not so well for snow removal until the v-bar chains go on.

OP, this will be my first experience with 2-link chains on a garden tractor but I've heard great things from the forum. They look like they'll do the trick.

Edited November 8, 2015 by clip

[tractorhogg 612]

Agreed in full about the floatation tires, I got mine in 23x8.5 for more ground pressure and the self-cleaning action of the ag lugs. Similar to the tall skinny tires on my Cub, which work great for ground-engaging work, not so well for snow removal until the v-bar chains go on.

Those are great tires, both on the Horse and beside the Cub. I think it is difficult for many to see or understand the difference in tires when their is use is limited and conditions are not as severe, The guys that build these different ATV type machines have a big head start on tire design, especially since so many of them are now designed for farm use. And to clarify my post, The Tru Powers in a narrower width (8.5) make good AG tires, but a 10.50 wide tire is not as well suited in any brand.

Edited November 8, 2015 by tractorhogg