Tire Wear and toe-in setting

bambam31

Member

Equipment
L3800HST 4x4,R1,FEL, 6'disc, 5'bush hog,piranhaTB,6'grader,6'rake, 48"forks
Apr 3, 2014
315
26
23
Mobile, AL
I purchased my L3800 4x4 new in 2013. I noticed this week that the front tires are wearing on the outsides due to the toe-in setting. There's still plenty of tread but I was wondering if I should get my dealer to swap my front tires sooner or later?
 

85Hokie

Moderator
Staff member
Lifetime Member

Equipment
BX-25D ,PTB. Under Armor, '90&'92-B7100HST's, '06 BX1850 FEL
Jul 13, 2013
10,271
2,104
113
Bedford - VA
I purchased my L3800 4x4 new in 2013. I noticed this week that the front tires are wearing on the outsides due to the toe-in setting. There's still plenty of tread but I was wondering if I should get my dealer to swap my front tires sooner or later?
Upload a picture that looks straight on from the front at a five foot height or so, if IT is off THAT bad - should be easy to spot! There should be a slight toe-in but not that bad to wear the tires as you describe:)
 

bambam31

Member

Equipment
L3800HST 4x4,R1,FEL, 6'disc, 5'bush hog,piranhaTB,6'grader,6'rake, 48"forks
Apr 3, 2014
315
26
23
Mobile, AL
Upload a picture that looks straight on from the front at a five foot height or so, if IT is off THAT bad - should be easy to spot! There should be a slight toe-in but not that bad to wear the tires as you describe:)
Will do. When I get back to the camp next weekend I'll snap a pic and post. Thanks
 

tcrote5516

New member

Equipment
BX1860, FEL, 50" Front Blower, Heated Cab, 6' blade, 3pt carry all, 3pt hitch
Sep 2, 2014
482
2
0
Southern New Hampshire
Remember if you take all the toe out the tractor will tend to understeer in high speed cornering ;)
 

MikeyA

Member

Equipment
2016 B2650 FEL and 60"mmm,1998 B2400 MMM FEL(sold!) BB 4ft BRUSH HOG
Mar 6, 2010
150
1
18
West Central Illinois
I'm betting it has more to do with the caster and camber angles than toe in. When I make a sharp turn, all of my B series Kubota's have exhibited "scrub", which causes the tire wear on outer edge of tread.
 

bambam31

Member

Equipment
L3800HST 4x4,R1,FEL, 6'disc, 5'bush hog,piranhaTB,6'grader,6'rake, 48"forks
Apr 3, 2014
315
26
23
Mobile, AL
Two months ago I create this post because I was concerned about the wear on my front tires. It was suggested that I post a pic of the issue. Well, I was finally able to get up to the camp and take a pictures. I totally forgot to measure them but maybe somebody can tell me if I've got a problem or not.

[/url]Untitled by bambam32, on Flickr[/IMG]
[/url]Untitled by bambam32, on Flickr[/IMG]
[/url]Untitled by bambam32, on Flickr[/IMG]
 

bandaidmd

Member

Equipment
B2620 w/LA364 FEL ,BH65, ssqa , 1982 B8200E w/BF300FEL
May 19, 2013
603
0
16
Middle of DELMARVA
Camber (out of plumb in carpenter terms) is whats causing your wear. Not sure if its supposed to be that way or not and i doubt its adjustable.
 

conropl

Member

Equipment
L3560 HSDC
Oct 17, 2016
233
18
18
West Michigan
When my L3560hstc was delivered, the camber looked like yours. I asked the service manager if it is supposed to be like that and told me it was. However, I never did measure it to find out if it was exsessive, but he made it sound like it was one of the things they check before delivery... so I did not worry about it.

What is the reasoning for having camber on the front tires? I can think of a couple, but was wondering what the design intent was.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G870A using Tapatalk
 

Tooljunkie

Well-known member
Lifetime Member

Equipment
L1501,home built carry all, mini plow blade.
May 13, 2014
4,150
27
48
59
Lac Du Bonnet, Manitoba,Canada
Sure looks excessive. Now toe in can cause sidewall to flex and make it appear worse than it actually is. If thats how its supposed to be and not adjustable then all oft the same model tractors would look like that.
 

lugbolt

Well-known member

Equipment
ZG127S-54
Oct 15, 2015
4,807
1,575
113
Mid, South, USA
They have some positive camber built into the axle. In other words, the distance between the tops of the tires is greater than at the bottom. It's done to make it easier to steer, easier to operate. It causes no abnormal wear on the tires when it's used for normal tractor purposes, like in the dirt, gravel, etc. Used on pavement, it won't matter if it was zero camber and zero toe, it's going to wear the tires, period. They're not designed for pavement or hard pack-which is why they say NHS on them (non-highway-service). The only adjustment that most tractors have is toe, and if you look at the specifications, it's a wide range, like 0 inch to 1.5 inch toe-in. This tells me that it's not critical as long as it's close. Final thought for now is look at your tie rods. It's not uncommon to bend them, and this will cause excessive toe.
 

Tooljunkie

Well-known member
Lifetime Member

Equipment
L1501,home built carry all, mini plow blade.
May 13, 2014
4,150
27
48
59
Lac Du Bonnet, Manitoba,Canada
Actually, Lugbolt nailed it. Putting centerline directly below pivot point of steering knuckle would make it easiest to turn. As an example automotive ball joints are generally inside the wheel.

So the angle is likely the way it is most practical for them to reduce steering effort.
Tire wear happens, moreso in 4wd.
 

OrangeColoredTractor

Member
Lifetime Member

Equipment
2017 L2501 4WD HST
May 10, 2017
57
7
8
Washington
I'm betting it has more to do with the caster and camber angles than toe in. When I make a sharp turn, all of my B series Kubota's have exhibited "scrub", which causes the tire wear on outer edge of tread.
Yes, I'm going with camber. I notice mine is brand new and it has a positive camber, ie wheel tops are leaning outward.