Alternate Rims and Tires

2018Bx · Sep 13, 2018

Hey!

New member here. I'm thinking about getting some car rims and tires to replace the rear turf set for the winter. I'm thinking the turf tires would be basically useless on snow and ice, maybe ok with chains. It looks like a Honda 5 lug rim would be a direct fit and easy to fit chains to due to the open rim design. Anyone have experience with this or want to offer their opinion? Thanks

hockeystewey · Sep 13, 2018

I have dual sets of tires for Winter/Grass season....both mounted on original Kubota rims. I havent used turfs in the snow, but alot of the guys say they work really well. I have a smaller tractor, but i found the second set of tires to be reasonably priced from the dealer. Think the set of 4 w/ tax title and delivery was around $400.

RCW · Sep 13, 2018

With a 4WD tractor, you need to pay attention to the rolling circumferences of the fronts and rears.

If you get them mis-matched, in 4WD it can bind the front drivetrain and cause damage.

Some guys say turfs (R3) tires are better for snow than industrial (R4).

BAP · Sep 13, 2018

If you list what tractor you have it will help get useful answers. A set of tire chains would be cheaper.

2018Bx · Sep 13, 2018

RCW said:
With a 4WD tractor, you need to pay attention to the rolling circumferences of the fronts and rears.

If you get them mis-matched, in 4WD it can bind the front drivetrain and cause damage.

Some guys say turfs (R3) tires are better for snow than industrial (R4).

Thanks. I am aware of this fact about 4WD and it's a good thing to remind people about. I did some research to find the matching car tire size and found 195/65R15 to be a match to my rear turf tires.

2018Bx · Sep 13, 2018

BAP said:
If you list what tractor you have it will help get useful answers. A set of tire chains would be cheaper.

Thanks. I updated my profile.

I have since read some posts on here and see that some guys think the turf tires work well on snow. Seems counter-intuitive but I guess it's worth a try. Maybe the larger contact area makes up for the lighter contact pressure. Also, tire chains will be quite cheap as I am going to make them myself.

2018Bx · Sep 13, 2018

hockeystewey said:
I have dual sets of tires for Winter/Grass season....both mounted on original Kubota rims. I havent used turfs in the snow, but alot of the guys say they work really well. I have a smaller tractor, but i found the second set of tires to be reasonably priced from the dealer. Think the set of 4 w/ tax title and delivery was around $400.

so do you use ag tires in the winter ?

hockeystewey · Sep 14, 2018

2018Bx said:
so do you use ag tires in the winter ?

yep i use my stock AG tires for the snow. I dont use chains or anything. they work just fine. And I have a hill in my driveway.

thirdroc17 · Sep 14, 2018

After clearing snow for 50 years, I've found rubber tires to be next to useless in clearing snow, regardless of tread pattern or amount of weight. Snow packs down, becomes ice, and has a co-efficient of drag next to nothing with rubber. Chains can dig into the ice. Chains work best on turf tires as on ags or R-4's, the bulk of the cross chains will settle in between the lugs and you're back to rubber on ice.

I almost never engage the 4x4 to clear snow. While the front tires are slightly over driven, they aren't over driven enough to actually help the turn, rather, engaging 4x4 hinders turning as the gears bind up.

I have two complete sets of wheels and tires. Bigger tires for summer for an improved right, smaller tires with chains for winter.

All that said, everyone has a different opinion, that's just what works best for me after trying dozens of combinations, on tractors from 500 to 10,000+ pounds, turfs, ags, and R-4's, with chains and without, 2-wheel drive and 4-wheel drive, over a 50+ year time span of driving tractors.

2018Bx · Sep 16, 2018

thirdroc17 said:
After clearing snow for 50 years, I've found rubber tires to be next to useless in clearing snow, regardless of tread pattern or amount of weight. Snow packs down, becomes ice, and has a co-efficient of drag next to nothing with rubber. Chains can dig into the ice. Chains work best on turf tires as on ags or R-4's, the bulk of the cross chains will settle in between the lugs and you're back to rubber on ice.

I almost never engage the 4x4 to clear snow. While the front tires are slightly over driven, they aren't over driven enough to actually help the turn, rather, engaging 4x4 hinders turning as the gears bind up.

I have two complete sets of wheels and tires. Bigger tires for summer for an improved right, smaller tires with chains for winter.

All that said, everyone has a different opinion, that's just what works best for me after trying dozens of combinations, on tractors from 500 to 10,000+ pounds, turfs, ags, and R-4's, with chains and without, 2-wheel drive and 4-wheel drive, over a 50+ year time span of driving tractors.

This agrees more with my experience. Maybe it depends on where you live and the type of winter. At least once / year here there is a storm that puts rain after snow on frozen ground. It's a mess. Heavy wet snow, ice at the ground level, very difficult to move. It seems the turf tires spin easy enough on wet grass, I don't have great expectations for these tires on ice. Hence the OP going with narrower tires with chains. I can get 2 tires and rims for $50 or less. These steel rims look perfect for threading chain through the rim.

2018Bx · Sep 16, 2018

I've looked at rubber strap type and regular steel chain - I think I'm going to get the steel chains and keep the original turf tires. The chains are cheap enough to beat the price I can get the tires and buy some chain to make up a set.

On to the next project idea... a plow for the loader

Missouribound · Sep 23, 2018

Have you used turf tires in the winter yet? Everyone I have talked to says that they actually work the best in snow. Perhaps give it a try before you spend any money. The concensus is that the smaller spaces between the tread doesn't allow snow to build up and they actually work better than the industrial or ag tires.
I myself can't verify this because I moved where snow is more of a casual thing rather than a daily winter event.
I'm just passing on what I have heard.

rkidd · Sep 23, 2018

I run turf tires on my B2650 here in the snow belt in North East Ohio with no problem at all. They work great. I can push snow right over the top of the bucket if I want to.

View attachment 38220

MulRuBul · Dec 29, 2018

I have a new-to-me BX2230 4x4 that I use with a box scraper. The original "turf-tires" tires dry rotted and I replaced them with Kenda 514's: 18/8.5x10 front & 26/12x12 rear. For front rims I bough two 4 on 4" x 10" trailer rims and had the center hole opened up to 2 13/16" to accommodate the front hub center. They are better suited to my needs, and I finally don't have to air up my tires before every use. The 514 Kendas look a lot like the tires I've seen run on Bobcats; lots of sidewall protection against "stobs" as my old Pappy used to call sharp buried branches or roots. The front tires are lower profile than the 18/8.5x8 OEM rims and offer about 1100 Lb. per tire vs. the 800 or so for factory rubber. In the interim I had run 18/9.5x8 in 6 ply from Tractor Supply.
These have a 1300 lb. per tire rating and "turf" tread. For sandy conditions they would be great, but my ground has a lot of decomposed granite/ clay mix and they coat-up pretty quickly. The mighty BX2230 runs out of power pretty fast, and the more industrial tread hooks up better in the damp.

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