radial vs. normal tires?

Time for new shoes. Majority of my driving is on gravel/asphalt but to get to the poop that has to be moved there is the potential (the norm :roll: ) for mud of a 50-100 meter stretch. Talking an 8N size tractor with 11.2 (thinking of 12.4 or 13.6) x28 tires. I want to fill them to one PSI and forget them (haven't decided to load them or not but probably not).
Is radial tires worth (in my case) the extra 150 bucks each or should I just stick with normal? Also, I have 10" rims, how wide can I go with the same rims?


Thanks, Dave

Radials wear really well on pavement, but were talking thousands of
hours. How long are you keeping your tractor? I've got about 80%
tread on a set of 4000 hr radials. They didn't spend much time on
asphalt early on but do lately.

Little tires are worse too, we used to scrub off bias fronts in 500
hours on the road, 11x 24's.

Prolly keeping it for good........ Everyplace I go is on pavement/gravel. I have a used set of radials on ebay with about 3/4 inch of tread if they stay cheap just to try them. I probably won't see a set of tires wore out. Last time I went for a new set, the dealer had just redone an old tractor for sale and I got the halflife (??) tires for free. They were prolly 30+ years old so it's time to replace them. I have another set of wheels with decent tires on them but think it's time to just get new ones.

Dave

More flotation=less traction in either.The larger the footprint,the more weight you need,ambient or iron/loading to minimize slippage.Low pressure tires,such as used in Terragators and such seem to be the exception,as they are made/run soft enough to grasp ANY surface irregularity.
On a side note,there used to be a feller here on YT that was running those TG type tires on a Massey 135?? w/excellant results.Tires were very close to Masseys OEM diameter,but on a 16x16 or such rim,if I recall right.The Massey was a loader,general purpose use tractor,not used for heavy draft work.

Radials are worth the money for some of us and not so much for others... The way I look at it... if you're going to wear the tire out before it rots off the wheel then a radial will probably pay you... but if it's just an occasional use type of thing then it will probably just cost you more money. Most bias tires I've had will go over 2000 hours service between road/field like you're doing and radials I've got are still going at 3000 hours...
I'd say if you can't put 2000 hours on it in 10 years, go with the bias.
Galaxy tend to be decent cheap bias tires here.

Rod

Always liked this'n

This is my favorite...........

(quoted from post at 15:25:17 03/04/11) Radials are worth the money for some of us and not so much for others... The way I look at it... if you're going to wear the tire out before it rots off the wheel then a radial will probably pay you... but if it's just an occasional use type of thing then it will probably just cost you more money. Most bias tires I've had will go over 2000 hours service between road/field like you're doing and radials I've got are still going at 3000 hours...
I'd say if you can't put 2000 hours on it in 10 years, go with the bias.
Galaxy tend to be decent cheap bias tires here.

Rod

Click to expand...

Is the traction advantage anything to speak of???? In reality, I'm doing OK with the bologna skins I'm running now. A full set of tread will probably be the ticket.

Dave

One thing I like is my R4 tires on my Kubota. I really don't see any loss of traction vs. my R1 on the international. But they don't tear up the ground as much either.

Radials shine in poor traction conditions...ie tillage.

Now THAT'S a lawnmower!

Its all about lug engagement vs compaction. In soft wet soils like here in the east, the radials still sink in nicely and bite where a bias leaves ruts.

Its about half way to running duals, you need a bit of weight or soft ground to make them bite.

With the right tires, in the right conditions, with the right amount of weight... yes. Radials can give an enormous advantage in pull. As an example... an 'R1-W' Michelin Agribib with it's deep lug will probably pull twice as much in soft ground as many bias tires will do so long as you have enough weight there to make it bite. It'll also outpull a radial like the 'Firestone Radial All Traction 23 Degree' by a similar margin in the same conditions... On the flip side... if you're on hard road all the time any cheap old bias will outpull both because the bias doesn't squirm as much. The 23 degree radial is really good in moderately hard soil conditions where it can get some bite but the ground is still dry. They've all got their place.
In terms of road wear on asphalt... I think I've got to give that one to Michelin, flat out, hands down.
The short answer... with my perception of what you're doing with the tractor... if it was mine I'd buy a Galaxy... I think AgMaster is the model. It uses the old moulds for the Firestone Field and Road.

Rod

Are you currently pushing the available traction to it's absolute limits? (ie do you really see the need to "buy" more traction?)

Is the percentage of increased traction available from a more expensive tire worth the dollars? With a 300hp tillage tractor, you'll see an immense difference. With a 25hp 2wd antique, the increase will be marginal at best.

Do you use the tractor in a manner that puts tires in risk of damage? (ie bush hogging in rough terrain, logging, ect) Is it worth the additional cost for a radial, given the possibility of trashing a tire way before it's worn out?

Can you find radials in the size you want, and at a reasonable price? What's the story on bias ply availability/price as a comparison?

Check your current rim width. Radials can be more sensitive to rim width than bias ply tires. Too wide or too narrow, and the tire will run on the very center of the tread (only) when inflated to a PROPER PSI. It's common to run radials at a lower PSI than bias ply tires as it is. Should you need to decrease pressure further to get a good tire to ground "contact patch", you may be WAY below a good working pressure, resulting in a "squirmy" ride.

11.2X28, 12.4X28, and 13.6X28 are different overall diameters. Larger tires will effect overall gearing. N series Fords (as an example) tend to be geared a little fast for SOME work as it is, and they don't offer a great deal of gear choices. You don't want to change gearing too much, or you run the risk of having a tractor that isn't well suited for slow PTO work as a for instance. Also, larger diameter tires will put the tire closer to the extreme ends of the 3-point hitch arms, possibly causing clearance issues with mounted implements. I've seen just that same issue on a couple tractors here recently. (14.9X28's on a tractor that was intended to have 12.4X28's....caused a bush hog to grab a tire lug and rip the tire to shreds when hitch was raised)

Most tire manufacturer's websites will show tire dimensions for various sizes. IMHO, I'd stay fairly close to OEM size. Bigger tires LOOK cool, and in some cases help with traction, but can be detrimental if/when there's a radical difference in size.

Dave, you are always saying about you hardly have enough power for your hay equipment. Now if you put those other sizes on you will be moving faster trying to make the hay and that will take more power that you say you are short of already

Honestly thought that only the width was different. I'll stick with the original size then. Maybe what I do doesn't even justify radials. Found new bias plys for 200 bucks each and radials for almost 500. Can't justify extra expense.

Thanks for the input from everyone.


Dave