RADIAL VS CROSS PLY

RANSOMES YL183

Member
Arable Farmer
Hi all, would any of you recommend radial tyres over cross ply, I have super Kings 12.4-28 on an fe35 for ploughing, ballast with water and have got on very well with them, I also have continental 280/85r28 radials on another tractor, they are 3inches lower in height, would it be worth changing now that conditions are getting sticky, both are 11inches wide. Thanks
 

RANSOMES YL183

Member
Arable Farmer
Good god, I really cannot understand why anyone with an ounce of commonsense would put water in tyres for Ploughing, it just does not add up
Hi Pennine ploughing, is there something better than water you would recommend, I've been using back tyres three quarter filled with water for years without a problem and many more like me, you wouldn't travel to far with a plough on sticky ground from now on with out it, I was just wondering would radials be an advantage but they are 3inches lower in height, so would drop back of tractor 1.5inches approx. Thanks
 

Pennine Ploughing

Member
Mixed Farmer
Water in back tyres is really only any good for holding the back end down when having a front loader on, same as weights on front when having a heavy weight on back,
Also having water in tyres etc will all add up on weight for transportation etc, along with a real sh1t of a job when having a flat,
With regards to ballast on bigger tractors, it's to do with the fact that having more power than traction will cause lots of wheel slip, so to reduce this they ballast them up, this will not apply to vintage Ploughing, yes both the tractor weight and power is lot less, and can be a problem at times, but if careful handled will plough no bother

Now the tyre performance with water in is at a disadvantage from a just air filled tyre.
Reasons are that when you have filled 3/4 full of water, you have reduced the air capacity to 1/4 of what it was, this means that the air pressure has to be a couple of psi higher, due the sag in tyre wall at bottom, same would happen with what ever weight you added, and due to less air as a reserve to hold the tyre up from sagging.
So this means that with little and limited reserve of air tyre has to run harder,

Firstly
Meaning the say only 2 bars on 1 side and 1 bar on other side of tread is in contact with the ground and little give , however in a dry air filled tyre it can be run at lower air pressure in wet condition, giving 5 bars in contact with ground not 3, this gives nearly 70% more ground contact for more grip, and this only need be done on the land wheel, as furrow wheel never gives much if any bother.
Secondly,
With the all that weight in a ballasted tyre has to be dispersed on the ground, this causes compaction and will affect the front furrow of the Ploughing work each time it goes around the plot, thus can throw a different furrow in your work, this is usually compensated by adjusting the plough to plough sort of right, to make the work look better,
Thirdly,
When the plough is set to hide up the compacted furrow, it then become harder to pull, and then the circle begins again, !!!


The super king tyres you have, are the better ones of the cheap tyres, as the bars are at the right angle for grip, and are spaced out enough for self cleaning, and perform well for a cheap tyre, although when new they need the angle grinder on them to run right, however the biggest draw back in them is there a rounded top tyre like many cheap tyres, and the tread tappers off towards the sides, and will not perform well at higher pressure, as the side of tread has less contact with ground,

All in all, tyres is more important than people think, and often buy the wrong tyres from a cost point of view, and fit them wrong, yet think there doing a good job , yet have to take other measures to correct there mistakes and creating other problems down the line
 

RANSOMES YL183

Member
Arable Farmer
Thanks for advice, 11inches width is enough I feel in the furrow, I might try the 280/85r28 for a few matches, they were on a dexta i bought and have two wheel weights each side, I'd have plenty traction with them at low air pressure.
IMG_20210326_161814.jpg
 

Pennine Ploughing

Member
Mixed Farmer
That dexta was pulling a trailer plough with its previous owner, he kindly let the weights go with it.
I pull trailer ploughs, both vintage trailed and High Cut, on steel rims not cast, no weights or water and no diff lock, and never any bother,
At the national Ploughing in 2019, there was a dexta, mf65, 2 international b275 and 434 all stuck and had to give over from Ploughing due to not being able to travel on the very wet Sunday, and yet they had water in tyres and weights fitted and diff locks.
I even towed some of them out, but I managed to travel and complete my plot,
And a High Cut plough with boats press wheels and seamers takes more pulling than any other 2 furrow plough,

You seem to be looking for the answer that suits yourself, and like many make the simple mistakes, I will not post anymore, as its falling on deaf ears
 

RANSOMES YL183

Member
Arable Farmer
I pull trailer ploughs, both vintage trailed and High Cut, on steel rims not cast, no weights or water and no diff lock, and never any bother,
At the national Ploughing in 2019, there was a dexta, mf65, 2 international b275 and 434 all stuck and had to give over from Ploughing due to not being able to travel on the very wet Sunday, and yet they had water in tyres and weights fitted and diff locks.
I even towed some of them out, but I managed to travel and complete my plot,
And a High Cut plough with boats press wheels and seamers takes more pulling than any other 2 furrow plough,

You seem to be looking for the answer that suits yourself, and like many make the simple mistakes, I will not post anymore, as its falling on deaf ears
Thanks very much, I do indeed listen to everyone, that's what has gotten me this far, but I would never assume my way is best, as after 50 different approaches, the cat still gets skinned😁😁
 

Bury the Trash

Member
Mixed Farmer
having water ballast or wheel weights is totally different than weight on the rear /front linkage or front weight frame , simple physics and very noticeable in practice.
The key to the difference is the effect of pivoting on an axle, its not rocket science either.
 

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Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

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As reported in Independent


quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

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