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Picking The Right Tyres For Your Tractor

Wed, 9 Mar 2022 | PRODUCTS

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The huge range of tractor tyre manufacturers, brands, types and sizes can make selection an arduous task when choosing replacements from tractor tyre price lists and the range of tractor tyres for sale on the market. While tractor tyre price may be a strong influence, there are a number of other factors that will help you pick the right tyres for your tractor when entering ‘tractor tyres near me’ into a search engine and browsing the tractor tyres for sale from suppliers.

Cross-ply or radial

Radial tractor tyres offer many advantages over cross-ply types. However, their more advanced design does mean that they cost more. There may be circumstances where your tractor, the nature of the work it does and the number of hours it works in a year mean that cross-ply tractor tyres are perfectly adequate. Cross-ply tractor tyres are constructed in bands from one side of the tractor tyre to the other. This older technology means they are cheaper to produce, but they are perfectly adequate for tractors which have a low annual workload, carry out simple tasks and are not expected to travel far. The format of their construction means the ride they produce is firm, and so they are less well-suited to tractors that travel frequently at speeds above 30km/hr (18mph). For the same reason, the cross-construction means they do not offer the same levels of grip as comparable radial tractor tyres, due to the more rigid sidewalls. If your tractor is fitted with a front loader, however, this may be an advantage, as the more rigid sidewalls offer greater load-bearing capabilities and reduced movement under load. It is important to always replace tractor tyres in pairs across axles, and cross-ply and radial tractor tyres must not be mixed on the same axle.

Radial tractor tyres are a more recent design, and feature a construction that means the tractor tyre is manufactured in bands around its circumference. The result is a high-strength tractor tyre that also offers a high degree of sidewall flexibility. On the tractor’s front/steering axle, this provides enhanced control over wheel/tyre direction at speed on the road.For modern tractors that have top travel speeds of 40, 50 or even 60km/hr speeds, this means a high level of road contact is retained at all times, and improved heat dissipation. Both of these factors have significant implications for road safety and tractor tyre life.

Standard, IF or VF

Compared with standard tractor tyres, increased flexion (IF) tractor tyre types can carry 20% higher loads at the same operating pressure, or the same load at 20% lower pressures. For farmers seeking even greater versatility and capability from their tractor tyres, there is the further option of very high flexion tractor tyres, which can carry 40% higher loads at the same operating pressure or the same load at 40% lower pressures. If you are especially concerned about the impact of heavy machinery on your fields’ soils, and if much of the work for your tractor involves field tasks such as primary and secondary cultivations and crop establishment, such tractor tyres should be a consideration. These tractor tyre types will also be of benefit if your farm arrangement means that you need to travel frequently between fields at high speed, as they mean adjustment of tractor tyre pressures will not be necessary.

The ideal profile for your tractor’s workload

The second figure in a tyre’s numbering denotes its sidewall profile as a percentage of its width. If minimising soil damage is a priority for you, choose tractor tyres which have a low profile, which will provide a wide footprint. When combined with the longer footprint produced by modern tractor tyre designs – particularly IF ad VF types – the result will be maximum ground contact and hence minimal ground pressure and soil damage.

Following these points when scanning tractor tyres price lists and searching the internet for ‘tractor tyres for sale’ and ‘tractor tyres near me’, and they will help you to pick the right tyres for your tractor and the work it is expected to do.