Visit our tractor and agricultural equipment communities:

Ingersoll Forum Case IH Forum Combine Forum Hay Forum

JCB Forum John Deere Forum Kubota Forum Mahindra Forum

Massey Ferguson Talk New Holland Forum Valtra Forum Yanmar Forum

Zetor Forum Farming Forum

Reply to thread

Help Support SkidSteer Forum:

Message: <blockquote data-quote="mrbb" data-source="post: 140705" data-attributes="member: 13825">OK  the type of mud you have has to be considered, CLAY is a nasty mud, it fills in and covers almost anything IMO as even if you go new tires with deeper thread(and no clue how deep your current tire threads are now, but GOOD mud tires for skid steers are almost  1and  1/2 deep in there threads But like all things they wear down, and loose traction as they do(same goes for when ANY tire starts to loose the sharpness on the edge of lugs, as soon as they start to go round, they are loosing traction, its why off road racers replace tires so often, and or cut new edges) Any how tires will keep wearing down on you, and I think in very sticky slick clay, the threads will fill no matter how deep, as skid steers do NOT have enough tire speed to allow them to self clean like a ATV or truck used in the mud, that can use high RPMS/tire speed < to spin tires into flinging mud out of threads metal tracks can also fill in, but as they go around the tires, they do some what self clean some and the metal doesn't wear as fast as rubber (when used in soft ground that is)  so, typically they offer the MOST traction to all other things and there cheaper than rubber tracks they can many times be found used as well, saving you $$$ IF your tires now are rather bald, low thread , you can I guess TRY adding chains,as they will be your cheapest option I think, Just make sure there is clearance for them!they sell chains in several different types, if you do an online search for skid steer chains, , find a decent OEM make, and odds are they will recommend what style of chain they feel works best in mud  most of my experiences with chains is in snow and ice, , basic chains will work in mud but I know they make better designs made for mud or just more aggressive style  chains in general would be what I think you'd be best with! IF by chance chains do NOT help you, there rather fast on /off, and again cheapest option, and odds are you can always sell them, and recoup some of there costs,  due to skid steer tires tend to be the same size for dozens of makes and models, so, there is always some market for them, all the more so as winter gets closer or is here! if you just want to bite the bullet and buy over the tire tracks, again, this will most likely be what gives you the best chance of working in wet  ground you have! just make sure you get correct tracks for your specific machine, and know if you need spacers with them or not, GOOD track makers know this stuff and most sell everything you need to install ONCE you have them on the machine, know, they can add stress to all your drive train, and adjust you  level of abuse to save yourself repairs, go easier than you normally do , is what I mean, all the more so when on HARD ground is very soft ground,  odds are low of any damage but say your in soft ground going full speed spinning tracks and barely moving and you suddenly hit TRACTION<  thats when damage can happen,  thats what you want to try to not have happen and same when on hard ground when you have LOTS of traction, thats when you want to go easier,a s that traction adds stress to drive train more than the traction the tires  could ever have!so you have to adjust some a little more care and attention  and you should be fine as long as current machine is in GOOD shape If you know your machine now has problems or weak issues  in drive train, anything you add with more traction is going to speed up wear and tear, deeper thread tires being least, chains being second, and Over the tire tracks, being the most likely to do damage! also, if you run chains on current tires, make sure you have clearance for them too hope this helps</blockquote>

Verification