Tire Life

[Rudi]

I am kinda perplexed by the differences in tire life. This may not really be Cub Cadet centric, but this is probably the best forum to ask this question in.

My CC129 still has the original tires on it - front and rear and they have a lot of tread left. The PO had said that this particular unit was used for a long time at his home in Maine and then it was brought here to New Brunswick and used at the cottage. Storage was essentially under the deck and the tires were exposed to the weather a lot. However very little cracking or sun damage to the rubber. There are inflation issues but I think it is more valve/stem problems than anything physically wrong with the rubber itself.

My Craftsman aka Roper Deluxe circa 1990 or so still has it's original rubber and it was used hard - almost to the point of abuse. Yes .. I admit it... I worked that puppy way beyond it's design limits but it is still in one piece and the engine is on the bench getting rebuilt at a chums. I have snow blower tires that I have used for my Log Wagon project and for other projects and they are of an undetermined age but most of them I have had for at least a decade and they were old when I got em but they still have lots of tread. Most of those are Carlisle tires.

My JD L-111 on the other hand is about 5 years old, has 320 hours on the clock and the front tires are worn out And I have no idea why as the tires are always inflated to the proper tire pressure. This makes no sense especially since these tires are probably the ones I have taken the best care of.

So .. what should be the normal life span for tires on essentially a Lawn and Garden equipment be it a Cub Cadet or some other brand? And what brand would y'all recommend. Course .. will have to find them up here above the 49th, but that is a different story.

[Eugene]

Check the toe in on the front tires.

Actually, I don't know the answer. On my Cub Cadets, the turf type front tires seem to wear faster than the tires with the standard (trailer) type tread.

[gitractorman]

Rudi,
Welcome to the world of "economizing", or making things cheaper! Tire life is one of those things that manufactureres identified as "lasting longer than their own product" so they started buying cheaper tires. You can't even buy replacement tires that are as cheap as the ones that come on the tractor from the factory. All of the manufacturers are guilty of it.

I had a friend that worked at Motorola, and her whole job was to engineer a phone that would NOT last as long, because the phones were outlasting the service contracts.

Another reason that your tractor tires are wearing out faster is because all of the manufacturers have made a big push for tighter turning radiuses. Everyone wants to be able to mow around a 12" tree, but doesn't realize that turning that sharp just shreds the tires. Plus, go back to my first comment, and there you go.

Bill

[Rudi]

Eugene:

I don't know if the toe can be adjusted on a JD to be truthful. Kinda hard to find a service manual for one of these puppies.

Bill:

Kinda figures doesn't it This thing will almost turn on a dime but you can see the tires flex.... some weird. I guess I will have to bite the bullet and buy new elcheapo tires that probably won't last very long. At least these ones I can salvage for a project -- might work as trailer tires instead of them cheap wheel barrow tires that are really thin

Will have to see what my dealer wants for a pair....

[Eugene]

Eugene: I don't know if the toe can be adjusted on a JD to be truthful. Kinda hard to find a service manual for one of these puppies.

Hafta look. Check for bent tie rods.

If you have a small engine shop or garden tractor dealership/repair shop - check their junkers - machines the previous owner didn't want to repair. Should be able to pick up a decent set of tires and rims for very little money.

[Rudi]

Eugene:

That should have been my first thought... it certainly is going to be an avenue I will check out. With luck I might even get a set on rims that will fit the deere....

[Eugene]

Eugene: That should have been my first thought... it certainly is going to be an avenue I will check out. With luck I might even get a set on rims that will fit the deere....

If you can find a similiar model mostly complete JD junker - consider buying the entire tractor. From time to time I buy narrow framed Cub Cadet junkers. Frequently, the initial purchase price is less than the value of one salvaged part.

Edit: Locally there are two shops that work on lawn tractors. At this time of year, end of the mowing season, there is usually around 1/2 to 1 acre of junkers to look over.

[Denny Clayton]

Don't have any answers for ya, Rudi, but I've sure seen alot of old lawn tractor tires still going strong over the years. I had a couple of Wheel Horse rims and tires on Rusty I picked up at a tractor show for $10. Great tread but cracked sidewalls. While plowing snow a couple years ago one of them blew out the sidewall and sounded like a .410 shotgun. I even ducked! Got about 3 years out of them. Not bad for $10.



My '89 JD 420 with 2,000 hours I've been mowing with for 20 years still has the original rear tubeless tires. For the last 4 or 5 years it would go through fits now and then where one would go down if it sat for more than a few days. If I moved it regularly it was OK. Then it would go for weeks or months and not do it. The rubber surface is showing cracks so I put a tube in it this spring. No more problem. About 8 or 10 years ago I cut one of the original fronts and replaced it. Also this spring, I replaced both the original front and the 10 year old replacement. The 10 year old tire had lots of tread left but the 22 year old original was SHOT. I did them both so that I had a matched set to go another 20 years.

[Rudi]

Eugene:

I am kicking my butt big time. Last month there was a JD-L111 on Kijiji here in town for $400.00 Had a blown engine but the rest was pristine including the deck. My deck isn't holding up so well ... so it would have been worth it just for the deck. The fronts would have been a bonus. But..... in my infinite wisdom I thought I would wait a few days and see if I could get if for $300.00. Well that puppy was gone so fast I don't think it was up 2 days --- silly me and my tight wad wallet

So, yeah I will try to find a junker and see what else I can use.

Denny:

You never know how long stuff is going to last but one would think that 300 hours wouldn't even put a dent in the tread never mind wear it down to the base of the tread. In some places you can't even tell where the tread was ...

What brand did you end up buying?

[Denny Clayton]

Denny:

What brand did you end up buying?

Carlisle Turf Trac R/S. They were as close to the orginal Goodyears as I could find. When I got the replacement Goodyear 10 years ago they told me then they were discontinued. I should have replaced both then and they might have lasted until the tractor dies. At 2,000 hours it owes me nothing, but still runs great. It could die tomorrow or go another 10 years. It's paid off treating it right.

Last edited by Denny Clayton on Sun Sep 11, 2011 11:06 am, edited 1 time in total.

[Virginia Mike]

The world EPA's are removing UV sabilizers from rubber products to make them more "Green".
Enjoy the New World Order.

[Paul B]

What brand is going to depend more on what you can find rather than a specific brand. There are a few styles/tread patterns made by Carlisle (not as many as they used to make) and there are the other brands, most if not all from Asia. Don't know that there are any GoodYears made anymore, and the Firestone Lawn and Garden ag tires are now made/owned by M.E. Miller Tire and made overseas, so it pretty much boils down as to what "brand" your supplier sells in the type and size you want, rather than what brand you want...........

[Rudi]

Gonna be difficult to find new tires here in town, which is another reason why I was looking at used as a possibility. My buddy Gord looked for replacements for his CC108 for quite a while and he finally found them up in Bouctouche so I may take Em for a drive and go shopping. It would be a good excuse to take her for lunch to Lea's and some of her famous Poutine Frais ---- mmmm good The only Carlisle dealers we have are either in Sussex or Bouctouche - prefer Bouctouche cause it is closer and it has poutine's

Trying to get a North American tire is going to be darn near impossible.. and I know that so what is available is going to limit my choice. I am am curious about which tires to Stay Away from

Appears that they are 15 X 6.00 - 6 .. so I googled it and found these that are similar 15x6.00-6 Carlisle Turf Master Lawn Garden Tractor Tire

Will have to check those out and see how much they are going to cost me here.

[gitractorman]

Rudi,
If it were me, I'd just go with whatever tire you can find the cheapest. Because of the way these little mowers turn so sharp, it's likely going to shred the new ones as well. I've noticed that most of these new small tractors, when you turn them all the way either direction, they do not really stay in line. Often one tire is slightly more turned than the other. This is because it is difficult to manufacture a high-end steering mechanism on a budget. All manufacturers are guilty of it. The Cub Cadet 2000 series tractors would totally destroy the outside 1/2 of the tread on the tires. I've seen MANY that were totally worn down to the threads, on the outside 2-inches of the tread, then had almost full tread on the inside of the tire. Just cheapo manufacturing.

[Rudi]

Bill:

That is exactly what is happening with my tires. I will try and take pics tomorrow and post em. I am really quite frustrated by it. Replacements are not cheap for new.. Depending on the price I may still go to used tires.

What to do, what to do, what to do. Since it is a relatively new machine I kinda wanted new tires but no sense I guess if they are going to continue to wear like this. Maybe an older quality tire will last longer.

Watching Kijiji..