Snow Chains on front tires??

[Jaygyver]

The OP doesn't say what he's using it for but,
for using them for snow anyway i've used standard tire chains from our cars on my JD fronts for almost 25 years to remove snow with the bucket on our shared paved roads. About a mile long altogether with one pretty steep hill and the rest rolling hills. The aluminum "easy on" type work great too. We don't get much snow, but when we do it can get a foot or two and they work great for me. I do have a fair amount of space on the JD and the LS so I lucked out there.
You do have to remember that you only have brakes on the rear axle so you definitely want a counter balance so drive accordingly.

I don't know, I've only used them in snow but don't see how it can damage the axle when the manufacturer already has a safety margin built in to the ratio to compensate for tire wear and the like. It's not gonna overheat working snow and for a certain extent will indent in ice and as far as mud/dirt it would neutralize the added radius with sinking into the ground. Even adding or subtracting air in your tires can technically change your tire radius/ratio at least to a small extent. With ladder type chains how much of it is absorbed into the tire when it hits the ground, kinda like driving over a rock.
As far as full radius chains, yeah I would give it a harder thought. I figure if you need those then you would definitely need rear chains anyway.

As far as traction you give chains too much credit, they will and do slip in snow, mud or dirt. Even a small part on dry pavement. As far as slip-grab then yes that is another story.
Definitely would not recommend using 4x on long stretches of dry roads let alone with chains.

 

[arrow]

Since the front tires are bigger with chains they pull harder. The larger circumference increases the lead due the drive ratio being fixed.

This true on hard surface.
The effect is mitigated when on soft surfaces such as soft ground, mud or snow as the chains sink.
The effect is equalized with chains on the rears also.

 

[arrow]

The OP doesn't say what he's using it for but,
for using them for snow anyway i've used standard tire chains from our cars on my JD fronts for almost 25 years to remove snow with the bucket on our shared paved roads. About a mile long altogether with one pretty steep hill and the rest rolling hills. The aluminum "easy on" type work great too. We don't get much snow, but when we do it can get a foot or two and they work great for me. I do have a fair amount of space on the JD and the LS so I lucked out there.
You do have to remember that you only have brakes on the rear axle so you definitely want a counter balance so drive accordingly.

I don't know, I've only used them in snow but don't see how it can damage the axle when the manufacturer already has a safety margin built in to the ratio to compensate for tire wear and the like. It's not gonna overheat working snow and for a certain extent will indent in ice and as far as mud/dirt it would neutralize the added radius with sinking into the ground. Even adding or subtracting air in your tires can technically change your tire radius/ratio at least to a small extent. With ladder type chains how much of it is absorbed into the tire when it hits the ground, kinda like driving over a rock.
As far as full radius chains, yeah I would give it a harder thought. I figure if you need those then you would definitely need rear chains anyway.

As far as traction you give chains too much credit, they will and do slip in snow, mud or dirt. Even a small part on dry pavement. As far as slip-grab then yes that is another story.
Definitely would not recommend using 4x on long stretches of dry roads let alone with chains.

Traction is increased dramatically with chains.
I give them much credit.
Chaining fronts and rears on compacts while working in the woods, turns it into a different machine.
We put chains on our skidders not only for increased traction, but for tire protection and tire wear longevity.

 

[CliffordK]

Turn your steering wheel from lock to lock and note how close the front tires are from the frame or exhaust. On my L45 the naked, LF tire clears the tailpipe by a fraction of an inch. If I were to mount chains, they would batter the tailpipe (and likely themselves against the frame) when I would inevitably forget and turn the tractor hard. I do not know if front wheel spacers are available and would work to increase clearance.

I flipped both the front and rear wheels as wide as they would go on my old Ford 1715 about 15 years ago (too much time on a hill, as well as carrying stuff in the bucket).

I haven't looked at specific clearance issues, but that should help a bit. Of course that really depends on how the offset is configured on your tractor. Perhaps there are also wheel hub spacers available. I need to set up a ballast box sometime, but I tend to use a rototiller for ballast. Sometimes throwing a couple of weights on top of it.

I remember neighbor farmers when I was younger that ran chains on their tractors a lot during the winter, and sometimes year around. Unfortunately I don't remember whether they were running the chains on a 2 wheel drive or a 4x4 tractor. At some point I think those neighbors were using an old Kubota, but they also had other tractors they could have chained up.

Personally, I have AG treads on my tractor, and use the locker a fair amount when going uphill, or when going over bumps (because I've also locked the front wheel pivot, and I believe losing traction in 1 wheel, and I go nowhere).

 

[dnw64]

You do have to remember that you only have brakes on the rear axle...

Technically, yes. But if you are in 4WD the fronts provide braking as well. Not the typical forward bias of road vehicles, but they do add, and not insubstantially.

 

[Dr_Zinj]

One other factor people don't think about when using the front wheels to pull the tractor is that it causes the forces to try to pull the entire tractor apart. Driving with the rear wheels causes compression on the frame, which helps keep the seals closed. Pulling it with the front wheels tries to pull open the bolts and seals, leading to leaks all over the place.

 

[MHarryE]

I had a L5740 and L6060 on which I used chains front only during winter plowing snow. The vector of an angled rear blade pushing snow wanted to do the steering and after several trips through fields on each side of my drive, I bought first light duty chains, then heavy duty chains. Had to watch them making sure they stayed tight.

 

[candovt]

Kubota L4760 with turf tires. Would I cause a problem if used chains on front tires only? I have the backhoe for weight on rear tires.
Guy

I have a L48 Kubota. In winter I use aggressive logging chains on the rear tires plus apply right or left rear brakes to assist in steering. Front chains place incredible strain on drive line.

 

[WinterDeere]

I've always run turf tires on all of my tractors, going on 50 years now. I always buy chains for rear of each RWD tractor, and for all four corners of each 4wd tractor, always heavy 3/8" 2-link ladder bar chains for rear and regular 1/4" 2-link ladder bar chains for fronts.

Over the years, testing every configuration of no chains v. fronts only v. rears only v. all four corners, I've come to the conclusion that no chains works best for my regular chore of plowing snow off asphalt. The rubber turf tire grips better on asphalt than any combination of chains.

This has reduced my usage of chains to two specific chores:

1. Towing trailers across my lawn in deep snow.
2. Going into the woods in muddy conditions, as part of our woods is wetlands, and you can easily get stuck up to axles with the glassic "mud donut" that a loaded turf tire becomes in deep wet mud.

In these conditions, I honestly haven't noticed front chains making any huge difference. Theres so much more weight reliance on the rear drive wheels, and the chains I can run on those are so vastly heavier than anything I've ever tried to put on the fronts, that the rear wheel chains always dominate.

That said, those front chains are light and easy to use, so I do throw them on when conditions are really bad. And because the rear chains are so heavy and such a PITA, I have run "fronts only" a few times. I didn't do a full "double-blind" test to see how they compared in the exact same conditions and application, but my gut impression was that fronts only adds only marginal aid over no chains at all. There's just so much more weight on the rear of my tractors, when used for anything other than moving logs with the loader forks, that front tire traction is always going to be much lower than rear.

I'm convinced the excellent performance fo 4wd has more to do with reducing the tendency of front tires to act as a plow in deep mud or snow, than its actual tractive effort. It's not that the fronts are adding massive help in pulling you along, as much as just keeping them turning to avoid them causing an impediment.

 

[HAR]

Kubota L4760 with turf tires. Would I cause a problem if used chains on front tires only? I have the backhoe for weight on rear tires.
Guy

While I use chains on both front and rears, I do it because they are turf tires. When I bought my tractor used, it included rear chains, but after struggling a few years to run/steer the tractor in snow, I purchased front chains and have never looked back.

As others have pointed out, clearance might be an issue. Mine do whack the steering link some, but it is only a minor thing, as with chains on, I am not doing any high speed travel. As for as possible exhaust pipe clearance, you could possibly trim the pipe some.

 

[dnw64]

I have a L48 Kubota. In winter I use aggressive logging chains on the rear tires plus apply right or left rear brakes to assist in steering. Front chains place incredible strain on drive line.

That works well, but it's a pain in my B3030 hydro, because the "Go" pedal is on the same side as the brakes! So the only way to do that is to use the "Cruise Control". Which works, but is very awkward.

BTW, in my circumstance, chains on the front wouldn't help, because the reason for my losing steering control is excessive down pressure to clear packed snow off my asphalt - tires don't touch, tires don't steer...

 

[Shawn T. W.]

There's just so much more weight on the rear of my tractors, when used for anything other than moving logs with the loader forks, that front tire traction is always going to be much lower than rear.

You must have an unusual tractor ... This shows it's about 70/30 split, with the front being the heavy end, on an unloaded tractor ...

because the "Go" pedal is on the same side as the brakes!

Yup, mine too!

(Pictures not loading - "parsing failed!")

 

[Shawn T. W.]

Awww ... It's working now ... Been funky the last couple of days ...

 

[Too many Kubotas]

Time for some heel and toe action, as if driving a stick fast.

 

[Shawn T. W.]

I prefer to leave my heel on the floor, like all the other things I drive ... On my Kubota I put my toe under the forward pedal and lift ... I don't back up much ...

 

[WinterDeere]

You must have an unusual tractor ... This shows it's about 70/30 split, with the front being the heavy end, on an unloaded tractor ...

Okay... you got me! I should have said, "as typically configured". My tractor always has something on the 3-point. That's usually a 750 - 1500 lb. configurable ballast box, which pretty much only ever comes off when I'm using the 3-point to pick up something else.

So the way I'm using it, there's always more weight and traction on the rears.

And the comment about rear chains being heavier stands. Every 4wd tractor I've ever had ran 1/4" chains up front, but 5/16" or 3/8" on the rear.

 

[arrow]

Okay... you got me! I should have said, "as typically configured". My tractor always has something on the 3-point. That's usually a 750 - 1500 lb. configurable ballast box, which pretty much only ever comes off when I'm using the 3-point to pick up something else.

So the way I'm using it, there's always more weight and traction on the rears.

And the comment about rear chains being heavier stands. Every 4wd tractor I've ever had ran 1/4" chains up front, but 5/16" or 3/8" on the rear.

The chains on our skidders weighed 400 pounds each.
If one came off while in the woods, I just attached it to the skidder and dragged it back to the landing.
No way was I getting them on by myself.

 

[Shawn T. W.]

With the typical, "put as much on the back to offset the same as you want to lift on the front" ... Is still the 70/30 split ... But I prefer to have a bit "extra" weight on the back ...


I like scales!

 

[WinterDeere]

With the typical, "put as much on the back to offset the same as you want to lift on the front" ... Is still the 70/30 split ...

True. But the topic here was about getting stuck in deep snow or mud, during which I'm either plowing, pulling a trailer thru snow, or clearing trails, not lifting anything heavy. So those are the scenarios I had in my head, when talking weight distribution.

 

[arrow]

That works well, but it's a pain in my B3030 hydro, because the "Go" pedal is on the same side as the brakes! So the only way to do that is to use the "Cruise Control". Which works, but is very awkward.

BTW, in my circumstance, chains on the front wouldn't help, because the reason for my losing steering control is excessive down pressure to clear packed snow off my asphalt - tires don't touch, tires don't steer...

Ok, even with packed snow, something is not right if you have to use so much down pressure.
Any down pressure should not take the front end off the ground. You are losing a lot of tractive force.
It should be enough to provide just enough pressure to insure surface contact with the desired bucket angle. With enough traction, the bucket gets under the load and as it proceeds forward, the weight of the snow in the bucket itself, provides further ground contact stability.
Not trying to be insulting. Have confronted this occasion with myself and many customers.