Tire Chains

[crazyal]

So I'm looking for advice on which chain type would be best. My driveway is gravel but I'll be parking in the garage on cement that was poured this summer. I have the R1 (Ag) tires so I think the regular ladder type will just fall between the lugs. So my choices are:

Duo-grip from tirechains.com for $280 shipped.

Aquiling Talon chains $700ish but I'll have to put down plywood

I'm not sure if I have the clearence but think I do.

Aquiline MPC $530. They say that they work well on pavement so I'm guessing cement would be OK as well.

Does anyone have the MPC chains? I have some pretty steep hills but I only plan on using a snow blower, no FEL work. I think the Talons would be more than I would need since I run regular ladder chains on the rear of my dump truck for plowing (mainly downhill but sometimes uphill).

 

[sal64]

hello i have a jd990 i have steep gravel drivway, i have vbar chains they are great they make a tremendous differance going up my hills.but they will put tinny holes in the concrete flore so what i did is put down plywood and then drive tractor on.what i dont like is they are very heavy and hard to put on.

 

[bill in ny]

crazyal, take a look at double ring chains. they work great on my tractor with r1's.

 

[rekees4300]

Does anyone have the MPC chains? I have some pretty steep hills but I only plan on using a snow blower, no FEL work. I think the Talons would be more than I would need since I run regular ladder chains on the rear of my dump truck for plowing (mainly downhill but sometimes uphill).

I have the MPC chains. They work great on both concrete (no chipping) and gravel.

 

[crazyal]

crazyal, take a look at double ring chains. they work great on my tractor with r1's.

I did look at them but I thought Tirechain.com said they were hard on cement.

 

[Wayne_H]

I've got a painted garage floor, so I just put a rubber mat under the tires when the chains are on. I got mine from tirechain.com, double V bar or something. They are AWESOME!!

Wayne

 

[crazyal]

I have the MPC chains. They work great on both concrete (no chipping) and gravel.

Do you use them on flat ground or do you have some hills? I would say they are the ones I'm leaning towards. I think both of the Aquiline types have the advantage of having two strips of chains going around the tread of the tire where as the duo-grip and the double rings have sections where there isn't any chain. It may not make a difference but like I said I don't want a chain that's only touching a very limited amount of lug. But they do cost more.

 

[rekees4300]

I've got a painted garage floor, so I just put a rubber mat under the tires when the chains are on. I got mine from tirechain.com, double V bar or something. They are AWESOME!!

Wayne

I got the double V-bar for the front tires and they DO in fact chip concrete so a mat, plywood, rugs or some sort of floor protection is needed. Yes they are awesome. With them on the front and the MPCs on the rear the tractor becomes a mini dozer! No more slipping, sliding and spinning on the icy hills.

 

[rekees4300]

Do you use them on flat ground or do you have some hills?

My driveway is 900' of gravel with hills plus 200' of flat concrete. The MPCs work well on both surfaces. Yes they are expensive but you get what you pay for. Last week I tried to remove extra links using a jig saw with metal blade. The chain just laughed! Had to use a grinder and even that wasn't easy... high quality steel.

 

[crazyal]

I do remember reading about them being a harden steel alloy or something like that. There's very little info on the web about them. Most sites just cut and paste what Aquiline has, only one or two had their own opinions about them.

I have a 2 1/2 ton International dump truck. It's 4wd and without chains it barely moves on the hard pack snow/ ice. So far I have only run chains on the rear and never had a problem. That's pushing a plow. With a snow blower it shouldn't be as hard to push. I doubt I'll put chains on the front of the tractor.

 

[Jay4200]

I do remember reading about them being a harden steel alloy or something like that. There's very little info on the web about them. Most sites just cut and paste what Aquiline has, only one or two had their own opinions about them.

I have a 2 1/2 ton International dump truck. It's 4wd and without chains it barely moves on the hard pack snow/ ice. So far I have only run chains on the rear and never had a problem. That's pushing a plow. With a snow blower it shouldn't be as hard to push. I doubt I'll put chains on the front of the tractor.

I considered the Aquiline chains (Talons) - they look like you could climb a tree with them, but they were WAY too expensive at ~$700+. I found it hard enough to cough up for the 2-link ladders I ultimately got. The ladder chains locally were $475, and used 5/16" chain. I bought from tirechain.com - cost $300+S&H and are made from 3/8" chain. I got 2-link ladder V-bars for the front ($100) - total damage for all 4 was about what the local ladders cost.

Even though I don't buy the 4-wheel chain driveline stress theory (ice is going to be way weaker than any driveline component, chains or not), I'm planning to run 2WD most of the time - the front chains are just so I can steer and stay going straight - the front lightens up a bit with a 650# blower hanging off of the back and I don't want to do any unintended U-turns when navigating crowned hills.

JayC

 

[gavinol]

If you want a high-quality snow chain that will deliver great traction and easy installation and removal, look no further than the Thule CS10. The 10mm chain offers good clearance, and comes with integrated 選cebreaker reinforcements designed to dig through ice..

 

[klausb]

Chained up today for the winter. Blower will go on tomorrow. Only one storm too late. :laughing:

 

[crazyal]

We've already had one storm so I put the chains and plow on the dump truck just in case.

I haven't ordered chains yet. A local dealer can get the Tellefsdal brand chains. They are similar to the Aquiline. I looked at the Nortractor (same as the MPC) and they use a very small diameter link, 5mm (or about 3/16) square wire link. The weight for my tractor for both chains is around 60 lbs. They are a harden steel but they still seam awful light weight.

 

[rekees4300]

Chained up today for the winter. Blower will go on tomorrow. Only one storm too late. :laughing

Snow flakes should be afraid, very afraid!

 

[gerard]

I use the duogrips on the rear and a close link ladder style on my fronts, both with R1 tires. Not TOO aggresive and doesn't harm my concrete floor. I would also consider the double rings as they look pretty good to. (Don't see why the would be hard on the concrete. Not live the v bar or carbides). Wouldn't do snow removal without them and the front make a big difference on slopes.

 

[whistlepig]

I just purchased Aquiline Talons and installed them on my tractor three weeks ago. I use my tractor to clear snow on a 1100 gravel driveway and around barns. They were starting to chew my concrete floor and I had to park it on rubber horse mats. These chains add 2" to the side of the tire. These are beefy chains. Traction far better than I imagined. It almost feels like the tractor has steel tracks on it. The MPC chains would be my first choice if I had an asphalt or concrete driveway. The MPC pattern, like the Talons, always keeps chain on the ground and there is no bumpy ride.

 

[PILOON]

I had the 'talon' type and found that the links that closed the squares kept breaking so I modified and converted to double link cross style.
Can't praise them enough.
Ride is nice as links are close and traction great.
In the modified state half are studded style and balance are V ice gripping style.
The V's do wear a bit faster than stud style.
I have some paved areas on my drive and because links are so close I really don't see any chain skid marks that matter, and generally I don't skid anyway as traction is so good.(and I have hills)

 

[crazyal]

Te local dealer sells the Tellefsdal brand. While they look the same as the Aquiline (which it what I thought they sold) there are some differences. If you look at the picture of the Aquiline Talon chains Whistlepig has there's a link without a stud that hold the chains in a square shape. The Tellefsdal chains uses complete lengths of chain that go around the tire and short sections of chain to hold everything in shape.

 

[whistlepig]

Te local dealer sells the Tellefsdal brand. While they look the same as the Aquiline (which it what I thought they sold) there are some differences. If you look at the picture of the Aquiline Talon chains Whistlepig has there's a link without a stud that hold the chains in a square shape. The Tellefsdal chains uses complete lengths of chain that go around the tire and short sections of chain to hold everything in shape.

I see what you are talking about. I have looked at pictures of Tellefsdal chains before and never noticed this difference. All of the chain that contacts the ground is hardened chain. The chains on the sidewall are soft chain. I could cut and fit the side chains with a hacksaw. I had to cut the chains that ride on top of the tire with a cut off wheel and grinder. The tails that tie these chains together come with extra length for fitting for new and/or worn tires.