Tire Scuffing

[PowerMax]

I remember reading a lot about the JD 4000 series and scuffing. I never read anything about problems with the Kubota line-up. Well, I'm here to tell you that my new 2910 has R4's and it scuffs the heck out of the yard. It doesn't matter if its in FWD or not. Everytime I make a turn (not even a real tight turn) it leaves a tell-tale berm in the corner. It is especially bad when turning down a hill (more weight on the front end). It's really bad when the loader is installed. Any ideas? Is this normal? What can I do to alleviate the problem?

Jeff

 

[JATO_RaT]

Jeff, if the ground is soft, any tractor will get into the turf or dirt. Its what happens when the tire is forced to change orientation. Obviously 4WD aggravates the problem tremendously because in addition to the change in direction comes the rotational force being applied as well. About the only way to avoid it is a full Y turn or slowing down considerably and widening out the turn. The turf tear problem with the JD original front axle was as I understand more of a differential/slip issue and not necessarily a problem particularly for those wanting aggressive traction up front. The inside wheel just did not want to let go and the outside wheel got right into the turf, dirt or what have you. Since the outside must spin faster then the inside wheel, the wheel would make up this difference by slipping in the dirt and opening it up. Down hill turns are going to be tuff with just about any type tractor be it 2 wheel or 4 wheel. Once you get the soil firmed up and dryed out, the burns should go away but you will continue to always have a certain amount of slip and slide happening.

 

[TresCrows]

My 2410 does not seem to do that in 2WD. The BX never did it in 2WD. I suspect only turf tires or a smaller tractor will solve your problem. Not what you want to hear but not sure what else could be done. If the loader is installed I should think turf tearing is going to be the norm. J

 

[frank_f15]

jeff: any tire will scuff the lawn, i have r4"s and they will tear it up but not as much as ags, wet conditions make it worse, but it will also scuff in dry conditions. remember it is a tractor and it will scuff. but it is not really a big deal. u should see what my garden tractor did to the wetter areas of my lawn today.

 

[marrt]

Well, my neighbor just got a 2710 and he commented that he was surprised how much the tractor scuffed the lawn, even with turf tires and in 2WD. Must be common.

 

[chim]

Jeff, My B7500 w/ R4's works better than my Ford 1210 w/ R1's. Both will do a little chewing with the tractor in 4WD but neither is really bad. I have noticed that the R4's on a sharp turn in reverse do more scuffing than they do while going forward. Since switching to the B7500 the grass doesn't get as "tracked" looking as it did with the R1's. I have used both 3PH finish mowers (Landpride and Caroni) with the B7500, and both decks left the grass looking better than when used with the Ford and R1 tires. I have some hills and nasty spots that the Kubota handles in 2WD that required 4WD when using the Ford.................chim

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Both my JD318 with regular R1 ag tires and the Kubota L3010 with R-4s do amazing things to my garage and black topdrive way.
I used to worry about it-now I try to draw patterns. My wife's friend does the same with her Jeep-but not intentionally(She is the worse driver in the entire world!).
All tractors, lawn tractors, and bad drivers in Jeeps leave scuff marks. Keep a sledge around for the black-top, otherwise blame it on your son and make him clean it up!

 

[Charliebrn]

I am somewhat of a fanatic about my front yard, and my BX does NOT do this in 2WD. It will scuff in 4WD if I'm not careful or if the ground is wet. I have a fealing that your scuffing is due to the raw weight of the tractor and not a design issue as the JD problem was. I think that this is one of those situations that bigger is not necessarily better....

 

[cmsedore]

Just a wild thought: Have you tried changing tire pressure? Don't go too far off the recommended limits (you'll break the bead if you go too low), but lowering the pressure might soften the ground contact point a little. I doubt increasing the pressure would help much.

-Chris

 

[Rover]

I must agree with B2910 tire scuffing. I've had mine for 2 years and the tire scuffing is very bad compared to a B8200 I had for 15 years. I attribute this to 2 things. First the tires, I have turf tires but the tires edges are fairly sharp and dig in very easy. Second the B2910 has a longer wheelbase and must turn the tires sharper to produce a small turning radius.
Either that or the inner tire doesn't turn enough. I wonder if the bi-speed turn option was a fix for this problem?

The only thing that helps me is to turn slowly!
I've been trying to wear down the tire edges on concrete.

The B8200 did not scuff unless I had it in 4WD.

Bob

 

[Frank_Mulligan]

Jeff,

I agree with Rover. I thought my L3010 was too heavy since the outside front tire would always dig in (especially if the area has nice grass and not the usual weeds that cover 95% of our property). I turn very slowly and this avoids the scuffing. Unfortunalty I can't take advantage of the speed control if I do this. Your B2910 is lighter than my tractor so I'm assuming you should be able to avoid scuffing.

 

[PowerMax]

Yes, I'm learning to be very careful on the turns. It will definitely tear up a nice yard. Unfortunately, my 2910 has been sitting in my garage for over a week, now. It's been solid rain here in SE Ohio. My yard is totally saturated - not sure when I'll be able to mow again. I may have to use the brush hog when it finally dries out. /w3tcompact/icons/mad.gif

Jeff

 

[Frank_Mulligan]

Look at the bright side. Now your lawn will grow and you'll have to spend more time cuting it!

It's been raining almost everyday here in NJ for the last couple of days too, but we need it. It's been so dry around here that even with the heavy rain the ground just soaks it up.

I have spots on my property that even the weeds don't grow too well. I hope it doesn't have anything to do with the SuperFund site across the street!

 

[PowerMax]

<font color=blue>I hope it doesn't have anything to do with the SuperFund site across the street! </font color=blue>

That can't be a good thing! Tough on real estate resale values also. I hope you don't have well water.

Jeff

 

[kyoders]

Superfund sites aren't bad for you, at least in the short-term. I used to live near one, and that's more or less what we were told. In fact, the city of Dayton was going to build their new well field for fresh water just down the road a bit from it. It's also not too far from the Great Miami river. How bad could it be?

It always amazed me how much garbage got dumped in the rivers around us. It seemed that amost once a year there was some sort of toxic release into one river or another. And there was almost always some kind of notice for certain stretches to not eat the fish.

Kevin