MiserableOldFart
Platinum Member
- Joined
- Jun 27, 2006
- Messages
- 543
- Location
- Delaware County Catskills NY
- Tractor
- NH Workmaster 40, Kubota GR2120
Hi all. There are a bunch of threads on this, but I think most of them are quite old, unless I missed one or ten, which is possible. Anyway, after thinking about it for two years or so, and looking at the prices out there and reading about people's experiences, I decided to try myself. In winter, my tractor doesn't get used for much of anything except snow removal. Most of that is pretty light duty, almost all the pushing I do is downhill and the rest is done with the blower. I have about a quarter mile of pretty rough dirt road to keep clear, though the last couple years we have not seen a lot of snow.
Anyway, since my usage is pretty light, barring a nasty winter, and the main problem I have is not pushing snow, but getting back up the hill once I get down to the bottom, and after communicating with tirechain.com and determining that my rear wheels don't have enough clearance for chains, I bought a bunch of Kold Kutter screw in studs. If I were doing any commercial work, I likely would have gotten the MaxiGrips, which are quite a bit more expensive, but surely made to last much longer. Anyway, I researched the actual designed tread depth of my tires at the Titan site, and then allowed for six years' wear (not much there, I don't think) and got the 1/2 inch studs, which I installed yesterday. I took a relatively conservative approach, putting 2 studs on each lug of my R4s in the rear, about 96 in total. I have chains on the front tires, and won't use the machine in 4 wheel drive unless and until we have either ice or snow below it. Probably those that have ag tires have a huge advantage with screw in studs because they can use longer ones. For motorcycles (the actual designed use of the Kold Kutters) they actually put a strip of some kind of rubberized material INSIDE the tire and screw long studs right through the tire. I guess the stuff they put inside seals up the air in the tire so it doesn't leak.
Anyway, I will be updating and reporting on the effectiveness of the studs as the winter wears on. I am very concerned, given the short length, that I might lose some of these, and that would not be a good thing for car tires in the future, so I'll especially be watching for that. The Kold Kutter instructional video mentions that they do not recommend using the studs in the same holes, which is probably not a very big deal for motorcycle riders - their tires don't last long, but for tractor uses who expect a decade, and hopefully much more, out of their tires, it's probably a serious concern. Perhaps the same holes can be reused if a little loctite is added. I didn't use it, though if I see any studs disappearing, I'll likely take the others back out and try it. Don't know how effective it would be on tires, and then there is also the danger that it might be too effective.
My tires are six years old now, and though I'm certainly taking a risk with the screws, it's not the same as if the tires were brand new. Anyway, I hope to report my successes or failures with these studs over the course of the winter.
One little tool that you might find comes in handy with this, and any other similar jobs is a magnetic wrist strap. Holds about a dozen screws securely at a time and prevents spills and the thrills of pickup..
Anyway, since my usage is pretty light, barring a nasty winter, and the main problem I have is not pushing snow, but getting back up the hill once I get down to the bottom, and after communicating with tirechain.com and determining that my rear wheels don't have enough clearance for chains, I bought a bunch of Kold Kutter screw in studs. If I were doing any commercial work, I likely would have gotten the MaxiGrips, which are quite a bit more expensive, but surely made to last much longer. Anyway, I researched the actual designed tread depth of my tires at the Titan site, and then allowed for six years' wear (not much there, I don't think) and got the 1/2 inch studs, which I installed yesterday. I took a relatively conservative approach, putting 2 studs on each lug of my R4s in the rear, about 96 in total. I have chains on the front tires, and won't use the machine in 4 wheel drive unless and until we have either ice or snow below it. Probably those that have ag tires have a huge advantage with screw in studs because they can use longer ones. For motorcycles (the actual designed use of the Kold Kutters) they actually put a strip of some kind of rubberized material INSIDE the tire and screw long studs right through the tire. I guess the stuff they put inside seals up the air in the tire so it doesn't leak.
Anyway, I will be updating and reporting on the effectiveness of the studs as the winter wears on. I am very concerned, given the short length, that I might lose some of these, and that would not be a good thing for car tires in the future, so I'll especially be watching for that. The Kold Kutter instructional video mentions that they do not recommend using the studs in the same holes, which is probably not a very big deal for motorcycle riders - their tires don't last long, but for tractor uses who expect a decade, and hopefully much more, out of their tires, it's probably a serious concern. Perhaps the same holes can be reused if a little loctite is added. I didn't use it, though if I see any studs disappearing, I'll likely take the others back out and try it. Don't know how effective it would be on tires, and then there is also the danger that it might be too effective.
My tires are six years old now, and though I'm certainly taking a risk with the screws, it's not the same as if the tires were brand new. Anyway, I hope to report my successes or failures with these studs over the course of the winter.
One little tool that you might find comes in handy with this, and any other similar jobs is a magnetic wrist strap. Holds about a dozen screws securely at a time and prevents spills and the thrills of pickup..
