Need 8.3 x 20 R1 Tires Kama 554 Fronts

[3RRL]

Hi guys,
Do you guys know where I can get, or do any of you dealers carry 8.3 x 20 R1 Ag tires for my Kama 554 fronts?
These are tube type tires and I need (2) of them.
How about the tubes for them?
Thanks,
Rob-

[bradblazer]

This place in CO seems to list them.
www.premiertire.com/
Size ----Ply---Description
8.3X20--8--- N/N R-1 C/O S/WALL CUTS TT
12.4X28--6--VREDESTEIN TRAC TRANS R-1 TT

[GuglioLS]

Here are some 7.5 X 20 R1's from gemplers

www.gemplers.com/product/3311/750x20-I-3-4-ply-Tube-type-Tire

Larry

[quikduk]

My fronts are about shot too. They are 7.5x16 on a 5.5" rim while the rears say 11.2x24 on a 10" rim...but they both look a lot larger so I would assume that the sizes on the sidewall are metric aspect ratios rather than physical sizes from what I can tell.

Larry, what size are your front tires on Goldie?

BTW, Titan tire is about one of the biggest, worldwide mfrs. of AG tires and tires in general now.

www.titan-intl.com/content/dealer-locator#

I think my fronts wore out prematurely as the rears still look almost new after almost 200 hours.

[quikduk]

Rob,

Pete's Road Service here in SBDo [phone] is looking into pricing and availability ATM.

Your 8.3x20 runs $127.00 each plus tax. They have one in stock and can get the second in a day depending on warehouse availability.

They are still trying to find mine as that size is typ. stocked in ribbed versus R1 but if anyone can find it, they can.

Ken

[quikduk]

OK. Here is what I know so far.

Firestone made an 8.3x20 FSL17 (farm service lug) tire, 6 ply TT...but it is apparently discontinued. Too bad as it is supposedly a really good tire. It is possible to get a radial and insert a tube but I am not sure about the rim sealing bead on a R1 radial versus a bias ply tire.

BKT and Galaxy make R1 Ag tires. So far, I have found one (1) 8.3x20 BKT for $127 plus tax and the guy is looking for the other.

The 7.5x16 size is probably made by Galaxy and he is still looking for those for me. BTW, they are 8 ply tires.

Goodyear and Kleber supposedly make 7.5x16 R1's but I haven't found them locally.

The 8.3x20 is a difficult size to find. I have found 9.5x20's and they should work as they are nominally wider but availability is the key here.

FWIW, Tommy has my 7.5x16 fronts in stock but $195 ea. is too much for me right now. Actually, $1.95 is a bit too much for me right now... and I am leary of getting Chinese fronts again as these should have lasted a loooong time and they are shot already.

I run 26 and 32 psi respectively whereas I was first running 18 and 24 which may have contributed to the accellerated wear but I think it has more to do with the crappy rubber they put in my set of front tires. As I said earlier, the rears don't look worn (too much) at all. I am sure it has to do with me being in 4WD most of the time (almost allways) and the hard turning that the front axle goes through with the camber and caster built into the Jinma front ends.

I have run a bit on the asphalt and concrete during transport but it shouldn't take that much off. Maybe it does, I don't really know.

That's all for now.

[quikduk]

OK. Now that I found a good source for these tires, here is another little tidbit that I stumbled upon during this search.

Goodyear's agricultural/industrial tire manufacturing and model line was bought by tire giant Titan a year ago or so.

From their website:

Titan has a heritage of over 100 years in the off-highway wheel manufacturing business. Since Titan's entrance into the tire market in 1993, we have evolved into a leading global supplier of complete wheel and tire assemblies for off-highway vehicles. Titan's primary markets include agriculture, earthmoving/construction and consumer applications.

Strategic acquisitions have built Titan into a successful worldwide corporation serving the most respected names in the original equipment industry. With that support, Titan is expanding its focus in the off-highway markets.

[affordable]

Ken,
Tommy's a good guy and will wheel and deal with you,when you get your money together give me a call I will give you special pricing on a pair.

Tommy
Affordable Tractor Sales
" Your Jinma parts Superstore "
www.affordabletractorsalesco.com

[quikduk]

Thanks Tommy! I know we can always depend on you.

I have found a local source that has the tires in stock. I will see if I will have them shipped or have a bud pick them up.

If it doesn't pan out, I'll give you a call.

Ken

[3RRL]

Well, Ken came through and found East Bay Tires, a local source.
He gave me the contact and phone number so I set up an account with them through my business. Ken's tires were $119 each for 7.5 x 16's and mine were $129 each. They charged me 5 bucks to deliver all 4 to my home in Rancho.

Mine are BKT 6 ply R-1 Ag tires.
They look pretty much like the stock Chinese tires except a few minor differences. The new tires are the same size but have only 15 pairs of rubber lugs around the diameter whereas the stock tires have 18. The stock tire's lugs are also a little wider and have less angle to them. The stock tires look more industrial (more square) than the new tires.

Anyway, here are some photos side by side.
First one is a side view of the new tire on the left and the old tire still mounted on the rim. The next photo shows their profile, again the old tire on the rim. The third photo shows the new tire mounted on the rim. Notice how their shape changes (tallness) once mounted.
Rob-

[3RRL]

I changed the tires myself and it was a real bear!
I did the previous boot repairs myself too, but I never had the tire completely off the rim before. I had taken the inner tubes out so I could make the sidewall repair, so I only had one tire bead off the rim. This time I had to take the whole tire off ... both of them and then put the new ones back on. I smashed my hands up pretty good a couple times because my tire irons were so short. I slipped several times.



After several hours of wrestling with them, I got it all done.
Here's how I did it but I'm getting too old for this stuff. First I used the FEL to lift up the front of the tractor and blocked it up. Then I used a farm jack to break the beads. I used some short pry bars to get the old tires off and the new ones on along with a good soaking of soap and water. I used the same tubes because they are still good ... no leaks or tears.
Final photo shows the new tires back on the tractor.
Now I'm half dead.
Rob-

[GuglioLS]

Rob,

Nice deal on the new rubber, they look great, on the other hand Loretta's took a real beating, ouch.

How do you like the new tread pattern? What affect do you think the fewer cleats will have on traction, better, worse, about the same? hows it steer now? Do they feel "bumpy"? Got any pics of the 7.5 - 16 you got for Ken? How many cleats do those tires have? At that price I'm interested in getting a set for myself. At 400 hours, the tread depth on mine are about 1/3 what they used to be. Being the cheap skate that I am, my plan was to wear them down to pretty much nothing before replacement. The first 1/2 of wear took place pretty fast, now it seems they have stabilized and not wearing down as fast. My theory is the OD on new front tires is such that it out pulls the rears (when in 4WD) causing accelerated wear, then as the OD diminishes the fronts are more synchronized with the rears so they don't wear quite as fast. I also wonder what the tread depth is on Kens Old tires VS the tread depth on the new ones you got for him?

Larry

[3RRL]

Hi Larry,
You'll have to ask Ken about those tires when he puts them on in about 5 or 6 years from now ... hahaha.
Mine are great. So far I haven't noticed any big difference at all. I did not load them this time though. They are not bumpy and have really good traction. I used the tractor this morning down the gulley slope by the burn pile and they grab real good. I'm running 28psi in them.
I think you are right about your theory.
On my Kama, mine old tires were barely worn after what 600 hours on the clock and maybe 1,000 real hours of use or more. I think since I use them on softer off road dirt there is less wear. I wish I could have saved that one, but the side wall was shot.
Rob-

[quikduk]

Hi Larry,
You'll have to ask Ken about those tires when he puts them on in about 5 or 6 years from now ... hahaha.

No $h!t. I am presently busy with working to avoid impending furloughs at the County...and at home with the new puppies.



I'll take some pics of the tires tonight and post tomorrow for comparison. Re: mounting them myself, while I have the tools, I think I will take it to the neighborhood tire shop and have them mounted for me.

[3RRL]

Feb 3, 2009 11:43:22 GMT -5 quikduk said:

Re: mounting them myself, while I have the tools, I think I will take it to the neighborhood tire shop and have them mounted for me.

Why of course you will, Ken. ;D
Are you going to load the fronts after all?

After getting mine on and using the Kama up and down the slopes the new fronts have excellent traction while doing loader and grapple work. But I did not load them this time. Before we left for Rancho, I graded the long dirt driveway. When dragging the 1,000 pound box blade plus a full load of dirt in it (about a half yard), I could feel the fronts slipping a little. This was especially more noticeable on the steep uphill grades.

I think I will load them up when I get back up to 3R this week. Each front tire only holds about 12-13 gallons, but it is enough for that little bit of added traction.

I don't know for sure if loading the fronts will add to faster wear of the front drive or not? My previous front drive failure I'm sure was due to the speed-shuttle shifting I did in higher gears than normal with a full yard of mud in the loader bucket. Had to weigh close to a ton. I was hurrying to get out of the rain and really being hard on the drive. I think it had more to do with that than the tires being loaded.

Another thing I was thinking about is that extreme wear you guys got on your fronts. That might be for the same reason ... the fronts are constantly slipping and wearing out the tread until they're worn down enough where the fronts are no long "pulling" the rears forward because they are worn down in diameter.

So I'll load mine up again, since I'm a friggen expert on front drive repairs anyhow. lol ... It's a lot easier and cheaper than new tires anyways. It's so easy even a cave man could do it.
Rob-