UPDATE1: See Post #30 for a major fitment issue with the 8-16 tires on my rims!
Been lurking. Now making my first post.
I recently picked up a 1978 B7100 with almost 3300 hours. Overall it’s pretty good, just a few of small things.
one major thing is tires! They’re all weathered, and the rears are very worn, while the fronts aren’t too bad. This causes some binding in 4x4.
wheels aren’t pretty, definitely have had some rattle can over rust, but should clean up if I try.
Of course going stock tires is easiest. But I love the look of LSMurphy’s 9.5x16 setup, and also like the look of R4’s.
Use case: right now I’m using the ever living crap out of my little tractor on my little 1/4 acre lot. Completely re-doing our back and front yards. From the French drain up (except my patio). After this, it will get used for shuffling boats, and moving firewood. I have a hill in my front yard, side and back yard are level. (The hill in the front is just barely too much to side-hill). It’ll also probably help friends out from time to time.
The fact that I’m going to be on a manicured lawn has me thinking R4. But the traction issues I’ve read makes me think I should stick with R1, and maybe just put some plywood down in the high traffic spots when I move firewood.
Then begs the question, keep stock wheels and clean them up, or go new? I’d like to be into this as little as possible of course, because I don’t know if I’ll be keeping the tractor longer than a couple years. (I very well may, but it’s going to depend on how much I use it after our major landscaping is done). But I also want to make the right purchase for my use.
whatever I do, I’ll be filling the tires for sure. Need more weight.
Been lurking. Now making my first post.
I recently picked up a 1978 B7100 with almost 3300 hours. Overall it’s pretty good, just a few of small things.
one major thing is tires! They’re all weathered, and the rears are very worn, while the fronts aren’t too bad. This causes some binding in 4x4.
wheels aren’t pretty, definitely have had some rattle can over rust, but should clean up if I try.
Of course going stock tires is easiest. But I love the look of LSMurphy’s 9.5x16 setup, and also like the look of R4’s.
Use case: right now I’m using the ever living crap out of my little tractor on my little 1/4 acre lot. Completely re-doing our back and front yards. From the French drain up (except my patio). After this, it will get used for shuffling boats, and moving firewood. I have a hill in my front yard, side and back yard are level. (The hill in the front is just barely too much to side-hill). It’ll also probably help friends out from time to time.
The fact that I’m going to be on a manicured lawn has me thinking R4. But the traction issues I’ve read makes me think I should stick with R1, and maybe just put some plywood down in the high traffic spots when I move firewood.
Then begs the question, keep stock wheels and clean them up, or go new? I’d like to be into this as little as possible of course, because I don’t know if I’ll be keeping the tractor longer than a couple years. (I very well may, but it’s going to depend on how much I use it after our major landscaping is done). But I also want to make the right purchase for my use.
whatever I do, I’ll be filling the tires for sure. Need more weight.
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I had those concerns when i was deciding what front tire to put on my 6100. It had 20.5" trailer tires on the front when i got it, which was basically making it 2wd in terms of how useless they were for traction. I considered the more mainstream options but decided the absolute biggest factor i was after, was the least tread touching the ground. However much weight is on a tire, divided by how much rubber is actually touching the ground, gives you your 'surface pressure'. The more surface pressure, the more traction (at least on a hard surface). It also means more leaving marks aka 'turf damage' but i don't have turf and the ground here is extremely hard. The ATV tires i picked actually had less tread touching the ground at a time than R1s, which i figured would give the best shot of traction. So far I've been pleased with that aspect. As far as their weight capacity... I was 50/50 on whether it was going to work or not. But im constantly maxing out the stock hydraulics of my loader and have had no issues whatsoever. The worst things I've done to them was pull ridiculously heavy things uphill, in reverse, while trying to turn. Like a loaded 18ft trailer, and a John Deere 720. Both times the tractor was pushing backwards with the front tires hard enough to start lifting the rear end, so all ~1500 lbs of the tractor plus whatever weight was on the loader, and attempting to turn was having the tire flex sideways under the rim a good 2-3 inches. I thought for sure they were going to pop at that point, but they didn't and I haven't worried about it since.