My local tire supplier says "everyone" uses skidsteer tires on the front of 4wd backhoes. Is this true? I am leary of being the guinne pig. The skid steer tire is 10 ply and has a speed limit stamped in the tire of 5mph. The hoe tires that are on the machine are 12 ply. And have had a good life considering all the rock they have chewed. Is this tire saleman being level or what? Thx-Brad
most tire s are listed on the web like www.galexytire.com .you can see the listing and specs that they have.
It seems Galaxy has a skidsteer(5mph) and a backhoe tire (25mph).
My friend uses them on his 2 machines, I've never heard him mention any problems with them. The 5 mph rating seems low even for a skid steer, my 248 has a top speed of 7 mph and the newer 2 speed models go nearly 15.
The skid steer tires work great on the front of a backhoe, however I wouldn't put a 10 ply in place of a 12 ply. The front of your backhoe carries a lot of weight on the front when your bucket is full. They make a good skid steer heavy duty 12 ply with a bead saver and that is what I use on my backhoe. I wouldn't worry too much about the speed rating. There isn't a real big difference in top speeds between my 2 speed bobcat and my backhoe.
the side walls are thicker on the skid steers. I don't know how the rubber will fare compared to a hoe tire. It would be harder I would think.
I know this is an old thread! But I'm getting ready to buy new front tires and most of the tires I find are skidsteer tires. Do you guys run actual backhoe tires or is it pretty much the norm to run these skidsteer tires? Right now I have 10 ply tires, do I need 12 or 14 ply? Tractor is a 590 Super L w/ 4 in1 front bucket, so it is pretty heavy. Thanks for the info!