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Firestone Leader August 2009
| IN THIS ISSUE
(Click a headline to jump to the article)
| Evaluating Tires Today Helps Build Tires of Tomorrow
It’s no small achievement that the same company to introduce the first pneumatic tractor tire in 1932 is the most preferred farm tire brand in America today.
Much of this success can be credited to a farm near Columbiana, Ohio — a place where Harvey Firestone grew up as a fourth–generation farmer. It was here where Harvey himself would return and test the tractor tires he built.
Today, it is the home of the Firestone Farm Tire Test Center — a highly sophisticated 400–plus–acre laboratory — exclusively dedicated to testing, evaluating and improving tires for agriculture. It is the only farm tire testing facility of its kind in the world.
24–Hour Punishment
Twenty–four hours a day, every day of the year, Firestone farm tires endure a variety of extreme and punishing conditions. Tires and their components are pushed to their breaking point and then evaluated with state–of–the–art diagnostics.
It’s part of our commitment to build tires with smooth rides, great traction and durability.
Research includes drum tests that apply up to 40,000 pounds of load and tire–aging ozone to tires — while running the equivalent of a full tire life cycle. Lasers measure exacting tread and sidewall profiles in different rims and air pressures. And over–loaded driverless tractors run endless circles on various surfaces to check durability. A Load and Deflection test can apply up to 25 tons of vertical load and as much as 16,000 pounds of lateral load at the same time. Color graphics detail tread contact and tire footprints at various air inflation pressures.
And the “Mean Machine,” a 30–ton behemoth filled with electronic diagnostics, mimics the heaviest tillage tools in agriculture and can literally stop even the biggest tractors in their tracks.
Considering the years of testing and evaluating our own as well as competitive tires, the Firestone Farm Tire Test Center at Columbiana is unequalled as a resource for studying farm tire performance and productivity.
The Firestone brand is the most preferred farm tire brand in North America. And thanks to the Firestone Farm Tire Test Center, we are working to keep it that way.
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What’s on Your Mind? Questions from the Field
When it comes to farm tires, Wayne Birkenholz is the answer man. He’s the person on the other end of the telephone line when producers need information about their Firestone farm tires.
A senior field engineer, Birkenholz says the question he gets most often from producers is this: What should the inflation pressure be for my tractor tires?
“They are concerned about tire performance, especially heading into heavy use seasons like planting and harvest,” Birkenholz says of his callers. “And optimum performance means better traction, which improves both fuel and time efficiency.”
His answer to the No. 1 question is this: It depends.
“Inflation pressure recommendations are based on the weight of the load,” Birkenholz explains. “Changing implements can dramatically alter the load on a tire, and may require you to adjust pressure. So call your local Certified Firestone Farm Tire Dealer to get the recommended pressure for the particular operation. Another option is to check the load tables online at www.firestoneag.com, or click on the link to our Optimum Tire Inflation Guide: http://www.firestoneag.com/tireinflation.asp.”
To help you make sure you’re hitting the sweet spot in your tires’ pressure profile, Birkenholz offers four other tips:
- Check your tire pressure every week during working season, especially if you are running at the minimum inflation pressure needed to carry the actual axle load. It’s a procedure that only takes a few minutes, but will increase the efficiency of your tires and reduce your risk of tire failure.
- Resist the urge to judge inflation pressure by tire shape. Radials are supposed to bulge — that’s the way they’re designed. If you’re really concerned about the pressure, check it with a gauge.
- Check tires in the morning. Tire pressure changes with temperature, and inflation ratings are based on cold pressures. If you’re checking when it’s hot, remember the rule of thumb: for every 10 degree F change in temperature, pressure will be affected by one psi.
- Make sure you have a pressure gauge that’s rated for the range of your tires. Newer radial tires have low psi ratings, some as low as 8 psi. A gauge that’s rated for pressures from 10 to 100 psi may not be accurate at 8 psi.
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Firestone Farm Tire at the Farm Progress Show
If you have questions about the proper set up of your tractor, combine or other farm equipment tires, the 2009 Farm Progress Show in Decatur, Illinois, is the place to be.
A full staff of engineering, marketing and sales personnel for Firestone brand agricultural tires will join another 550 exhibitors at this version of the show, set for Tuesday–Thursday, September 1–3. More than 100,000 guests from all 50 states and around 40 other nations are expected to attend.
“Our team will be on hand to answer most technical questions about inflation pressures, tractor set–up, ballasting and other issues that affect traction and efficiency,” explains Joyce Bonish, Communications & Advertising Manager. “Visitors will be able to see first hand the difference between tires that are over– or under–inflated and those that have the proper pressures.”
The Firestone brand farm tire space also will feature a repeat appearance of the “River Rat” custom pulling competition tractor. Like 95 percent of its fellow competitors on the professional circuit, the powerful “Rat” features 23–degree Firestone Puller Tire radial rears.
First held in 1953, the Farm Progress Show is the largest outdoor farm show in the United States. More information about the show, including discounted advance–sale tickets, is available at the Web site: www.farmprogressshow.com.
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R–1 or R–1W? Correct Tire Choice Depends on Soil, Working Conditions
Drive tires on high–powered farm equipment such as tractors and combines carry a big load for American producers. The tires transfer the machinery’s horsepower to the ground to create motion. The right tires deliver all available traction with a minimum of slippage. That saves fuel and time, both precious commodities these days.
So it’s no surprise the discussion about farm tires sometimes focuses on lug depth, especially the difference between R–1 and R–1W tires.
“R–1W tires feature tread lugs that are about 25 percent deeper than those on R–1 tires,” explains Wayne Birkenholz, Senior Field Engineer with Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations Firestone brand farm tires. “The ‘W’ in the designation stands for ‘wet.’ That’s appropriate because R–1Ws were originally designed for northern Europe, where soils are older, heavier and more poorly drained than most North American soils. And European producers tend to use their tractors more like trucks, pulling loads at high speeds on pavement.”
Unlike Europe, most North American soils are firm and well drained. “The R–1 tire is designed to excel in these conditions,” Birkenholz says. “The tires have narrower lug spacing, which puts more biting edges in the tire’s footprint. This creates more traction and torque, and more pulling power for the tractor.”
Match the Tire to the Job
Firestone farm tires are built in a variety of tread designs and tread depths. R–1 tires do very well in normal North American farming conditions. However, R–1Ws can be more appropriate on tractors used in high–wear environments such as feedlots, or on machines that get greater than normal road use.”
For advice on selecting the appropriate tire for your particular operation, Birkenholz suggests a call to your local Certified Firestone Farm Tire Dealer. “Your local dealer is trained to help the customer choose the right tire for the equipment and the work it does,” he says. “Firestone tires come in more than 150 types, so there should be one that fits your needs exactly.”
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