I love winter and snow, but let's face it, this winter has been over the top! I am more than ready to start thinking ahead toward Spring. I'm certain that most of you are as well, so I'm going to take a few moments today to write about things that you should check on your lawn mower before cutting the grass.
- It's important that all small engines are serviced regularly, which for the average home owner means AT LEAST once a season. (Check your mower's owners manual for service interval details).
- Sharpen the blades. Your lawn will not only look better, but will remain healthier if you always cut with sharp lawn mower blades. That occassional rock, stick, or even heavy leaf debris can dull the blades considerably throughout the season. The best way to sharpen the blade/s is to remove them from the deck and sharpen with a hand grinder. (Make sure that you remove the spark plug wire or key from your mower before sticking your hand under the mower deck!)
- Greese all areas of your chasis and deck. The most frequent breakdown during mowing season is bearing replacements. This can be avoided in most cases if you keep them well lubricated.
- Clean or replace the air filter. Mowers are subject to a lot of dust throughout a season, so it is very important that your engine is able to pull adequate airflow through the filtration system. If the filter is plugged, the engine will be starved air and will run warmer than intended.
- Time to replace worn lawn tires. Check the sidewalls for cracking or otherwise known as weather checking. This is also a good time to assess the performance these lawn mower tires delivered during the last mowing season. Did you have problems making it up some hills when the grass was slightly damp? If so, you may want to consider a lug design tire that will offer a lot more traction, while still not being incredibly hard on turf.
- Battery maintenance. This is a great time to check the water levels in your lawn mower's battery. If the battery has been left outside during the winter, you may even need to replace it.
While you're watching this winter's snow melt, I hope you're able to perform all of these maintenance steps to keep your lawn mower in tip top shape!
The Lawn Tire Guy
A common questions that we receive is, "How do I know when to replace my boat trailer tires or my trailer tires?" The answer is usually not black and white, but I'll attempt to write about some common signs that you should look for before taking a long trip.
Most trailer tires need to be replaced long before the tread wears out. The sun's UV rays and winter weather, cause considerable cracking in the sidewalls on many trailer tires. If you see any type of tread separation, cords showing, or sidewall cracking, it is time to replace the tires before pulling the trailer.
A trailer tire blowout can cause considerable damage to the trailer, boat, nearby traffic, and could also cause trailer sway leading to the driver losing control. Don't expect to get the same type of mileage out of a set of trailer tires as you would with car or truck tires. Most experts will say that trailer tires will last 3 to 5 years and 5,000 to 15,000 miles depending on how the trailer has been stored, loads hauled and the weather elements the tires have been exposed to.
The following are some common trailer tire facts to consider when selecting replacement trailer tires in addition to caring for your tires once mounted.
- Always have identically sized tires on your trailer.
- If a tire fails on a tandem axle trailer, you need to replace both tires on that side since the other tire is likely has been compromised by the excess weight.
- The combined capacity of the trailer tires must be equal to or exceed the Gross Vehicle Weight of the axle.
- The combined capacity of all the tires should exceed the loaded trailer weight by 20%.
- ST trailer tires have a maximum speed rating of 65 MPH.
- The heavier the load and the faster the trailer travels, the greater heat that will build up within each trailer tire.
- As heat builds up, the tire's structure starts to weaken.
- Under inflation is the #1 cause to trailer tire degradation. Always inflate your trailer tires to the maximum inflation listed on the tire's sidewall.
- Check the tires inflation when cool and haven't been exposed to the sun. Temperature will change the tire's air pressure. See you didn't think that PV=nRT formula you used in Science class would ever be used again.....wrong!
- The ideal storage for trailer tires is in a cool, dark garage at maximum air pressure listed on the tire's sidewall.
- Use tire covers when ever possible if the trailer is left outside. This helps protect against direct sunlight.
- For long term storage, put the trailer on blocks to take the weight off the tires.
We certainly hope that this Trailer Tire information has been helpful to you. For replacement tire information, check out our great selection of trailer tires at www.SmallTires.com
So what's the difference between Bias and Radial ATV tires anyway? This is a common question that we receive from customers each day, so I thought I'd write a quick blog post in an effort to help more consumers wondering the same thing.
The main difference is within the actual construction of the tire. The carcass of all tires is made up of layers of rubber fabric or plies. The most common fabric used is polyester. The direction these plies are "laid" in relation to each other, differentiates between a bias ATV Tire and a radial ATV tire. The plies on a bias tire run 45 degrees to the center lin of the tread, alternating in direction with each layer. The net effect of this, is rubber plies running in 90 degree angles to each other.
The plies on a radial ATV tire, run 90 degrees to the center line of the tire and overlap instead of crisscrossing. This design allows the side walls of ATV tires to be more flexible, longer tread life, better steering control, and a better ride across the field.
So which ATV tires are best? It really depends on what you intend to use your ATV for. For pure off-road use, bias tires are probably the best choice. Bias offers better cleaning characteristics, keeping the tire from "balling-up" with mud in those extreme conditions. Bias ATV tires also tend to have softer rubber, allowing for better grip in off-road terrain.
Bias tires also have some disadvantages. They tend not to handle as good at high rates of speed due to their greater flexing. These tires also tend to wear faster.
Radial ATV tires should be considered when used on Quads in both on and off-road settings at high rates of speed. These tires handle better at fast speeds, and tend to allow for better steering as well.
Who makes the best Radial ATV tires? There are several great manufacturers out there. We tend to sell more Carlisle ATV tires than any other brand right now. Carlisle makes the A.C.T. ATV tire in radial design in addition to the Badlands A/R ATV tire. Again, I'm not saying these are the best on the market, but quite simply we sell these 2 radials the most.
For more information, visit our on-line store at http://smalltires.com
Until next time, The ATV Tire Guy is going to hit the trails!! Have fun, be safe, and enjoy riding your ATV!
